[Stormster]

How old is your toddler?
Boy or girl?
Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?

Thanks for answering these simply so I can "compare" but really just out of curiosity, not so much concern. Maybe a tiny bit in certain areas like concentration. Thank you so much!

[Withay]

How old is your toddler?
29 mo
26 mo
Boy or girl?
Boy
Boy

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table?
Sometimes

If so in a highchair or booster seat?
Highchair

If not, does he eat his meals alone?
Never

With sibs?
Yes, with family

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
Sign language DVD on all day, but do not sit and watch, just on in background (both boys - 1 deaf)

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
Sometimes, 2 - 3 minutes
Sometimes, 3 - 5 minutes

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
Depends on activity, looking at books is about 10 minutes alone, but not with you. Other activities like balls = 2 - 3 minutes
Balls = 5 - 7 minutes, climbing = 10 minutes

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Not very verbal (deaf), but does sign, expressive = 10 words and about 30 signs. Tries to speak and I can understand about 10%
Getting more verbal, expressive = 30 words & approx 35 signs

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?
still working on 1 step instructions, loves Row, Row, Row Your Boat and rolling ball to brother
Can follow 1 step and simple 2 step instructions, loves playing catch (can catch at 3 feet distance)

[cborsa7]

How old is your toddler?
Boy or girl?
Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?

1. 2
2. Boy
3. We eat as a family but he will not use a booster or high chair. My husband always wanted to hold him when he was younger, so now he won't sit with either. He prefers to stand if we would let him. We now have a child's picnic table he uses at home. If we eat out we get a booth to accomadate him.
4. I allow only the noggin channel and it is usually on when we are home, maybe a few hours a day. I would limit the TV if he was a sit and watch child though. He plays while watching and I have noticed a vocabulary increase since keeping this channel on. My other (older) children rarely watch TV.
5. Yes, will sit still for books. We read nightly for 1/2 before bed. He also likes to sit and "read" on his own.
6. Concentrating, that's a hard one to answer because it depends on the activity and the day.
7. Yes, very verbal with some things and still babbles quite bit with others. He is also about 50/50 English/Spanish.
8. No problems following directions, if he wants to. I don't think it is a matter of not knowing the directions given, he seems to cooperate with any direction most of the time.

[Whirled_Peas]

How old is your toddler?
My son is now 3.5, but I can answer about when he was younger.

Boy or girl?
boy

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
We always ate dinner as a family. He had a highchair that would push up to the table. He ate in that until he just started sitting in our regular chairs. He would usually eat most of his meal then get up to play around the table then come back for more food. As he's gotten older, he gets up from the table less though he usually ends up sitting in my lap and sharing my food. (If he's not thrilled with the dinner, he eats more off my plate than off his own.)

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
Until he was 2, he watched no TV (bad for brain development.) At 2 we started renting documentaries and letting him watch a couple times a month. At 3 we wanted to avoid the lure of forbidden fruits so bought him a bug documentary that he could watch whenever he wanted. Usually a couple times a week. We have now expanded to a construction series of dvds and Sesame Streets 25th Anniversary. He is limited to an hour a day. Sometimes he goes days without asking for a movie. He does not know that tv channels exist. At my parents house he can watch blues clues movies. 2 episodes a day then no more tv.

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
He has always been a voracious reader. Even as a toddler he would read to himself for long periods of time. We usually read to him several picture books in a row.

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
He's always had long concentration. If helping my husband fix something, he could help him for an hour or two if it was really interesting.

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
At 9 months we put him into speech therapy because he made almost no noises. He was caught up by 12 months. At 25 months he said clearly, "Do you see me standing on the sandbox?" At 27 months he said, "These flowers smell like pollination."

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?
We never played a whole lot of gross motor games with him when he was younger.

[Stormster]

Guys sorry will you let me know how many months your baby is if he or she is 2?

[Stormster]

oh and btw here are mine ()

How old is your toddler?
24 MONTHS THIS WEEK

Boy or girl?
BOY

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?

EATS BREAKFAST AND LUNCH IN HIGHCHAIR BUT DINNER AT TABLE WITH US NO SIBS

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.

