Help your infant develop movement skills: 7-9 months

Here are some physical activities and basic movement skills that you can help your infant develop in their first months of life.

Moving objects from hand to hand

During months seven to nine you will start to see some more coordinated movements. Especially with reaching, grabbing, and transferring things from one hand to the other. Encourage your child to grab with their non-dominant hand and pass toys from one hand to the other.

A mirror activity is fun for this age group, because they are usually able to sit facing you for an extended period of time. You can sit in front of them and have them follow your movements.

Move to music

Moving to music is also fantastic for this age. This helps them develop a sense of rhythm with their movements.

Most babies will try to push with their legs to stand up by grabbing onto an object. An exer-saucer will enhance their ability to push with their feet and develop better balance in their legs.

Pincer grasp

The pincer grasp is often mastered during this time period and this is also a very important aspect of their fine motor control development. This is a great time to take a bottom drawer or cupboard in your kitchen and fill it with cups, bowls, utensils, and maybe even some pots and pans that are safe for them to play with.

Children will get used to crawling into the kitchen, opening “their” cupboard and taking out all of their things to play with. This will keep them occupied when you need time to prepare meals.

Every once in a while, try to change some of the things, or add new surprises to keep the cupboard interesting to them.

As they get older you can store all of their cups and dishes in this same place and have them set their own place at the table.