The first year in a child’s life is a very responsible and exciting time. The first smile, the first word, the first step ... All parents are worried about whether their baby is developing correctly, whether he has a lag. Young mothers discuss together when a child should start walking, and often focus on the neighbor, whose little son went extremely early. Pediatricians warn that all children are different, and suggest that parents do not panic ahead of time.
Generally accepted standards
Doctors warn parents against trying to push the child to upright posture. All healthy children master this skill in due time. The kid knows better than you whether his musculoskeletal system is ready for new loads. Premature stimulation of walking leads to curvature of the spine or legs, improper staging of the feet by the child.
How many months does the baby begin to walk, according to the norms? Pediatricians focus on the age from 9 months to 1.5 years. They urge parents to remain calm in the event that their one-year-old baby does not yet take independent steps. If he actively crawls, is interested in toys, is happy to study the world, everything is in order.
Factors to consider
Someone confidently stomps around the house at 9 months, while someone at 1.2 years old is afraid to break away from the support. What factors determine at what age the child begins to walk? Pediatricians indicate:
- Heredity. If in the family all the children begin to walk after a year, then there is a chance that the youngest will do the same.
- Weight. It is more difficult for full children to keep their body in an upright position than thin and nimble babies.
- Temperament. Fidget will go faster than his calm, phlegmatic peer.
- The presence of other kids surrounded by confidently running around the apartment. If the family has older brothers or sisters, the baby will imitate them.
- Unsuitable conditions. If the child spends the whole day in a crib or walker, he will go late.
- The development of other skills. It is difficult for children to master several directions simultaneously. If the baby is actively learning to speak, then walking can be delayed.
- The presence of diseases. Sick baby is not up to the development of new skills. Often, he forgets what he knew how to do before the illness.
- Prematurity. Such children lag behind their peers and begin to walk closer to one and a half years.
Deviations from the norm
Moms often attach too much importance to how many months the baby began to walk. Although the rush here is just not worth it. Often you can hear the boasting of a baby who went to 7-9 months. To pediatricians, such a statement, on the contrary, is alarming. If the early mastery of the skill was provoked by the active participation of parents, the fragile spine and leg bones are not ready for the increased load.
Another thing is if the baby began to walk on his own initiative. This usually happens with active kids. In this case, it is not necessary to seat the child forcibly, but regularly arrange games with crawling. This is a very important skill, during which the baby learns to coordinate the movements of the right and left half of the body. In this case, both hemispheres are involved. It has already been proven that in children who missed the crawling stage, coordination is worse, dysgraphia and dyslexia are more common.
Late mastery of walking does not necessarily mean a lag. Keep calm and do not rush things. But if in a year and a half the baby does not try to stand up and take the first steps, it is better to visit a specialist. This will help to eliminate the suspicion of latent birth trauma and weakened immunity.
It is time?
Why does the child begin to walk? They are driven by natural curiosity, the desire to get an interesting toy, to get to the forbidden cabinet. Moving independently, the baby gains more freedom. However, before he goes, he needs to strengthen the muscles of his legs and back.
The following signs indicate that the child is ready to walk:
- He creeps confidently.
- Often gets up on his feet and stands for a long time, holding on to a support.
- The kid knows how to sit from a standing position.
- Holding onto the bars of a crib or sofa, he steps over.
- With support for the handles, he walks confidently, placing his legs parallel to each other.
How to help?
Many parents ask what needs to be done so that the baby learns a new skill faster. In fact, the child will cope with the task without help. The main thing is to provide him with free space for movement.
Slippery floors can turn into big problems for the crumbs. Parquet or linoleum should be carpeted. When the child begins to walk on his own, remove the beating and piercing objects, medicines, household chemicals, wires from free access. Consider how to protect your baby from sharp corners of furniture, electrical outlets. If you care about a mobile phone, do not leave it in sight.
Having prepared the space, give the child freedom. If the baby has fallen and is now afraid to walk, be near, insure. Many children take their first steps, walking a short distance from mom to dad. To create a need for movement, arrange interesting toys around the room at different heights.
Barefoot or in boots?
