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Posts Tagged ‘toddlers’

Car Seats And Older Children

By admin On October 15, 2009 No Comments

When your child’s weight exceeds 40 lbs you should check if the car seat that you are using is safe for the child. It is possible that your child’s weight exceeds the manufacturer’s maximum specification. It is also possible that your child’s height is higher than that of the seat. In either event you will have to consider changing the car seat.

The safety and well being of your children is something with which you cannot compromise. From the day you bought the baby home until the age of 13, you will require either a car seat or a booster seat to make sure that your child’s ride is safe. It is not surprising that use of car seats is mandatory in every state today.

When selecting a car seat, make sure that the model is not recalled. In order to do so you can visit the manufacturer’s website and look up the list of recalled models. If at all you have to buy a second hand car seat make sure you do not buy one that is older than five years. Never buy a car seat that has been in an accident. It is pretty tough to ascertain if a second hand car seat has been in an accident. So, play safe and buy a new car seat.

Always read the installation instructions carefully before attempting to install the car seat. Try to understand and create a mental picture of how you are going to install the car seat, before actually beginning to install.

Children within the age group of 8 to 12 may be able to use a booster seat. You may not have to buy a new car seat for them. However it is recommended that you use a car seat for them as long as their body weight and height is within the car seat’s specifications. In order to delay moving them to a booster seat, buy a car seat that has a high upper limit on permissible body weight and height.

Check out the Britax Regent youth car seat meant for older children. It installs very easily, has a five point harness and is good for children up to a maximum height of 53 “.

Child safety is an issue that is of utmost importance to parents. Parents will not mind spending a little extra on a car seat that promises them greater safety and reliability.

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How To make Your House Safer For Children

By admin On October 5, 2009 No Comments

As a baby starts to crawl and then walk they become more independent and can move around the house by themselves.  For babies and young children, the home can be a dangerous place as they might face corners, hot surfaces and bad chemicals on a number of occasions throughout the day. The Child Accident Prevention Trust estimated that approximately one million children are injured at home every year with burns, cuts and poisoning being the most common ailments. It is a parent’s responsibility to make the home as safe as possible, reducing the chance of accidents happening. The advice below is intended to make any house safer for a crawling, waddling or walking child.

Babies and toddlers are keen explorers and they like to discover every part of their home by crawling through the different rooms. This means that they move through doorways several times a day. Door edge protectors will not only protect the door from everyday damage, but will also eliminate the possibility for your child to be grazed or cut by splinters and sharp corners. You can also fix a door stop onto the doors so that little fingers and toes can’t get trapped in them.

Burns are a common injury among children as mentioned previously. The bedroom and kitchen are the most common places that burns occur. The oven is a burner, so keep your child away from the oven door and only use the back rings on the hob so that they cannot reach them. Hair straightening appliances should be kept out of the reach of children until they have cooled down completely. Never let a child near a naked flame and use a fire guard on all types of fires.

Children put anything in their mouths without knowing if it is good or bad for them. This is a disaster when it comes to inedible bits and pieces under the sofa and medicines left lying around. Keep anything that you would not want your child to digest in high cupboards or in a cabinet with a childproof lock attached. Even some things that we may not think could harm us, may damage a child because of their underdeveloped immune system, so don’t take any risks.

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Baby Talk To Talking Baby

By admin On September 29, 2009 No Comments

The uttering of the baby is what is called babbling, baby talk or twaddling. It looks as though that the babies make these sounds so as to prepare themselves to utter the sounds used for acquiring the language. However, they are not able to utter words that can be recognized. In the first year the larynx descends which allows the pharynx to develop to utter all the sounds that would be required to make up the speech. The baby begins to make noise when 5 to 7 months old. It is only when the infant is a year old that this baby talk transforms to recognizable words. Syllables are repeated by the baby. This is called reduplicative babbling. The baby begins to babble with a mix of syllables. This is called variegated babbling. Children usually babble much more when calm as compared to when they are excited or upset. The babies prepare themselves to speak the language with the basic sounds. Babbling is an innate response of babies as can be deduced by the fact that the deaf babies too.

From birth to about 4 months the babies coos and gurgles. When the baby is 4 to 6 months old, it starts babbling. This babbling continues to when the baby is a year or so old. Meaningful sound and words starts emerging between the age of 12 and18 months. Between 18 and 24 months the toddlers starts repeating words. Meaningful words begin to form then with the babbling. About 50 words or so is the vocabulary of the baby. But they are able to understand many more words than they are able to utter. Short sentence begin to form. But then they may not be able to use the words correctly. The progression of the baby is from crying to cooing and then progressing to vocal play. Canonical babbling follows which later becomes conversational babbling.

An effective means of communication that the babies use is the sign language. Babies often do not find the appropriate sound which gives them frustration. This can be avoided if they are also taught the sign language so that they can express themselves. Priscilla Dunstan proposed that universally there were only five words that babies use and each of them have a distinct meaning. She then released The Dunston Baby Language DVD in 2006 which teaches how these sounds can be recognized.

