Motor development, fourth month

Around the fourth month, the child holds their head up more and more steadily, which lets them turn more easily to follow their mother's movements around the room or to find the source of sounds and voices. Arm movements start to become more controlled and purposeful. This is the moment of discovering hands and feet! The baby opens and closes their hands, waves them about, watches them, and brings them to their mouth, and the same happens with their feet. Objects also spark their interest, and so they make an effort to touch, grasp, and «taste» them: the hands also become genuine tools that the child tries to use more deliberately, to grasp, bring close, and put toys and various objects into their mouth. The grip is still rudimentary, but an early form of two-handed use emerges.

A few tips for mothers: what to do

  • When spending time with your baby, it's a good idea to play with their little hands and feet too, kissing them, pretending to eat them: beyond entertaining them and strengthening your bond, these gestures help them build awareness of these «new» parts of themselves.
  • Offer the child objects and toys to grasp and «taste» that are neither too big nor too small, generally soft and not sharp.
  • Use rattles, sound toys, or, even better, your own voice, to get the child to search for the source by turning their head.

What not to do: stop your child from bringing objects to their mouth. Keep in mind that at this stage, «tasting» is how babies explore and discover the world!

Motor development, fifth month

Between 5 and 6 months, the child is able to change their lying position, usually motivated by interest in objects placed to the side that they'd like to grasp, and this leads them to develop the ability to «roll». «Crawling on the belly» also appears now: the child, lying prone, curious about toys and materials that are out of reach, tends to crawl, at first pushing with just the arms and later coordinating the legs as well. Fine motor skills also become richer: objects in the child's hands are no longer just brought to the mouth, but are handled and passed from one hand to the other. During this period, the significant maturation of the muscular system allows the child to hold their back and torso increasingly upright, to the point of allowing them to sit, and this marks a real turning point, since the child can now handle objects with greater ease and comfort. At first, the arms are used for static support if the baby still seems unsteady and shows some fear of falling, while later on the little one will be able to sit without this kind of support too.

A few tips for mothers. What to do: often leave the child in a horizontal position (prone, lying on their back, or on their side); use soft but not overly yielding mats, or covered foam mattresses; offer engaging toys and materials that the child wants to reach, grasp, or handle. What not to do: avoid forcing the child to reach a particular position, and instead wait patiently, making sure the conditions around them are stimulating and suited to their development (e.g. avoid using seats that keep the child sitting before they're ready, since this could put too much strain on the lower spine, holding back the development of the arm, back, and abdominal muscles); don't overload the environment with stimuli, materials should be few, but appealing and appropriate.