LOLLIPOP

What parents must know about baby's first developments:

 

From making eye contact to talking, from rolling over to walking, the first 12 months of a baby’s life are crammed with milestones. 

There are many different ways to support and encourage the little ones throughout their phases on a daily basis, all of which include playing, cuddling and talking.

Here’s a guide to the five main developmental categories babies work on from the moment they’re born and how you can cheer them.

 

1. Gross motor:
This involves: sitting, crawling and walking. Baby’s first year is “typically the ‘motor year,’” says Ripudaman Minhas, a Toronto developmental paediatrician.

Muscle development starts with the head and neck, and moves down the torso, through the legs to the feet. As your baby’s neck muscles become strong enough to hold up her head, she’ll try to roll over and then sit up. From there, she’s ready to start cruising along furniture and, eventually, walk. 

What to watch for
Controlling head and neck (three to eight months): After weeks of supporting your baby’s neck while holding him, around the three-month mark you’ll notice that he’s able to do it himself, as well as raise his head and chest when lying on his stomach.

By the age of six or seven months, he’ll also likely be sitting up by himself and even supporting his weight on his legs with a little help from you.

Crawling (six to eight months) and walking or cruising with help (nine to 12 months)

What parents can do
You should aim for four or five periods of at least a few minutes of supervised tummy time a day, having your baby lie tummy-down on your belly while you’re lying down or reclining on a chair counts, as long as she’s trying to lift her head and look at you. Tummy time leads to gross motor wins, and not getting enough can delay strengthening of neck and back muscles. Once tummy time is a cinch, put your baby on her hands and knees in what’s called a four-point stance to encourage crawling.

 

2. Fine motor:

Babies begin to develop their fine motor skills by using broad movements from the shoulder that are refined over their first year right down to their fingertips. Even before they can sit on their own, babies start batting objects hung over their crib or play mat. And by the time they’re four months old, they are grabbing objects and bringing them directly in front of their faces for a closer look.

These baby milestones are early signs of hand-eye coordination, so if your baby is having any issues, such as not connecting with the toy she’s batting at, have your doctor check her sight. Watch to see if your baby is using both hands equally. If your baby is favouring one side over the other. (Left- or right-handedness doesn’t show up until after 18 months.)

What to watch for
Clapping (three months)

Finger-feeding (12 months): At first, babies rake toys or food into the palms of their hands with their fingers. 

Begin drinking from a cup by themselves (12 months)

What parents can do
Set out items they can reach for. Blocks are the ultimate toy, as babies can grab them, transfer them from hand to hand, bang them together and drop them to see what happens. 

When your baby is able to eat solids, let him play with small, soft pieces of food. He can put them in and out of containers, giving your baby a little water in an open cup at one meal each day.

 

3. Social
Kids under two should have no screen time. Research has found that apps and computer programs, even those labelled educational, don’t help baby’s development and might even impede it. Parents “should have zero screen time, too” when with the baby. 

From the moment they’re born, infants are working on their social lives. They’re learning about who they can rely on, how to have a conversation and how to interact with those around them.

Smiles tend to show up after the first few months of non-stop breastfeeding, spotty sleeping and general exhaustion. After that, watch for baby to mimic the sounds and movements you make; these are early attempts at communication. This is also where the play and movement comes in. 

A demanding baby is a healthy baby. As Heard says, “Babies require a lot of attention. They want to be held and talked to; they want to see things.” 

What to watch for
Smiling (three to eight months: They’ll be grinning when you grin at them, but also spontaneously. And by eight months, most babies will smile at the baby they see staring back at them in the mirror—not because they recognize themselves, but because they’re learning that smiling is a social act.

Copying body movements (three months): You are your baby’s first and most influential teacher. She is always watching you, and while she may not nail them, she is trying to copy your body movements.

By 12 months, babies copy the behaviours of others while they play—and they’ll not only imitate your moves but also the more mundane acts such as, making coffee. 

What parents can do
Interact with your baby as much as you can, even during something as routine as a diaper change—say, “Let me count your toes,” and respond to the looks on your baby’s face.

Responding “warmly and predictably” when your baby reaches out will help her feel safe and heard. And it can be fun, too. 

Reading and singing go beyond language. When you’re singing a song your kid knows, pause and watch for him to get excited about the next line. “They just want you to do the next step. These are all important parts of social language,” says Nair.

 

4. Language: 
In baby’s first year, the conversation can feel one-sided with the coos and babbles. But it’s important to keep up the chatter, because you’re building up your child’s language reserves every time you narrate the day or tell a story.

By 18 months, kids should have 10 to 25 words they use consistently. 

What to watch for
Babbling (eight months), and saying “mama” and “dada” plus one word (12 months).

What parents can do
Make sure your baby is watching your mouth, so she can imitate you. 

Insist on reading books to your baby. “All the things you do when you read—the intonation of your voice, the different sounds you’re making, the pointing—that’s how babies learn to do those things,” says Nair. 

 

6. Cognition:

During the first three months of life, expect your baby to be busily storing away the identities of the people he’s close to. By the end of this period, he’ll recognize those people when he sees them. Then, at eight months, he’ll start to understand that people and objects still exist even when he can’t see them.

What to watch for
Tracking objects (three months): The ability to track an object as it moves is one of the first signs of a stimulated brain. As early as seven months, but usually by eight or nine months, babies will know an object still exists even if it’s hidden. Like little detectives, they’ll struggle to find it: If you drop a squeaky toy over the side of their high chair, when they’re hitting this baby milestone, they’ll lean over to look for it.

What parents can do
Ever wondered why we instinctively play peek-a-boo? It’s because we’re helping baby understand that just because he can’t see something, it doesn’t mean it’s not there. Try concealing items under cups.