Cognitive skills develop very fast in kids from 12 to 18 months. Therefore, If you want to support kids’ development, it’s very important to pay attention to kids’ cognitive skills at this age. For that purpose, find out how thinking, attention, knowledge, and understanding develop in kids from 12 to 18 months here. That will help you to better understand kids from 12 to 18 months and to promote their cognitive skills properly.
The ability to think in kids from 12 to 18 months of age
Kids from 12 to 18 months of age become capable of better exploring space and objects. As they begin to walk, they can finally come to the part of the room that they are interested in. Thus expanding their choice of objects that they can manipulate.
Kid’s motor skills are developing more and more, so they become more able to manipulate objects. Of course, the better ability of perceptual-practical thinking is because of more developed perceptions as well. Children begin to perceive the difference between large and small objects, objects of various shapes and colors,… That is why they like plays in which objects are distinguished by colors, smaller objects are placed in larger objects, or in which objects are settled to one another by size. Parents should encourage them to play in such ways by giving appropriate and safe toys for toddlers at the age of 12 to 18 months. Also, parents should participate in these plays and not only because of kids happiness but also because of improving kids’ cognitive skills, such as perceptions, speech, etc.
The appearance of symbolic thinking is a huge change in the quality of kids’ thinking at this age in relation to babies on age to 12 months. The base of symbolic thinking is using of performances and words. According to a sudden speaking development, we shouldn’t be surprised by the phenomenon of symbolic thinking. Symbolic thinking and linguistic abilities influence each other. If a child shows in the direction of the object which wants to reach, show on objects that the adults appoint and use some words correctly, then the child has acquired the ability of symbolic thinking.
At the end of this age, about 18 months, children’s symbolic thinking begins to emerge in another way. Namely, they begin to play an imitative play. Actually, children begin to mimic some actions but know that they are not really happening. This way of playing becomes completely noticeable at the next age of children, after 18 months. Nevertheless, already at the age from 12 to 18 months, its beginnings can be noticed. So, a child at this age can imitate drinking juice from an empty cup or to sleep putting his/her head on a pillow.
Memory and attention in kids from 12 to 18 months
The beginnings of imitative plays that occur in children about 18 months suggest that children from 12 to 18 months can imitate some activities often performed by adults, even though they have not seen them for a few days. In fact, this cognitive skill of imitation starts from the 15th month, but from 18 months it gets its full meaning. Kids begin to remember and repeat more related activities of adults in the exact order. So, shouldn’t be surprised if a child at this age imitates to wipe dust as you did a couple of days ago. It’s enough to do something in front of the child just only once to encourage he/her to imitate the same activity. Namely, children at this age become able to remember the activity of the grown-up, although if saw it just once. Activity only must attract their attention.
You may not even notice that your child remember some yours activity. Now, he/she is able to pay attention to an action engaging in some other action. For example, your child can watch you while reading the newspaper an listen to the song that is heard in the background at the same time. Also, attention to certain sensations can take longer now, up to 5 minutes. Sometimes, children from 12 to 18 months pay attention to something interesting so carefully that they don’t respond to some other stimuli. For example, if a child plays lego carefully, he/she may not respond to parents’ urging.
Since a child starts to remember things better, the child becomes able to notice a new schedule in the room. It is therefore advisable to change your child’s room schedule frequently and to play with he/she so to train this new skill that gets full meaning at the end of this age. For example, if you come back from a hairdresser, tell your child about your new haircut. It shouldn’t be surprising you if the child even before you say anything, stares at your hair.
Knowledge and understanding in kids from 12 to 18 months
From the age of 15 months, children begin to associate their behavior with the reaction of adults. Therefore, at this age, we should talk up their good conduct and don’t approve of bad conduct. If you show pleasure every time when your child eats a meal that he/she doesn’t like very much, the child will begin to be happy to eat this meal because that will make you proud.
At the end of this age, children begin to make a difference between people by age. Children’s behavior to seek what they need only from adults and not from other children proves that. Looking for help from adults tells about the emergence of another new cognitive skill at this age. Now, children can evaluate when aren’t able to perform the desired action and need help. They also begin to distinguish themselves from others. Therefore begin to respond in their own name and to distinguish themselves from their reflection in the mirror. At the end of this age, kids begin to make a difference between some parts of the body. Therefore they love questions like where are their nose, eye, ear, …
Even before the end of the previous age, children began to differentiate objects by their functions. Children from 12 to 18 months of age begin to manifest that ability clearly. That’s why they often play sweeping the room by besom, putting on shoes or wiping by swabber.
About routine actions, children from 12 to 18 months of age can predict the situation and know that activity has come to end. For example, when you are bathing a child and reaching for a towel, the child will be lifted up in the bathtub, because he/she knows that bathing came near taking the towel. In particular, this cognitive skill you can use to create healthy habits in a child. For example, if you wash his/her hands before a meal each time, the child will habituate to wash hands before a meal.
| ABILITY TO THINK |
| A child… |
| … makes distinguish between objects according to some striking characteristics while manipulating them. |
| … begin to use gestures and words to indicate the objects. |
| … shows the appearance of the symbolic play. |
| MEMORY |
| A child… |
| … imitates some of the activities often performed by adults, although he/she hasn’t seen them for several days. |
| … remember the activities of adults even if saw those only once. |
| … can note that something has changed, that it’s not like he/she remembered that. |
| .. can remember and repeat adult multiple activities in the correct order. |
| ATTENTION |
| A child… |
| … removes attention from one activity to another. |
| … makes attention to the adult and to some object at the same time. |
| … makes attention to some activity up to 5 minutes. |
| … is preoccupied with own activity so much sometimes that it is difficult to remove the child’s attention to other contents. |
| KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING |
| A child… |
| … knows how to trigger a specific reaction of adults. |
| … shows some parts of the body on request. |
| … makes difference between people according to their age. |
| … can evaluate when isn’t able to perform the desired action and then ask for an adult’s help. |
| … knows what is the purpose of certain objects and manipulates those in line with that. |
| … when an activity or happening is over. |
At the end…
If the cognitive skills of a child deviate from the cognitive skills predicted for his/her age, shouldn’t worry. Cognitive skills develop according to a particular order in each child, but the development flow is individual. The task of adults is to be familiar with a child and to follow the child’s development. In that way, according to knowledge about average development and a child’s needs, adults will promote the development of cognitive skills of the child and the child’s general development at the same time.
