We are searching data for your request:
Upon completion, a link will appear to access the found materials.
Your 8-year-old now
Your child is firmly in mid-childhood. Get ready for fun years of remarkable capability and quick learning coupled with a pretty agreeable personality and growing self-sufficiency.
You child will continue to grow at about the same rate as in the last two years: an average of 2 to 3 inches and 3 to 7 pounds each year. Much of the new height comes in the legs, giving your child a leaner, more elongated appearance.
In a child who's not overweight, early-childhood baby fat around the middle disappears, replaced by a flatter midsection. This, too, makes him look more like a "big kid."
As baby teeth continue to fall out and larger permanent teeth come in, your child's jawline will gradually alter. The face thins out a bit, too.
This year, you'll begin to notice more and more differences among children of the same age. Heredity influences size, for example. You can't control genetics, but you do have influence over another big factor that shapes growth: lifestyle. Your child is subconsciously picking up important diet and exercise habits from his family.
Your life now
Commemorate your child's growth with a mark on the wall and the date, so you can compare it a year from now. Or take a photo to update his old baby book. Some parents keep birthday photo albums in which they add a picture taken on each birthday. (It's never too late to start – your child has ten whole years left before adulthood!)
advertisement | page continues below