Baby Development Cases

Foundational Developmental Skills

Within the first five years of life, the foundational developmental skills your baby will achieve include:

• Gross motor skills
• Fine motor skills
• Sensory skills
• Language skills
• Social skills

Parents often experience fear over whether or not their child is developing at a normal rate. As you read through this information, it's important to remember to leave room for the uniqueness of each child. To better understand what to expect, we'll take a look at some of the skills listed above and learn how they apply to baby development cases.

Gross Motor Skills

Most people have heard of left brain and right brain functions, but to understand gross motor skills, it's important to understand how the brain works in relation to these skills. The brain for the most part compartmentalizes these functions. For example: when your baby lifts his legs in the air, that's a separate part of the brain working than if the baby reaches for a toy. Learning to move is a process which includes holding the head up, sitting, crawling and walking.

As for the left brain right brain aspect of this stage of development, the right side of the brain controls movements on the left side of the body and vice versa. The area on both sides of the brain which controls muscle movement is known as the motor strip. When your baby is born, this area of the brain is still underdeveloped. As it matures, babies learn to control neck muscles and hold their head up, followed by other milestones. Gross motor skills usually mature in this order and include improved coordination and balance:

• Neck – turning head from side to side, lifting the head, holding the head upright
• Shoulder – raising shoulders and chest while in a prone position
• Upper arms – bring arms to midline while lying on back
• Hand Control Improvement (Becomes a fine motor skill) – reach grab and bring to mouth
• Upper body – learn to sit up
• Hips – pulling up which leads to standing
• Pelvis – pulling up which leads to standing
• Legs – standing, walking, climbing, running, hopping on two feet, hopping on one foot, skipping

Notice the lack of "normal" age ranges in the above list. What is considered normal covers a wide range of ages, and gross motor skills are only one area of development. Baby development cases point out that if gross motor skills are the only area of development lagging in your child's progress, then most often there is no need for concern. Within these child development milestones, there is great variability, but if you have concerns, it's a good idea to talk to your pediatrician

Fine Motor Skills

Fine motor skills involve small muscle movements. These include hand eye coordination and are developed over time with practice. Examples of these skills include:

• Using scissors
• Buttoning or snapping
• Zipping
• Opening and closing containers with screw on lids
• Putting on shoes and socks
• Coloring
• Tracing

Sensory Skills

Along with motor skills, sensory skills develop upon a foundation of natural abilities. Sensory skills include:

• Vision
• Hearing
• Touch

A child receives information through these senses and then uses his motor skills to express what his senses take in and process. A part of both sensory and motor skills are determined by genetics, and another part is learned through repetitive interaction. This is where the parent's role comes into play. If you see your child struggling to keep up with pre-school peers, skill assessments are available to help parents determine if professional help is needed or if there are specific ways to encourage development in their child.

Learning From Baby Development Cases

From the moment you bring home your new baby, you'll note your baby's progress. Each milestone is marked by a moment of pride and celebrating. You anticipate every new skill, each new tooth or inch of growth—these are all milestones which follow the path from infancy to early childhood. Enjoy each step in the process, and as you do remember to provide these three things to encourage development:

• Sleep – Most children need an average of 10-12 hours of sleep each night.
• Nutrition – Provide a balanced diet
• Exercise – Today, obesity among children is a growing problem. Make sure your child gets regular exercise along with a balanced diet.

Remember that children differ in growth and development. Avoid comparing your child's growth or lagging skills among other children including siblings and learn to accentuate the positives. If you fear your child is developmentally behind, check with your health care professional for his determination.