Northwest Spokane Pediatrics

Child Development

Weeks


What should I expect from my 9-month-old?

Behaviors

  • Bang objects together. More strength in doing so.
  • Drinks from a cup with help
  • Learns by using senses like smell, taste, touch, sight, hearing
  • Focuses eyes on small objects and reaches for them
  • Explores objects by touching, shaking, banging, and mouthing
  • Babbles expressively as if talking
  • Enjoys dropping objects over edge of chair or crib
  • Responds differently to strangers and family members
  • Raises arms as a sign to be held

Neurodevelopmental

  • May make sounds like “ma-ma” and “ba-ba.” Not usually though of as formal speaking. (But soon it is!) The key is they are combining consonants with vowel sounds.
  • Understands “no.” Speak firmly but not angrily. Remove baby from offending situation or remove the situation from the baby. Discipline can involve “time outs.” We recommend 1 minute per year old.
  • Develops a rhythm for feeding, eliminating, sleeping, and being awake.
  • Cries in different ways to say he is hurt, wet, hungry, or lonely
  • Looks for ball rolled out of sight
  • Searches for toys hidden under a blanket, basket, or container
  • responds to own name
  • shows fear of falling off high places such as table or stairs
  • spends a great deal of time watching and observing

Physical

  • Pull them selves to standing.
  • First teeth begin to appear. (Many children already have their first teeth.)
  • True eye color is established.
  • Rolls from back to stomach and stomach to back.
  • Sits alone without support and holds head erect.
  • Raises up on arms and knees into crawling position; rocks back and forth, But may not move forward.
  • Uses finger and thumb to pick up an object.

Sleep

A regular bedtime hour and routine are important. Babies enjoy looking at picture books. You may want to read one regularly with your child. Never put your baby in bed with a bottle. Put your baby to bed awake, but drowsy.

Nutrition

Your baby should continue having breast milk or infant formula until he is 1 year old. Most babies now take 6 to 8 ounces of formula 4 times a day. Encourage your child to drink from a cup now. This is a good time to begin weaning from the bottle if you plan on weaning slowly. Never allow your baby to keep the bottle between meal times. Find something else that helps comfort your baby.

Safety Tips

Learn CPR
Car Seat Safety

If your child reaches 20 pounds and is still riding in an infant seat, it is time for a new car seat. Some car seats can convert from a backward-facing infant seat to a forward-facing toddler seat. Carefully follow the manufacturer's instructions when installing new or converting old car seats for your child. For more information you can call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 1-800-424-9393 or check the website (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov).

Avoid Choking and Suffocation
  • Avoid foods on which a child might choke (such as candy, hot dogs, raw carrots popcorn, peanuts).
  • Cut food into small pieces.
  • Toy chests should not have lids as the child can get trapped in a closed lid toy chest.
Prevent Drowning
  • Never leave an infant or toddler in a bathtub alone—NEVER.
  • Continuously supervise your baby around any water, including toilets and buckets. Infants can drown in a bucket that has water in it. Empty all water and store buckets turned over.

RED FLAGS

  • Only making vowel sounds without consonants. (aaa versus baa)
  • Not putting sounds together like “ba-da”
  • Infant does not sit alone with arms free
  • Infant does not roll supine to prone
  • Infant does not transfer toys from hand to hand

(Exerpted from Spokane Regional Health District - Infant Toddler Network)