Developmental motor milestones

Developmental Milestones for All Ages

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Developmental Milestones for Babies and Children 0-3 Month Milestones 4-6 Month Milestones 7-9 Month Milestones 10-12 Month Milestones 13-18 Month Milestones 19-24 Month Milestones 2-3 Year Milestones Missing Milestones Resources to Meet Milestones

Developmental Milestones for Babies and Children

What are developmental milestones?

Milestones are behavioral or physical checkpoints in children’s development as they grow. All of our developmental milestones are validated by American Academy of Pediatrics findings.

These are the core skills infants and toddlers should be reaching. Week by week and month by month, you can check in on baby's growth and development by following baby's milestones.

Want these milestones in a handheld guide?

Order Baby's First Year Milestone Guide

How are the milestones organized?

We have divided our developmental milestones into the core parts of child development:

• Motor milestones: When will baby sit independently? When will baby start to crawl? Motor milestones track baby’s gross motor skills (in their core and upper body) and fine motor skills (in their hands and feet).
• Sensory milestones: When will baby be able to visually track objects? When will baby have a regular sleep schedule? Sensory milestones track the development of baby’s 7 senses.
• Communication milestones: When will baby say their first words? When do toddlers begin responding to questions? These language milestones are the building blocks to baby’s communication and social skills.
• Feeding milestones: When is baby ready for finger foods? How long should baby nurse for? These milestones help track when babies start new phases of feeding.

Remember, all babies are different! Milestones mark the month most babies start a certain behavior or ability based on baby’s age, but exact timing will vary. If you have any concerns, request an appointment with a healthcare provider.

Early detection allows for early correction or support. I have witnessed the effect this has a on child’s trajectory hundreds of times over my pediatric career. My favorite time is looking back with parents when their children are older and reflecting on the significance of early intervention. We are both grateful.

-Lori Walsh, MD, FAAP

Be sure to adjust for prematurity. If your child is missing any milestones, be sure to talk with your healthcare provider.

0-3 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• While lying on tummy, pushes up on arms
• While lying on tummy, lifts and holds head up
• Able to move fists from closed to open
• Able to bring hands to mouth
• Moves legs and arms off of surface when excited

Sensory Milestones

• While lying on back, attempts to reach for a toy held above their chest
• While lying on back, visually tracks a moving toy from side to side
• While lying on back, keeps head centered to watch faces or toys
• Able to calm with rocking, touching, and gentle sounds
• Enjoys a variety of movements

Communication Milestones

• Quiets or smiles in response to sound or voice
• Turns head towards sound or voice
• Shows interest in faces
• Makes eye contact
• Cries differently for different needs (e. g. hungry vs. tired)
• Coos and smiles

Feeding Milestones

• Latches onto nipple or bottle
• Tongue moves forward and back to suck
• Drinks 2 oz. to 6 oz. of liquid per feeding, 6 times per day
• Sucks and swallows well during feeding

See Videos of 0-3 Month Milestones

4-6 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• Uses hands to support self while sitting
• Rolls from back to tummy and tummy to back
• While standing with support, accepts entire weight with legs
• Reaches for nearby toys while on tummy
• While lying on back, reaches both hands to play with feet
• While lying on back, transfers a toy from one hand to the other

Sensory Milestones

• Uses both hands to explore toys
• Generally happy when not hungry or tired
• Brings hands and objects to mouth
• Able to calm with rocking, touching, and gentle sounds
• Is not upset by everyday sounds
• Enjoys a variety of movements

Communication Milestones

• Reacts to sudden noises or sounds
• Listens and responds when spoken to
• Begins to use consonant sounds in babbling, e. g. “da, da, da”
• Makes different kinds of sounds to express feelings
• Notices toys that make sounds
• Uses babbling to get attention

