During the first twelve months, babies gain greater ability to explore their environment through movement, touch, sound, and sight. By twelve months, infants will triple their birth weight and increase in length by fifty percent.

Below are typical milestones for development in babies from six to twelve months:

Gross Motor and Sensory Development
By 9 months:

• Sits independently without support for long periods of time
• Sits in a highchair with a straight back
• Catches self with arm when loses balance
• Able to move from sitting to lying down
• Crawls on belly
• Assumes a hands-and-knees position and begins to rock forward and backward

By 12 months:

• Progresses to crawling on hands and knees
• Pulls to standing on furniture
• Walks along furniture, holding on for support
• Stands independently for a few moments
• Bends down to pick up an object while holding on for support
• Progress to taking two to three independent steps without support
• Begins to walk at ten to eighteen months of age
• Tolerates new and greater variety of food textures
• Likes to explore the environment through mouthing objects, touching various textures, and moving

Fine Motor and Vision Development
By 9 months:

• Uses a pincer grasp to pickup small objects
• Bangs, throws, and shakes objects

By 12 months:

• Points and pokes at objects with the index finger
• Transfers objects from one hand to another
• Begins to put objects into a container
• Releases objects voluntarily
• Attempts to imitate scribbling
• Begins to turn pages in a book
• Improved color vision, distance vision, and depth perception
• Tracks fast-moving objects

Cognitive and Behavioral Development
By 9 months:

• Develops object permanence
• Searches for hidden objects
• Responds to simple commands; knows own name and understands “no”
• Imitates gestures and actions
• Looks at the correct picture when it is named
• Begins to use objects appropriately, such as drinking from a cup, holding up a phone receiver to the ear, or brushing hair
• Explores toys with a variety of skills, such as throwing, dropping, banging, and shaking objects

By 12 months:

• Likes simple games, such as Peek-a-boo
• Experiences separation and stranger anxiety; clings to parents and begins to fear strangers

Communication Development
By 9 months:

• Imitates specific sounds
• Makes sounds while playing with toys or mirror
• Locates where sounds are coming from
• Responds to simple requests, and to “no”
• Vocalizes repetitive consonant–vowel combinations, such as “ba, ba”

By 12 months:

• Tries to imitate animal sounds
• Says “mama,” “dada,” and one or two other words
• Makes exclamations, such as “uh oh”
• Babbles with inflections
• Understands several words and simple commands
• Uses simple gestures, such as shaking the head for “no”
• Enjoys hearing own voice

Social and Emotional Development

• Develops preferences for people and toys
• Prefers mother or caregiver over others
• Becomes shy and more anxious around strangers
• Cries when caregiver leaves
• Begins to test parental response to behavior and activities

Daily Routines Development
By 9 months:

• Drools more due to teething; may have six to eight teeth
• Begins cup drinking when cup is held for him (jaw is still unstable, so baby may bite on the cup for stability while drinking)
• Holds and drinks from a bottle independently

By 12 months:

• Feeds self with hands and fingers and progresses to scooping with a spoon
• Progresses from eating purees to a variety of solids
• Sleeps for about three hours during the day and eleven hours at night for a total of about fourteen hours
• Begins to assist with dressing and will extend the arms and legs
• Is able to partially remove shirt over the head

Signs of Possible Developmental Delays: Six to Twelve Months »
Helpful article if you suspect your child may have developmental delays

Links & Resources »

References »