Is this normal?

[Omgjustpicjaname]

First time mum here. Not asking for any reason other than to see if this is 'normal' development whatever that means. We recently discovered our 14 month old can understand and say numbers up to eight. He doesn't count as we think he recognises them as pictures but will see a number three and say three - I'm just not sure if this is normal or if he is a bit advanced in this area? I've tried to Google it but can't seem to find much, it doesn't matter but I'm quite curious. He says about 40 words in total. I follow a milestone tracker thing and it doesn't say anything about this at this point.

Anyone else had toddlers like this?

Yep, it's very lovely. Mine love numbers and counting. Mine was like this and could do up to 20 by about 16 months...
The only thing I would recommend is to never mention it to a parent with a similar aged child! Competitive and bragging parents are a chore even if you didn't mean it that way, so I only boast to grandparents and Auntie who works in STEM.

Amazing! Yes, that's why I've put it on here because I didn't want to ask any of the mums I knew incase it sounded like I was boasting rather than being genuinely interested on whether it was normal or not! It's quite a fine line between being proud of your child and sounding like a right asshole lol

Yes, I would say that's pretty unusual actually at 14 months! You have a little mathematician on your hands

@Somethingsnappy thank you, I thought so too but I really wasn't sure. He is really turning into a clever little boy, but all babies are in their own way.

I would say your LO is ahead of the game! My LO is 15mo and can say words like "up, off, in, on, woof woof, yum" and even then its 100% more than her little friends. I would also avoid mentioning it to other parents. People can be super competitive and insecure about their kids. Did you encourage speaking or play games to help your LO talk?

Definitely advanced! I think you’re right to not mention to other mum’s but you can definitely feel proud of that
Mine started counting to 10 around 23 months.

@Mamabear04 it started when he was interested in our kitchen clock, he would point and say clock so we just took it down for him and he would point to the numbers and we would say them and over the last few months he can recognise them! We also have a gruffulo numbers book which he loves. He also likes license plates when we go for walks.

I do avoid telling any parents about it because I understand how it comes across as competitive, even though it shouldnt as all little ones develop in there own time. He walked quite early at ten months but I kept that secret because some other little ones I know weren't crawling yet and their mums were anxious. They're starting to walk now so I feel more comfortable talking about that stuff as they can relate. I'm the same, a little boy the same age could point really early and I was worried about why my son couldn't as ridiculous as that seems now.

Also 'woof woof' so adorable! @Mamabear04

@Mamapep thank you, I did have the suspicion it was but didn't feel comfortable asking so thank you!

Pretty normal based on my son and friends children. I did read an interesting article though that said children understand numbers from an early age they just don't necessarily have the language skills to make us aware.

@triceratops12 thank you! I read that too! I don't know any other child of the same age that does so that's great to hear. I wish they'd have more information online about it.

My 14 month old can say one word in total and her brother only learnt to count to ten when he was three. So yes (in comparison to my kids anyway) I would say yours was advanced.

Sounds advanced but the fact you taught him with the clock makes it less surprising. All our clocks are digital so I need to get a toy one I reckon!
My 15mo can say about 15 words but recognises far more because we've 'taught' him from picture books since he was very young. They're such little sponges, its truly amazing to witness!

@MissingTheMoonlight it really is extraordinary what they're able to do when they're so young!

I think that’s pretty advanced! At that age my son couldn’t recognise numbers, and in fact now at 2 he probably still can’t, but we’ve never tried to show him so that’s probably why. When they’re little the best thing is to follow their interests so keep encouraging him if he’s interested in numbers!

@HarrietM87 thank you! Yes, it seems to be something he really loves and enjoys, wouldn't ever push anything on him. That's nice to hear.

Yes, it's great that he is interested. I also think that it's good you see he is recognising them as pictures rather than thinking he is counting, because that's what it is. He has made an association between the word and the shape just like seeing a picture of a cat and saying "cat". My DC also has a fascination with numbers (and later, letters) and it's great as they are everywhere so always something to spot, even on lockdown walks!

@modge he is definitely not counting! He doesn't see things and go 1, 2, 3 lol (unless they're actual numbers) yep! I don't know if your little one has this interest but bins with those big number on are always a spotting point haha.

@LordOfTheOnionRings yes! Wheelie bin numbers are the best, especially on long roads. Keeps those little legs moving to see what the next number is going to be

My LO was exactly the same and at the age of nearly 5, LO still has an obsession with numbers! He now does quite advanced maths which LO loves (neither me nor my DH have a maths or science background so no idea where it comes from!). I would say that LO learned actual words a little later in life compared to others at the same age but LO caught up and is now the same as others.
Counting bin numbers - so fun! I remember that stage.... my LO would make me walk up and down the same street and point at the house numbers! Kids are funny, aren't they?!
And definitely don't mention to other mums you know - it can definitely come across as boasting and they won't thank you for it.

Yep it sounds like he's ahead of the norm in this area but then there is a very vast range of 'normal'
My eldest was similar, I remember she was naming colours at her first birthday party and could recognise numbers etc. She was a bit slower than some others at crawling/ walking though - she didn't crawl til about 13 months and didn't walk until she was 19 months. She was speaking well in full sentences before she was fully mobile and I remember everyone telling me how advanced she was with her talking, counting etc but all I could focus on was that she wasn't walking like the others. I was much more relaxed with my 2nd and tried not to focus on milestones, he did things at a totally different rate but it's made no difference in the grand scheme of things.
My eldest is 10 now and while she is classed as hitting above targets at school (whatever that means) to me she's just a normal 10 year old going on 15 year old who is turning into a teenage drama queen way too fast girl

Sounds like your LO is doing great 😊

Thank you @wishywashy6! Yeah, I understand these things don't really mean much in the grand scheme of things :D I was apparently a very advanced toddler and turned into an extremely bog standard teenager!

@CrispyMonster why are toys to expensive when all you need is a few bins! :D No, I would never say anything of the sort to mums in real life, I would never want to be that twat of a mum, I have known a mum like it and I was always eye rolling, 'oh, Jason can recognize shapes at six months, reaaaalllllyyyyyyyyyyy'.

@Omgjustpicjaname

First time mum here. Not asking for any reason other than to see if this is 'normal' development whatever that means. We recently discovered our 14 month old can understand and say numbers up to eight. He doesn't count as we think he recognises them as pictures but will see a number three and say three - I'm just not sure if this is normal or if he is a bit advanced in this area? I've tried to Google it but can't seem to find much, it doesn't matter but I'm quite curious. He says about 40 words in total. I follow a milestone tracker thing and it doesn't say anything about this at this point.

Anyone else had toddlers like this?

Normal I think. DS was recognising his favourite books by 12 months - so if you asked for a title he would give it to you. At the same age my DB (who was and still is a genius) used to be in charge of sharing sweets between us.

My girl could 'read' logos at around that age. As in if we passed a Tesco on the bus she would say "Tesco". People overhearing were sometimes very impressed or amused. But it was really just the shapes she was recognising because if I wrote Tesco in ordinary hand writing she wouldn't recognise it.
It's a sweet memory really of how her mind was learning.