Feeding Milestones

• Shows interest in food
• Opens mouth as spoon approaches
• Moves pureed food from front of mouth to back
• Begins to eat cereals and pureed foods – Smooth, pureed food (single ingredient only), like carrots, sweet potato, squash, apples, pears

See Videos of 4-6 Month Milestones

7-9 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• Sits without support
• Sits and reaches for toys without falling
• Moves from tummy or back into sitting
• Starts to move with alternate leg and arm movement e.g. creeping, crawling
• Picks up head and pushes through elbows during Tummy Time
• Turns head to visually track objects while sitting
• Shows more control while rolling and sitting
• Picks up small objects with thumbs and fingers
• In simple play imitates others

Sensory Milestones

• Enjoys a variety of movements – bouncing up and down, rocking back and forth
• Explores and examines an object using both hands and mouth
• Turns several pages of a chunky (board) book at once
• Experiments with the amount of force needed to pick up different objects
• Focuses on objects near and far
• Investigates shapes, sizes, and textures of toys and surroundings
• Observes environment from a variety of positions – while lying on back or tummy, sitting, crawling, and standing with assistance

Communication Milestones

• Uses increased variety of sounds and syllable combinations in babbling
• Looks at familiar objects and people when named
• Recognizes sound of their name
• Participates in two-way communication
• Follows some routine commands when paired with gestures
• Shows recognition of commonly used words
• Simple gestures, e. g. shaking head for “no”
• Imitates sounds

Feeding Milestones

• In a highchair, holds and drinks from a bottle
• Begins to eat thicker pureed and mashed table foods
• Enjoys chew toys that can massage sore and swollen gums during teething
• Stays full longer after eating
• Starts to look and reach for objects, such as, food that is nearby
• Shows strong reaction to new smells and tastes

See Videos of 7-9 Month Milestones

10-12 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• Pulls to stand and cruises along furniture
• Stands alone and takes several independent steps
• Moves in and out of various positions to explore environment and get desired toys
• Maintains balance in sitting when throwing objects
• Claps hands
• Releases objects into a container with a large opening
• Uses thumb and pointer finger to pick up tiny objects

Sensory Milestones

• Enjoys listening to songs
• Explores toys with fingers and mouth
• Crawls to or away from objects baby sees in the distance

Communication Milestones

• Meaningfully uses “mama” or “dada”
• Responds to simple directions, e. g. “Come here”
• Produces long strings of gibberish (jargoning) in social communication
• Says one or two words
• Imitates speech sounds
• Babbling has sounds and rhythms of speech
• Pays attention to where you are looking and pointing
• Responds to “no”
• Begins using hand movements to communicate wants and needs, e.g. reaches to be picked up

Feeding Milestones

• Finger feeds self
• Eating an increasing variety of food
• Begins to use an open cup
• Ready to try soft-cooked vegetables, soft fruits, and finger foods (banana slices, cooked pasta)
• Might be ready to start self feeding with utensils
• Enjoys a greater variety of smells and tastes

See Videos of 10-12 Month Milestones

13-18 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• Walks independently
• Squats to pick up a toy
• Stacks two objects

Sensory Milestones

• Helps with getting dressed/undressed
• Has a regular sleep schedule
• Eats an increasing variety of foods

Communication Milestones

By 15 months:

• May use 5-10 words
• Combines sounds and gestures
• Imitates simple words and actions
• Consistently follows simple directions
• Shows interest in pictures
• Can identify 1-2 body parts when named
• Understands 50 words

By 18 months:

• Responds to questions
• Repeats words overheard in conversation
• Continues to produce speech-like babbling
• Points at familiar objects and people in pictures
• Understands “in” and “on”
• Responds to yes/no questions with head shake/nod

Feeding Milestones

• Increases variety of coarsely chopped table foods
• Holds and drinks from a cup

See Videos of 13-18 Month Milestones

19-24 Month Milestones

Motor Milestones

• Starts to jumps with both feet leaving the ground
• When walking, able to pull toys behind them
• Runs
• Stands on tiptoes
• Climbs on low furniture
• Kicks large ball
• Goes up and down stairs with support

