Jasmine likes to play ball and can kick one, without force, while keeping her balance. She loves to be chased, often initiating this game by running and squealing, looking over her shoulder at her pursuer. She picks daisies and blows on them, and knows that she is not to touch the planted flowers.
Jasmine enjoys a special game with Granny, under the flower arch, pointing alternatively at 'Jasmine person and jasmine flower', giggling with pleasure.
Jasmine has a watering can, but waters herself more than the flowers. Given the opportunity, she plays with water with enthusiasm, soaking everything nearby. The dumper truck she enjoyed on the beach last month is now used to collect leaves, daisies and fallen apples from the garden.
Indoors Jasmine enjoys placing all her stacking beakers inside each other and building bricks one on top of the other. Although she can manage three or four quite easily, she currently prefers to take the top one off each time before adding another, never building a tower above two bricks high.
She has started to 'stir' a 'cup of coffee' with a plastic key, and enjoys giving her doll a ride on her tricycle.
At the beginning of this month Jasmine was weighed. She is still very petite, weighing 8.6kg (19lb), but is healthy and always full of energy.
Questions
1 In her play Jasmine is beginning to imitate actions she sees. At what age is this most commonly found?
2 What other examples of imitative play would you expect to see Jasmine demonstrate?
3 Jasmine is clearly a lightweight child. What weight would you expect her to be at 18 to 19 months?
Answers to part 19 questions: (21 November)
1 Jasmine eats meals better when listening to tapes or to the radio, because she is concentrating on the music and eating with less focus on the food.
2 Toddlers of this age love to return to the same books over and over. It helps them consolidate their understanding of what they are seeing, while adults reinforce the names of objects for them.
3 Familiar items are an important aspect of all children's lives. It offers them an element of security within their immediate and extended environments.
By Sandy Green, an early years consultant and freelance trainer. She is also Jasmine's grandmother
