Babies: Best start
Developmental movements
Along with your loving care, the movements your baby does naturally in the first year are nature’s design for your baby to develop every aspect of herself. Movement is your baby’s first language. When you learn to read your baby’s gestures and movement cues, then you can provide opportunities for your baby to fulfill all that she is capable of learning.
Parents can help their child move toward milestones with simple, playful activities. Why support babies with early development? Learn why tummy time & early movements matter.
If your child is experiencing developmental delay or profound challenge, early intervention with playful activities can change the arc of development.
Moving toward milestones
Is your baby delayed in meeting milestones, or skipping some altogether? Is she distressing in tummy time? Is he averse to cuddling? Not looking at people’s eyes? Not rolling yet? Unable to come in and out of sitting on his own? Skipping belly crawling? Scooting on her bottom instead of crawling? Crawling with only one knee down? Skipping 4 legged crawling and coming up to stand? Each of these has its own timetable, sequencing in and building on prior experiences. You can learn simple ways to help your child fulfill each of his milestones.
Why help babies with movement milestones?
Developmental movements shape the core organization of the mind and the body. Doing these early movements makes a difference for your child’s future. Of course your child will still come up to walking, and develop in many ways. By helping your baby with developmental movements, you can create optimal ease for his busy mind and adept body.
When children skip early developmental moves, he may find many future activities more difficult; including emotional balance and good attention, reading and math, as well as coordination and grace in athletics.
Development movements grow the mind and body
- Foster emotional & social intelligence
- Connect essential brain networks for cognition & thinking skills
- Build core strength & balanced alignment
- Bridge to learning readiness & attention asset
Where to begin? Skin to skin at birth & breastfeeding
At birth, immediately place your newborn on mother’s body to help him stabilize breathing, heart rate and temperature. Continuous skin to skin in the first week helps establish breastfeeding. Whether your baby is born vaginally or by caesarian, both baby and mother benefit in skin to skin time to bond and recover from the intensity of birth.
What about dad & partners?
Lots of skin to skin time in the first weeks is also recommended. Dads/partners will feel much more confident in caring for the new little wobbly one when baby has been connected to their body. Your body is learning a lot from baby. Trust your baby to train you in as a parent.
What’s next: Tummy time
Tummy time organizes the brain and body for many future activities, including reading and emotional balance. Tummy time builds core strength and healthy postural alignment. Get down on the floor and try it out with your baby to help your abdominal muscles knit back together after pregnancy.
Developmental movements build through the first year
Your baby builds core skills in her brain and body based on activities from earliest days, including the mastery activities of vaginal birth and breastfeeding. If your child has skipped earlier milestones, we can always return to these in playful, age appropriate activities.