Sensory Milestones

• Flips switches on and off
• Uses crayons, pens, or markers to make marks on paper
• Sorts shapes and colors
• Stacks 5 or more small blocks or toys on top of each other
• Takes toys apart and puts them back together

Communication Milestones

By 21 Months:

• Uses at least 50 words
• Consistently imitates new words
• Names objects and pictures
• Understands simple pronouns (me, you, my)
• Identifies 3-5 body parts when named
• Understands new words quickly

By 24 months:

• Begins to use 2 word phrases
• Uses simple pronouns (me, you, my)
• Understands action words
• Uses gestures and words during pretend play
• Follows 2-step related directions e. g. “Pick up your coat and bring it to me”
• Enjoys listening to stories

See Videos of 19-24 Month Milestones

2-3 Year Milestones

Communication Milestones

By 30 months:

• Consistently uses 2-3 word phrases
• Uses “in” and “on”
• At least 50% of speech is understood by caregiver
• Follows 2-step unrelated directions, e.g. “give me the ball and go get your coat”
• Understands basic nouns and pronouns
• Understands “mine” and “yours”

By 36 months:

• Asks “what” and “where” questions
• Uses plurals, e.g. “dogs”
• Most speech is understood by caregiver
• Simple understanding of concepts including color, space, time
• Understands “why” questions
• Understands most simple sentences

Missing Milestones

What to do if your child is not reaching their key developmental milestones

If your child is missing a developmental milestone, request an appointment with a healthcare provider to ask them about how you can get your baby on track!

Remember every baby is different, and milestones typically occur within a general age range.

Baby’s early years are some of the most important years for their development, which is why early detection and early intervention are so critical.

As a general pediatrician I often refer parents to the Pathways.org website for free videos and brochures on tummy time and the stages of infant development.

These resources empower parents to track their babies’ developmental progress and bring their concerns to me quickly so that we can provide resources in a timely and efficient manner.

-Karen R. Judy, M.D. FAAP

Resources to Meet Milestones

Browse our website for additional resources to maximize your child’s motor, sensory, feeding, and communication development!

• Topics pages: Covering a wide variety of health topics for your baby’s developmental milestones.
• Videos: Including milestone videos and Parents’ Guide videos, which shows baby’s development in action!
• Blog posts: In-depth and healthcare provider-approved articles providing important health info to help learn the signs of a delay and when to request an appointment with a healthcare provider.
• Baby’s First Year Milestone Guide: This helpful guide is a handheld milestone checklist for infants. Keep track of your baby’s developmental milestones through this organized, color-coded, and compact guide. The ultimate resource center for baby’s development!
• The Baby Games Calendar: If baby enjoys playing, then check out these fun games for infants and toddlers! Baby Games make caring for your baby engaging and interactive, helping with everything from language development to hand eye coordination.

Gross motor skills: birth to 5 years

What are gross motor skills?

Gross motor skill development involves the large muscles in the arms, legs and torso. Gross motor activities are important to everyday physical activities like walking, running, throwing, lifting, kicking, etc. Gross motor abilities also form the basis for fine motor skills and relate to body awareness, reaction speed, balance and strength. Learn more about all developmental milestones by age.

Gross motor development milestones: General physical activity guidelines for children ages 0 to 5 years

• Turns head to both sides while on back
• Lifts head and able to turn to both sides while on belly
• Head lag with pull to sit
• Kicking both legs and moving both arms equally while on back
• Performs tummy time on floor regularly

• Raises head in line with trunk when pulled to sit  
• Pushes up on forearms and turn head side to side while on belly  
• Tolerates tummy time well   
• Rolls from belly to back  

• Rolls from back to belly  
• Brings feet to mouth laying on back  
• Pushes up on hands with arms extended while on belly  
• Pivots in a circle while on belly to each side  

