Important milestones in your baby's first year
Your baby will grow and change rapidly during the first year of life.
All babies are different and your little one will reach developmental
milestones at their own pace. However, there are typical age limits when some
of the most exciting advances occur. Watch as your child enters each new phase.
1 to 3 months
About 1 month after your baby is born, he will still have jerky
movements in his arms and legs and will have poor control of his neck. They
will most likely keep their hands in a fist and their eyes may cross from time
to time.
But there are new skills that are starting to emerge. They are likely
to:
- Bring their hands near their face
- Pay attention to people's faces, not other objects
- Focus your eyes on objects at a distance of 20-30 cm.
- Turning the head from side to side in the supine position
- Turn on sounds and voices they recognize
By the time your baby is 3 months old, you will notice that other things
are happening. They can:
- Try to grab and hold objects
- Put your hand in their mouth
- Raise their head off the floor or push up their torso while lying on their stomach
- Stretching and kicking while lying on their back
- Pushing against the surface when the feet are on it
- From time to time, calm down by finding a hand or finger to suck on.
- Coo or gurgle, using mostly vowels
- Focusing on objects more than 30 cm away.
4 to 6 months
When your baby approaches the middle of his first year of life, he is no
longer a newborn. Their movements will make more sense, and their vision and
speech skills will develop. They will probably be able to:
- Smile at people
- Copy the sounds they hear
- Use different shouts to express different feelings
- Follow an object with your eyes
- Copy other people's expressions
- Reach for toys with one hand
- Roll over from stomach to back
By the middle of their first year, they should be able to:
- Recognize when someone is unfamiliar
- Look at themself with interest in the mirror
- Play with other people, especially mother and father
- Start stringing more than one sound together when they babble
- Answer his name
- Bring objects to your mouth
- Reach for the toys and catch them
- Transferring a toy from one hand to another
At 6 months, some babies may also:
- Roll in both directions
- Start sitting without support
- Keeping the body weight on the legs while standing
- Rock back and forth on hands and knees
7 to 9 months
As your child grows, he becomes more stable. From 7 to 9 months, some
masters sit alone and take and move objects with their hands. Others even walk
at 9 months. Full color vision in children usually appears at 7 months.
Typically, by the end of 9 months, your baby may:
- Cling to you when someone unfamiliar is around
- Prefers some toys over others
- Understand the word "no".
- Play games like hide and seek
- Get to the toy that is far away
- Put things in their mouth
- Easily move items from hand to hand
- Sit on their own
- Pull up to a standing position
- Stand while holding on to something
10-12 months
When your child turns 1, they will be able to explore more than ever
before. They have learned new ways to communicate with you and other people and
are becoming more mobile every day. They are likely to:
- Bring a toy to play with or a book to read
- Recognize when you leave and get upset about it
- Attract attention with sounds or movements.
- "Help" get dressed by putting your arms and legs through their clothes
- Use gestures to say something ("no" and "goodbye")
- Say a few simple words like "mom" or "oh-oh".
- Imitate the words you say
- Find an object behind your back
- Clap hands together
- Follow simple instructions
- Drink from a cup
- Use their thumb and forefinger to pick up small items
There is a wide range of skills at this age when it comes to sitting,
crawling and standing. It is normal for a one year old not to walk, but some
do. On average, most one-year-olds can:
- Take a seated position
- Pull up to a standing position
- Move by holding on to furniture or other support
- Stand alone
- Take a few steps
When it comes to reaching milestones, remember: your child is in charge.
They will cross the goal line when they are ready. If you are concerned about
your child's development, check with your pediatrician.