One of the most common mistakes of the adult is to not understand the developmental stages a child will go through. While we are have gone through the stages we have varying degrees of knowledge regarding the developmental stages, after all we can’t remember everything right? So it is important to have books, take classes, and watch programs that are designed to teach the development of a child. I don’t claim to be an expert in the field, but I have studied psychology and those who raised me were very active in my life as well as helping me to understand my own development. In any child’s life it is important to have the support a child needs. As a child grows they are going to be figuring out their identity, striving for independence, and of course their bodies will change. If these changes are ignored by the parent it can have a great affect on the child. Of course the personality of the child will determine some of the parenting in the later years.
Let’s look at development for a little while. Your baby is going to be extremely malleable to what is going on around him or her. In other words while they may not be able to communicate they are observing, learning, and picking up on the nuances of life. They will be able to learn when you are angry, upset, or happy in just a few months. In fact these feelings can be transferred onto them. When they see you are feeling unwell they will often be a little fussier because they don’t understand your feelings, but they do interpret them. Part of developmental understanding for parents is understanding, what a child is going through. Growth spurts for babies can be painful, their bodies are going to be unbalanced and this means they often need the comfort a parent can offer.
As the child grows older there will be other stages of development. For instance at nine months most babies are going to be crawling and starting to walk. While walking is still going to be difficult and require some help, most babies that have been worked with are going to have strong enough muscles to enjoy freedom. It is important that as your baby begins to get older you are working on their muscles in their legs and arms so that they have the strength to support themselves.
Then of course there is the development into speaking and being able to communicate. You can start this development early. Did you know a child that is taught sign language at two months and the training is continued to six months that they will be able to communicate this way, even when they are not able to yet talk? Studies have shown that the children who are taught early will succeed better in school. Talking around a baby, signing, and of course working with the child as they begin to make sounds is all going to help in their development and help you in parenting your child successfully.