• Sits alone   
• Reaches for toys to play in sitting   
• Catches self with loss of balance in sitting   
• Crawls on belly  

• Moves between laying down and sitting upright without help  
• Crawls on hands and knees  
• Pulls to a standing position with one foot leading  
• Cruises around furniture  
• Walks with two hands held

• Walks with one hand held
• Stands alone for a few seconds

• Crawls up stairs  
• Stands up from the floor without support   
• Walks alone well  
• Squats and stands back up without holding onto support  

• Walks up stairs with hands or rails to help  
• Crawls down the stairs (on belly, feet first)  
• Can run, though falls easily  
• Kicks a ball forward

• Walks and runs fairly well   
• Jumps in place with both feet off the ground  
• Walks up and down stairs alone  
• Kicks a ball with either foot

• Balance on one foot for a few seconds   
• Jump forward 10-24 inches   
• Catches a large ball   
• Rides a tricycle

• Can run, jump and climb well, is beginning to skip  
• Hops proficiently on one foot  
• Can do hopscotch  
• Catches a ball reliably  
• Begins somersaults

• Skips on alternate feet and jump rope  
• Begins to skate and swim  
• Rides bicycle with/without training wheels    
• Climbs well

This information is a general guide to help you determine if your child is progressing at the rate expected for his or her age. Please keep in mind that each child is unique and develops skills at their own rate.

Physical activity recommendations

By exploring many different types of movement, your child can build the confidence, motivation and physical competence to engage in an active lifestyle.

According to the American Heart Association, a daily dose of at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is recommended for children ages six to seventeen years old. Infants and toddlers are recommended to get 180 minutes of activity spread throughout the day based on the American Academy of Pediatrics. It is suggested that both structured play as well as unstructured play should be incorporated throughout the day.

Ideally, children should participate in 60 minutes of continuous activity. However, for both older children and toddlers the daily amount of activity can be split up throughout the day. For example, two 30-minute segments or four 15-minute segments for children is still beneficial. Whether you’re at home or on the playground, here are some activities, that with proper guidance, may encourage your child to get moving: •

Indoor:

• Infants/toddlers: crawling and walking over various surfaces such as creating obstacles with pillows and blankets; sitting with support at torso on an exercise ball, mommy/daddy and me classes (yoga, tumbling, swimming)
• Children: bounce house play, jump rope activities, yoga, dance, gymnastics, cheerleading

Outdoor:

• Infants/toddlers: mommy/daddy and me swim classes; water play in buckets or playing at water tables; infant/toddler swings or slides at the playground; obstacles over various surfaces such as gravel, grass
• Children: swimming, sprinkler water play, water parks, marco polo, ice skating, snow tubing, sledding, roller skating, skateboarding, playgrounds, riding scooters, tricycle and bicycle riding, hiking, jumping and hop scotch activities, soccer, baseball, swinging

Our therapy programs can also help bring out the best in your child. From aquatic therapy, to sports therapy and more, our team takes an integrated approach, using the right therapy or therapies your child needs at the right stage in their development. We can help your child learn or regain the skills they need to be successful during everyday activities and participate with peers.

Problems with reaching developmental milestones? How to improve your child’s gross motor skills

If you have concerns regarding your child’s development or your child is regularly missing development milestones, physical therapy can assess development and address concerns. If you are concerned about your child's development of gross motor skills, a physician or therapist may be able to assist with an evaluation.

Physical therapists can provide a comprehensive examination of your child’s strength, balance, coordination and gross motor skills in order to determine barriers to safe body movement. We provide therapeutic activities that are engaging and specific to a child’s age, cognitive status, ability level and interests.

