American Medical Association Family Medical Guide - American Medical Association [160]
Most children begin crawling by about 9 months if they have been given enough “tummy time” on the floor. In addition to exercising a number of muscle groups, crawling gives a child the opportunity to explore. Always supervise your child when he or she is crawling.
Reading to your child
Reading aloud to your child is a simple and effective way to stimulate the development of his or her brain for learning language and other mental skills. In addition, reading to infants and very young children helps calm, comfort, and entertain them. It also helps them develop their eye muscles. Take time to read to your child every day, and make the experience special and fun.
At 24 months a child usually:
• Knows several hundred words
• Speaks in two- to three-word phrases
• Points to body parts when asked
• Runs and jumps
• Walks backward
• Goes down stairs
• Throws and kicks a ball
• Feeds self with a fork and a spoon
• Drinks from a straw
• Undresses self
• Opens doors, drawers, and boxes
Measuring Your Child’s Growth
A child’s growth rate is a good indicator of his or her general health. To monitor a child’s growth at each visit, a doctor measures and records his or her height and weight and head circumference (if the child is under 2) and compares these measurements with those taken during previous visits. This helps the doctor determine if the child is growing at a healthy rate.
The doctor also compares your child’s measurements against the average length and weight ranges for children the same age. Growth rates vary considerably among children and, as long as your child is growing at a steady rate, there usually is no cause for concern.
Opening doors
Two-year-olds like to explore and are eager to learn new skills, such as opening doors. To help keep your child safe, install childproof locks on any doors that you don’t want him or her to open.
Your Child’s Teeth
At about 6 months of age, a child’s primary (baby) teeth begin to come in. In most cases, a child has a full set of primary teeth by the time he or she is 2 years old. A baby’s first teeth, the incisors, usually appear during the first year and seldom cause problems. The baby may be irritable, cry more than usual, and have difficulty sleeping. Gums may be red and swollen, and the baby may drool more than usual and gnaw on his or her fingers. You may be able to see the teeth coming through the gums. Your baby’s feeding, sleeping, and bowel habits may change, but he or she usually has very little pain.
The first and second molars, which usually appear between ages 1 and 3, are much more likely to cause discomfort. Gums may be tender, making eating painful, and the cheek on the affected side of the mouth may feel hot and look flushed. To help relieve your child’s discomfort, rub his or her gums gently, give the child a cool drink from a cup, or give him or her a teething ring, teething biscuit, or bagel to chew. To relieve pain, give the child acetaminophen or ibuprofen (not aspirin), or rub his or her gums with an over-the-counter, pain-relieving dental cream or gel for children.
In some cases, a disease or disorder in a child may be overlooked because parents attribute the symptoms to teething. For example, clutching one side of the face may be a sign of an ear infection (see page 417) rather than teething-related discomfort. Therefore, you should talk to your doctor if your child of teething age shows any signs of distress.
The Teeth
The ages at which both baby teeth and permanent teeth appear vary from one child to another. Some children have one tooth or more at birth; others may have no teeth at 1 year. The ages listed here are averages, are intended for comparison purposes only, and do not reflect a child’s general health or development.
Full set of baby teeth: 20
Ages When Baby Teeth Come In
Age Baby Teeth
6 months First incisors
7 months Second incisors
12 months First molars
18 months Canines
2-3 years Second molars
Full set of permanent teeth: 32
Ages When Permanent Teeth