PROBABLY 1 HOUR ON A GOOD DAY (GOOD WEATHER) 3 HOURS ON A BAD DAY AVERAGE MAYBE 2 HOURS.

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?

RARELY FOR ME, OCCASIONALLY FOR DH, MAYBE 5-7 MINUTES LIKES TO CONTROL THE PAGES OR RUNS AROUND

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)

UNDER A MINUTE FOR MOST THINGS

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?

IN EI FOR SPEECH, ENJOYS IMITATING OR NAMING THINGS BUT NOT EXPRESSIVE, USES WORD "more" CONSTANTLY (FOR AGAIN, I WANT, HELP ME, ETC)

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?

NO! LIKES TO EITHER IGNORE US OR FIGURE THINGS OUT FOR HIMSELF IT'S VERY DIFFICULT. STARTS OT THIS WEEK.

[jalapeno]

How old is your toddler?
26 months
22 months

Boy or girl?
boy
boy

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
We all eat together at the table. No boosters at home but occasionally boosters at restaurants.

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
60 to 90 minutes for all the kids. Only videos. Sometimes a movie and sometimes episodes of Blues Clues, Baby Einstein, or Dora

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
We typically read for 30 minutes or so at bedtime and books here and there throughout the day. Both boys are allowed to come and go while I'm reading. They both CAN sit still for 2 or 3 books (15 min) but don't always do that.

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
I would say mostly 2 to 3 minutes. As long as 10 minutes if he's engaged.
2 to 3 minutes for most activities. Upwards of 30 minutes if he's engaged (i.e. playing with legos!)

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Has just become a lot more verbal in the past month or so. Still quite garbled in his speech although I can pick up on a fair amount. He uses other methods of communication (i.e. pointing) extensively.
Unusually articulate. Speaking well for many months.

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?
Neither can do hide and seek and my DD has really been trying to teach them. They will do the hand/dance motions to a variety of songs (i.e. Itsy Bitsy Spider). Will both follow simple instructions to clap hands or jump for example. They love chasing games and will copy each other in jumping off of things.

My experience is that there is an incredible amount of difference between my two boys in all developmental areas. Facinating really.


Thanks for answering these simply so I can "compare" but really just out of curiosity, not so much concern. Maybe a tiny bit in certain areas like concentration. Thank you so much![/quote]

[shy_bear]

Originally Posted by Stormster

How old is your toddler?
Boy or girl?
Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?

Thanks for answering these simply so I can "compare" but really just out of curiosity, not so much concern. Maybe a tiny bit in certain areas like concentration. Thank you so much!

My son is 25mths tomorrow!
We eat dinner as a family at the table; he sits in a booster seat.
He watches about 2 hrs of tv a day; that is +/-, b/c we have a dvd player in the van and when we get in he has to have it on!
He will sit and look at books on his own for quite awhile; he also likes to be read to.
He is up to about 16 words that he uses regularly; he said "mama go side" to me yesterday which is mama go outside; he wanted to play!!! He will not play games, but he is a fine and gross motor wonder!!! He started riding his scooter all on his own, he tries to ride on his big sisters skateboard and does a pretty good job at it. He can "drive" his little battery powered 4 wheeler and car all on his own.
He can follow one and two step directions; throw something in the trash, get your shoes, where is your cup, where is the dog, where is sissy.....

[Stormster]

Originally Posted by shy_bear

My son is 25mths tomorrow!
We eat dinner as a family at the table; he sits in a booster seat.
He watches about 2 hrs of tv a day; that is +/-, b/c we have a dvd player in the van and when we get in he has to have it on!
He will sit and look at books on his own for quite awhile; he also likes to be read to.
He is up to about 16 words that he uses regularly; he said "mama go side" to me yesterday which is mama go outside; he wanted to play!!! He will not play games, but he is a fine and gross motor wonder!!! He started riding his scooter all on his own, he tries to ride on his big sisters skateboard and does a pretty good job at it. He can "drive" his little battery powered 4 wheeler and car all on his own.
He can follow one and two step directions; throw something in the trash, get your shoes, where is your cup, where is the dog, where is sissy.....

