At the age of 2 years child should be able to?

RUHS, Jaipur, M.Sc Nursing Entrance Exam-2016

Child Health Nursing (Pediatrics)

Easy

Appeared in: RUHS, Jaipur, M.Sc Nursing Entrance Exam-2016

Explanation

By age 2 (24 months), a child's fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and oral motor control are sufficiently developed to drink from an open cup without significant spilling.
This milestone is part of the progression of self-feeding skills, moving from bottle/breast to independent use of utensils.
According to developmental charts, drinking from a cup may start around 12-15 months with help, but the skill is consolidated and performed well by 24 months.
This ability indicates normal development in the fine motor and adaptive domains for a toddler.

Option A: This is an earlier milestone. Children typically begin to finger-feed themselves soft foods like pieces of fruit around 6-9 months of age.
Option C: Pouring liquid requires significant wrist rotation, coordination, and spatial judgment, which are skills that develop after the age of 2.
Option D: Using a knife to cut food is a complex fine motor skill that requires significant dexterity, strength, and safety awareness.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Pediatric Developmental Milestones: Self-Feeding as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Nurses use developmental milestones as a crucial tool during well-child check-ups to assess a child's growth and identify any potential delays that may require early intervention.
Nurses should advise parents to begin weaning a child from a bottle to a cup around 12-15 months to help prevent nursing bottle caries (tooth decay) and reduce the risk of otitis media (ear infections).
What if? If a 2.5-year-old child refuses to drink from a cup and insists on a bottle, it could signal a behavioral issue, a sensory processing disorder, or an oral-motor delay. The nurse should recommend a developmental screening and consultation with a pediatrician or occupational therapist.

How to Approach the Question

This is a factual recall question about pediatric developmental milestones.
First, identify the key age specified in the question stem, which is '2 years' (or 24 months).
Next, systematically evaluate each option based on the standard timeline of child development.
Recall or determine which skills are typically acquired before, at, or after 24 months.
Eliminate options that represent skills learned much earlier (eating fruits with fingers) or much later (pouring water, cutting food).
Select the option that most accurately represents a key self-feeding skill mastered by the age of 2 years.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Pediatric Developmental Milestones: Self-Feeding
Stem keywords: 2 years, child, developmental milestone
Lead-in keywords: should be able to
Clinical cues: Age/sex group narrows the expected diagnosis, intervention, or normal reference range.
Negative lead-in flag: false

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E6 Ghai Essential Pediatrics(pp 26-904 of 913) p. 29-31

E6 Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics(2024) — Volume 1 pp. 130-132, 459-461