Physical development is the process that starts in human infancy and continues into late adolescent

concentrating on gross and fine motor skills as well as puberty. Physical development involves
developing control over the body, particularly muscles and physical coordination.Jun 13, 2017

Gross motor development refers to the “big” physical developments, such as controlling his head,
sitting, crawling, and later, walking.

Gross motor differs from fine motor, which includes the ability to hold a spoon and “pinch” an object
between his thumb and index finger. You can begin gross motor activities in your baby’s first months
of life.

Your baby begins to develop head control in her first few months. Encourage your baby to turn her
head by moving around the room, calling her name and shaking toys that make noise, or turning on
musical toys. You may notice your baby favors one side; sit on the opposite side so she must turn her
head to see you. When your baby has “tummy time,” sit in front of her, singing and playing peek-a-
boo, so she has to look up to see what you’re doing. When your baby is on her tummy, place toys
directly in front of her and to her left and right to develop her neck muscles as she lifts and turns her
head, while reaching for the toys.

At 4 months usually When your baby is first learning to sit, support him with a hand or pillow behind
his back. Taller toys that stay stationary on the ground, such as activity tables or activity boxes,
encourage your baby to sit up, as your baby cannot push the buttons to play the music or make the
animals pop out when he is lying down. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends reading to
your baby every day, starting at six months. Help your baby sit up as you hold the book in front of his
eye-level and read. Once your baby can sit on his own, he may enjoy his own little chair with an
activity tray, or a bouncer or rocker designed for his age, height and weight.

Your baby may start crawling as early as six months, or she may not start scooting until well after nine
months. Either way, you can encourage baby to become mobile through play. Place your baby’s
favorite objects out of her reach, so she has to move to grab them. The National Lekotek Center
recommends using a sheet like a sling under your baby, to support her tummy while she crawls.

Simple activities for infants improve their physical development while providing entertainment and
bonding time for parents. Infant physical development includes gross motor skills, grasping,
coordination, balance and movement. The physical skills that infants master serve as the base for
larger physical achievements as they enter the toddler and preschool years.

When it comes to physical development ,

As your infant grows, she needs to work the small muscles in her hands, fingers, wrists and toes to
develop her fine motor skills. You can incorporate some baby toys into her regular playtime that can
help her work those specific muscles. As her fine motor skills continue to progress through
toddlerhood, she will be using these skills to draw, write, use scissors and manipulate objects.

Rattles are a good choice for an infant, as they are durable and easy to grasp with little hands. As your
young one holds this type of toy, shakes it, transfers it from one hand to the other and brings it to her
mouth for a little taste, she is working the small muscles in her hand and fingers. Plus, the noise a
rattle makes when shaken is rewarding and entertaining to your baby.

You can find blocks for your baby in all sorts of colors, sizes and materials. Colorful soft foam, plastic
or wooden blocks can be offered to your infant during playtime so she can practice her fine motor
skills. As she reaches for the blocks, brings one to her mouth, bangs them together and knocks them
around the floor, she is strengthening and refining her motor skills. As she progresses into
toddlerhood, she will be able to stack the blocks and eventually build something with them.

Activity mats and blankets can come with any number of objects to entertain your baby. You can find
little loops, colorful textured materials, plastic rings, noisemakers and stuffed animals attached to
these play items. These vary in size from small, hand-held blankets to large mats that you place on the
floor. Whether your baby is playing during tummy time or lying on her back, she will be amused while
she reaches, grabs and explores while developing her fine motor skills.

Not only is a ring stack drool-proof and handy for chewing on, your baby can practice her fine motor
skills and hand-eye coordination with this nesting toy. She can grab the colorful rings and take them
off of the cone base. She may not be able to successfully place them back onto the cone until she’s a
bit older, but she can try. Holding the rings and transferring them from one hand to the other gets
those little muscles working.

According to Jean Piaget, in the reflexive stage of cognitive development, infants and toddlers are
learning through simple reflex activities. Soft toys such as stuffed animals or rattles provide infants
with the opportunity to hold and feel items and use their grasp reflex.

Infants can learn about how their behaviors affect the environment through interactions with objects
and toys. They can learn cause and effect through moving and manipulating various toys. An activity
that can help promote this is to hang a mobile over the crib, allowing the infant to hit or kick the
hanging objects.

Mini-obstacle courses allows toddlers to learn new ways to do things. They can go over, under,
around or through things, which can help with understanding alternate ways to achieve a goal. This
activity can also promote gross motor skills, coordination and balance.

