Physical Development
From the moment babies are born, parents and eager relatives are stuck with certain questions. Will this baby grow just like every other healthy baby has been? When will she roll over? When will she crawl and then walk? Or sometimes will she ever crawl or will she walk without crawling?
Physical development is one important milestone. I do not mean that other areas of development are any less important. But physical development is more obvious and easily determined. Hence this milestone is something most parents eagerly wait for.
How do you know when and what to expect of a baby? To help you answer these questions, here are some basic physical development information!
Physical development is one important factor for early learning. Babies learn through their senses. Initially, they explore the world by their own movements, their tongue and things they touch.
There are 2 different types of physical development they are gross and fine motor skills. Gross motor skills are large skills such as throwing objects, rolling balls, jumping and even balancing. Generally gross motor skills are responsible for the baby to move. Fine motor skills are the abilities to control small muscles such as picking up small things with fingers and learning to write on paper.
Click here for the most important gross and fine motor skills and how you have help your baby develop these skills.Gross motor development:
This is something that every parent will think of first. It is the child's ability to move around. It involves using several parts of the body or sometimes the whole body at one time. Here are some factors that contribute to a child's gross motor abilities:
Muscle tone and strength:If the child's muscle tone is too tight (high tone), then the movements will be jerky or disconnected. On the other hand, if it is too loose (low tone), then movement will be slow and weak. This stage will be referred as hypertonic and hypotonic if the child's muscle is too much high tone or too much low tone. There should not be a problem if it is just tight or just loose. Always look for the child's movement. It is better to contact the child's doctor when in doubt.
Strength is another important factor that affects the baby's movement. It affects how much pressure that the baby can apply with her hands and legs and how much pressure the body can withstand.
Fine motor development:
Fine motor skills are the ones that require small movements but more complicated abilities.
Visual motor skills: It is the ability of the baby to see and coordinate with what she sees.
Grapho-motor skills: This is any task that involves a writing tool. Drawing, writing or even holding a pencil is a grapho motor skill.
Hand eye coordination: Hand eye coordination is another important fine motor ability. Click here to read more about hand-eye coordination and to learn how to encourage your baby's hand eye coordination skills.
Following are milestones to physical development till early childhood.
- Birth to 3 months:
- Raise head slightly when lying on stomach
- Hold head up for a few seconds, when supported
- Hold hand in a fist
- Lift head and chest, while lying on stomach
- Use sucking, grasping, and rooting (holding tongue to the roof of the mouth) reflexes
- Touch, pull, and tug own hands with fascination
- Repeat body movements, and enjoy doing so
- 3 to 6 months:
- Roll over
- Push body forward and pull body up by grabbing the edge of a crib
- Reach for and touch objects
- Reach, grasp, and put objects in mouth
- Make discoveries with objects
- 6 to 9 months:
- Crawl
- Grasp and pull things toward self
- Transfer objects between hands
- 9 to 12 months:
- Sit without support
- Stand unaided
- Walk with aid
- Roll a ball
- Throw objects
- Pick things up with thumb and one finger
- Drop and pick up toys
- 1 year to 2 years:
- Walk alone
- Walk backwards
- Pick up toys from a standing position
- Push and pull objects
- Seat self in a child's chair
- Walk up and down stairs with aid
- Move to music
- Paint with whole arm movement
- Turn two or three pages at a time
- Scribble
- Turn knobs
- Grasp and hold a small ball; can use in combination with large motor skills to throw the ball
- Shift marker or any drawing or painting tool from hand to hand and draw strokes
- 2 years to 3 years:
- Run forward
- Jump in place with both feet together
- Stand on one foot, with aid
- Walk on tiptoe
- Kick ball forward
- String large beads
- Turn pages one by one
- Hold crayon with thumb and fingers instead of fist
- Draw a circle
- Paint with wrist action, making dots and lines
- Roll, pound, squeeze, and pull clay
- 3 to 4 years:
- Run around obstacles
- Walk on a line
- Balance on one foot
- Push, pull, and steer toys
- Ride a tricycle
- Use a slide without help
- Throw and catch a ball
- Build a tall tower of blocks
- Draw crosses and circles
- Manipulate clay by making balls, snakes, etc
- 4 to 5 years:
- Walk backwards
- Jump forward many times without falling
- Jump on one foot
- Walk up and down stairs without assistance, alternating feet
- Use safety scissors
- Cut on a line continuously
- Copy squares and crosses
- Print a few capital letters
| Quick Finder: |