Note: All weights and lengths are approximate; each baby is unique. These figures are just general ranges.
Communication and social development
Most babies are over stranger anxiety by now. Occasionally, they’ll be afraid of strangers even as toddlers, but this is more the exception than the rule. The one-year-old child has built a strong connection to his parents or caregivers, and he feels secure that they will always come back, even if they are absent for a while.
A totally normal child may not say her first word until 15 or 16 months, but all one-year-olds should be at least babbling or gesturing (pointing or waving) by this age.
Senses and motor skills
Baby can now participate in getting dressed: He reaches out his little arms to help put on a T-shirt or jacket. Practicing walking is now one of his main activities, and he can’t get enough of it. He may outright refuse to sit in his stroller. He much prefers feeding himself now. If you give the child blocks, he can stack them on top of each other. He likes to throw things, plays with balls and can draw lines with a crayon.
Interests and activities
Baby happily fetches objects upon request (“Can you give me the spoon?”) and sometimes makes a joke of it by not returning right away with the item. Then he might come over grinning slyly, greatly amusing himself as he hides the spoon behind his back. A one-year-old finds things that appears from under a sofa cushion or his caregiver’s sweater very entertaining.