You and Your Child at 4-24 Months

The 4-24 month period is one of the most exciting and milestone-rich in human life. From being a near-newborn at 4 months to being a tyrannical toddler at two, it really does encompass so much joy and so many challenges that you will inevitably have innumerable questions along the way.

My BabyManual is packed full of resources to help parents negotiate every question and challenge they face as their children grow and develop – from pregnancy, birth and the postnatal period all the way up to age 3. With expert articles written by GPs, midwives, obstetricians, paediatricians, nutritionists, and more, My BabyManual can act as your trusted baby and child guide throughout months 4 to 24.

Here are just some of the milestones you will experience (although bear in mind this is a general guide only and that different children will develop at different rates):

• Months 4-6: Reaches for objects and “babbles”; develops facial expressions and full vision, rolls over and perhaps even sits without support.
• Months 7-9: Imitates speech, crawls and maybe even stands while supported; says “Dada” and “Mama”; points at objects; uses the pincer grip and maybe even combines syllables to create speech-like sounds.
• Months 10-12: Waves hello and goodbye; stands unassisted and responds to commands; begins to imitate you; has a three or four-word vocabulary; maybe even bends from standing to retrieve objects from the floor.
• Months 13-18: Uses two words in tandem; toddles about and can feed herself with her fingers; walks backwards; draws a line onto paper; displays temper when not getting her own way; speaks occasional multi-word sentences.
• >Months 19 to 24: Runs, tentatively (but not without accidents); throws a ball underarm; walks upstairs; tries to help around the house; puts on and takes off her own clothing; has a vocabulary of around 50 words; begins to organise and “curate” toys and other objects.