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By Ciprian H. · checked against CDC, AAP and NHS guidance · how we fact-check

Published October 24, 2026 · 3 min read

Exploring and copying: what to expect at 16 to 18 months (weeks 65 to 78)

Window 7 of the Fussy Phase Forecast · Last verified: October 24, 2026

Away, and back again

One of the nicest items on the 18-month list is also one of the most overlooked: moves away from you, but looks to make sure you are close by (CDC milestone checklist). Your child heads for the other side of the room, stops, looks back, and carries on. That is not clinginess to fix. It is a child using you as a safe base.

The same list has pointing to show you something interesting. Not to ask for it, just to share it. When your child points at a dog and looks at you, they are not requesting the dog. They are telling you about it.

Walking on their own, and climbing

By 18 months the CDC lists walking without holding on to anyone or anything, and climbing on and off a couch or chair without help. Earlier steps were wobbly practice. This is the steady version, and it arrives at different times for different children.

Spoons, cups, and the messy middle

The 18-month checklist is full of mealtime skills, and all of them come with spills: drinking from a cup without a lid and spilling sometimes, feeding themselves with their fingers, and trying to use a spoon. “Tries” is the key word. The skill is the trying, not the clean tablecloth.

Add a few more social items: putting hands out for you to wash them, helping you dress them by pushing an arm through a sleeve or lifting up a foot, and looking at a few pages in a book with you.

Words, directions, and scribbles

Language at 18 months, per the CDC: three or more words besides “mama” or “dada,” and following one-step directions without any gestures, like giving you the toy when you say “Give it to me.” On the thinking side: copying you doing chores, like sweeping with a broom, playing with toys in a simple way, like pushing a toy car, and scribbling.

Understanding usually runs ahead of talking. If your child hands over the toy when you ask, the words are coming in, even when they are not coming out yet.

The 18-month screening

The AAP recommends developmental screening at 9, 18 and 30 months, and autism-specific screening at 18 and 24 months (screening schedule, as summarized by Michigan Medicine). It is worth asking about at the 18-month well-child visit. A screening is a routine short check, not a verdict.

What most children do by 18 months

The full CDC list (CDC, scientific basis in Zubler et al., Pediatrics 2022):

• Moves away from you, but looks to make sure you are close by
• Points to show you something interesting
• Puts hands out for you to wash them
• Looks at a few pages in a book with you
• Helps you dress them by pushing an arm through a sleeve or lifting up a foot
• Tries to say three or more words besides “mama” or “dada”
• Follows one-step directions without any gestures, like giving you the toy when you say “Give it to me.”
• Copies you doing chores, like sweeping with a broom
• Plays with toys in a simple way, like pushing a toy car
• Walks without holding on to anyone or anything
• Scribbles
• Drinks from a cup without a lid and may spill sometimes
• Feeds themselves with their fingers
• Tries to use a spoon
• Climbs on and off a couch or chair without help

Born early? Keep counting from the due date. The adjusted age matters through toddlerhood.

When to call your pediatrician

And your own concern is reason enough to call.

Keep reading

• Previous window: Weeks 52 to 65: first steps and first words
• Next window: Weeks 78 to 104: almost two
• Baby separation anxiety: why clinginess is a milestone
• Do babies follow fixed fussy weeks?

Sources

• CDC: Milestone checklists, 2022 revision (18-month checklist)
• CDC: Your child at 18 months
• Zubler et al., “Evidence-informed milestones for developmental surveillance tools”, Pediatrics 2022
• Michigan Medicine: developmental screening schedule (summarizes the AAP schedule)

Peanutbean provides general information for educational purposes only. It is not medical advice. Every child develops at their own pace. Always talk to your pediatrician about your child’s health.