Milestones matter! How your child plays, learns, speaks, acts and moves offers important clues about their development.
This is a general guide to infants from six to nine months of age. Remember, each child is unique and will grow and develop at their own pace. It is normal for a child to be behind in some areas and ahead in others. For babies born prematurely, milestones are based on their corrected age (your baby’s actual age minus the number of weeks or months they were born early).
Babies can’t be spoiled so feel free to play, cuddle and respond to all your baby’s cues and cries. You can help your baby learn and grow.
- Social and Emotional
- Language and Communication
- Thinking, Learning and Problem-Solving
- Movement and Physical Development
- You Know Your Child Best
Social and Emotional
Your baby knows who are their family and friends and who are strangers. Your bond with your baby makes them feel safe and secure and helps them develop confidence and self-esteem.
By six months, your baby is becoming more aware of other people. They may:
- be afraid of strangers
- be clingy towards you and other familiar people, especially in unfamiliar environments.
- have favourite toys
You can help your baby learn by:
- recognizing that these are normal parts of development and are signs that they have a strong relationship with you
- paying attention to the way your baby reacts to new situations and people; try to continue to do things that make your baby happy and comfortable.
- staying close as your baby moves around more, so they know that you are near.
- using words to describe your baby’s feelings. For example, “You are upset that I took away the car keys. You can play with this toy instead.”
- getting to know your baby’s favourite toys
- offering choices of foods
Safety Tip
Never shake your baby.
If you are feeling tired and frustrated, ask someone else to watch your baby while you take time to calm down, or gently place your baby in the crib, cradle or bassinet and leave the room to get your feelings under control. Shaking a baby can cause permanent brain damage and even death.
See Why is my baby crying? What can I do? for tips on comforting your baby and staying calm.
Language and Communication
Your baby may start to understand simple words and start using some gestures.
By nine months, most babies will be putting sounds together, and may:
- say sounds like “ma-ma” and “da-da”
- copy other people’s sounds and gestures
- begin to understand the word “no”
- start using simple gestures such as waving hello and goodbye
- start to point at things
You can help your baby learn by:
- talking, reading and singing to your baby throughout the day
- encouraging your baby by copying the sounds they make
- making new sounds to encourage your baby to copy you
- teaching your baby wave to other people
- as you read to your baby, point at the pictures in the book, and let baby do the same
- describing what your baby is looking at; for example, “red, round ball”
- talking about what your baby wants when they point at something.
Parent Tip
Instead of telling baby what not to do, try asking for behaviour that you want. For example, it is easier for a baby to understand “sit down” than “stop standing.”
Thinking, Learning and Problem-Solving
You may notice that your baby is getting more playful – with you and with their toys.
By nine months, your baby’s brain is developing quickly and they may:
- continue to be curious and enjoy playing with a variety of toys
- enjoy banging objects together to make noise.
- start to understand that something or someone still exists, even if it is out of sight. This is called object permanence.
- look for a toy that they see you hide. Before learning object permanence, your baby will act as if the toy disappeared. Once they gain this skill, they will lift up a blanket to uncover the toy.
You can help your baby learn by:
- playing games such as peek-a-boo and hide-and-seek
- play games with “my turn, your turn”
- showing your baby how to bang objects together
- while your baby is watching, covering a toy that they are playing with and let them find it
- continuing routines
- rolling balls back and forth, pushing toy cars and trucks, and putting blocks in and out of a container
Parent Tips
- Babies put everything in their mouths. Never give your baby a toy with small parts that they could choke on. As a general rule, if it is small enough to fit through a toilet paper roll, it is too small to give to your baby. For more information on choking click here.
- Avoid letting your baby watch the television, smart phone or computer screen. Screen time is not recommended for children under two years of age.
- Model healthy screen use by turning off screens when not in use and avoiding having the TV playing in the background.
Movement and Physical Development
Your baby will be increasingly mobile and playful. Parents can give their babies opportunities to play and develop. Anticipating your child’s next physical milestone can help you keep them safer.
Between six and nine months of age, your baby will become a lot more mobile and may:
- scoot around on their tummy
- start crawling
- be able to get into a sitting position and sit without support
- pull to stand by holding onto furniture or a person
- pick up small items up between their thumb and first finger
- learn to let go of objects. Babies enjoy throwing toys onto the floor and having you “go and fetch” them.
You can help your baby learn by:
- giving them opportunities to use their fingers by giving small foods such as Cheerios and cooked peas
- playing “come and get me.” Chase after your baby as they move and hug your baby when you catch them
- placing some of your baby’s toys on the couch or a table so your baby can practice standing while playing with their toys
- providing room for your baby to move and explore in a safe area
- putting your baby close to things that they can pull up on safely
Safety Tips
- As babies get increasingly able to move around the home, the environment can put them at risk of injury. To keep your active baby safe, see our Home Safety Checklist for tips on baby-proofing your home
- Make sure that TVs, dressers and other furniture are sturdy and secured to the wall, so they can’t tip over if your baby pulls on them
- Small items are a choking hazard for babies. Keep small things safely away from baby. If there are older siblings in the home, make sure that their toys that have small parts are kept out of baby’s reach
- When starting solid foods, some foods should be avoided and others need to be chopped or mashed so that they don’t pose a choking hazard. Find out more here.
- Use a pressure-mounted baby gate at the bottom of stairways and wall-mounted baby gate at the top of stairways to prevent a fall. See Tips for Preventing Falls: Newborns to Toddlers
- Now that baby can move around poisons, cleaners and medications should be out of sight and locked up tight. See Poisoning Prevention for more information. Manitoba Poison Control Centre phone number is 1-855-776-4766.
You Know Your Child Best.
Act early if you have concerns about the way your child plays, learns, speaks, acts or moves, or if your child doesn’t:
- bear weight on legs with support
- sit with help
- babble
- play games involving back-and-forth play
- respond to their own name
- recognize familiar people
- look to where you point
- transfer toys from one hand to another
Tell your child’s doctor or nurse if you notice any of these signs of possible developmental delay and ask for a developmental screening. Don’t wait. Acting early can make a real difference!
For more information
- Your child’s development: What to expect – Canadian Paediatric Society
- Read, speak, sing to your baby: How parents can promote literacy from birth – Canadian Paediatric Society
- Attachment: A connection for life – Canadian Paediatric Society
- Your baby’s brain: How parents can support healthy development – Canadian Paediatric Society
- Benefits & guidelines Canadian 24-Hour movement guidelines for the early years: Ages 0-4 – Participaction
- Activities for babies and toddlers – Active for Life