Your newborn baby’s earliest movements are mostly involuntary and happen out of reflex. He will
suck at anything placed in his mouth, such as a nipple or a finger, for example, and squeeze his eyes
shut when the light becomes bright. When baby startles, he’ll throw out his arms and legs in response,
called the Moro reflex. Your baby’s Palmar Reflex enables him to clench his hand shut when
something touches the inside of his palm. All of these reflexes are foundational to a child’s motor
development.
Around your baby’s 3-month birthday, she’ll begin to demonstrate basic gross motor control, which is
her ability to use her large muscles with purpose. Tummy time will help her to lift and hold her chest
and head up from a downward lying position, and within a few months, she’ll be able to roll over on
her own. Her core muscles will help her to sit upright with your help and then, around 6 months,
unassisted. She’ll also begin to crawl sometime between 6 and 12 months.

Baby’s ability to use fine motor control is when they control the small muscles in her fingers will also
develop over her first 12 months of life. Around 3 months, she’ll be able to grasp a rattle and other
objects with purpose, and by 6 months, she’ll begin to actively reach for them. She’ll also play with
her toes, move a toy from one hand to the other, shake a rattle and try to hold her own bottle during
feedings.

By the time your child reaches his first birthday, he will have developed the ability to not only use and
control his muscles, but also to coordinate his muscle movements to perform basic tasks. Gross motor
coordination allows him to sit up on his own, crawl, pull himself up to a standing position and walk
while holding your hand or, in some cases, by himself. He will use fine motor coordination to feed
himself finger foods, grasp small objects with his fingers and play with smaller toys, such as blocks.
Encourage activities which will help him practice eye-hand coordination, and dance play to promote
gross motor control and coordination.

To stimulate your baby's vision, give him plenty to look at. Show him brightly colored pictures with
interesting patterns. Look through a family photo album and name the people he sees. Show him his
reflection in a mirror. And to help his focus, pass a toy back and forth across his face so that he can
track it with his eyes.

Talk and sing to your baby often. Play her a variety of music styles, from soft, soothing lullabies to
happy, lively tunes. Give her toys with rattles and bells inside, and let her make her own instruments
with your pots, pans and utensils.

Your baby thrives on your touch--especially skin-to-skin contact. But beyond affection, you can use
touch as a learning tool. Touch your baby with a range of items with different textures. When he is old
enough to grasp objects, give him toys with interesting textures and shapes to feel and manipulate on
his own.

From about 1 month to about 7 months old, tummy time is an important activity for your baby.
Tummy time encourages her to develop skills like head control, rolling over and, eventually, crawling.
When she is old enough to be mobile, you can help your baby's development by engaging her in a
gentle game of chase or hide-and-seek.
As soon as he is ready, give your baby a wide variety of objects to manipulate and hold. At about 9
months old, you can let him hold his own spoon as you feed him. You can also cut foods like fruits,
soft vegetables and cheese into small pieces, and encourage him to feed himself. At first, he may grab
the food with his whole hand and bring it to his mouth in a clenched fist, but eventually, he will have
the dexterity to pick up small items with his thumb and forefinger.

You can help your baby gain strength by encouraging her to pull herself into sitting and standing
positions repeatedly with your support and help. Make sure to change activities if she gets frustrated,
and to praise her for her accomplishments. Older babies can build strength and stamina by dancing,
chasing a ball or using mom or dad as a pommel horse.

The best, and most fun way to develop your baby's coordination is through play. Younger babies
enjoy batting at toys. If your baby is older, you can play actual games, like rolling a ball back and forth,
hiding a toy under a blanket and having him find it or blowing bubbles as he tries to catch them. You
can also build a tower of blocks together or stack colorful nesting toys.

Get down on her level and talk to your baby to encourage her to raise her head and chest off the floor.
Add to this activity as your baby grows by placing colorful toys just out of reach to encourage scooting
and crawling.

Activities for 1-year old children include block play, filling and emptying containers, hide-and-seek and
rolling and catching a ball, according to the National Network for Child Care. Play music and dance
with your child to encourage movement.

Your 2-year-old needs opportunities to challenge and build upon his gross and fine motor skills.

Sand and water play helps toddlers develop hand/eye coordination and encourage fine motor
development. Clapping games such as pat-a-cake also promote coordination. Activities that involves
running, jumping or climbing are appropriate for toddlers.

Preschoolers develop fine motor skills through art activities using crayons, glue, scissors and/or paint,
and through dress-up activities.

Riding toys, swings and climbing structures help children gain strength, dexterity and coordination.
Walking a chalk line or playing hopscotch helps preschoolers develop balance and coordination.