Tips for your 10-12 month old baby

HELP ME BE HEALTHY.

• At this checkup, the doctor will:
• Weigh and measure me.
• Give me any vaccines or blood tests I missed before.
• Give me vaccines at 12 months of age.
• Check my teeth.
• Screen me to see if I have been exposed to lead. I can get lead in my body by breathing or eating lead dust, chips, or flakes. The lead can get into my nerves and my bones. It can affect the way I learn, grow, and hear. The earlier we catch the problem, the less harm will happen to me.
• Ask my doctor about a tuberculin test.

Watch for signs of an ear infection.

If I tug at my ears or have a cold lasting many days, this could mean I have an ear infection. Ear infections could affect my hearing. Being sick a lot could affect my growth and learning. If I don’t feel well, it might be hard for me to see, hear, think, and learn. If I act, look, or feel like I’m sick, please call the doctor or nurse right away.

TAKE CARE OF MY TEETH.

• Start planning for my next dental visit for when I’m 12 months old.
• Call your dentist or a dentist just for me and set up this visit.
• Brush my teeth ever y day, and look for any white or brown spots. These could be cavities.
• If I have any white or brown spots on my teeth, take me to the dentist as soon as possible.

HELP ME BE SAFE.

• I like to pull things out of drawers. Make sure drawers cannot be pulled out all the way.
• Make sure that unsafe things are not in the drawers. Give me a low drawer or cupboard of my own to store some of my toys.
• Store my toys, books, and other things where I can reach them. Sturdy shelves, dish­pans, buckets, and cardboard boxes are good.
• I can choke on food. Don’t give me hard-to­-chew foods such as popcorn, nuts, raisins, tortilla chips and grapes. Don’t give me hotdogs, even if they’re cut into pieces.
• I still need to be watched carefully. Common accidents for chil­dren my age are: falls, burns, choking, poisoning, car accidents, and drowning. Don’t leave me in a bath or around anything with water (like a mop bucket).

PLAY WITH ME, IT HELPS ME LEARN.

• Make a book for me using cardboard for the pages. Paste photographs and pictures from magazines on the pages. I like to see pictures of me, my family and my favorite toys, foods, and places. Let me turn the pages.
• Play a game of “Which-hand-is-it-in?” Hold a small object in your hand. Show me what’s in your hand. Switch back and forth between your hands. Let me guess which hand the object is in.
• Let me practice dropping things into containers such as a block into a box. I will need help getting the blocks back out.

Good Days and Bad Days

All parents have bad days and sometimes feel worn out. It is common for a parent’s body to ache a little from the work of being a parent. This doesn’t mean you are doing anything wrong. Remember that these bad days are usually followed by good days. Young children need parents who try their best, but that doesn’t mean you will succeed all the time. Try not to worry about being a super parent or a super family.

Talking to someone and asking for help:

• Shows that you love me and care about me.
• Shows that you are being a good parent.

WATCH HOW I GROW

I’m special. I learn at my own pace.
Most children have the following skills by the time they are a year old. If I’m not doing several of the items on this list, talk to my doctor or nurse. To find a nearby Early Childhood Intervention program, call the DARS Help Line toll-free at 1-800-628-5115.

Watch for me to:

• Play Pat-a-cake or other clapping games.
• Pull myself up by hanging onto a chair or my crib rail.
• Pick up a cube or small toy in each hand and bang them together.
• Pick up a small object, like a piece of cereal, using my thumb and a finger.
• Say the same sound over and over, like, “babababa” or “lalalala.”
• Say “mama” or “dada.” Even though I say these words, I don’t know what they mean. They are sounds for me to say.
• Stop doing something if you say “No.” I sometimes stop doing it only for a short time, though. Changing my attention with a toy is best.
• Follow some easy directions, like, “Come here” or “Give it to me.”
• Stand by myself for at least two seconds.
• Sit up all by myself.