Two and a Half Years Old

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Please remember that every child grows and develops at his own rate and that no two children are exactly alike at a given age.

Motor Development

• The toddler is able to walk on tip toes, jump with both feet and will try to stand on one foot, if asked.
• Climbing ability has been mastered and is a favorite past-time of the 2 1/2 year old.
• Toddler’s walking has been perfected to the point where he is now able to speed up, slow down, start and stop suddenly, turn corners and step over low obstacles.
• Toddler can throw a ball (overhand), kick a ball and catch a large ball using his arms and body to trap it.

Fine Motor Development

• Toddler continues to do all that he did at 2 years of age, but with more refinement of his finger motions. Example -- You will notice that toddler now moves his wrist when he paints or colors instead of using whole arm movements. He is also able to turn irregularly shaped puzzle pieces into their appropriate places by manipulating them until they fit.
• He is able to build a tower of 8 or more blocks.
• Handedness may be established by this time, however, toddler may shift objects from hand to hand.

Language Development

• Toddler’s vocabulary has grown by leaps and bounds and he gives and requests information quite freely.
• At 2 1/2 years old, your child may be able to give his full name and he will begin to refer to himself as “Me” or “I.”
• Toddler likes to boast and brag about his accomplishments (“I can take off my own coat!”).
• Toddler’s verbalization may accompany his solitary play (talking to his toys as he plays with them).
• Toddler now has the ability to refuse parental suggestions or ideas (independence).
• Language refusals of the 2 1/2 year old may consist of a simple “NO,” refusing to say anything at all, or responding with something totally unrelated. Example -- Parent says “It’s time for bed,” and the toddler replies “I can ride my bike outside.”) Toddler is learning to change the subject to distract the parents.
• “NO” is quite a popular word at this age. You can avoid toddler using it by making statements that don’t allow for his negative response. (“It’s time to ...” or “You need to ...”)
• In play, toddler’s conversation is directed to other children rather than to adults present, however, toddler has more interest in what he has to say to other children than what they have to say to him. True back and forth conversation at this age is quite limited.

Social Development

• 2 1/2 years is an age of tension outlets. You may notice increased thumb sucking or stuttering that may appear temporarily.
• Toddler may begin to demand “I need,” “I want,” or “Me do it.” The world is still so big to the toddler and being bossy or demanding is toddler’s way of commanding a small part of his environment.
• Toddler now has a demand for sameness, and rituals become a very important part of toddler’s daily life. These rituals help him to avoid the conflict of making decisions, as he is unable to do so at this age. As soon as he chooses “the red one,” he immediately changes his mind and wants “the blue one.” This is frustrating to parents, but keep in mind that it is the toddler’s way of exploring his options.
• Conflicts between the 2 1/2 year old and his parents may become quite extreme. It’s a good idea to get a sitter at times to give both you and your toddler a break from each other!
• 2 1/2 is an aggressive age. Hitting, slapping, screaming and pushing now become evident in your child’s behavior. Toddler finds it hard to share and take turns. Group play at this age requires close supervision.
• The 2 1/2 year old is beyond parallel play and likes to interact with other children, however he still does not engage in true cooperative play. His need to protect and dominate many of his toys gets in the way of cooperative play and “mine” is a key word to him. The dominant drive at 2 1/2 tends to be the effort to try (either verbally or physically) to keep others away from his things.
• Much of the time a 2 1/2 year old is a fun companion. Everything is new to him and it’s so much fun to show him new things, tell him new facts, share simple conversations and observe how he can manipulate his way toward getting things he wants. You can almost “see” him think!
• When all is going well, your 2 1/2 year old is a delight to have around! He is very appreciative and loving. A 2 1/2 year old loves to act like a baby and hear about when he was a baby.
• As 2 1/2 approaches 3 years old, he may seem to tire easily and expresses his fatigue by whining more than he used to do.

Learning

• Time is event-related (supper when daddy comes home), but by 2 1/2 years old your child will use additional time words or phrases (“almost,” “in a minute”). He freely uses words that imply the past (“yesterday”), present (“now”) and future (“almost,” “tomorrow,” “in a minute”).
• Sense of space has become more exact and the 2 1/2 year old uses words to tell the exact location of something (“on,” “in,” “under,” “behind,” “right here,” “right there,” etc.).
• Sense of number is conveyed by the use of certain words (“more,” “big,” “little,” “too much,” etc.). The 2 1/2 year old may not yet, when asked, be able to tell which of 2 things is bigger.
• Sense of humor of the 2 1/2 year old is expressed by:
  1. Incongruity -- the child takes delight in relating opposite or unrelated events (putting a cracker into his ear instead of his mouth, or talking about wearing pajamas outside).
  2. Teasing -- usually by snatching another child’s toy.
  3. Accidents -- pretends to fall down, or bumps his bike into another child’s bike - all followed by laughter.
  4. Silly behavior
  5. Imagination
  6. The unexpected -- the 2 1/2 year old delights in surprises especially when the surprise is unexpected.
  7. Pretense -- finds humor in pretending to cry.
  8. Verbal humor -- likes to mispronounce words because it sounds funny. Also enjoys silliness and clowning by adults and being asked silly questions.
• Toddler is able to feed self. He uses a spoon quite well and is beginning to master a fork. He is able to hold a cup with 1 hand, pick it up, drink and put it down again (making many a parent nervous).
• Don’t expect 3 good meals a day from your 2 1/2 year old. Be satisfied with 1 hearty meal. At this age, refusals and preferences for foods may be quite strong. Food jags (request for peanut butter every day) run out faster if accepted, rather than fought.
• Bath time is still a favorite -- Toddler now likes to use the cloth to try to wash himself.
• Toddler is still better at undressing rather than dressing. He will attempt to put on simple garments. The 2 1/2 year old is especially fond of his shoes, hat, and mittens.
• The average amount of night sleep is 10-11 hours and toddler sleeps reasonably soundly. Naps may begin to be refused. You may suggest a quiet time of 1-2 hours instead, where toddler is allowed to read in his bed.

Age Appropriate Toys

• Books continue to be a favorite and now your toddler loves stories and rhymes. Toddler seems to know familiar stories word for word and won’t settle for edited versions of his favorite. He may even supply the endings of sentences or predict what will happen when the page is turned.
• Crayon, finger paints, clay, blackboard and chalk
• Blocks, Legos
• Dress-up clothes, housekeeping materials, dolls for pretend play
• Puzzles with big pieces, toys that come apart to be put together again
• The 2 1/2 year old is captivated by TV -- be selective with both the kinds of programs viewed and the amount of time spent viewing.

Safety

• The 2 1/2 year old needs close supervision as his motor development is so far ahead of his judgment that he may climb to places from which he can’t get down or hurt himself when he jumps.

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