WHAT YOUR TODDLER CAN DO
One year brings an explosion of activity as your little baby turns into a toddler. Having been practising for months, they are now well on the way to walking.
Learning to walk begins with your toddler's first attempt to stand. At first, they'll distribute their weight between hands and feet, but it won't be long before he or she are just using their hands for balance.
Likewise, your toddler has been communicating since they were born, but now they'll begin to vocalise with great expression and eventually to talk.
Soon your baby will bring together all their physical skills - walking, reaching, grasping, turning - so that suddenly they're an explorer. He or she will explore toys to see how they can be used - banging, poking, shaking, rolling and pushing them. He or she will begin to use them as tools if they can. By now they will seldom put things in their mouth, but stare intently at things that interest them.
The more buttons, dials, sounds and sensations a toy has the more your toddler will love it. And now that they are mobile, they will want to get hold of everything within reach. So watch out!
Exploring at this age can be a painful business. Your toddler's memory is still short and he or she may stand up under the table and bump herself often before they remember to crawl out.
New relationships
Little by little your toddler is beginning to look out from the intense relationship that he or she has had with you, to the outer world of brothers and sisters, grandparents, and other children. These secondary relationships will be slow to develop, however, and they will still need you the most.