Developmental Milestones at 18 Months Old

In the first 18 months of life, your baby will grow, learn and develop faster than any other time in life.

Crawling

While there are average times for when the biggest life events happen, your special little one is unique; don’t be concerned if crawling, walking and talking don’t follow a textbook timetable. While most bubs crawl, many don’t. It’s all completely normal.As a first mode of transport, crawling is a pretty big milestone. It usually starts out tentatively, but once your baby learns forward and reverse, they’re off!Babies typically learn to sit without support around at 7–10 months, and may start crawling soon after that. If your baby doesn’t crawl, other options for getting around include bottom shuffling, rolling or sliding on their tummies. Also some babies never crawl, shuffle or slide: moving straight to pulling up, standing and walking.

Walking

Talking

From when they were first born, your baby has been listening to you talking to them, and eavesdropping on your conversations. All of this listening and learning comes out as gurgles, then sounds, and – most excitingly of all – words.First words – often mama or dada simply because they’re among the first sounds babies can make – often kick in at around 18 months (sometimes earlier and sometimes later). Typically around the two year mark, your toddler will be stringing words together into simple sentences to communicate ideas and feelings.If you have any concerns about your child’s development, contact your GP.

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