It might seem that for the first few months, your baby
doesn’t do much except sleep, drink and soil its diapers. Then suddenly, from Month
4 onwards, it will be milestone after milestone for them to touch. Within the
extent of a few months, your genius baby will be rolling over, sitting up,
standing, crawling, and most importantly, walking.
Encouraging Babies
to Walk
Most babies learn to walk on their own by the time they
reach their 10th month in the real world. Long before that, they
began their preparation to take the first few independent steps by crawling,
standing and then pulling themselves up by holding on to something in the room.
This transition from sitting up to taking independent steps may take a short
time or a long time, depending on the baby.
Each child in unique and they start walking anytime
between their 9th to 18th month. While parents can’t
actually rush walking, there are definitely some ways to encourage your child
to walk by the time they approach their first birthday.
- Entice them with
Their Favorite Toys
This is the oldest trick in the book! Take one of their
favorite toys in your hand, just out of their reach and watch them go to great
lengths to get it. This is also a great way to get your baby to stand up or
learn to reach, by holding something above them slightly out of contact. If
this is a toy that your baby absolutely loves, they are definitely going to try
and walk a few steps to grab it.
If possible, line up several strong and sturdy
furniture along one wall of your room so that your baby can walk by holding on
to them. This procedure is known as cruising; lining up furniture along a wall
helps your baby to walk around the room without any human assistance. However,
it is important that every piece of furniture your baby is going to use to
support themselves is well-built and has been baby-proofed.
The first time your baby is going to walk isn’t going
to be by themselves, but when holding your hand. Use both hands to get your
baby to stand up and take little steps, while you support them. This is one of
the first steps of walking for a baby; the more practice they’re going to have
to walk with your support, the stronger their legs are going to become, and the
quicker they can learn to take little steps of their own.
Wait on the other end of the room and call to your
child to come to you. The first few times, they will be crawling to you; but as
their legs grow stronger and they feel the inherent need to walk, they will
definitely try to take small steps in reaching to you. You or your partner on
either corners of the room could be the motivation they need to start walking
on their own when you both keep calling to your baby.
Instead of making your baby wear socks or indoor shoes
while they are trying to walk, let them be barefooted. It is much better if
their feet come in contact with the floor when they are learning to walk for
the first time, given that the floor is neither cold nor slippery. Socks and
shoes are great for other occasions, but when your baby is learning to walk, it
is the best if you keep them barefooted for as long as possible.
- Don’t Force your
Baby too Much
We all get impatient watching our baby learning to walk
but parents should remember one thing: you can’t force your baby to learn to
walk before they are ready. Every child develops in their own time; a sudden
fall while trying to walk can frighten your baby and discourage them from
walking for a few days. If such a thing happens, don’t force them to start
walking until they are ready to try again.
If you want to assist your child to walk, invest in a
push toy from a good brand. These are versatile toys that your baby will have
fun playing with, as well as get support from when they first learn to walk. It
is always better to buy a good push toy that comes recommended by other parents
and caregivers, lest you want your baby to have an accident with them. Push
toys are very safe for your baby when they first learn to walk, but there
should always be adult supervision when they are using it.
Even very young children who don’t understand words
know when they are being praised for their actions. Whenever they are trying to
walk, stay close to your baby and keep on encouraging them; praise their
actions even when they falter and fail. Your words of encouragement will reach
them and help them to try more, until they are confident enough to walk
unassisted.
We can never push a baby to start walking before they
are ready, but as parents and caregivers, we can certainly encourage them to
reach their full potential when its time. There are a number of things that we
can do to make sure our babies are learning to walk in the correct way, at the
correct time, and help them develop the way they are meant to.
Here is a guest
post by Sophia Nguyen
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