Five Development Milestones To Look Out For in the First Year of Your Baby’s Life

The first year of your child’s life can be exhausting but it’s also full of development milestones and moments to treasure. As first-time parents, you might not realize how many “firsts” happen during the initial 12 months of life. At Solidarity, we find great joy in watching children grow up and rejoice in milestones that come with each passing year. We’ll be sharing helpful tips regarding children’s development in the coming months over several articles. In this first blog, we’ll be briefly identifying five development milestones to look out for during the first year of your child’s life.

1. Smiles and Then – A Laugh!

It’s no secret that the first few months of a child’s life are filled with a lot of tears and sleepless nights, but around 2 months of age, something else happens! Your child will start to smile at you. This smile will often be brought on simply by the sound of your voice or the sight of your face. If the smile isn’t enough, your child’s cries will develop into laughter at around 4 months! That melodious sound can be brought on by simple games of peek-a-boo and tickles.

2. Try Everything Once – At Least!

At five months, parents will be seeing a large change in a child’s life and that is because your child is starting to use their muscles in different ways. While laying on the floor, a child may begin trying to move themselves to get a different view of their surroundings. Parents may also notice that their child is starting to pick up and put items in their mouth at this age. 

3. More ZZZs for the Whole Family!

By the 4-6 month mark, most children are sleeping through the night without issue. Though some may be able to sleep through the night just slightly before 4 months or may need a little more time, most children will be comfortably sleeping through the night by that point.

4. Sitting Up – All by Themselves!

At around 5-6 months, parents will notice that their child may no longer be content to only lay on the floor. In fact, children can often sit up with some assistance by this month! It’s an exciting milestone for many parents as their child takes an important step towards being able to eventually crawl and then walk. The necessity for assistance will only last briefly though as children can generally sit on their own by 7-9 months.

5. And They’re Off – Crawling and Standing!

By 8 months, you’ve probably noticed a wild amount of change in your child, and more are still to come! At the 8-9 month mark, your child has likely discovered a new favorite pastime-crawling. As your child discovers this activity, a whole new world of exploration will open up for them. Keep in mind though- crawling is NOT an essential milestone for gauging the progress of a baby’s development in their first year. Many children never crawl but prefer to scoot along the floor before walking and that is also just fine! As your child becomes more and more mobile towards their first birthday, a larger milestone will likely take place. Standing! While it will vary between children, standing will likely occur between the tenth and twelfth month of the child’s life.

The first year of a child’s life is a whirlwind of development milestones. Some will seem more obvious than others but all will have special significance.

At Solidarity, we are committed to helping our Members identify and have excellent care from the child’s conception on. If you are interested in learning more about Membership with our ministry, we invite you to read our FAQs.