To make an appointment with a pediatric physical therapist, call one of these locations: 

• Bon Air Therapy Center 804-323-9060 
• Brook Road Campus 804-228-5818 
• Fredericksburg Therapy Center 540-891-4485 
• Glen Allen Therapy Center 804-273-6656 
• Petersburg Therapy Center 804-733-7233 
• Stafford Therapy Center 540- 659-7337 

Information provided by Kristen McBee PT, DPT; Anisha Craft PT, DPT, PCS; Renee Leiby PT, DPT and Jan Steinberger PT, DPT.

Development of gross motor skills in children

Parents, and often teachers, underestimate the need for the development of gross motor skills in children. And it is the basis for the formation of fine motor skills, which is important in preparing for school. Let's figure out what gross motor skills are, why and how to develop them.

Article content:

• What is gross motor skills
• Why develop
• Gross motor disorder in children
• How to develop gross motor skills
• Developmental games and exercises
• Output

What is gross motor skills

Gross motor skills, or general, are active body movements that involve arms, legs, torso, head. In fact, adults use these skills without thinking, and children have to master them gradually.

In the first year of life, the baby develops rapidly and learns to control his body:

• focuses the eye;
• holds his head;
• controls arms and legs;
• is learning to sit;
• crawling;
• tries to get up;
• walks, runs, jumps.

The success of all these important processes depends on the health and life of the child.

• By the age of 2, a child masters complex general motor skills of arms and legs. The kid throws and kicks objects. Holding hands, he climbs the stairs.
• Children at the age of 3 learn to walk, run, jump more confidently.

Gross motor skills are formed through any movement: active games, copying the actions of adults and animals, sports, dancing, aerobics.

It is important to start working with your child as early as possible. The good physical development of a preschooler is the key to his further success in school, life and the ability to avoid many problems.

Read also: what a 2-year-old child should be able to and know

Why develop

Without developed gross motor skills, it is impossible to fully develop a person. Benefits of developing motor skills:

• strengthen the musculoskeletal system;
• improve coordination;
• provide muscle protein synthesis;
• stimulate cognitive activity;
• increase efficiency;
• develop independence;
• improve speech;
• help develop reading and writing skills;
• motivate to vigorous activity;
• form interhemispheric interaction;
• develop creativity;
• contribute to successful socialization;
• learn to control their body in space;
• contribute to the knowledge of the world and themselves.

As you can see, the value of developing gross motor skills is great. This work allows you to preserve and increase the physical and mental development of children.

Difficulties of a child with a lack of gross motor skills

Each baby is individual and its development is uneven. It is better not to compare your child with other children. One child may start walking at 9 months and another after a year. This is fine. The main thing is to exercise regularly with the baby. However, there are criteria by which it can be determined that a child has poorly developed gross motor skills:

• drawing and writing skills are difficult;
• inability to dress and use cutlery independently;
• inability to maintain a sitting posture;
• loses orientation in space: falls, stumbles, crashes;
• lethargy;
• speaks poorly;
• cannot play with small toys;
• badly switches to a new activity;
• low self-esteem;
• is hard to communicate with peers.

If gross motor impairment is suspected, see a physician for correction.

How to develop

The main objectives of the development of gross motor skills are:

• creation of conditions for the implementation of the child's motor activity;
• development of skills to control and manage movements;
• learning coordination of actions;
• development of motor activity.

Based on the tasks, parents need to equip the space in the room, stock up on the necessary equipment and control the process. The room should have enough space for running, jumping, bending. Start with the simplest: teach your baby to do morning exercises. If you can do it outside, even better. Simple exercises are quite enough: squats, walking, turns, bends.

Buy a variety of equipment for outdoor games: balls, jump ropes, hoop. At home with a child, you can play skittles, basketball, gorodki, dodgeball. The ideal option would be to arrange a special sports corner in the room. If this is not available, you can simply dance to your favorite music, alternating slow and fast movements.

For walks on the street, stock up on a bicycle, scooter, roller skates and other equipment according to age. In winter - skates, skis, slides. In addition, for the development of the child's motor activity, you can sign up for the nearest children's center or sports section, where ideal conditions are created for a full-fledged formation.

