Toddler Tickles

Toddler TICKLES

How Humour is a Key to Your Toddler’s Life

Life with young children is full of love, laughter and wonderful times. Keeping a positive attitude and concentrating on the fun side of your child’s life can lift your spirits, even when you feel down. Make an effort to join in your child’s play and find time to laugh together. Everything that you do to give a jump-start to the level of humour in a child’s life will expose her to a world full of sights, sounds and sensations.

For the Fun of it

Humour isn’t about consciously trying to be funny. It’s really about creating a light, `life is good’ atmosphere at home. Some of the most irritating moments – three cups of spilled juice in a row, crayons melted on new upholstery – can become your family’s funniest, most cherished stories in years to come.

You see your two-year-old splashing food all over the floor. Instead of dreading the mess that you have to clean up, try to tune into her thought process – This is fun, look at all the different things I can do! Remember that what she is doing is part of a developmental phase – she’s learning and exploring. Offer appealing alternatives – “Sanya can take the ball and give mummy the fork.”

Humour Toddler Style

A young child’s level of humour may be very different from that of an adult. You may be very excited by the recently learnt and would be asking her to recite them to all your friends. While these activities could seem like a surprised to see that they do not do much. To her, mixing up various rhymes, substituting words and her own tattle or making her own tune for the rhyme would be more amusing. Once she relies on herself for entertainment, she will come up with the most innovative play. Peek-a-boo, merry-go-round, catch-me-if-you-can – all bring out the giggles in your child. Whenever your little one thinks something is funny, she'll’ like to do it again and again. From and adult’s point of view, repetition may be boring, but for her, it’s the real fun part.

Babbling Away

With the development of her vocabulary and language, a child at this age begins to enjoy her intentional mistakes and revels in the nonsensical. A toddler’s blossoming language skills and imagination tend to be entertaining for one and all. Children, at this developmental stage, tend to talk and communicate when their babble elicits a response. Your response to her nonsense speech is extremely vital. She is capable of finding her fun and if you join in her efforts; she realises who it is that gives her a sense of security and shows it in different ways. One day, your baby may delight you by having a conversation with her toys, feeding her dolls or re-enacting and mimicking your behavior and conversations. Through all this, she would be completely enjoying herself. Play then, is not just a game for her but an activity that completely thrills her and consumes her every waking hour!

Play Along

In all probability, a child at his age will love slapstick humour. She may enjoy pressing her nose against the window of the car, or trying to put someone else’s clothes on her head. A long as your little one is not hurt, she may even enjoy bumping into things, sliding on floors or pulling things apart. A friend’s daughter loves to look at herself in the mirror and often, I have seen her talking to herself! Water is fascinating for your child. I remember my sister found it very funny to spray others and me in the family with water. And the reaction of the adults – the gasp of surprise, the tendency to run away from the spray – added to the level of her amusement! While you may be tempted to pull out your hair in distress, nothing is more amusing for your energetic two-year-old than to see you run to feed and dress her!

Any control that they can exercise; a break from the regular pattern, an ability to do something unexpected, delights most children. For instance, if your baby pushes you and you pretend to fall backwards in an exaggerated heap – she is bound to laugh at her ability and sudden strength. Your child then laughs at unexpected occurrences, as at her age, she’ll be convinced that something else normally happens.

For children at this age, building blocks can also be a lot of fun. Stacking up blocks on top of one another encourages her co-ordination, motor control and concentration. But, it is knocking the towers down that would be a whole lot of fun for your little one! Humour at this age can then be more interactive – as she deftly initiates games, elaborates on things by adding words to the conversation or says something silly. She also employs humour to test your limits and in many cases, your nerves! She may keep putting the phone off the hook, irrespective of your numerous reminders to the contrary. Children trying to make others laugh, often imitate adults. She may rush behind the certain and start playing hide-and-seek with you. They understand that they are being naughty and breaking a rule, or else they wouldn’t be in splits over your efforts to keep them in check.. A good friend’s son, who has just turned two, always pulls the table cloth, then runs away, and with a smile on his face, waits for his father’s reaction to come and scold him. Kids love a reaction from their parents, even if it is an angry one. If your child laughs at your attempts at discipline, shouting will only hurt your authority. Children see themselves in control when you are out of control. At moments like these, children laugh to get you to laugh. Your best reaction would be a calm one. Do whatever you have to do to stop the behaviour in a matter-of-fact way. Try to look at these moments as an opportunity to bond and try not to see their mischief as a defiance of your authority – a little mayhem in your life can give them plenty of joy!

Once a child enters preschool, her relation to humour may change. There may be class stories, practical jokes and the inevitable influence of other kids that she may want to share with you. So for now, try to enjoy the still-uncomplicated laughter that may be ringing in your house as a result of your child’s antics!

Bring on the Smiles

· Sing silly songs.

· Play with her favourite toy.

· Read to your little one- they love to look at a picture of real people, animals, and activities.

· Become a human slide and let your toddler slide on you, over and over!

· Encourage pretend play – be a rock, a race car, a crawling animal an invite your child to lie on you!

· Imagination is messy around toddlers. Let your toddler enjoy her flights of fancy!