20-Month-Outdated Child: Feeding, Sleep, and Milestones by Month

At 20 months previous, your child must be assembly some important and thrilling 20-month-old milestones! From language acquisition to bodily coordination, this era is wealthy with development and exploration. Right here, we’ll cowl every part you have to find out about this age, from typical developmental milestones to feeding and sleep schedules to suggestions for conserving your toddler protected, wholesome, and engaged.

20-month-olds typically present important progress in numerous areas of growth, from muscle coordination to cognition and communication. When assessing your baby for these milestones, ensure they’re rested and well-fed, and attempt to make the makes an attempt enjoyable.¹ Listed here are some 20-month-old milestones to look out for (and look ahead to!):

As your baby strikes by way of 20-month-old developmental phases, their language might begin to explode. Between the ages of 18 and 24 months, many kids enhance their vocabulary to 300 phrases!² You will have heard the time period “children are sponges,” and that’s definitely true for language growth at this age.

Wherever from 10-50 spoken phrases or extra is frequent at this age and can quickly enhance.^1,3,4,25 They need to additionally be capable of establish frequent and acquainted objects and folks.³ Another language milestones at 20 months previous embody:^1,4,24,25

• Imitating or repeating a two-word sentence after you say it, comparable to “Dada eat,” “Mama play,” or “Go residence”
• Pointing to the right picture on a web page in case you ask issues like, “The place is the doggy?” or “Which one is the apple?”
• Having the ability to identify no less than one image of a well-known object (comparable to a ball, cup, hat, or canine) once you ask, “What’s this?”
• Having the ability to comply with one-step instructions with out visible cues, comparable to “Shut the cupboard,” “Maintain my hand,” or “Seize your coat”
• Placing collectively two to a few phrases of various meanings to formulate a phrase, comparable to “Mommy’s residence” or “Doggy gone”
• Beginning to perceive easy pronouns, comparable to “I,” “you,” “me,” and “my”
• Figuring out or pointing to a few frequent physique components when requested the place they’re

Rising communication is without doubt one of the most enjoyable components of parenting a 20-month-old. With them buying extra language daily, you might really feel such as you’re studying an increasing number of about their character!

As your baby’s communication abilities enhance, it’s also possible to anticipate them to have extra connections with friends and adults.³ Listed here are some 20-month-old private, social, and emotional milestones you might begin to see:^1,3,5

• Expression of guilt or disgrace after knowingly doing one thing improper
• Attempting to get your consideration by tugging in your hand or garments
• Having fun with taking part in mealtimes through the use of a fork or spoon and an open cup with some spilling
• Copying actions you do, like sweeping, brushing hair, or wiping a spill
• Pretending to look after a doll or stuffed animal by feeding it a bottle, altering its diaper, or rocking it to sleep
• Beginning to interact in parallel play by sitting alongside different kids (however with out a lot interplay/cooperation)

Cognitive abilities present mind growth and include studying, considering, reminiscence, and problem-solving.⁶ Listed here are some thrilling cognitive 20-month-old milestones:^1,3,6

• Taking part in fake play by simulating actions like speaking on the telephone, driving a automobile, or having a tea celebration
• Understanding possession and favoring the phrase “mine”
• Having the ability to put objects away
• Understanding and taking part in taking turns
• Exploring contents of drawers and cupboards
• Drawing a semi-straight line on paper after watching you achieve this
• Acquiring a stool, field, or chair to assist purchase one thing out of attain
• Imitating somebody lining up objects in a row

Gross motor abilities are massive actions that use the muscle mass within the limbs, trunk, and neck.^3,6 At 20 months previous, your toddler must be strolling nicely sufficient to get round and never falling typically. Listed here are another gross motor milestones for a 20-month-old:^1,3,6

• Climbing up onto objects to succeed in objects, wash their fingers, or “assist” within the kitchen
• Strolling down the steps, in the event that they’re holding your hand, a railing, or a wall
• Having the ability to run decently nicely and cease with out operating into one thing or falling down
• Kicking a big ball after you reveal the right way to do it
• Strolling up or down two steps on their very own
• Trying to catch a ball with their arms or physique
• Utilizing their legs to maneuver using toys ahead
• Could begin trying to leap or gallop
• Having the ability to seat themselves in a chair