Household chores also help develop gross motor skills. It is necessary to load the child with feasible chores around the house. For example, sweep the floor, wipe off the table, arrange toys, hang or fold laundry.

Games and exercises for the development of gross motor skills

There are a great many exercises and games for the development of speech and gross motor skills. These can be exercises to strengthen the muscular corset, to coordinate to create spatial representations in preschool children. Games are played in pairs or groups.

1. Boat. Lying on the back with outstretched arms. The child needs to simultaneously raise straight arms, head and legs. Hold the pose for as long as possible. The same exercise can be done lying on your stomach.
2. Log. Starting position as in the previous exercise. Roll with the whole body alternately to the right and left side.
3. Lying on your stomach, put your hands behind your head. Elbows apart. Slowly raise your upper body while keeping your legs straight.
4. "Spider". Squat down, palms lean behind. Crawl like an insect.
5. Goose step. Squatting position, only hands on knees. Walk in different directions: forward, backward, left, right. You can complicate the exercise by putting a flat object on your head.
6. "Narrow path". Lay out a long rope on the floor with bends and turns. Invite the child to walk along it. On an imaginary track, you can roll cars and other toys.
7. Stand alternately on the right and left legs, on the toes, on the heels. Make a "swallow".
8. March in place with high legs.
9. Exercises with cross movements of arms and legs.
10. "Hit the target." The game develops the eye well. You can purchase a traditional ring thrower or build your own from improvised material. Any container where you need to throw objects at a distance will do. This also includes options for bowling, towns, skittles.
11. Ball games or fitball exercises.

Also find out what are the exercises for the development of fine motor skills in children.

Conclusion

Gross motor skills are the motor skills a child needs for full physical and mental development. Abilities are formed from an early age through simple exercises, housework, outdoor games and active sports activities.

In the Baby Club child development centers we pay attention to both gross and fine motor skills. We use only proven, popular development methods. Our specialists will be happy to prepare your child for kindergarten or school and help him develop as a person.

Dexterous fingers: 6 stages of development of fine motor skills precise movements with fingers or toes.

However, the development of fine motor skills affects not only speech, but also mental functions: coordination of movements, thinking, reaction speed.

Age norms

Neurologists and pediatricians need some average guidelines depending on the month of life in order to assess the dynamics of development. Some children already at the age of 2 can clean the seed on their own, while others at 4 do it with great difficulty. Therefore, let's leave the standards to the doctors and pay attention to how we, adults, can help the baby develop fine motor skills.

Stage 1. 0–3 months

At this age, natural physiological processes take place. Fine motor skills develop regardless of whether the baby's parents will train it or not. The newborn reflexively clenched his fists, by 2 months the muscle tone gradually disappears, he learns to unclench his hands. The best toy for a baby is a mother.

Bring the child's fingers one by one to the lips and kiss.

After 1.5 months, you can put your index fingers to the baby's palms and, waiting for him to grab them, gently pull the baby towards you, slightly lifting and tearing his head off the surface. Constantly insure the baby: the fingers are still weak, they can unclench at any moment. Thus, the grasping reflex is trained.

Stage 2. 4–6 months

The child tries to grab the other hand (or his leg) with one hand and, when he succeeds, looks at it for a long time. At about the same age, he begins to actively reach for objects and grab them. Here's another entertainment for you: squeeze the child's hand first into a weak fist and stick your index finger into it, and then into a tightly clenched fist into which you can no longer stick your finger.

Photo

Getty Images

A child who has good control over his body, fine precise movements, has no problems with diction. Speech therapists confirm this.

