Your baby is now almost a year and I bet you can not believe how different they are from birth!
Their physical development skills at 9-12 months are helping them to interact and explore the world around them.
Let’s take a look at what gross motor and fine motor milestones look like in babies 9-12 months.
We will also cover some simple tips on how to encourage your baby’s motor development as well.
If you have are concerned about your child’s development then talk to a doctor or early intervention to get an evaluation completed.
Babies learn the most through play and daily routines. Engage with your child in indoor and outdoor play activities to help them learn new skills.
Physical development can also be worked on through daily routines. For example, having your child put items in the grocery cart while you are shopping will help encourage fine motor development.
Depending on where your child is developmentally you will want to encourage upcoming skills.
For example, if you child is just learning to crawl then you can place toys just out of reach to motivate them to crawl towards them.
Physical Development 9-12 Months
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What Do Gross and Fine Motor Skills Look Like From 9-12 Months?
Standing with Help
Is your baby starting to love being in a standing position?
They may use your hands or furniture for help to support them in this new position.
You may even see them start to stand by themselves for a few seconds or a minute at a time.
Watch your child’s cues and give them the support they need when they are starting to stand.
Gradually give them less support as they get stronger and more confident in standing.
Watch your baby’s cues!
Walking with Support
Your little one may now have the strength and coordination to start taking some steps with support!
They may use your hands or furniture to help them practice so that they can get ready on their own.
Walking wings (like these) can also be a great tool to use to help support walking…without wrecking your own back!
Fine Motor Skills 9-12 Months
Stacking Blocks
Making a tower with blocks requires lots of attention and hand eye-coordination.
You can start with big soft blocks (like these) to help teach the concept.
Model the skill for your baby first and then help them do it by using gentle hand-over-hand assistance.
Start with stacking two at time and move up to more as they start to master the skill.
Make sure to have fun knocking them over with your little one as well!
Putting Objects in and Out
One of my son’s favorite things to play with when he was this age was Tupperware containers.
Babies love to put things in and take them out.
You can use cleaned out yogurt or cottage cheese containers for your little one to practice this skill.
Show them how to put different toys or objects in the containers and take them out again (this toys is great for that!) Opening and closing the lids is also a great fine motor activity.
How Can I Encourage Physical Development from 9-12 Months In My Baby?
Play with Your Baby
Just playing with your baby is a great way to encourage motor skills naturally.
Get down on the floor with them and help them explore their toys.
Model how to stack blocks and knock them down.
If they need help use gentle hand-over-hand guidance.
As they become more independent just sit back and enjoy!
Explore Different Positions
Babies need to be in lots of different positions in order to explore their environment.
Sitting is a great position to practice fine motor skills such as stacking.
Crawling on the floor or just being in the crawling position allows them to strengthen all the muscles they need for walking.
If you don’t believe me…get down on the floor and crawl…works MANY different muscles right?
Helping your child in a supported standing position helps with their balance.
Whether they are holding on to you or the couch, make sure to give them the support they need.
Give Your Baby Positive Praise
Some of these new movements may bring out different emotions in your child.
Some may be excited to move their body in a new way…others may be a bit frightened by it.
Let them know that you are there to help them and keep them safe.
Give them positive praise, cheer, and clap when they do something new. Take some time to celebrate it.
If they fall or get a bump make sure to give them a hug and kiss to let them know that they will be ok.
Explore New Environments
Want to motivate your little one to move around more?
Bring them to a different room in your house (that is baby proofed) or outside to spark some curiosity.
You can also place toys slightly out of reach so that they need to figure out a way to go and get them.
This is a great way to work on cognitive development as well!
What Toys Work Well to Develop Gross and Fine Motor Skills?
Here are a few of my favorite toys to help work on gross and fine motor skills from 9-12 months:
Push and Play Toys: These toys are perfect for your little one to explore in lots of different positions.
Your baby can explore the toys on the front while sitting or kneeling.
They can also stand up with it or use it to help them get the hang of walking.
Soft blocks are wonderful for working on fine motor skills.
Your little one can practice stacking them up and knocking them down.
Imitation is also an important skills that you can work on with blocks.
Show them how to build a bridge and see if they can build one too. This is the set we have.
Stacking Cups are a great option for building fine motor skills.
Show your baby how to place the cups inside one another for a “baby puzzle” which also encourages cognitive development as well.
Then flip them over and show them how to stack them.
Start with only 2 or 3 so that your baby doesn’t get overwhelmed.
Stacking cups are also great toys for the bathtub. You can check out my list of infant bath toys for more bath time fun!
Learn all about 12-36 months motor development here!
Grab your FREE Milestone Guide HERE.
Best Baby Toys for Fine Motor Development
Best Developmental Toys for Babies
Kayla O’Neill has a master’s degree in education as well as a bachelor’s degree in special education with an emphasis in early childhood education. She has been working as a developmental therapist with babies and toddlers in early intervention since 2012. She is also a mom with two young children.