Speech and Language Development Milestones: Children 0-4 years

Babies, toddlers and children all go through various stages when it comes to learning language  and vary in their development of speech and language skills. However, they follow a natural progression or timetable for mastering the skills of language. 

A checklist of milestones for the normal development of speech and language skills in children from birth to 4 years of age is included below. We definitely haven’t covered everything here, but this should give you a general idea about the stages infants, toddlers and children go through with regards to language development up to the age of 4.  

ADHD: Top 9 Common Misconceptions You Didn’t Know

ADHD has become one of the most commonly diagnosed mental disorders of the modern day, but there are still a ton of misconceptions circulating about this particular condition. To fill you in on everything you need to know about the truth on ADHD, we are here to debunk any of the myths you may have heard. All you have to do is keep reading!

Tourette's: What is it?

Honor Whiteman  

What do you know about Tourette's Syndrome? That it causes involuntary swearing? While this is true in some cases, there is so much more to the neurological condition than most people realize. 

Prenatal Exposure to Household Chemicals Hurts Kids’ Cognitive and Behavioral Development

Liam Davenport

Exposure to common household chemicals such as those found in nonstick cooking pans, upholstery, carpet pads, and electronics during pregnancy may lead to poorer cognitive and behavioral development during childhood, new research shows.

How to Become More Effective Parents

by Gavin Bollard -

As new parents, we mostly start out with a fairly positive parenting style. Everybody knows that babies cry a lot, so we’re more or less prepared for the initial onslaught. When it threatens to overtake us, there’s often someone willing to help out, after all, babies are cute.

As time goes on, and the crying continues and the nappies get larger, it gets harder and harder to get support. It’s hardly surprising that so many couples break up when their kids are in the “terrible two’s”.  It’s a very hard time for the whole family.

Big Discipline Mistakes Parents Make and How to Fix Them

You know the drill: You give your child an ultimatum—"Get dressed or we're staying home!"—and naturally she says, "Okay, we'll stay home!" Might as well plant a big "L" on your forehead. We all see our discipline efforts backfire on occasion (hey, you're tired!), and of course there are those battles just not worth fighting (no kid ever flunked preschool because his teeth were furry). But you do need to prove you're the parent at least some of the time. Learning to avoid these discipline land mines can help you hop to it.

Secondhand smoke puts kids at 3 times the risk of developing ADHD

Children exposed to tobacco smoke at home are up to three times more likely to have attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) as unexposed kids, according to a new study from Spain.

New research suggests that young kids growing up in a tobacco smokey home are three times more likely to develop attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) than those who aren’t, and the link is stronger in those who have more than a couple of hours exposure each day. 

"We showed a significant and substantial dose-response association between (secondhand smoke) exposure in the home and a higher frequency of global mental problems," the team concludes in the journal Tobacco Control.

6 Signs of Speech Delay In Your Toddler

Sudeshna GuhaSarkar

 

Every parent waits eagerly for their toddler’s first word. Not only is it cute, but it also gives your baby an ability to express his or her wants and needs. This is probably the best moment of any parent’s life, to hear their toddler speak for the first time.

While this is common, it is also true that there are many toddlers who face speech delay. If your toddler is still waiting to speak the first word, don’t panic yet.

Discipline Strategies – Helping Boys With Their Temper

How We Are Helping Our Beloved 8 Year Old Boy With His Temper.

I have often joked to friends that our second child was born so that we would realise this parenting thing is tricky. Our (now 11 year old) daughter, apart from some early sleeping issues, has been a dream and now that we are heading into the teens with her I do wonder what she’s got in store! Our son is a delight in his own way however, whilst we are often complimented on his behaviour outside the home, at home his stubbornness and the way he deals with anger leave some considerable room for improvement. Lately we have yet again ‘re-tweaked’ our methodology and have had some good results. This is what works for us and our gorgeous boy:

3 Easy Steps to Help us Raise Happy Kids

We all strive to ensure we raise happy kids... New research suggests that if a child's parents (that's you!) are happy, if his classmates are cheery, if his neighborhood pals are smiley, then he's more likely to be sunny, too. Here are three easy steps to help us along the way to keep our child in the happy-go-lucky loop:

Not all children can learn in the same way: Kids with ADHD need to move in order to learn

Children with attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) are always being told to sit still and concentrate, but new research has revealed that they actually need to move in order to learn. Forcing them to stay still is counterproductive.

In fact, small movements such as fidgeting, squirming, leg-swinging, foot-tapping and chair-scuffling may be vital to remembering information and working out complex tasks. The new research contradicts the long-term guidelines for how to deal with children with ADHD, and suggests that incorporating things such as activity balls or treadmill desks to the classroom could help certain students perform better.

Things You Should Never Do During a Toddler Tantrum

Two words that strike fear in the hearts of moms everywhere: Toddler tantrum. They always seem to happen in the worst of places at the worst of times. The good news, however, is that you can actually foresee a tantrum coming and try to head it off before it happens. "One of the best things you can do is to think ahead and see if you can figure out what sets your child off," says Tovah Klein, PhD, and author of How Toddlers Thrive. "If you know some aspects that increase the chances of a tantrum, such as missing a nap or being hungry, try to prepare ahead to avoid them."