Stage 3. 7–8 months

Coordination of both hands begins to develop. The child confidently shifts an object, such as a rattle, from hand to hand. He likes to throw toys and watch this process. From now on, parents can create a stimulating environment for their baby. Show and offer to hold a variety of items: a magazine, a newspaper, a rattle, a metal ladle, foil, soft, rubber, wooden toys. It is important that the objects are different to the touch, warm and cool, ringing and rustling, making a variety of sounds. Feeling them, trying to interact with them (shifting from hand to hand, rolling from one side to another, dropping and throwing them on the floor, knocking them on a variety of surfaces), the child will just begin to develop fine motor skills.

Take a magazine and show how its pages can be wrinkled, torn and crumple. If the paper also makes any sounds, the baby will be delighted!

IMPORTANT!

When letting your baby play with small objects, be careful not to swallow or choke on the toy.

Wrap your favorite rattle in a napkin in front of your child. Ask him to find a toy. If it doesn’t work out the first time, help, be sure to praise loudly and rejoice when you still manage to find the hidden one. You can also use bright rustling wrappers from sweets and chocolates.

Stage 4. 8–10 months

Offer a pyramid to a child. At first, he will remove the rings, but he will quickly learn how to string them on the rod.

Great fun - bottle caps. Teach your child to twist and unscrew them.

Teach your child to pinch off small pieces from a large piece of clay, apply pressure and spread them on a hard surface. This will develop the flexibility and mobility of the fingers.

Stage 5. 10–12 months

The kid repeats the actions of adults with pleasure: he takes a pen, tries to draw it over the paper, he wants to hold the spoon, the bottle himself. Go towards his desires. A one-year-old baby already holds toys in his hands, twirls, throws them, opens and closes boxes, pulls out drawers, puts one object into another.

Closer to the age of one, children begin to play with special books with thick cardboard pages. To turn such a page, you need to make a certain, precise movement with your hand and fingers - first take the page, then turn the brush in a certain direction. This is also the development of fine motor skills.

Offer the child a sorter, an insert and a frame. Playing with them will help to train coordination of movements, get an idea of ​​the shape and size of objects, develop the mobility of the hands.

Photo

Yiu Yu Hoi/Getty Images

Top! To spin it, you need to fold your fingers into a pinch and give the toy a rotational movement. Difficult task for the baby, to be sure! The more joy will bring success.

Let the child try to connect and disconnect the parts of a large construction set. This will help the baby strengthen the muscles of the palms.

Practice opening and closing boxes and cans. Lids should be of different sizes so that the child can pick them up to the hole.

Teach your child to hold a cup by the handle and eat with a spoon. Let him try to pick up a thick pencil and draw scribbles.

Stage 6. from 1.5 years old

From 1.5 years old you can teach your baby to fasten and unfasten buttons. The kid will also willingly take up lacing, since there are no number of such toys. You can also string various objects on the cord or attach clothespins to it.

Handy materials

Babies like to play with paper, cotton, napkins, foil. As early as a year old, a child can tear them, crumple them, make balls out of them, and then collect these lumps and scraps and put them in a bucket. By the way, tearing is a very useful movement for developing fine motor skills.

In summer, the best and most accessible environment for developing motor skills is water, sand, earth and grass. It is very important to develop the motor skills not only of the hands, but also of the feet, on which there are a huge number of active points. On the beach, the baby can, like a monkey, pick up small pebbles or objects with his toes and put them in a bucket. By the way, this is also necessary for the proper formation of the muscles of the feet. Let the child pour sand into the bucket not only with a scoop, but also with his hands. Invite him to draw on the sand with his fingers and toes. Another exciting activity is to pour water into molds and pour it from one container to another.

Photo

Getty Images

Encourage your child to be independent in every way: handle a spoon and try to eat, take out a straw and try to put it in a cup, etc. This is the perfect fine motor training.

In the forest, show the children how to pick up cones with both hands alternately and simultaneously. And yet, after all, you can loosen the earth with a stick, holding it either in your right or in your left hand, laying out different patterns on the asphalt with pebbles. Keep in mind that all hand exercises should touch both palms in order to develop both hemispheres of the brain.

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