Totschooling: Practical Life Skills for 18-24 Months Old (Part 1)
Upon
arriving home from our dinner date with my family last week, I asked my
little Queen B to remove her shoes and socks as I go to the bathroom. When I
returned, not only was she able to remove both shoes and socks, she had
placed a sock on each shoe and put her shoes in the stairs where her other
footwear are located. It was a proud mommy moment for me.
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| I have never thought that the sight of socks in a pair of shoes can make me so happy. |
A very important aspect of our totschooling is the teaching of practical life skills. Practical Life Skills are various skills that are useful in one’s life. These skills allow a person to become independent and thrive in society. If it is helpful in one’s life, it is considered as a practical life skill. For a toddler like my little Queen B, removing an article of clothing like shoes and socks is a very simple practical life skill that can be built upon as she grows up and is capable of doing more.
Practical
life skills activities teach children the proper way to do the routines of a
person’s everyday life. It teaches them responsibility and accountability. It
also shows them that even at such a young age; they are an important contributing
member of society.
In
our household we mostly teach practical life skills by modelling it and then
letting our little Queen B practice the skill until she masters it. The 18 to
24 months of age is a magical period as I am experiencing. Young children of
this age group likes imitating other people especially their parents. If I am
sweeping the floor, my little Queen B will get our extra broom and “help” me. When
she sees me putting on lipstick, she will point to her lips and pucker up,
waiting for me to put some on hers too! Due to this, I believe this is a great
period to start teaching practical life skills (if you haven’t already).
And
to guide you in your own totschooling, here is a list of practical life skills
for 18 to 24 months old which we are currently and planning to teach our
little Queen B.
1.
Feed one-self using spoon and fork.
Ever
since she is old enough to have solids, our little Queen B eats her meals with
us. She sits on her high chair which is placed between me and J. With this
set-up, she gets to observe us as we eat our own meal and use our utensils. As
we practice Baby Led Weaning, most of her early solids are finger foods cut
into appropriate shapes and size.
When
she showed interest in using a spoon, we gave her a small plastic one to
practice with. We have also started serving her the same dishes we eat. For
months, it seems like I am doing general cleaning after every meal as most of
her food ended up on the floor.
 |
| When she tires of her utensils, she uses her hands to feed herself. |
It was
only during the 2nd quarter of this year that she grew an appetite
big enough to finish her meal and became more adept in using the spoon. Truly,
practice makes perfect. Mealtimes are still messy but most of it is now
contained in her high chair. Currently, she is learning how to use the fork
properly.
 |
| Our little Queen B is actually better in using the spoon with her left hand but lately she is showing preference in using her right hand. |
2.
Drink from a glass and cup.
Our
little Queen B had never enjoyed drinking from a sippy cup; she prefers a glass
and later on a straw cup. But nowadays, our little Queen B refuses to drink
from any cup or glass except the same glasses J and I use which are mason jars.
We only put a small amount of liquid on it as she still has the tendency to
tilt the glass higher than it should be therefore having the liquid spilling
all over her. We plan to increase the amount of water or juice as she gets
better with it.
 |
| Drink up, George! |
Thankfully,
it seems that she have lost that habit of throwing her cups and spoons for
unknown reason. I still do keep a watchful eye over my mason jars, though.
 |
| Here is our little Queen B holding a tea cup during her tea party with her cousin Ate Aki. |
3.
Brushing of teeth.
Even
though baby teeth will still be replaced later on with permanent ones, it is
still quite important to take care of these pearly whites. It is recommended to
start brushing using an appropriate toothbrush as soon as the first tooth
erupts. Our little Queen B’s now 16 teeth are brushed at least twice daily. She
brushes her teeth by herself first then I will redo it to ensure that it is
cleaned properly.
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| Our little Queen B loves how her toothbrush stands on its own. Whenever she sees it, she wants to brush her teeth. Bought 2 pairs of this toothbrush for 66 Php only at Japan Home Store. Despite of its low price it is sturdier compared to famous cartoon character's toothbrushes we bought before. |
Since
she still doesn’t know how to gargle and spit out water, I only place a very
tiny amount of toothpaste on her brush. As much as possible I brush my teeth
with her so she can see how I am doing it.
4.
Washing and drying of hands.
Good
hygiene is important in staying healthy which is why we made washing hands as
part of our routine when having meals. We take her to the sink to wash her
hands before a meal. At first, she just let us do it but lately she is taking a more active
role. Afterwards, she will dry her hands using a cloth or towel which she can
already do all by herself.
When
running water and soap is not readily available, we use hand sanitizer. J
taught Georgina when she was still less than a year old how to rub her hands
when hand sanitizer is placed on her hands which she continues to practice up
to this day.
5.
Removing and putting on clothes.
"Okay George, we are now putting
on your onesie. We are going to put this over your head and pull it down." Even when she was still an
infant, whenever we dress our little Queen B we try to explain to her what we
are doing. Once she was able to have more control of her arm, J taught her how
to shoot her tiny arms into the sleeves.
Nowadays,
I let her remove her own clothes. I actually don’t need to show her how as
she figures it out all by herself. I just remove the snaps if present
especially those in the back and I must have patience as it takes time for her
to remove her clothes especially lower body garments. Of course, when I see
that she is stuck I ask her if she wants my help and if she nods that is the
only time I will remove her clothes for her.
She
can also put on some clothes now. She prefers ours, though. She loves putting
on my tank tops or her cousin Ate Aki’s shirts. I guess this is her early foray
into the wonderful world of playing dress up.
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| Our little Queen B using a hankie as a bonnet. I'm excited to see what she'll come up with on her next dress up play. |
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