Archive: motor skill milestones

Motor Skill Milestones

From only a few months old, babies will begin to develop motor skills. At first they’ll grab and giggle, but soon, they’ll begin to move their entire bodies.

Remember that each baby develops at his or her own pace so don’t panic if your child varies. However, if this is an ongoing trend you should ask your pediatrician about it just in case there are developmental delays.

Here are some key motor skill milestones to prepare for:

Rolling over

Around the same time that your baby is learning to sit on his or her own, they’ll learn to roll over. You’ll start to see your baby lift head and shoulders high, using arms in what looks like imitation pushups. Eventually, at as early as four months, your little one may be able to roll over from belly to back. But don’t worry if it takes another month or two to reverse the motion.

Crawling

Crawling typically starts to take place between six and 10 months. Likely signs that crawling is coming is if your baby starts repositioning his or herself from sitting up to hands and knees. You also may see some scooting, a sign of attempted movement. At first, babies may use the right leg and arm at the same time, but they’ll quickly learn that using the left arm with the right leg is much steadier and more efficient. Crawling gives babies an opportunity to explore the world around them.

Standing

After babies master crawling, they will begin to stand, not on their own at first, but while holding onto you or other objects for support. Babies are normally proficient standers by around nine months. Standing is an exciting sign because it’s the first step to walking.

Walking

Arguably one of the most exciting motor skill milestones, walking typically begins by holding onto objects and inching along. Most babies begin to walk on their own at around one year, but don’t begin to use more finely tuned motor skills, like walking backwards, until around 15 months.

Sources:

-“Developmental milestones: Rolling over.” Baby Center.

-“Baby physical and motor skills.” Baby Zone.

-“Baby Milestones.” Parenting.com.

-“Developmental milestones: Crawling.” Baby Center.

-“Milestone chart: 7-12 months.” Baby Center.

-Photo courtesy of photostock/freedigitalphotos.net