Your Baby at 6 Months:
What Most Babies Do at This Age:
Social / Emotional
•Knows familiar faces and begins to know if someone is a stranger
•Likes to play with others, especially parents
•Responds to other people’s emotions and often seems happy
•Likes to look at self in a mirror
Language / Communication
•Responds to sounds by making sounds
•Strings vowels together when babbling (“ah,” “eh,” “oh”) and likes taking turns with parent while making sounds
•Responds to own name
•Makes sounds to show joy and displeasure
•Begins to say consonant sounds (jabbering with “m,” “b”)
Cognitive (learning, thinking, problem-solving)
•Looks around at things nearby
•Brings things to mouth
•Shows curiosity about things and tries to get things that are out of reach
•Begins to pass things from one hand to the other
Movement / Physical Development
•Rolls over in both directions (front to back, back to front)
•Begins to sit without support
•When standing, supports weight on legs and might bounce
•Rocks back and forth, sometimes crawling backward before moving forward
Act Early by Talking to Your Child’s Doctor if Your Child:
•Doesn’t try to get things that are in reach
•Shows no affection for caregivers
•Doesn’t respond to sounds around him
•Has difficulty getting things to mouth
•Doesn’t make vowel sounds (“ah”, “eh”, “oh”)
•Doesn’t roll over in either direction
•Doesn’t laugh or make squealing sounds
•Seems very stiff, with tight muscles
•Seems very floppy, like a rag doll
"The beginning of something is always important, especially when it is young and needs time to grow." ~Plato