Re: the one and two step directions E does that....he'll get something and even gets a book when we ask him to! I'm going to expand on that whole thing. He obviously likes that kind of direction. I'm glad i saw that because i didn't even consider that following directions duh!

[Quesita]

How old is your toddler?

34 months It is strange, but really I feel that in the past couple of weeks we have made the transition from toddler to preschooler. She seems so much more grown up. Quite suddenly. It might be that we are finally almost potty trained. Or that she is starting preschool in Sept. But it feels like something else has just clicked in terms of her poise, her ability to hold a conversation, and the fact that she now says "why" more than "no."

Boy or girl?

girl

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?

It is just the two of us, so there isn't really a "family table." Sometimes we eat in the kitchen. Sometimes in the living room. We eat out a lot with friends, and she LOVES going to restaurants. She used a high chair until about two months ago, when she said she wanted to sit in the regular chair. I considered a booster seat, and I tried them a few times in restaurants, but she is tall for her age, and just seemed happier reaching up for the food.

Dinner conversation has become a problem if someone else is there, because although she loves being around lots of people, she DEMANDS being the center of attention, and if I am trying to talk to another adult, she has something urgent to say about every 15 seconds. She now says "excuse me mommy" rather than just blurting, but literally, it is nearly impossible for me (or another adult) to finish two sentences without "excuse me mommy."

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.

More than she should. Maybe 3 or 4 hours per day. She is often engaging in other activities while the tv is on in the background. She enjoys playing with her dollhouse, doing puzzles (up to 24 pieces now!!!) or drawing. Yeah. I should turn the TV off.

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?

She will read books with me for a pretty long time. Maybe a half an hour. And I mean that she will get up and get a new book and we will read a bunch of different books in a half hour. But there is that control thing with turning the pages too. And she doesn't like books in which the pages don't turn quickly. If there is more than a sentence on a page, she will lose patience with the book.

She also LOVES to be told stories, and will curl up in bed wide awake and listen to stories, with occasional comments or questions, for more than a half hour. She begs to be told stories, mostly about herself. "Mommy, tell me about Liana goes to the Hall of Science and gets all wet in the playground. PLEASE???"

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)

If she is interested in something, she has what I have been told is unusual concentration for her age. If she is drawing, perhaps 20 minutes of intense activity. Alone. If she is working with me on a project, longer. Today at a sand box she spent a full half hour carrying cups of water to a "mud soup" a bunch of kids were making. She would stop to stir the soup, and get back to her self-assigned water duty. Kids left. Other kids came. She kept hauling water.


How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?

Extremely strong verbal skills. She can form complex sentences, tell simple stories, and even make up songs about what we are doing, such as riding in a taxi or going to the park.

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?

She CAN follow 3 part instructions. WILL she? Well, that is up to her, it seems. Again, if it is a project she is interested in, she will follow complex instructions. If it is "go in your room, get your shoes, put them on because it is time to go" and she is more interested in her toy cat than getting me to work on time, well, I need to micromanage every step.


Interesting questions! I look forward to seeing others responses.

Also, toddlers change so quickly. It is an exciting time of exploration and discovery and exponential growth. When I think about this time last year, she was really a toddler, but she was a baby. Now she is really a toddler, but she seems so grown up.

[JenC]

How old is your toddler? almost 2 1/2
Boy or girl? Boy

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? Yes, occasionally in the living room, it's a treat for him. He eats breakfast on the couch while he watches his favorite PBS show while I shower. Usually pancakes or something not messy!

If so in a highchair or booster seat? Booster, never had a high chair.

If not, does he eat his meals alone? never totally alone, I may be busy in the room or make a trip to another room, but never totally alone

How much TV does he or she watch in a day. roughly 2 hrs, PBS shows or movies

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long? depends on how well he likes the books and the day. Sometimes forever, sometimes just a few minutes.

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?) Depends on the activity, usually just a few minutes


How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand? Occasionally I can't understand something, I serve as his translator when out in public.

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities? Yes, but he's a lousy hider!

Thanks for answering these simply so I can "compare" but really just out of curiosity, not so much concern. Maybe a tiny bit in certain areas like concentration. Thank you so much!

