Welcoming a baby into the world is an exciting, scary, and entertaining adventure. During the first few years of their lives, babies develop a ton of new skills and knowledge. Being able to watch them grow and gain new skills is exciting for many parents and allows you to ensure your child is developing at a good pace.
At Growing Kids Learning Centers, we offer an infant program that provides your baby with the environment and tools needed to help them hit different developmental milestones. While every child is different and will reach these milestones at a different pace, it is always beneficial for parents to know where their child should be and if they are hitting the milestones early, on time, or a little later than usual. Again, these milestones are only guidelines. If your baby isn’t reaching certain milestones by a certain age, there is no need to worry! They may just fall behind in some areas while they excel in others. A good thing to keep in mind is that some babies start walking at nine months and others don’t start until they hit the 18-month mark.
If you want to learn more about average baby milestones, read on! You can help your little one continue to develop new skills and get a jumpstart to their education by enrolling them in our infant program!
By Two Months
In the first two months of your baby’s life, they will be developing a lot and you may not even realize it! They will develop some social, language, cognitive, and physical skills during this time. While it may just seem like your baby is being a baby, they are learning and growing every day!
Social and Emotional Skills
At this stage in your baby’s life, they likely love interacting with those around them and are beginning to be more social. You may notice that they are smiling at people more. They are likely also looking at you, their parents, often. At this age, they may also begin to try calming themselves, even if it’s only for a brief moment. You may notice them bringing their hands to their face and sucking on a finger or their hand to try and soothe themselves.
Language and Communication Skills
Your little one will also be developing language and communication skills during this time. At this age, developing language and communication skills means beginning to coo, making gurgling sounds, and turning their head at sounds. Your baby also likely recognizes your voice, as well as the tone and emotions in your voice. They probably find comfort in hearing you speak.
Cognitive Skills
Cognitive skills are learning, thinking, and problem-solving skills. During the first two months of your baby’s life, they will begin to develop a variety of these skills. Your little one will begin paying attention to faces, start following things with their eyes, and recognizing people. They will also start showing signs of boredom, such as crying or fussing, if an activity doesn’t change.
Movement and Physical Development
By two months, your baby likely has built some neck muscles and is able to hold their head up for a period of time. They may also begin to push up while lying on their tummy. The movements they make with their arms and legs are going to slowly get smoother, rather than the choppy and jerky movements of a younger baby.
By Six Months
In the next few months, your baby will develop a ton of new skills and begin to act like a real little human! They will continue to improve upon the skills they have been developing for months and learn new ones too!
Social and Emotional Skills
By six months, your little one will know familiar faces and begin to recognize when someone is a stranger. They will love playing, with their parents and others. Your baby will likely start responding to other people’s emotions and they will seem happy a majority of the time. Your six month old will also start to show a liking to looking at themselves in the mirror!
Language and Communication Skills
Your baby will develop many new language skills by the time they reach six months. They will begin to respond to sounds by making a sound of their own. They may begin to start mimicking sounds, such as “ba,” “ah,” “da,” “ma,” and others. They will begin to babble more and make sounds to show displeasure and joy. Your baby will likely start responding to their own name as well!
Cognitive Skills
At six months, your child will begin to look around at things nearby, observing the world around them. They will also show curiosity in different things and try to grab things that are out of their reach. They will also bring things to their mouth and pass things from one hand to the other.
Movement and Physical Development
Your baby should be able to or begin to try rolling over in both directions, from tummy to back and back to tummy. They should be able to sit without support. They should also be able to stand with support and be able to use their legs to hold their weight. They may even bounce while standing. At six months, your baby should be crawling and may rock back and forth.
By One Year
In the first year of your baby’s life, they will learn and develop a lot. When your baby turns one, they are officially a toddler! They may begin to use words, be able to stand on their own, and be able to take a few steps by their first birthday. However, not every one year old reaches these milestones quite yet.
Social and Emotional Skills
By one, your little one may begin to act shy or nervous around strangers and cry when one of their parents leave. They will likely start repeating sounds or copying actions to get attention. Your child may begin to play games like peek-a-boo and hand you a book when they want to hear a story. At this age, your kiddo likely has favorite people and things.
Language and Communication Skills
Your one year old should be able to respond to simple spoken requests and use gestures, such as shaking their head no and waving goodbye. They may start to try and say some words and repeat words you say. Your little one will likely begin saying “mama,” “dada,” and other simple words. They are also likely to start mimicking the changing tones of speaking when making sounds.
Cognitive Skills
Your toddler is more curious and active at this age. They will likely explore things in different ways, such as throwing, shaking, and banging. They will be able to find hidden items easily and begin to look at the right item when it is named. They will likely begin to copy gestures and use items correctly, like a cup or brush. Your one year old may spend time moving an item in and out of a container. They will be able to follow simple directions, such as “pick up the toys.”
Movement and Physical Development
Your one year old should be able to get into the sitting position without help. They will also begin to pull themselves into a standing position, stand alone, and may begin to walk while holding furniture. At this age, many one-year-olds may start trying to walk without assistance, but not every one year old does this.
During the first year of your child’s life, they will develop a lot of new skills and hit a variety of different developmental milestones. While every child develops at a different pace, if you are concerned that your little one is not developing as they should, be sure to talk to your child’s doctor. They will be able to tell you if it is something to worry about or if you should just keep working with your child.
During this first year of life, you can help your kiddo develop by talking to them, reading to them, naming objects you see, playing on the floor with them, doing tummy time, making time for active play, and simply engaging with your baby. A lot of the things your child will learn and the skills they will develop often come from observing you and the world around them. The more you talk and play with your little one, the more likely they will develop those skills on time.
If you want to help your child in their development and learning, be sure to enroll them at Growing Kids Learning Center! Our infant program will help them develop social, cognitive, language, and physical skills. We incorporate a variety of different activities to help with babies’ development, including learning activities and exploratory-based lessons. This is a great way to help your infant develop the necessary skills and start learning at an early age. Plus they will get to socialize, which is always beneficial for little ones! Learn more about our infant program and contact us with any questions you may have.
