This is an awesome year of growth and development! Over this 1st year, the kid’s weight will approximately triple, growing about 10 inches. They will learn to lift their head and chest, roll over, sit up, creep, crawl, stand, and explore their environment with their hands, feet, and mouth. Grasping skills develop as they discover their toes and learns to reach for objects and people. During this 1st year, they will grow from being fed to eating soft foods and holding a bottle independently!
They recognize the human voice’s sound from birth and soon learn to distinguish caregivers, family members, and other familiar adults. As their hearing and vision improve, they may become apprehensive of unfamiliar people. With patience and time, they can grow to trust and bond with new caregivers.
During this year, they learn to return a smile and communicate with the people in their world.
The infant’s 1st communication means expressing the most basic needs, including hunger and discomfort. As the year progresses, they can express more complex and ideas. Verbal communication moves from cooing and gurgling to back and forth “baby talk” exchanges to the emergence of 1st words. Non-verbal communication will include waving, blowing kisses, and even sign language. They understand many words long before speaking, and their receptive language will outweigh their expressive language for years to come. In addition, even babies are responsive to tone, facial expressions, and body language.
Cognitive growth happens at a rapid rate during this year. Infants respond to light and sound and can visually track a moving object. As the year progresses, the baby learns to look for an object that falls out of sight and move to reach the desired toy. They may drop objects on purpose, and they may enjoy “peek-a-boo” games. They constantly observe and explore their world and learn best when there is plenty to see and do. Towards the end of this year, the kid engages in a tremendous variety of activities.
Responding to kids from birth to 1 year
Younger infants thrive on being held as much as possible. Close human contact during these 1st months is golden.
Hold young infants in a manner that enables them to see their world.
Share positive, physical touch by hugging, holding, and patting baby’s back via physical games, such as bouncing and clapping.
Create the smallest group size, with as many adults as possible.
Give consistent caregivers to enable the kid to feel secure and form trusting relationships with adults.
Provide babies with lots of room to crawl and explore. Don’t leave babies in swings or seats.
Sing, chat and smile with babies throughout the day. Talk to them regarding what they see, feel, and do; even if they can’t talk yet, your words will stimulate language development.
Respond to the infant’s attempts to communicate. Imitate their sounds, and engage in talkative/babbling play.
Provide various materials that allow the baby to safely experience a variety of texture, transparency, weight, color, and sound. For instance, provide rattles made of wood and plastic, rattles of various colors and sizes, and rattles that clatter, jingle, and chime.
Develop a baby-safe space. All items in the space should be safe for small hands and mouths, and the furniture should be sturdy enough to allow the baby to pull up and stand without injury.
Develop outdoor experiences. Even young infants can enjoy stretching out on a blanket on a beautiful day!
Remember that every kid develops differently, in their own time.
