Babies develop at all different rates but here's what to look for from 6 to 12 months of age.
6 to 9 months
Babies between 6 and 9 months of age are communicators. They start to imitate speech sounds such as “ma-ma”, “ba-ba”, and “da-da”. Often the first sounds are “ba-ba” or “da-da”, because the “m” being a nasal sound is more difficult to produce. At this age, the infant learns how to play peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake/pattycake, and how to wave “bye-bye”. She may also get upset and cry if left alone as she may start to understand that you still exist after you leave the room. Also, at about 8 to 9 months of age, infants become aware that all people are not the same and they may start to experience “stranger anxiety” when approached or picked up by somebody other than the caretaker. Babies start to realize that their relationships with caretakers are special and they become selective about who they will allow to pick them up. Stranger anxiety peaks between 12-15 months of age, and then gradually decreases in severity.
Ways to Enhance Your Baby's Development
- Read daily
- Create a safe environment for exploring and learning: baby gates, latches on cabinets, plugs in outlets, chemicals placed out of reach
- Provide a variety of toys for exploration and experimentation
- To ease stranger anxiety, ask relatives and friends to approach your child slowly, talk in a soft voice, and avoid direct eye contact to let your child warm up. To prevent stranger anxiety, introduce your baby to other people at a very early age.
- Set water heater to <120 F to prevent accidental burns
- Wean off bottle and pacifier
At this time of development, motor skills of infants are advancing by leaps and bounds. They can pull themselves up to stand, cruise around furniture, and crawl. Remember that prevention is the best medicine, so create a safe environment for exploration and learning. Block off stairways with baby gates. Also, hopefully by now you have installed latches on cabinets and all chemicals, such as cleaning supplies, and laundry soap are placed out of your baby’s reach. Should your baby accidentally ingest anything potentially poisonous, call the Poison Control Center right away at 1-800-222-1222. Currently, it is not recommended to induce vomiting with syrup of Ipecac unless so instructed by the Poison Control Center.
9 to 12 months
At this age your child’s development excels. She might have already started to walk independently and start “getting into things”. This curiosity and drive for exploration and discovery are natural ways of learning. Provide your child with a safe environment to build self-esteem and new skills. Repeating tasks over and over again lets your child learn how things work.
Between 9 and 12 months, your child attains new memory skills. She knows that you exist after leaving the room. This new skill may create difficulties such as “separation anxiety”. One variation of separation anxiety is bedtime resistance. Your child may protest at bedtime and cry for you in the middle of the night. To ease your child’s transition form daily activities to bedtime, offer her a transition object, such as a baby blanket or a soft toy.
Table 1 - Milestones
Age
Developmental milestones
9 months
Gets to sitting
Pulls self to stand
Cruises around furniture
Crawls
Imitates speech sounds
Plays peek-a-boo
Plays pat-a-cake
12 months Plays pat-a-cake
Walks well
Drinks from sippy cup
Says mama, dada
Tries to use a spoon
Can pick up cheerio with a thumb
and index finger (pincer grasp)
DEVELOPMENTAL RED FLAGS
Sometimes infants do not learn certain skills by an expected age. Consult with your health care provider as soon as possible if you notice any of the following delays:
- Rolling over before 3 months of age
- Failure to respond to noise
- Head lags behind when pulled to sit after 4 months
- Failure to reach for objects by 5 months
- Inability to sit tripod by 6 months
- Absent smile by 4-6 months
- Absent babbling by 6 months
- Absent stranger anxiety by 7 months
- No back and forth sharing of sounds or smiles by 9 months
- Lack of tool use (spoon or crayon) by 12 months
Dr. Hillary
About the author:
Dr. Hillary is a pediatric nurse practitioner with a doctoral degree in health promotion and risk reduction. She has worked with children for well over a decade. To send her an email, click
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