Sixth month of child development

On the eve of the semi-annual “anniversary”, the baby can already rotate and bend in all possible directions and demonstrates his emotions. The actual reflection in the mirror causes a smile, and the stranger is alarming. At this age, the child can already remember his name and turns to the voice that calls him. This is an important period of the beginning of socialization and the education of communication skills.

Physical development

For six months, the baby grows already by 15-16 cm. A child on average in the sixth month of life gains 600-650 grams. If parents are asked that the baby is gaining too much or not enough – it is worth adjusting the diet. In the first case – to reduce the amount of high-calorie cereals in favor of vegetable purees, in the second, on the contrary – to add more high-calorie food to the children’s diet.

In the sixth month, the baby may already begin to crawl. At first, these attempts are similar to crawling worms, because first the child crawls on his stomach. At six months, the classic crawling on the knees and outstretched arms is still difficult, but some babies are already mastering it. Looking for the most convenient and easy way to travel, children at the age of six months often invent their own exclusive methods.

At the end of the sixth month, the child can already sit with a flat back without bending the body forward or to the side. However, in no case should you try to align the child’s back if it is still round – this means that it is not the time to sit for the baby. Do not worry about it, it is normal and when the baby begins to sit at 7 months.

At the same time, the baby is already beginning to show a desire to walk if he is held by the arms vertically. Do not get involved in such activity, because the muscles of the legs, hips and pelvic girdle are not yet sufficiently formed to ensure the correct walking technique. You can not very often use “stilts”, following the safety.

In general, when the baby begins to move independently, it is important to close the doors to all “dangerous” rooms, to equip barriers in front of places with an increased risk of injury, especially you should pay attention to the stairs. It is also safe to place glass, sharp, small objects, household chemicals and medicines. An increased curiosity about everything around at this age sometimes causes injury and poisoning.

First teeth

In most babies, the first teeth erupt at 6 months. However, there is no exact date when this should happen and, as we have already written, the first incisors may appear even at 4 months, or even much later – closer to the year. We have already written about the symptoms that accompany the growth of teeth and how to help a child during this period in an infant earlier.

It is worth adding that children can react to teething long before they appear, even for several months: they suck on the lower lip, pull their ears, scratch the area around the eyes. Already when the tooth is almost erupted, the child may not eat well, the body temperature rises and a lot of saliva is released.

It will not be superfluous to consult a doctor when the baby has any of these symptoms, because sometimes they can signal a disease.

Milk teeth in general should appear 20 and this happens approximately by 2-2.5 years, so you should be patient, rodents and special pharmacy tools, of course, after consulting a pediatrician.

Emotionality of a child at six months

The six-month-old baby is already beginning to realize the variety of emotions. Disputes between adults, elevated tones, especially screaming, are already alarming, confusing and can scare the child. Of course, the baby does not yet understand the words, and receives a general impression of the emotional state of adults from the volume of the conversation, intonations and facial expressions. Therefore, it is important to monitor this so as not to add stress to the child and an additional reason to cry.

At the age of six months, the baby begins to show his mood, which is often difficult for adults to explain. It seems that the mood of the baby changes every few seconds – after a wide smile, the child soups up, after crying begins to laugh, and after a loud cry – is silent. The fact is that in six months the child has already learned to concentrate on a specific object and can switch from one object or sound to another. Accordingly, the impression of each is manifested by a specific emotion.

Language and communication

From this age, the child is already beginning to form the so-called passive vocabulary. The baby gradually remembers the names of things and objects and later, hearing them, will look or point to them.

The “assortment” of sounds that can be heard from the child is significantly larger, in particular, consonants are added to the vowels, the child has several “favorite” sounds with which he reacts to certain situations.

Six months is an extremely important communicative period. The baby needs attention, communication and non-verbal communication. The sounds and movements of adults are memorized by a child of this age and subsequently will try to reproduce.

Medical support

At a planned monthly meeting with a pediatrician this month, you can discuss the physical and emotional development of the child, consult on the feasibility of examination with doctors of narrow specialization, as well as discuss the date of the third immunization with the DTP vaccine and against polio.

On the eve of the six-month “birthday” of the baby, parents often summarize briefly. During this period, it is not necessary to compare your child with others, analyze what could be done to accelerate the development of the child, improve his skills, etc. Instead, this is a good opportunity to remember once again the first six months of the baby, perhaps to record moments that you do not want to forget later, to print and arrange in frames or a photo album pictures of the whole child “for the first time”, which will no longer be repeated in such a performance and such emotions.

Natalia Kuzio