Stage15–18 m
15-18 months
They understand far more than they can say
Comprehension runs well ahead of speech, and that gap explains most of the frustration at this age. A vocabulary explosion is close, usually between 18 and 24 months, taking them from dozens of words to hundreds.
What to feed
- Milk
- Whole milk 350-500ml a day.
- Meal pattern
- Three meals and two snacks, essentially family food.
Can start eating
- A wider range of textures and flavours
- Whole grains: oats, brown rice, wholemeal bread
Not yet
- All the usual choking hazards
- Sugary drinks
- Salty snacks
Worth knowing
- Food neophobia peaks here — a built-in wariness of new food, not deliberate defiance
- Re-present the same food in a different form: if carrot sticks fail, try grated carrot or carrot fritters
- Do not use dessert as a reward for finishing dinner. It makes dessert more valuable and dinner more like a punishment
- Involve them: washing vegetables, passing bowls, setting the table. Food they helped with gets eaten more
How much sleep
11-14 hours a day
- Daytime
- Merging into one midday nap of 1.5-3 hours
During the merge there will be weeks of being tired by mid-morning and falling apart by late afternoon. Move the nap earlier for a while. The transition takes 2-4 weeks.
Vaccines in this stage
No scheduled vaccines in this stage.
What most children do by now
Gross motor
- Walks confidently, runs a few steps
- Climbs onto a small chair
- Kicks at a ball
Fine motor
- Stacks 3-4 blocks
- Takes off socks and hat
- Gets a spoon to the mouth
Language
- 10-20 words, possibly 50 by 18 months
- Shakes head for no
- Points to body parts
Social and cognitive
- Imitates housework
- Plays alongside other children rather than with them
- Expresses wants with expression and single words
This is what most children manage in this window, not a pass mark. A few months either way is common. The signals worth acting on are in the doctor section below.
Height and weight reference for this ageWhen to see a doctor
If any of these apply, do not wait for the next routine check.
- Not walking at 18 months
- Fewer than six words
- Does not point things out to you (absent joint attention)
- Does not imitate
- No response to their name despite normal hearing
- No eye contact
- Skill regression — at any age this warrants a prompt review
What to practise
- 01
Expand by one
How · They say "car", you say "red car. The car is going." Always give back one or two more words than they used.
Why · Expansion is a specific, evidence-backed technique for growing vocabulary.
- 02
Sorting and matching
How · Shape sorters, or simply nesting bowls of different sizes.
Why · Classifying and matching are the earliest forms of logical thinking.
- 03
Two-step instructions
How · "Get your shoes and put them by the door." Build up from one step to two.
Why · This is exactly how working memory capacity gets stretched.
Day to day
- Biting and hitting are common and are expressions of frustration. React calmly but clearly: "No biting. Biting hurts." Then redirect
- Usually 8-12 teeth by now. Brush twice a day with a rice-grain smear of fluoride toothpaste
- Know your local emergency number, and learn the infant and toddler choking manoeuvres
- If still using a bottle, wean off it now
Common questions
- Only a few words at 18 months. Should we act?
- Language varies hugely, but the combination of fewer than six words plus no pointing plus no imitation is worth a developmental assessment now. Late talking with good comprehension, pointing and imitation can usually be watched a while longer. A hearing test is always the first step.
- How should we handle hitting and biting?
- Do not laugh and do not explode — both reinforce it. Stop it calmly, explain in one line, redirect immediately. Also check for tiredness, hunger or communication failure, which is usually the real trigger.