It will help the babies to develop if the babbling of the babies is responded by adults with babbling. Adding some simple adult speech to this will help the baby in developing vocabulary. The baby’s cognitive development too benefits. In the end anyway the baby will be able to speak the local language.

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Fine motor skills and your toddler

By admin On September 12, 2009 No Comments

Parents and caregivers of toddlers have no doubt heard the term ‘fine motor skills’ as it is often bandied about when talk turns to child development and preschool goals. Fine motor skills entail the small muscles of the body that allow such functions as writing, grasping small objects and fastening clothing. Fine motor skills involve strength, fine motor control and dexterity.

Fine motor skills, are skills that involve a refined use of the small muscles controlling the hand, fingers and thumb. The development of these skills allow a person – at any age – to be able to complete tasks such as writing, drawing and buttoning.

The preschool attainment goals that are expected of children include their ability to hold pencils and markers with a mature grip, the child’s ability to draw recognizable shapes and objects and a child’s capability to cut out shapes while turning the paper as necessary. Fine motor skills are important in most school activities as well as in life in general.

Limitations in fine motor skills can impinge on a child’s ability to eat, write legibly, use a computer, turn pages in a book and perform personal care tasks such as dressing and grooming.

As children improve their motor skills, they are much better able to help themselves by completing daily activities independently. For instance, children between the ages of 2 and 3 are able to put on and take off simple articles of clothing. They are able to ‘operate’ clothing with zippers, use spoons, string together beads with large holes and open doors that have doorknobs. When children are between the ages of 3 and 4, they are able to dress in clothing with larger buttons, use scissors to cut paper and can copy simple lined shapes using a pencil. By the ages of 4 to 5, children are able to dress and undress themselves without assistance. They are also able to manipulate a fork and have increased their dexterity to cut around shapes with a pair of scissors. Finally, by the grand age of 6, a child is able to cut soft foods with a knife and can tie his or her shoe laces.

Because all children develop at their own rate, the ages given are not an exact timeline because every child will acquire their fine-motor skills in a different timetable – however there is much you can do to support a toddler’s acquisition of fine motor skills. In fact, the more your preschool child uses his or her fingers in activities that help to strengthen their hand coordination, the sooner they will master dexterity.

Develop fine motor skills by drawing and coloring with your child using markers, pencils, crayons and even pavement chalk. Drawings need not be perfect – scribbling is great fun – and coloring pages of a favourite TV or movie character should encourage even the most reluctant colorer to literally try his or her  hand at coloring. At sites like Spongebob Coloring Pages you’ll find the best Spongebob coloring images while little girls would perhaps enjoy the coloring sheets at Fairy Coloring Pages.

Despite parents’ best efforts however, sometimes children need some assistance when developing their fine motor skills. This requires caregivers to find diverse methods in order to assist children with their development. Occupational therapists are experts in the field of fine motor and handwriting development, therefore, if you think that there may be an issue with the fine motor development of your child, you should ask for an evaluation by a licensed occupational therapist.

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Close And Cozy, The Baby Is Take Care Of

By admin On September 9, 2009 No Comments

Baby slings are the traditional baby carrier found all over the world. It is a piece of cloth that ties the baby to the body of the person taking care of the baby. Ring slings consist of a metal along with a length of cloth. The metal could be aluminum. The cloth is sewn to two rings. The end is threaded through the rings. The wearer then puts an arm and head through the loop of the cloth. The baby is carried in the pocket formed by the cloth. The ring slings can be used to carry infants and toddlers. Then there are the pouch slings which do not have the rings but simply the cloth. The cloth forms a pouch sewn into shape. Sometimes rings, clips, buckles, snaps and zippers are used to adjust the size of the pouch. The pouch is slipped over a shoulder and the head to create the seat for the child.

Wraps or wraparounds or wraparound slings are longer fabric that are wrapped around the baby and the wearer and tied. The baby or the toddler is carried on the hip, back or front of the wearer. The wrap is of two types namely woven and stretchy. The stretchy wrap is made of knits as interlock or jersey. It is easy to carry the baby and is therefore popular. The woven wrap is made of woven natural fabric and comes in variety of materials, patterns and colors. Cotton is the most preferred though wool, silk, linen and hemp are also used. A piece of cloth also can be made into sling wrapping around the baby carer and the baby. There is the Chinese mei tai which is almost square piece of cloth with parallel unpadded straps at the corner. There is similarly the Korean podaegi which is a large rectangular fabric with a very long strap. There are variants of this such as Chinese bei beis, Hmong carriers, the Japanese onbuhimo, the parka or amauti of the Inuits and in almost all cultures across the world.

Strollers which are like seats on wheels have become a popular baby carriage. There are a number of brands of strollers in the market such as Kolcraft Strollers, Chicco Trevi Strollers, Schwinn Strollers, Graco Strollers, Maclaren Strollers, Rock Star baby strollers, Stokke Strollers and Inglesina Strollers. If you want to get to know what users have to say about Chicco Trevi Stroller, then check out the Chicco Trevi Stroller review.

Strollers or the baby slings, these form part of baby care. The baby can be carried wherever the carer wants to go, be it work or travel.

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