From the day they were born, our children require emotional care and physical affection in a nurturing and soothing environment. Every single experience is a totally new one for these bundles of joy. Their world is filled with seeing, hearing and feeling, which stimulates their senses to help them grow and develop. Your response to their constant cries for attention provides emotional nourishment, which also creates a warm and secure environment for these tiny tots.

Your child's development rate can be bafflingly tremendous outburst or painfully slow at times. While there are milestones for measure as yardsticks, one can rely on instincts to observe whether all is well or there are significant delays. Remember, these are only for guidance purposes and not some target to be achieved or agonized over. Learn to appreciate these variations, which is an exciting and memorable journey for both you and your child.

As your child advances on to their preschool age, involving play with other kids unlock their social skills that will be an important lifetime tool. It also provides the vital building block for lifelong self-esteem. Being in a playschool or playgroup enhances their social and personal growth with the interactions made. Encouraging play leads to a healthy dose of creativity, coordination and cooperation.

Reading with your child opens up amazing new worlds and adventures. Books help to create bonds as stories are being shared between parent and child. It is useful for improving speech, imagination and even counting skills! What more it's a delight to see the shine in their eyes when tales of the mystical and magical are being recounted to keep them caught up in the wonder of it all!

At this age, children will develop a sense of independence so it is imperative to give them the space they need. With lots of room to do their own thing, they can maximize their creativity development streak.