Knowing Your Baby: 6 Month Milestones

As your baby approaches the 6 month milestone, you'll witness a TON of changes in their learning, growth, and development. From motor skills to cognitive abilities, your baby's progress at this stage is both exciting and significant.

Here's what you can expect and how to support your little one during this transformative time ⬇️

Physical Development

At 6 months, your baby becomes increasingly curious about their surroundings, motivating a lot of movement. Key physical milestones include:

• Rolling Back to Belly: Your baby might start rolling from back to belly, showing early signs by grasping their feet, rolling to the sides, and arching their back to view toys above their head. This milestone indicates growing muscle strength and coordination, essential for future movements.
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• Rolling Belly to Back: This can happen before or after the 6 month mark. Your baby might roll belly to back with their arm beside their body, with their arm straight in front, or by placing their knees underneath their chest in a crawling-type position. All these variations are normal and show that your baby is gaining the strength and flexibility needed for crawling and other movements.
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• Sitting Up: Many babies can sit up with minimal support by this age, marking sitting a significant 6 month milestone. At this stage, they often prop sit, meaning they use their hands for support between their legs. They may still need some assistance to stay upright, but they’re building the strength and balance necessary for independent sitting.
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• Pre-Crawling Skills: Your baby will begin to explore various movements to prepare for crawling. These pre-crawling skills include pressing through straight arms during tummy time, rolling to retrieve nearby objects, pivoting in circles, pushing themselves backward, and “swimming” by lifting their chest and arms off the surface. Encouraging these movements through play and exploration will help prepare them for crawling.
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• Grasping and Manipulating Objects: At the 6 month milestone, your baby’s fine motor skills are really improving. As you introduce solids, you’ll see your baby bring items to their mouth with much more purpose. They can grasp objects with a raking motion and explore different textures and shapes with their hands and mouth during exploratory play.
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Cognitive Development

Your baby’s brain is growing rapidly, and you’ll see new cognitive abilities emerging around the 6 month milestone:

• Exploratory Play: At 6 months, your baby is very curious about their world. You may see them explore how toys operate—shaking a rattle, hitting a noisy toy, or pulling items out of a box. These activities indicate higher-level cognitive development and problem-solving skills.
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• Cause and Effect: Your baby will start to understand simple cause-and-effect relationships. For example, they may shake a rattle and expect to hear noise or bang a toy to see it react. This grasp of cause and effect is a key milestone in cognitive development.
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• Increased Curiosity: By the 6 month mark, babies become more curious about their surroundings. They’ll look around intently, reach for interesting objects, and notice when a caregiver leaves their sight. This is a great time to introduce new toys and experiences to further stimulate your baby’s cognitive growth.
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Social and Emotional Development

So many things are taking off at the 6 month milestone, including social and emotional skills. To encourage all milestones from a pediatric OT & SLP, consider the Infant Insights Mastering Milestones course.

• Social Smiles and Laughter: At this age, your baby may show preferences for familiar people and may cry when held by someone unfamiliar. They also begin to show social smiles and giggles. Games like peekaboo are a hit, and your baby will likely laugh and smile in response to interactions.
• Attachment: Your baby is forming strong attachments and may show signs of separation anxiety when you leave the room. This is a normal part of their development, reflecting increased cognitive ability and social skill growth.
• Imitation: At 6 months, you may see early signs of imitation. Your baby might mimic simple actions, such as sticking out their tongue or making similar sounds to yours. This imitation is a precursor to more complex social interactions as they continue to grow.
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Feeding and Sleep

Feeding and sleep routines may also be evolving as you approach the 6 month milestone:

• Introduction of Solids: If you haven’t already started, this is often the time to introduce solid foods. By 6 months, your baby is showing signs of readiness, such as sitting up with support, bringing hands to mouth, and showing interest in your food. Remember, breast milk or formula should remain the primary source of nutrition, and solids should be fun!
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• Sleep Patterns: Your baby’s sleep patterns may start to stabilize around the 6 month milestone, with longer stretches of sleep at night and more predictable nap times during the day. However, sleep patterns vary widely, so be patient as your baby’s sleep routine develops. Every baby is different! Establishing a consistent routine for naps & nighttime may help your baby rest.
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How to Support Your Baby’s 6 Month Milestones

Here are some tips to help support your baby’s 6 month milestones:

• Encourage Tummy Time: Continue to provide plenty of tummy time to strengthen your baby’s muscles and improve motor skills. Even after your baby starts sitting, tummy time remains important for overall development until your baby is crawling.
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• Provide a Variety of Stimuli: Offer different toys, textures, and sounds to stimulate your baby’s senses. Interactive toys, sensory books, rattles, and mirrors are all excellent for engaging your baby at this age.
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• Read and Talk to Your Baby: Engage in conversation with your baby. Use eye contact, fun voices, and sing songs. Reading books together and narrating the world around them helps lay a strong foundation for language development.
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• Create a Safe Environment: As your baby becomes more mobile, ensure their environment is safe for exploration. Baby-proof your home by securing furniture, covering electrical outlets, and removing small objects that could be choking hazards.

6 month milestones are SO exciting! This is such a sweet spot for your baby because they are social, interacting with their toys, moving their bodies, but not quite crawling yet. Each stage of your baby’s development lays foundations for the next, and bonding with your baby while offering opportunities for learning is the best thing you can do. Embrace the changes and enjoy these precious moments. And remember: every baby is unique, so while these milestones provide a general guide, every child develops at their own pace. Celebrate the small victories and continue to love your baby well—something you’re great at!