New parents often look forward to their baby's first steps. Usually we are guided that somewhere in the year the child already begins to walk, but in practice, of course, it happens in different ways.

Babies start walking between 9 and 18 months

Some babies take their first steps as early as 9 months. Most likely, in general, they are somewhat ahead of their peers and have already passed all the previous stages of development of the body and brain, but still it is worth being very careful about such “early” pedestrians, since they often surprise their parents with sudden falls “out of the blue”. Do not worry and just make sure that the falls happen in the safest way, very soon this stage will pass, and the child will stand on his feet much more confidently.

Other children, on the contrary, scare mom and dad by the fact that they never learned to walk even by 15 months. Despite the fact that others will convince you of the abnormality of this alignment, in fact, the age norm is the interval between 9 and 18 months. Follow the general development of your “late” pedestrian and be sure that very soon he will start walking.

Children, on average, begin to take their first independent steps from 9 months to 1.5 years. However, the time to master a skill is highly dependent on the individual characteristics of the child and numerous external factors, so there are cases that are outside this range. You should not worry too much if your baby is a little beyond the age norms, but if something bothers you in the general condition of the child (does not cope well with simpler movements, does not follow the toy with his eyes, does not sleep well, slowly gains weight, etc.) you should consult a child development specialist for a face-to-face consultation.

Muscle development and coordination<

Of course, the degree of muscle development and coordination of the baby has a great influence on the child's ability to walk. In order for the child's body to develop harmoniously from the first days of life, provide the baby with the opportunity to move freely (buy comfortable loose clothes, give the child enough space to move), and also include children's gymnastics in the crumbs routine, gently stimulating the child to strain the muscles of the arms, legs, back and abs, and use coordination exercises:

If the child got up too early or late – is it good or bad?

The development of each child is individual. Speaking about the child's attempts to get up on his own, there are several stages:

6 months – rise at this age is considered early, but not critical. When a child independently shows interest and attempts to stand up, and his physical health is assessed by a pediatrician as normal, then, accordingly, there is nothing wrong with such attempts to stand up;
7-9 months is the optimal period in which most children learn the skill of standing up independently with support;
after 1 year. Lifts at this age are not calculated as critical or late, if the child's health is up to standard.

Each stage is a component of child development, a phase through which every baby goes.

Important! Dangerous early rises are considered at the age of 4-5 months. Doctors strongly do not recommend encouraging these actions, but rather distracting the child from them. At this age, the skeletal system is not developed and ready for such loads.

What do you need when it's time to learn to walk?

There are various devices that are designed to make it easier for the child to take his first steps. None of them are necessary, and the question of their acquisition is left to the discretion of the parents.

Walkers

Making mistakes and gaining experience to avoid them and minimize the consequences is what we learn for. To walk correctly means to feel the balance, masterfully control the muscles of your body, fall safely and rise quickly. Walkers don't provide that kind of experience. The child in them is half hanging and half sitting, but not standing, and rather rides than walks. They can stimulate the development of leg muscles to a certain extent and, of course, help parents to slightly limit the activity of the baby constantly crawling around the house. However, it is extremely wrong to assume that small children really learn to walk in walkers. Training starts only when the child begins to move without insurance.

If you decide to use a walker, do not forget that the child should not be left in them for a long time – the constant being in an upright position creates too much stress on the back. In the meantime, the child has not learned to sit, it is generally forbidden to use this device.

A roller

The wheelchair is a small four-wheeled cart with a handle, and the baby taking the first steps can lean on it while walking. Often, manufacturers build various toys into the wheelchair, for example, rattles, music buttons, a mirror, turning it into a real entertainment center.

This toy outperforms the baby stroller, which kids also love to roll, because its handles are located at a suitable height for the child. On the other hand, a light wheelchair can slip and roll forward too quickly on parquet, laminate and other flooring if the child leans heavily on it.

Keep your baby comfortable

Boys and girls learn to walk easily in Huggies. Elastic cuffs around the legs, soft wide sides and a waistband do not hinder movement so that the kids are not distracted from an important lesson.

Leash

The children's leash resembles a harness for animals. The situation when a baby learns to walk in such a device looks a little strange, and therefore some parents treat him negatively. It's not worth drawing conclusions based on appearance alone, but your own back will help you understand whether you need it.

At first, the baby needs to be insured against falls, and usually the parents follow him in a half-bent position. If your lower back starts to hurt from such loads, a leash can help to cope with this problem.

How to help your child take their first independent steps

Of course, the above does not mean that you need to let the development of the baby take its course, that he does not need help – they say, sooner or later he will go. And you need to follow and help. The first steps can be delayed both if the child's leg muscles are too weak, and in case of hypertonicity – that is, when the muscles are in very strong tension (in hypertonicity, the child does not put his foot on his full foot, all the time rising on tiptoe). Accurate diagnosis of the state of the musculoskeletal system of the baby should be carried out by specialists (orthopedist, surgeon, neurologist). As a rule, if hypertonicity is diagnosed, doctors prescribe herbal or sea salt baths and massage. If the baby needs to strengthen muscles, develop coordination of movements and instill self-confidence, special gymnastics can be very useful.

Exercise 1

Age: 6-9 months.

Inventory: fitball of medium size, inflated by 2/3.

An adult puts the child on the ball with his back to himself and, holding his hips tightly, tilts him in different directions. The goal is to develop coordination of movements, teach balance and maintain balance.

Exercise 2

Age: 9 months and older.

Inventory: two poles about 120 cm high or a hoop.

The child takes the poles, the adult puts his hands on top of his hands. The adult begins to slowly step over with the child, rearranging the poles in the manner of ski poles. If a hoop is used, the child is inside, and the adult, moving the hoop in different directions, pushes the baby to different movements – walking in a circle, forward or backward.

Exercise 3

Age: from 9-10 months, when the child has already begun to step over, holding the hands of adults.

Inventory: a toy stroller or a baby stroller.

The child stands holding the handles of the stroller, the adult supports the baby. When the stroller begins to slowly move from its place, the baby reaches for it, bends down and finally takes the first step.

Exercise 4

Age: when the child already knows how to get up from his knees with the help of a support.

Inventory: baby's favorite toy and a chair.

The toy moves along the floor in the direction of the chair, “calling” the baby on all fours to crawl after it, rises above the chair (so that the child tries to lean on it with its arms) and is placed on the edge of the chair. If the exercise is successful, the baby should stand up without assistance, leaning on armchair.

Exercise 5

Age: from 9 months.

Equipment: table or any hard surface.

An adult puts the child on his haunches, with his back to himself. Firmly holding the hips, the adult swings the baby back and forth, forcing him to stand on even legs. It is necessary to help the child lean forward as far as possible, while supporting him in the chest area. If the little one is in no hurry to get up, it means that the legs are still weak and the exercise can be left, and after a while you can return to it. The purpose of the exercise is to strengthen the ability to stand independently.

Exercise 6

Age: when the baby moves around the room, holding an adult's hand.

Inventory: a long lace or rope.

The cord is pulled between the furniture at the height of the child's knees. Holding the child by the hand, the adult leads the child to the lace. The point is for the child to step over the obstacle.