At What Age Is a Baby Able to Grasp With Its Thumb and Fingers Dep3053 Quizlet

Grasping

Learning how to hold things enables your baby to play. Being able to grasp things is also his first step on the road to feeding himself, reading, writing, drawing, and self-care.

When it develops

As a newborn, your baby has an innate ability to grasp objects, but it will take him at least a year to develop the coordination to pick up and hold things securely in his hands. He'll start working intensively on this skill by 3 months and make leaps with each passing month.

How it develops

Newborn to 2 months
Babies are born with the grasping reflex – touch your baby's palm and she'll curl her tiny fingers around yours. But these movements are instinctual and involuntary for the first eight weeks.

During this time, your baby's hands will mostly be clenched in a fist, but she'll soon begin to open and close them on purpose and to examine them. She may even try to grasp soft objects, such as a stuffed animal.

3 months
Your baby still can't grab what she wants accurately, but she can bat at toys over and over. She's also developing her hand-eye coordination, noticing things she'd like to hold and attempting to reach for them. With a floor gym, your child can lie on a soft mat and swipe at fun things hanging above her.

4 to 8 months
At 4 months, your baby can pick up large objects, such as blocks. She won't be able to grab smaller objects, like peas, until she develops better finger dexterity.

Shortly before she gets her first tooth (usually between 4 and 7 months), your baby will start picking up items here and there so she can put them in her mouth. If she's eating solids, she won't be able to hold a baby spoon steady, but she'll try.

She can rake an object toward herself, and will start moving objects from one hand to the other. It's a good idea to keep valuables out of her reach from now on. And make sure your home is childproofed against small objects that she could choke on.

9 to 12 months
With little effort, your baby can pick up objects now. And her preference for her left or right hand is emerging, though you won't be able to determine true left- or right-handedness until she's 2 or 3 years old.

She's also perfecting her pincer grasp, which lets her pick up small objects between her thumb and forefinger.

With her increased coordination, she'll soon be able to experiment with using a spoon or fork at mealtime, though she may prefer to hold the utensil in one hand while using her fingers to actually eat. You'll probably have to help her hold the spoon or fork when you show her how to use it, but she'll get the hang of it more quickly if you let her give it a few tries at every meal.

What comes next

Once your baby perfects grasping, throwing isn't far behind, so watch out – many babies enjoy hurling their toys. By the time he's a year old, he'll enjoy playing ball, stacking towers, and banging things together.

By the time he's 18 months, his artistic side will emerge, and he'll be fascinated with crayons and how to use them to draw and write. At 3 years old, he'll be coordinated enough to attempt to jot down letters, and maybe even pen his name.

Your role

To stimulate your baby's grasping reflex, try putting a toy or colorful object slightly out of her reach and encouraging her to grab it. (Don't frustrate her by putting it so far away that she can't get it, though.) Give her lots of objects she can easily grasp, such as soft blocks, plastic rings, and board books.

Later, when she's working on her pincer grasp, encourage her to pick up soft finger foods, such as peas and cooked carrots – perfectly good manners until she masters that spoon. To guard against choking, it's a good idea to keep hard foods (like nuts or raw carrots) away from her.

By the time she's 18 months old, she'll discover she can place many objects she grasps into other things. You can help her develop this skill by giving her objects to put in empty boxes, plastic cylinders, or other containers.

When to be concerned

If your child doesn't seem interested in a toy or another object you move in front of him by 2 to 3 months, can't grasp an object at 3 months, or doesn't attempt to touch or pick up an object by 3 to 4 months, discuss your concerns with his doctor. Premature babies may reach this and other milestones later than their peers – check with your child's doctor about a reasonable time frame.

At What Age Is a Baby Able to Grasp With Its Thumb and Fingers Dep3053 Quizlet

Source: https://www.babycenter.com/baby/baby-development/developmental-milestones-grasping_6578

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