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Toddler development and language milestones

A collection of films all about the science behind your child's development as a walking/talking toddler.

The Speech Lab - Investigating language learning

12-18 months: Should I lead or follow my baby?

Professor Ben Ambridge investigates how letting baby lead what you talk to them about is best for their learning.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

18 months - 2 years: What's the best way to respond to my toddler?

Dr Saloni Krishnan helps a family explore the best ways to respond to their children's first words.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

2-3 years: How can you help toddlers say words properly?

Dr Saloni Krishnan helps a family explore the effect of recasting - repeating a toddler's words with mistakes corrected.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

Let's Talk Toddler Talk - toddler language science

Why pointing is a tool for toddlers' language development

You may feel like you have a bossy baby, but pointing is great for their language development.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How your toddler's first words come to be

What will your baby’s first word be? Discover the science behind it all.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How does your toddler learn the difference between large and small?

Has your toddler ever mistaken the size of an object? Learn about 'scale error'.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How does your toddler understand who they are?

It's a big question, but when does your toddler gain a sense of what makes them 'them'?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

Why does your toddler like to hear the same story over and over?

It might be exhausting to tell the same story to your toddler over and over, but there's a benefit...

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How seeing things in different situations helps your child learn

Getting out and about is fun, but it is also a great way to boost your child's language skills.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How do toddlers come to name everything?

At around 18 months old, children often go through a naming explosion. But why on earth is that?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How toddlers start grouping things by shape

When they’re around two or three years old, your child will start to group objects by their shape.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

Amazing Toddlers - toddlers' amazing brains

How toddlers develop a preferred hand

Have you ever noticed that babies use both hands equally?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How toddlers learn to count

How do they start to understand the words for numbers?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

Why toddlers are so flexible

Did you know your child was born with loads more bones than you?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

What toddlers learn by pretending

Pretend play isn't just mucking around - it's a way to make sense of the world.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How toddlers best learn words

What's the most important thing to a child's language learning? Plenty of face to face play with you!

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How different parts of a toddler's brain develop at different rates

Babies' brains develop super-fast, but language comes a little slower than other skills. Here's why.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How toddlers learn through play

Play is essential for your child's learning - it teaches them all sorts.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How toddlers learn to recognise themselves in mirrors

Once your baby gets to a certain age, they start to develop a sense of who it is in the mirror.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

What toddlers learn through play

What toddlers learn from playing with building blocks

How does playing with building blocks help your toddler learn about the workings of the world?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

The language skills toddlers learn through drumming

Did you know that tapping out rhythms is great for toddlers learning to speak?

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How singing to toddlers helps reinforce learning

Toddlers love to hear their favourite nursery rhymes over and over again - this is great for learning!

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

How obstacle courses teach problem-solving skills

Obstacle courses are great for learning physical skills and action words.

TODDLER DEVELOPMENT

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Child development science