Tremendous motor abilities contain utilizing the small muscle mass within the fingers or fingers to perform occupational and self-care duties.⁶ At 20 months, listed here are some high quality motor developmental abilities you possibly can anticipate:^1,3,6

• Having the ability to make a mark on paper with the tip of a pen, pencil, or crayon when making an attempt to attract
• Having the ability to independently stack three to 6 small objects (like blocks, spools of thread, or 1-inch toys)
• Turning the pages of a e book, even when they flip a couple of web page at a time
• Twisting their hand to unscrew a jar lid, flip a doorknob, or wind up a toy
• Having the ability to get a spoon to their mouth right-side-up with out a lot spilling
• Stringing massive beads

Monitoring all these 20-month-old milestones will help guarantee your baby is on monitor developmentally and present you what to look ahead to along with your rising toddler.

Feeding a 20-month-old will be enjoyable — but in addition difficult. It might really feel arduous and complicated to understand how a lot, how typically, and what to feed your toddler! So, let’s go over what their eating regimen ought to appear like and discover a pattern feeding schedule:

Caloric and Dietary Wants

At 20 months previous, your baby ought to eat round 1,000-1,400 energy per day. You may calculate their estimated calorie wants by multiplying their weight (in kilos) by 36.4. Your baby’s calorie necessities can change by the day and likewise rely on their intercourse, their exercise stage, and whether or not they’re in a development spurt.^7,8

As a substitute of worrying about how a lot your baby eats at a person meal, attempt to deal with the large image — are they getting well-rounded diet over the course of a day or per week? In the event that they’re rising appropriately in line with your pediatrician, maintain doing what you’re doing and check out to not make every mealtime a battle! Meals will probably be extra enjoyable and interesting to your toddler in case you serve them the identical meals you’re consuming and revel in meals collectively as a household.⁸

Macronutrients and Micronutrients

The energy your baby consumes must be distributed all through the day into three meals and one to 2 snacks. Ideally, every meal and snack ought to incorporate carbohydrates, protein, and fats. The each day distribution of those macronutrients must be round:^8,9

• 45-65% of carbohydrates (comparable to whole-grain bread, cereal, rice, pasta, or fruit)
• 5-20% of protein (comparable to meat, fish, eggs, beans, or dairylike yogurt, cheese, or milk)
• 30-40% of fats (comparable to entire milk and different full-fat dairy, butter, and oils comparable to olive or avocado oil)

Along with carbs, protein, and fats, your toddler has dietary necessities for a lot of micronutrients. Generally, kids at this age don’t want a vitamin or complement, as you possibly can normally meet their nutrient wants with a wholesome and various eating regimen, together with a lot of fruits and greens. Be certain your baby is consuming sufficient:^9,10

• Vitamin D: This helps the physique take up calcium and prevents bone illnesses now and later in life.^7,9 Goal for 600 worldwide models per day from sources comparable to dairy merchandise and fortified cereals.⁹
• Iron: This helps produce purple blood cells, which distribute oxygen to the physique. Goal for 7-10 milligrams of iron per day from sources comparable to purple meat, poultry, fish, eggs, beans, and iron-fortified grains. Feeding iron-rich meals alongside vitamin C, like citrus and strawberries, will help with iron absorption. An excessive amount of dairy also can impede iron absorption, so don’t exceed the beneficial 2 cups of milk per day.^8,9
• Fiber: Fiber helps bulk up the stool and retains meals transferring by way of the intestines to stop constipation and diarrhea. Goal for 7-19 grams of fiber per day from fruit, vegetable, and whole-grain sources.^7,10

Placing all that collectively, right here’s a pattern feeding schedule to your 20-month-old:⁸

7:30 a.m.
Breakfast: 1 egg with cheese, 1/3 cup of berries, 1 slice of entire wheat toast
10:00 a.m.
Morning snack: Carrot sticks and crackers with hummus
12:00 p.m.
Lunch: Entire-grain pasta with rooster and steamed broccoli, cut-up melon
3:00 p.m.
Afternoon snack: Banana with peanut butter or yogurt
5:30 p.m.
Dinner: Cheeseburger with a whole-grain bun or a potato, inexperienced beans, and fruit like apples, grapes, or an orange

Once more, feeding your toddler what you’re consuming will foster wholesome consuming habits and constructive mealtime associations.⁸ It’s necessary to encourage independence whereas nonetheless supervising mealtimes as your 20-month-old works on feeding themselves.^1,5

