Development isn’t a race. It’s a flow. 

Every child—and parent—is figuring it out at their own pace.

Instead of milestones, we encourage you to focus on this amazing moment.

Your child’s brain makes more than one million neural connections per second in these first three years. Simple, consistent interactions with them today can have profound, lifelong benefits.

Here’s how little one’s brain is developing this month, and how you can support their progress.

Developmental Highlight

Having a concept of time is a crucial element in cognitive development—and one of the biggest challenges during the twos. In the first years of life, little one’s living in the now, with no concept of the future. That’s why they’re likely to have a meltdown when you say, “Now now, sweetie. We’ll do that later.” Little one hasn’t developed the concept of time yet. To them, “later” or “after” just means “no.”

As little one grows to understand the flow of time, they’ll get better at managing big feelings without getting overwhelmed. Less stress, more executive function. This developmental leap from now to the future will support little one’s advancement from the spatial concept of where to the more abstract idea of when. 

Brain-Building Activity

Two-Part Plan

Routine: Anytime

Everything you know about the flow of time had to be learned. To make this concept less abstract, break out the art supplies and help little one visualize it. Start with a two-part sequence that tends to cause some friction or frustration, like needing to eat lunch before going to the playground. You’re trying to help little one manage expectations.

• Talk little one through this sequence of events, one box at a time, emphasizing that Now/Before comes first and Then/After comes second.
  
  

• Ask little to point to where we are Now in the sequence. Then ask where we’ll be After we eat lunch. You want them to clearly understand that there’s a present and future and these events will happen in this order.
  
  

• Later, ask little one to remind you what you’re doing After you eat lunch. Refer back to the sequence.
  
  

• Try to practice this activity a few times a week.
  

You’ve Got This

Take a moment to look back at where you and little one were a year ago. You’ve both grown so much on this journey! 

Now think about a current challenge, something you’re trying to figure out. It isn’t resolved yet, but it will be later. Every day, you’re closer to understanding what you need to do, finding a solution, and progressing to the next stage.

You’ve got this.

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