It is widely recognised that play is essential for a developing child. Play helps children to develop the skills they will need to take them through life. All children develop at different rates so the ages and stages of development given here act as a general guide. You shouldn't worry unduly if your child develops later at a particular skill; they often develop faster at something else.

Toddlers - 9-24 Months

9-12 Months

Between 9 and 12 months your child will become more co-ordinated; gaining control of her legs and feet; pushing up on to her hands and feet and "crawling" in that position as well as crawling on her stomach. This will lead to your child developing the ability to pull themselves into a standing position, walking with support (and one or two steps on their own), and standing for short periods without support. It is at this age when she will start to become curious and will be keen to explore her environment as her mobility increases.

She will imitate sounds and gestures and repeat them when she wants attention. She is likely to have one or two words, often ma and da and will pick up on exclamations like Oh-oh! She will be able to understand much more than she can communicate back and can respond to simple commands. She will have a range of tones in her own "language" as she gets closer to talking and will start to use gestures; shaking her head for no, waving goodbye, poking and pointing with her finger. She will be shy around strangers and become "clingy" for her primary care giver and will cry for their attention. She will start to push "boundaries" by testing parents' responses to her behaviour. She will have "favourites"; people, toys, objects.

Toys and Play

This is when toddlers really start to explore their environment. Toys with wheels that they can pull along, or learn to walk with are ideal as it helps strengthen muscles as well as allowing them to model adult behaviour; invaluable for social development. This new freedom will allow the toddler to investigate her surroundings and start learning to manage risk, just by falling over! Activity tables can help to keep a toddler in one place for a while - but keep it interesting by introducing new toys to the area so she won't get bored. At this age, toddlers love repetitive actions, such as putting shapes in a box - this will keep them entertained for ages.

What type of play?

• Hide objects for your child to find, start simply and build up. They are curious about their environment and should love this game!
• Pat-a-cake
• Passing, throwing, banging, shaking, stacking or dropping objects
• Putting objects into a container and then taking them out again
• Rolling toys or objects to encourage a child to follow
• Musical instruments
• Picture books - kids love the bright colours and can learn many new words. Name the objects in a picture and get your child to look, and then later point at it
• Wheeled toys - helps them move around and explore their environment
• Ball pits - a fun and safe way for children to play and move around
• Play hide and seek - lots of fun and starts to learn 'rules'

12-24 Months

At this age your child will start to assert the first signs of independence. He is able to understand limited commands but will often do the opposite of what he is told and between one and three-years-of-age this may lead to temper tantrums.

Most children are mobile by 18-24 months (although some do not walk until they are over 2 years old). If your child is ready, he will become more skilled at walking (able to walk for 10-20 minutes) and start running but will often use objects to get back to the floor or will collapse backwards. He will be able to creep up stairs, sit in a chair, and pass objects from one hand to the other (if given a second object to hold).

At about a year to eighteen months children start to talk and will want to rapidly increase the vocabulary available to them and will start to name many everyday items. His facial movements will improve too and he will try to imitate adult expressions.

Toys and Play

Once your child is up on his feet and walking, encourage him to move about and walk with push-a-long toys, buggies and ride-on toys. Balls and objects that roll will encourage him to follow and explore the world around him.

Children are very active at this age, so play that encourages movement and physical activity will help maintain their fitness and muscle development. Physical play is important for children of any age but according to the British Heart Foundation National Centre for Physical Activity and Heath, children that are taught to be active by the age of five will remain active throughout their lives. Encourage your child as much as you can as they are learning to become active. Physical activity develops strength and co-ordination which in turn allows for more physical activity, and in addition will encourage the brain to develop.

Language develops rapidly at this stage. Language is best learnt by modelling others, so talk to them lots. In addition toys which encourage talking or singing are likely to be the most beneficial - especially when others join in!

Lastly, toys that help toddlers copy their parents will be very popular. It increases their attachment to you which helps build their confidence to explore their environment more thoroughly.

What type of play?

• Make a game of putting toys away - this is a great age to learn to tidy up as it is a fun activity at this age and teaches the behaviour early on
• Name parts of the body and get him to point at it - nose, ear, foot
• Hide and seek
• Find a hidden object
• Rhymes and songs
• Playing with a mirror / reflection
• Sit or stand dolls
• Tea cups and saucers, teddy bears picnic
• Crayons/pencils/paints - great for concentrating on a task and being creative
• Books - especially flap books - kids love interacting with things and being read to by parents and will help to turn the pages.
• Swings and climbing equipment - encourages active play and risk management
• Building blocks and building towers of blocks
• Large puzzles or shape sorters
• Active play - running, ride on toys, kicking a ball, picking up and throwing
• Toy versions of adult objects (phones, irons etc) - helps kids mimic adult behaviour
• Soft play areas*
• Play dates*

* great way for kids to start socialising with each other and learning how to share and manage risk

Children put toys in their mouths less often but parents should still be aware of small items causing a choking hazard and should keep toys or items with small parts away from children until they are three-years-of-age.

Remember: All children develop at different rates so the ages and stages of development given here act as a general guide. You shouldn't worry unduly if your child develops later at a particular skill; they often develop faster at something else. If you do have worries you should seek expert medical advice.