Sleep is essential to your 20-month-old’s development and growth. It’s the time once they recharge their our bodies, course of their data and experiences from the day, restore their power, develop and heal, strengthen their immune system, and develop their brains and hormones. A toddler ought to sleep between 11 and 14 hours cumulatively in a 24-hour interval, consisting of evening sleep and one nap.¹¹ A typical 20-month-old sleep schedule might look one thing like this:

7:00 a.m.
Day by day get up
12:30 p.m.
Naptime
3:00 p.m.
Nap get up
7:30 p.m.
Bedtime

Sleep is usually a problem for each toddlers and their mother and father. Points comparable to nightmares and evening terrors, issue falling or staying asleep, sleepwalking and sleep speaking, and a 20-month-old sleep regression can maintain the entire household awake at evening. To encourage strong sleep and make it by way of a regression, deal with consistency and good sleep hygiene:¹¹

Happening for naps and bedtime at across the identical time daily can program your baby’s physique to anticipate sleep at the moment. They need to additionally get up at an analogous time every day. A well-recognized bedtime routine (comparable to taking a shower, brushing their tooth, studying a e book, singing a track, saying a prayer, and snuggling) also can cue your 20-month-old that it’s time for sleep.¹¹

Distractions comparable to toys, screens, video games, and electronics in your baby’s bed room can stop them from settling into good sleep. Preserve their bed room a spot for sleeping solely, and attempt to keep away from bringing your baby into your room at evening for consolation. Lastly, guarantee they get enough motion, daylight, and meals all through the day to foster their greatest sleep at evening.¹¹

It may be tough to slot in all of the meals, naps, and actions to your 20-month-old, however creating construction in your each day schedule will help them really feel safe and thrive. Right here’s an instance of a each day schedule, which you’ll be able to alter primarily based on your loved ones’s habits, wants, and different obligations:

7:00 a.m.
Get up
7:30 a.m.
Breakfast
8:00 a.m.
Outside stroll
9:00 a.m.
Storytime
10:00 a.m.
Morning snack
10:30 a.m.
Music and dance
11:15 a.m.
Free play
12:00 p.m.
Lunch
12:30 p.m.
Naptime
3:00 p.m.
Afternoon snack
3:30 p.m.
Outside play
4:30 p.m.
Sensory play
5:30 p.m.
Dinner
6:30 p.m.
Bathtime
7:00 p.m.
Books, songs, prayers, and snuggles
7:30 p.m.
Bedtime

Once more, you possibly can modify this schedule primarily based in your baby’s distinctive wants, power ranges, starvation, and sleep cues. However it may be useful to have a unfastened framework to tweak as wanted!

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends well-child visits at 18 months and once more at 24 months. Nevertheless, in case your baby will get sick or injured within the meantime, they might additionally want further visits. Listed here are some causes it’s best to search steerage out of your pediatrician:

• Your baby has issue respiratory, as proven by noisy or wheezy respiratory, pulling in between the ribs with every breath, blue lips or face, speedy respiratory, or a cough that gained’t cease.^12,13
• They expertise fevers that final greater than 24 hours or are larger than 102 levels Fahrenheit when taken rectally.^12,14
• Their signs proceed to worsen after three to 5 days or don’t resolve after per week. Colds can typically final 10 days, however it’s best to start to see enchancment earlier than then.¹²
• Your baby has persistent eye or ear ache, redness, itchiness, drainage, or irritation. Eye or ear infections (known as pink eye or conjunctivitis and otitis media, respectively) may have therapy with antibiotics, which your pediatrician can prescribe if indicated. Untreated infections can intervene with seeing, listening to, and studying.¹²
• They’ve gastrointestinal misery lasting greater than sooner or later. In case your baby experiences vomiting or diarrhea for greater than 24 hours, they’re in danger for dehydration. Additionally they might should be evaluated for infections or anatomical points.¹²
• A worsening rash, particularly if it’s crusty or spotty, may very well be an indication of significant sickness that requires therapy and must be checked out by knowledgeable.¹²

Sadly, it’s a reality of life that toddlers get sick or injured pretty typically. So, deal with thorough and frequent handwashing, sustain along with your baby’s nicely visits to the pediatrician, and guarantee correct eating regimen, sleep, and train to maintain severe sicknesses at bay.¹²

