What should your child be able to do
- All walking skills will now be rapidly improving
- They will be able to walk upstairs confidently and usually walks downstairs holding a rail two feet to a step
- They will be now beginning to run well in a straight line and climbing easy nursery apparatus
- They will be beginning to jump with two feet together and from a low step
- Able to string 3 to 4 beads and build a tower of 3 to 5 small blocks
- Able to copy a simple sequence of coloured blocks in a tower
- Turn single pages in a book
- Make snips with scissors
- Uses one hand consistently for most activities
- Imitates circular, vertical, and horizontal strokes
- Completes insert puzzles
How you can help
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde have produced an interactive questionnaire for children aged 2½ to 3½ years old. It gives you activity ideas to develop some of the skills they need to join in at nursery.
NHS start4life has some great activities to get your toddler moving
It’s quite normal for children to have flat feet up until the age of 3 years, the APCP advice leaflet has lots of information regarding development of foot posture in children, this can be found here:
The APCP also have good advice around choosing the right footwear for children, this can be found here:
Parents often worry about their children’s feet turning in when they walk, walking with an in-toeing pattern can be normal around this age and will gradually correct as your child grows. The APCP have produced an informative advice leaflet which explains more about this.
When to seek support
- Not walking independently
- Not able to get up from the floor independently without using the furniture.
- Not attempting to feed self, using a spoon, and/or help with dressing
- Not attempting everyday self-care skills (such as feeding or dressing)
- Difficulty in manipulating small objects (e.g., threading beads)