Growth and Development of the Infant: Motor and Cognitive Milestones (Nursing)

00:01 At two months old, the infant should be able to hold their head up if they're put on their belly.

00:06 The problem is not every infant is put on their belly enough to allow this to happen.

00:11 So this is a story about Jenna. I'll keep it brief.

00:14 Jenna did not like being put on her belly when she was two months old.

00:17 In fact, she hated it.

00:18 And I was, I had mama guilt, I would pick her up if she cried too much.

00:24 So as a result, she didn't learn to hold her head up as quickly as she should have.

00:28 She also didn't strengthen her arms as quickly as she should have, which eventually led to issues crawling.

00:34 I'll tell you about that later.

00:37 At two months, they should also be starting to push up when lying on their stomach speaking of strengthening their arms.

00:42 That's how their little muscles get stronger.

00:44 And eventually, that's what really helps them learn to crawl.

00:47 Their arm and leg movements are not coordinated, but they're becoming smoother and a little more intentional.

00:53 At four months old, they can hold their head up unsupported no matter where what kind of position they're in back or front.

01:00 They can definitely hold a toy.

01:02 They just can't do a whole lot with it.

01:04 They may be able to roll from stomach to back.

01:06 And they also push down on their legs when their feet are put on a hard surface or against a hard surface.

01:12 Such as, there's musical toys, you can prop up in a crib that have musical buttons that the child, that the infant can kick.

01:19 And that's one way they love those types of toys because they don't initially realize they're actually making the music.

01:25 But eventually, the more they kick, the more music is made.

01:28 And that's really exciting to them.

01:30 And at four months, they can hold a toy.

01:32 And like I said, can't do a lot with it, but they can certainly shake it.

01:35 And if it's a toy that makes noise that can be additionally exciting for them.

01:40 They also can bring their hands to their mouth at this age.

01:44 At six months, the infant should be able to roll in both directions.

01:48 And this is when they really get dangerous to themselves.

01:50 You have to really, really be careful about making sure they're always supervised.

01:55 They also begin to sit without support.

01:58 And they can rock back and forth on their knees.

02:00 So they're starting to learn those initial motions that's going to eventually help them crawl.

02:06 They may crawl backward before moving forward.

02:09 So another Jenner story.

02:11 Jenna for whatever reason, never crawled it all.

02:14 She decided once she sat up that she just wanted to remain sitting and scoot about the house on her bottom.

02:20 We call it a boot scooting.

02:22 I thought it was kind of funny and kind of cute.

02:24 And I kind of liked it because her hands stayed clean.

02:26 And she hardly ever got sick.

02:28 But in hindsight, I shouldn't have let her get away with that.

02:31 I should have really pressured her to crawl.

02:34 So most infants, this presentation is about most infants and most will crawl backward event for initially and then eventually they learn the coordination to move forward.

02:46 They can support their weight on their legs, if they're held to a standing position.

02:50 And they can stand even holding on to someone, although very few can walk at nine months.

02:56 They can get into a sitting position at nine months all by themselves and sit without support for quite a while.

03:02 They can often entertain themselves quite a bit, as long as they're given safe toys.

03:07 And they're able to see a caregiver when they know that somebody is with them.

03:12 Eventually, a lot of nine month olds do learn to crawl at that age.

03:16 And then they start pulling to stand.

03:19 They can eventually by one year usually get to standing position without help.

03:24 And they start cruising holding onto furniture.

03:27 That's what we call it when they are walking but they are walking, always holding on to something.

03:32 As long a lot of time it's a sofa or a coffee table, something that's low to their level.

03:38 So we really have to make sure that anything, any furniture that could topple over, is attached to a wall and it's safe for them to be around.

03:47 They also may stand alone at one year as they're learning to walk.

03:51 And then eventually they take a few steps independently.

03:54 So Jenna's brother, Greg, actually took his very first independent steps on his first birthday.

03:59 And it was super exciting because he was the first grandchild and all the grandparents were there to see it.

04:05 Jenna, not so much.

04:06 All right, that wraps up motor milestones.

04:10 Now, let's move on to cognitive milestones.

04:16 So, the infant is in the sensorimotor stage of Cognitive Development according to Piaget.

04:24 This means it's a very rapid period of cognitive growth.

04:28 Think of it like it's a stage where they're using their senses, and their motor functions are actions of their body to really explore their world and to learn.

04:38 It begins with reflex movements at birth, and evolves into purposeful movements.

04:43 By the time they're about two years old or so.

04:46 The main development of the sensorimotor stage of cognitive development is called "object permanence." So remember that.

04:54 Remember the names of each major stage, and the main development or goal of each stage.

04:59 Object permanence means that the child understands or they learn to understand that just because an object or toy goes away, it still exists somewhere.

05:08 It's just not in their sight.

05:11 At two months old, they're starting to pay attention to faces.

05:15 They track objects and faces with their eyes so they can watch you move about the room, they may start recognizing people and displaying boredom.

05:24 They usually learn how to display boredom, before they start displaying more fun emotions such as happiness.

05:31 Boredom might be displayed just by a little bit of fuzziness, or kind of a weak cry.

05:34 Usually, it's not that dramatic of a cry.

05:37 Around four months, they communicate happiness and sadness.

05:40 And that gets to be a lot more fun.

05:42 They've dealt most of them definitely can smile that point, intentionally.

05:46 And they can respond to affection by being soothed, or quieting down or smiling.

05:52 They have hand/eye coordination that's beginning.

05:55 And they can track objects or watch them from side to side, pretty easily.

05:59 They also definitely start recognizing people and places pretty regularly.

06:04 At six months old, the child can look around at objects, find their favorite toys, bring things to their mouth, they're very curious, and they can pass objects from hand to hand.

06:15 So this is where it really starts getting hazardous to have anything like a penny on the floor, any kind of any object that could choke an infant.

06:23 So make sure you understand the size of objects that are safe for infants to have access to, if you're a parent, or if you're around children.

06:33 At nine months, they start looking for things that they see you hide.

06:36 They love playing peekaboo, which can be a lot of fun.

06:39 They're putting more things in their mouth.

06:42 And they're more coordinated with how they move objects from one hand to another.

06:46 Eventually, they can start, even starting to feed themselves.

06:50 Small safe bits of food.

06:52 One that is very common is Cheerios, because it's a good size.

06:56 They can actually grab is big enough to grasp.

06:58 It's a cereal, they can bring to their they can actually eat independently, and it's not a huge choking hazard.

07:04 Usually dissolves pretty easily. Even if they don't have teeth.

07:08 All right, so by one year old, they're usually exploring things in many different ways with their hands, with their feet, with their mouth, with their eyes, and they love copying gestures of others.

07:18 And they love the reaction they get when they copy gestures of others, such as if they wave at you.

07:23 They can also start building towers, filling and emptying containers, and finding things pretty easily.

07:29 So they may for example, Jenna, for example.

07:32 she used to love dumping out every toy bin in the house, but she would not ever, not for a long time, clean back up, after she was done playing.

07:43 So, this is something that they develop when they're close to a year old.

07:49 All right. Let's move on to the next stage, toddler.