Motor development begins in the early moments of your infant's life. It occurs initially as simple reflexive responses and progresses to intentional muscle movement, like putting a bright blue block right where she wanted--often in her mouth to taste the color blue. While it happens at a slightly different pace for all infants, there are general milestones parents can watch for and ways to enhance your baby's motor skills.
Types
Synonymous with physical development, the National Institutes of Health categorizes an infant's motor development into two types--gross and fine. Gross motor abilities include head control, sitting, rolling over, crawling and pulling to a standing position. The fine motor movements control the more precise skills. For instance, when your infant rubs the soft edge of his blanket between his thumb and forefinger in a "pincer grasp" or uses hand-eye coordination to bring the blanket to his mouth, he uses his fine motor skills.
Stages
According to the NIH, expect your newborn to progress from simple reflexive movements such as the startle response, which causes him to throw his arms and legs out in response to loud noises, to intentionally stretching, kicking and moving his extremities by three to four months. Other motor progression from newborn to four months includes opening and closing his hands and lifting his head up when lying on his stomach. From five to 11 months, infants generally learn to roll from back to stomach, crawl, sit without support, reach out for objects with one hand and sit from a standing position. By 12 months, considered the end of infancy, your baby might walk while holding onto furniture and even take a few steps alone.
Enhancing Motor Skills
While health care professionals separate motor development into two types, gross and fine-motor abilities obviously work in tandem and require lots of repetition for your baby to perfect. Often more noticeable and dramatic, gross motor accomplishments such as crawling, standing and walking certainly deserve ongoing applause. The intricacies of fine motor skills, however, also respond quickly to practice, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. For instance, when age appropriate, giving your baby dry cereal to pick up and taste helps develop hand-eye coordination. Toys with levers to align or holes to fill with the correct shape keep your baby intrigued while helping her fine tune the pincer grasp she'll one day use to color inside the lines.
Safety
As babies grow and muscles develop, they become experts at launching themselves into new but sometimes dangerous situations. Adding to the problem is that skills not mastered one day might become accomplished the next, creating the need to enlarge safety zones around your infant according to her abilities. For instance, stairwells or open doors not considered worrisome for a two-month-old turn into potential hazards for rolling, scooting or crawling infants. Because infants learn to move without knowing what might cause harm, crackers, pet food and poison all look the same and worth a taste from your baby's perspective.
Expert Insight
The guidelines regarding developmental milestones suggest ranges rather than define "normals" when it comes to infants and motor skills. Some babies learn to crawl quickly on all fours but hesitate to walk while others go right from scooting on their belly to running it seems. Both instances are "normal." Overall, however, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend you consult your physician if your one-year-old cannot stand when supported, does not crawl or crawls dragging one side of the body for more than one month. Call your health care provider immediately, however, if your baby suddenly loses skills he previously mastered since this may indicate an underlying neurological disorder or other health concern.