A lot of controversy raises the question of what shoes the baby should take the first steps. Pediatricians, including the famous doctor Komarovsky, believe that you can walk barefoot at home. This is an excellent prevention of flat feet. Do not be afraid that the child will fall ill when playing on the cold floor. In contact with it, the vessels of the legs involuntarily narrow, so the heat from the body leaves slowly.
If the floor is slippery, you should wear socks with a rubber sole. And of course, think about the first shoe. When a child begins to walk, he is better off buying orthopedic shoes made from natural materials. What is important is a hard back that will fix the heel, a stable and bendable sole with a small heel, and elastic arch support. Choose the right size. Shoes should not squeeze or rub feet. But it is also impossible to allow the foot to dangle in the boot. It is optimal if the insole is 5-7 mm larger than the crumbs' legs.
Muscle training
When the child begins to walk, the load on the muscles and skeleton increases dramatically. Parents are not recommended to actively encourage the baby to walk until he is ready. But in their power to encourage his physical activity, to do massage, gymnastics, thereby strengthening the body of the crumbs.
These procedures should be carried out regularly. Massage begins with strokes, which are replaced by light rubbing. At the end, gently tap on the legs, feet, back of the baby, without touching the knees. This removes hypertonicity.
To strengthen the muscles of the legs, bend them alternately to the lying child, lift them up, ask the baby to reach the stick with the feet, which the adult holds on to weight. Fitball exercises are useful for back muscles when a baby lying on his stomach is rolled back and forth. Then it is turned over on the back and the same thing is repeated.
Special exercises
When children begin to walk, it is difficult for them to maintain balance. From 9 months, you can include in the daily gymnastics complex special exercises that prepare the baby for the first steps.
These include:
- Slopes. The adult puts the child with his back to himself, puts a toy in front of him. With the words “take” it makes the baby bend over, supporting him under his stomach and behind his knees.
- "Dancing". The adult holds the baby's hands, offering him to "dance". Moving his hands, encourages the child to step over.
- Squats Toys are laid out on the floor. Mom asks to pick them up, crouching and again standing on her legs. At the same time, the child is supported by the hand.
- Bending the arms. Adult holds rings. Putting them in the hands of the baby, prompts him to stand on his feet, and then alternately bends the child’s arms at the elbows.
- Learning to stand. The kid stands with support. If he does this confidently, the adult removes his hands for 20 seconds.
- Walking with support. We drive the child, supporting for both hands.
- Climbing. The adult offers the baby to climb onto the sofa, and then get off it, helping.
Special devices
There is an opinion among mothers that modern devices like walkers can affect how much children begin to walk. Is it so? Consider the most popular devices:
- Wheelchairs with handles. The child pushes them in front of him, using instead of support, and steps over. Such a purchase can be very useful in the early stages of training.
- Walkers. They are very convenient for mothers, as they are able to take crumbs for a long time. However, the child sits in them and only kicks off the floor. He does not learn to maintain balance, to stand on the foot correctly, to strain muscles. This device rather slows down the training of walking than will contribute to it.
- Rein. The design consists of straps that are attached to the shoulders, chest and back of the child. An adult with a leash controls the movements of the crumbs, preventing the fall in time. Reins are convenient to use if the baby is afraid to hit while walking. The only negative is that they will not teach the child how to fall, group, and this is a very important skill that will come in handy more than once in the future.
A little bit about gait
When the child begins to walk, watch how he puts his feet. In babies, they are parallel to each other. The legs are not yet ready for a roll from heel to toe, so the children step on their full foot. It’s very difficult for a crumb to maintain balance, which leads to frequent falls. However, the elasticity of children's bones and muscles minimizes the risk of serious injury.
It is worth being alert if the child is walking on toes. This may indicate both increased activity of the child, and the presence of hypertonicity, birth injury. It is better to consult a pediatrician.
In fact, it doesn’t matter at what age the child began to walk. This does not affect his future life, success in school or sports. Therefore, refuse to participate in the competition "whose baby is the most developed" and enjoy communicating with him. Everything will happen on time. A little more - and you have to rush for crumbs throughout the playground.