9 Months Old Baby Milestones

From the time your baby was born, he was learning how to communicate with you. Every moment spent together, every sweet word whispered into his ear, and every loving caress and gesture you showed him was a way you taught him how to communicate. All this is important when it comes to a baby’s social, emotional and communicative development. At nine months old, your baby will start to show growth in many other areas.

Video: 9 Months Old Baby Milestones

9 Month Old Baby Milestone Chart

Developmental Milestones your Baby Should Reach by 9 Months

Not only is there a possibility that your baby will start cruising (walking with the support of furniture), but you are also going to hear some practice speeches! Sitting down without assistance may be still hard for him, so be sure to keep an eye on your little one, or put some extra padding in his diapers.

Cognitive Development Milestones

Your baby’s brain is developing fast! Here are the cognitive developments your child should have made by 9 months:

• If you look at your baby and ask him to make a sound or action, he will understand what you want.
• Your baby will repeat some words like “mama” or “dada”, but he will most likely not say it to the right parent. He will also repeat a few other small words like “ball” and “bye.”
• Your baby will enjoy creating sound and will often test out the different ones by banging objects on the ground or table.
• Your baby will be able to understand that a hidden toy does not vanish from its spot. It will be fun to hide things and make him find them as this helps his currently developing memorizing skills.

Social and Emotional Development Milestones

Your baby’s social and behavioural skills needed to develop. Here are some things to watch out for:

• Your baby will enjoy cuddling and will even try to please you with his actions. Babies of this age tend to become clingy and will often cry if separated from their parents.
• If your baby starts to panic and cry when he meets someone new, even if the person is friendly, don’t be worried; this is normal. Babies develop anxiety towards strangers at this age.
• Your nine month old will begin to develop certain preferences towards certain things and may also use something like his favourite teddy bear or his “blankie” for security.
• Babies do understand the concept of family at this age and tend to be happier during family time.

Motor Skills and Physical Development Milestones

Your baby is growing physically and developing different motor skills. Here are a few physical developments to look out for:

• Your baby should be crawling by this age, so it is time to baby proof your home.
• Your baby will develop something called “Parachute reflex” which is the human tendency to put our hands forward when the head faces down in order to prevent injuries.
• The leg muscles start to strengthen, and your baby will soon be able to pull himself up, using something for support and will try taking a few steps now too.
• Your baby’s ocular movements will be much better, and he will be able to keep an eye on moving objects. Depth perception starts to develop.

Neurodevelopmental Skills Milestones

Neurodevelopment of a baby begins in the prenatal stages and continues right until three years of age. The neurodevelopmental skills your baby will have developed by 9 months are:

• Your baby can sit unsupported now
• Your baby will be able to pick up toys and move them from hand to hand
• Your baby will develop pincher grip in his fingers and will be able to pick up small objects using the index finger and thumb.
• They babble consonants and vowels and practice changing their tone of voice

Communication Skills

Here are a few ways your baby will be able to communicate at this age:

• Your baby will be able to communicate the word “No” to you through actions. For example, if at feeding time your baby closes his mouth or turns away his head, this would be considered “No” in your 9-month-olds language.
• Now your baby will be able to understand the meaning of “No” when you use it and will try to avoid doing anything that may make you say it to them.
• Your baby will be able to wave goodbye and probably even follow up with a verbal “Bye.”
• At this age, your baby will start pointing to things he is interested in.

When to Consult a Doctor?

If your baby isn’t growing properly now, then this will have a major impact on future development. Here are some things to look out for:

• Babies of this age should be able to crawl and sit up on their own. If your baby isn’t crawling or sitting even with support, you will want to consult a professional.
• A delay in development could be taking place if your child is abnormally quiet and does not try to babble or repeat anything.
• If you or any of your baby’s primary caregivers fail to make your baby laugh or smile in pleasure when he sees you, but instead he seems blank, then he has missed a milestone in his development.
• At this age, your baby should be able to use his arms and hands pretty well, so if your baby does not hold onto things or if his grip is very weak, it is best to bring this to your doctor’s attention.

Ways to Help Your Baby Achieve Nine Month Developmental Milestones

Here are a few simple ways to help your baby to develop and reach those nine-month milestones:

• Make sure to play with your baby a lot as this will help him develop his physical and cognitive skills. Be sure to use simple requests like “pass the ball to mommy” and encourage your baby to play while sitting down so that his lower back muscles strengthen.
• Reading books with brightly coloured pictures will help your baby’s vision. The same can be done by taking your baby outdoors and exposing him to all the colours of the world.
• Converse with your baby and teach him simple things such as how to wave “bye” using the word to associate the action. Try pointing to different things and telling your baby what it is, for example, “That’s the bed.”
• Give your baby some finger food so that he can feed himself. This will help him to develop his pincher grasp. Just be sure to keep an eye on him and do not give him anything that would qualify as choking hazards.

An important thing to remember is to always have family time with your baby. This will help him to learn to form bonds and develop social relationships and will also make him very happy. A lot of his developmental milestones will be met without problems so long as your baby always has loved ones around to encourage him. Happy and healthy babies should develop well and not miss any of their milestones. However, consult your doctor if you have even the slightest doubt about whether or not your baby is showing any signs of developmental problems. Early detection is equivalent to a cure.

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