[Stormster]

Ok guys thank you to all who have responded so far. Not only have I realized that E DOES indeed follow directions (2 step, usually "household" related) BUT he also does actually pay attention to certain things i.e. he likes photo albums and more recently he loves looking at videos of himself on our family blog. He can sit still ten minutes.

This is good for me to keep me grounded. I'm having a rough day he didn't pay attention to ANYTHING for more than 30 seconds today. I'm telling the truth. It's maddening. I am so sure he's ADHD. Thank goodness he's such a sweetie! keep 'em coming guys!

[CaddoRose]

How old is your toddler?
24 months

Boy or girl?
girl

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
We usually eat lunch and dinner at the table all 4 of us.She is in a booster seat. Breakfast is usually by herself while I'm doing chores.

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
She doesn't care about TV at all. There are some shows with music that she will listen to for about 2 minutes and then she's done.

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
She will let us read books to her for a long, long time. When we get tired, she will get more books and "read" them herself.

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)About 20 minutes.

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
She says about 25 single words. Can say Thank You, Good girl, good cookie. Still babbles a lot and talks to her dolls and the cat. She illustrates stories with her hands and babbles throughout with single words thrown in every once in a while like Cat or Daddy, or Sarah. Not really putting two words together yet.

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?
That is tough. She understands how to play peek-a-boo, but I don't think she would understand a game like hide and seek. She will do things like pick up toys and put them in the basket, throw away the trash, or get her cup, etc.

[Amber76]

How old is your toddler? 15 months
Boy or girl? Boy
Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? Yes
If so in a highchair or booster seat? Highchair
If not, does he eat his meals alone? Only breakfast when he sleeps in!
How much TV does he or she watch in a day. None-I'm one of those mean moms
Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long? Depends, but usually at least 5 minute, often up to 15 on my lap, especially at bed time
How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?) On his own, he goes from thing to thing within 2 minutes, but if I am playing with him he'll play one thing for 10 or more minutes
How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand? He says about 20 words that are pretty clear and jabbers everything else.
Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities? I don't know about for games and such, but if I tell him to go get his cup or his diaper or whatever, he does. He also goes to throw away his diaper if I ask.

[robandjulie]

How old is your toddler?
30 months this week (2.5)

Boy or girl?
Boy

Does you eat dinner as a family at the table? If so in a highchair or booster seat? If not, does he eat his meals alone? With sibs?
Always with his sister (just turned 4). Breakfast and lunch we're often buzzing around the kitchen area while they eat but will try to sit and eat/drink with them for a few minutes; dinner is always as a family. All meals/drinks/snacks are at the table (either kitchen or dining)--no food or drink leave the table. In the kitchen he has a booster seat; in the dining room it's a tall chair that pushes to the table. (step stool, technically).

How much TV does he or she watch in a day.
none. Maybe a 30 minute PBS cartoon (Super Why) once a week.

Does he or she sit still for books and if so for how long?
we limit nap and bedtime books to 20 mins or we'd be there all night. If we need to calm down during the day we'll crash out and read some more. But mostly only during times we've conditioned him to expect to read books. If it's playtime, books are not worth his time.

How many minutes can he or she concentrate on an activity before he or she moves on to the next one (in minutes?)
If his sister is there, whatever the minimum is of the two of them; usually 5-10 minutes. When she's out of the picture (nap, out on an errand with dad, etc) 20-30 mins.

How verbal is he or she, does he still babble where you can't understand?
Very very verbal. At his 2 year checkup he had 120 words and simple sentences. Probably double that now. Still can't understand him if he's very very excited or upset/crying. And sometimes he starts out with real words and a story but as he gets excited and it gets long he loses focus and it's hard to follow/understand.

Can he or she follow full or partial or any instructions for simple games such as hide and seek or other gross motor activities?
I think I've had to explain "FLUSH THEN WASH HANDS" 12 times today. Followed by "No, do NOT wash your face! Dry hands before turning off the light!" But he and his sister play pretty complex games: "you go upstairs and wait, I'll go in here and be in a dungeon, you get past the dragon and come unlock me and then we'll...." So...yes and no.