Partaking your baby in numerous actions at this age can foster their growth and creativity. These actions not solely assist 20-month-old milestones however also can create cherished bonding moments! Listed here are some concepts:

Use supplies like playdough, sand, or water to encourage exploration, investigation, creativity, and scientific considering. Sensory play will be messy, however toddlers are messy anyway (mine simply coloured in everlasting ink on our new sectional!). Planning and organizing a approach to stimulate one or a number of of their senses can appease a few of their curiosity and assist foster wholesome mind connections.¹⁵

Studying collectively can enhance language abilities and comprehension.¹⁶ Listening to tales also can enhance their listening abilities, educate them morals and values, and encourage creativity and creativeness.²⁶ Studying acquainted books in your house is nice, however one other enjoyable exercise to contemplate is storytime at your native library. Many have toddler storytimes, which get you out of the home and allow you to work together with different mother and father and toddlers whereas experiencing the advantages of studying books!

3. Music and Dance

You may encourage motion and rhythm by way of singing and dancing. Music encourages emotional regulation and expression, vocabulary, reminiscence, and even motor growth. Experiencing music collectively may even improve social bonds.^17,27 All music and free motion is nice, however as soon as kids are able to imitating another person’s dance, they’ll additionally turn out to be extra detail-oriented. My 20-month-old loves doing “YouTube Ballet,” as we name it, alongside her 3-year-old sister, and I’m all the time amazed at how nicely she’s capable of imitate the teacher’s motions.

Actions like operating, leaping, and climbing promote bodily growth. Open-ended play exterior additionally encourages creativity by way of kids making up video games, imagining that objects are one thing else (like how a stick is usually a wand), and crafting fake eventualities. You may as well have snack time, take a stroll, or do this dance video exterior!¹⁸

Protecting your 20-month-old protected is paramount as they achieve independence and discover their setting. Listed here are some security tricks to comply with:

Safe cupboards, use outlet covers, and take away small objects like toys with small components, marker caps, marbles and different small balls, batteries, cash, and balloons that may be swallowed to stop choking. Put all medicines, cleansing provides, and sharp objects behind locked doorways and/or far out of attain.¹⁹

Choking is especially possible with spherical meals in regards to the dimension of a coin, comparable to scorching canines, string cheese, and grapes. To mitigate the chance of choking, reduce spherical meals into fours to remove the round form, and keep away from meals which can be notably chewy, arduous, sticky, spongey, or chunky.²⁰

When a dresser, bookshelf, nightstand, or tv isn’t correctly secured to a stud within the wall behind it, it could tip over and crush a toddler. That is notably frequent and dangerous for toddlers, who might discover and climb furnishings and drawers. So, set up anti-tip furnishings wall anchors to stop this devastating damage from taking place.^19,22

Shut any doorways on the high and backside of a staircase, or use a child gate. You don’t need your baby climbing up or down unsupervised. Additionally, maintain stools and furnishings away from home windows that kids may fall out of and counters they may fall off of.¹⁹

Preserve scorching liquids, in addition to pots and pans, out of your baby’s attain. Place a fence or guardrail round any working fireplaces within the residence. You must also maintain the new water heater at 120 levels Fahrenheit or under to stop tub burns.²¹

Set up your baby’s automobile seat per the producer’s directions, and take note of the load and peak limits for various set up strategies. To make sure security, don’t use each the LATCH (Decrease Anchors and Tethers for Youngsters) system and the standard seat belt. (In accordance with the American Academy of Pediatrics, these are equally protected, so select whichever one works greatest for you). Additionally, ensure the harness is comfortable and that the chest clip is at armpit stage.²³

7. Supervise Play and Mealtime

At 20 months previous, your baby’s state of affairs can change on a dime. You may by no means be too cautious when stopping drowning, choking, falls, burns, and extra. Preserve a watchful eye on them throughout mealtime and playtime, particularly round stairs, close to water, or in unfamiliar locations.

Assembly key 20-month-old milestones exemplifies your baby’s exceptional development and growth. By understanding their feeding and sleep schedules, offering stimulating actions, and making certain their security, you possibly can assist your toddler by way of this thrilling stage. Bear in mind, each baby is exclusive, so embrace their particular person journey as they discover the world round them!