Babies learn so much in their first year, especially after their, hopefully, sleepy first few weeks. Below is an indication as to what to expect in the first 12 months. NB: THIS IS ONLY AN INDICATION - EVERY BABY IS UNIQUE AND WILL ACCOMPLISH MILESTONES AT DIFFERENT AGES, SOME QUICKER, SOME SLOWER
Birth - 1 Year Old Development Milestones
Months 1 - 3
Respond to sound and notice bright lights
be able to focus and stare at faces
make gurgling sounds
follow close objects
know familiar voices
smile, laugh and hold head steady
reach for toys and roll over
recognize familiar faces
kick legs and discover both hands
Months 4 - 6
Laugh and smile
stand steady when being held
reach out for and hold toys
roll over
recognize familiar voices
respond to their name
imitate sounds and gestures
sit without support
make more babbling and chatter sounds
hold simple food and feed themselves
Months 7 - 9
feed themselves finger food
try to reach toys by wriggling about
play simple games, like peek-a-boo
imitate sounds
pass toys from hand to hand and bang them together
start crawling
wave bye bye
start saying mama and dada
try to feed themselves with a spoon
don't like being separated from mum and dad, wary of strangers
hold onto something and stand and maybe walk
understands 'no'
drink from a cup
Months 10 - 12
walk holding onto furniture
use pincer grasp to pick up objects
knows who Mama and Dada are
responds to name
play simple games like patty cake and ball tossing
help tidy up
clap hands and wave goodbye
talk baby talk incessently
say a few extra words
crawl well and maybe walk a few steps
can indicate needs and understand basic instructions