 | ||
|
| |    Child Development: 9 to 12 Months by Robert Needlman, M.D., F.A.A.P. reviewed by Robert Needlman, M.D., F.A.A.P. These descriptions of a healthy baby during the first year of life represent an average child. But no child is average! Your own baby probably won't do all of these things right on schedule. It's important to remember that development is not a race. If you are concerned about her development, talk to your child's healthcare provider. (See: Early and Late Talking: 9 to 12 Months.) Mobility Between 9 and 12 months, she learns to pull up to standing. Getting down smoothly is harder. Before walking, she cruises, balancing with the help of a couch or low table. She may show a tremendous drive to walk, trying repeatedly. Or she may be more laid back about it or timid. There is little that parents can do much to speed up or slow down the process, other than providing a safe place for practicing, free of sharp corners. The average baby takes her first independent steps at 12 months. But normal is anywhere from about 9 to 15 months. Early walkers are not necessarily "ahead" in other areas of development. In fact, they are often slower to develop language. They are so busy moving about that they have less time to think about the names of things. Reaching and taking Around nine months, she grasps small objects using her thumb and forefinger (pincer grasp). She can push buttons on toys or the stereo, play with her food, and occasionally get bits of food into her mouth. She is more effective than ever at making messes. How readily she dives into each new experience, and how much she protests when you have to redirect her, gives you a new appreciation for her individual temperamental style. She begins to explore the parts of objects--for example, moving the arm of a doll or spinning the wheels of a toy car. Any parts that can be pulled off can also be swallowed, so toy safety becomes a pressing concern. Play Before this period, her play has involved looking, holding, shaking, banging, and dropping. Now, as she approaches her first birthday, you may begin to see signs of make-believe (imaginative) play. She holds a telephone and babbles. She puts a spoon into an empty pot and stirs. At this stage, her play is all imitation. She uses real-life props--a real telephone or one that looks real, a real pot--and does real-life things. Months later, she will use her richer imagination to transform one thing into another, using a block for a telephone and joyfully feeding her dolls with invisible soup. Language Between 9 and 12 months, she may say one or two actual words, or none at all. (The average child has one word by 12 months, but girls are somewhat faster than boys.) She is likely to understand more than she says. She turns to you when someone asks, "Where's Daddy?" She loves games with predictable language and movement: "soo big," "this little piggy," "trot-trot to Boston." The fascination with language games is a sign that she is engrossed in figuring out how language works; the endless repetitions strengthen her understanding. Predictability is important because it allows her to feel in control. The physical movements that go along with the words also reinforce learning. Learning is strongest when multiple brain pathways are involved, in this case, the senses of hearing, body position, and touch. For the same reason, music and rhyme hold a special charm. Curled up with a picture book in your lap, she attends for several minutes and follows your finger when you ask, "Where's the doggy? Here he is!" In the coming months, she will begin pointing herself. (Again, temperament is so important: Many an active infant will sit for 15 seconds, then need to squirm down and get back to walking. Another baby needs to hold the board book and finger the pages back and forth. All of these are normal behaviors, and all can lead, eventually, to a child who loves books and reading.) Social and emotional development The big news, in these last months of the first year, is the emergence of willfulness. Our average baby becomes difficult to feed. She pushes your hand away as you go to give her a spoonful of cereal. She wants to hold the spoon herself. Giving her a second spoon to hold, while you make progress with the first, often works well. She has her first temper tantrum--a brief spell of crying when you take away the small glass figurine she somehow managed to get hold of. She may have one or two tantrums a week, or one or two a day. She's more clingy now than she was as a seven- or eight-month-old. Separations--at bedtime, at daycare, or with sitters--are likely to be harder. This may be because object permanence (see Child Development: Six to Nine Months), now firmly ingrained, means that she can pull up a mental image of you when you're apart. She remains very tuned in to your emotions, watching how you respond to new situations and gauging her response accordingly. So, when you drop her off at the babysitter's, it's best to wave goodbye with a breezy cheerfulness; a long, sensitive parting is likely to lead to tears. She's likely, for all of these reasons, to be moodier, sometimes miserable for no apparent reason, particularly if she is working very hard at walking. Once she is able to take a few steps by herself, usually after her first birthday, her mood lightens considerably. With those first steps, and the exhilaration of walking on her own, she becomes a toddler.
| |  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| About Us |
Contact Us |
Our Partners Privacy Policy | Ethics | Advertising Policy | Terms of Service © Copyright 2004 The Dr. Spock Company. All Rights Reserved. THIS SITE DOES NOT PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE. The information drSpock.com
provides is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for
professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your health care
professional if you have a specific health concern. Mention or advertisement
of any product, service, or brand does not constitute endorsement, guarantee,
or recommendation by The Dr. Spock Company. Please read our full
Terms of Service. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
