Many babies go from crib to crawling in their first year or so.
One moment they’re lying on a playmat and the next they're already rolling, crawling and cruising around the living room.
So what are motor skills and how do our little ones pick them up? We spoke to health visitor Kerry Bennett and outdoor learning specialist Rachael Muir to find out more…
What are motor skills?
Motor skills can be…
Larger, whole body movements (legs, arms back, head and neck)
Being able to look around, using eye muscles and respond to sights and sounds
Being able to grab, grasp and pick things up
Any form of whole body movement, from rolling to standing
There are two main categories, health visitor Kerry Bennett explains.
“Fine motor skills and gross motor skills develop at different stages as your child grows,” says Kerry.
She adds that, “gross motor skills are the larger movements like the whole body, the arms and legs and those bigger responses whereas fine motor skills are the smaller and more detailed movements.”
They’re important because they help little ones build up a wide range of essential skills.
“Fine and gross motor skills are all linked to the brain and being able to respond to the world around us and develop the skills we need,” says Kerry.
At what age do motor skills develop?
Just like speech, all babies learn motor skills at different rates. Kerry says that they start from birth, with babies reacting to sights and sounds around them.
“As a child reaches three months old, they might move their head towards sounds, or they might bring both legs up together.”
Motor skills become more about mobility, exploration and precision as babies grow.
“The more defined motor skills come in between six to 12 months and one to two years when you’re thinking about them sitting and grabbing, using a palm grasp when they’re trying to sit and put things to their mouth,” says Kerry.
At around 9 to 12 months you might see the development of a 'pincer grip'. This is a fine motor skill where your child starts to pick up things with their thumb and forefinger.
The pincer grip is important for little ones heading into schools, playgroups and nurseries as it plays a key role in being able to pick up pens and pencils.
How do motor skills develop?
Rachael Muir, an outdoor learning specialist who runs a forest school, says motor skills are something that little ones pick up naturally over the first few years.
“Babies learn by doing,” she says.
“They start learning to move their hands, mouth, eyes and feet. They start reaching for things, grasping, poking, shaking things and generally exploring.”
She adds that watching and imitating are key tools for little people as they develop motor skills.
For example, when a group of older children are doing an activity at her forest school, she sees that babies who aren’t walking yet might be “following movements with their hands and watching what the rest of us are doing.”
They also learn from “negotiating new terrains”, says Rachael, which lets them understand the difference between even and uneven surfaces.
This can lead to new skills like rolling, sitting up, crawling, climbing and, eventually standing up and walking.
“Those are like the building blocks of motor skills,” says Rachael.
She adds that as mobility improves, children become more aware of their feet and get better at balancing.
Motor development milestones
And then by nine months, many babies can sit up independently and some can crawl. By around a year, they may be able to pull themselves up to stand or cruise (walk along by holding furniture etc.).
However, focussing exclusively on milestones may not be in babies’ or parents’ best interests, explains health visitor Kerry Bennett.
“We can give individual milestones but you have to look at your child as a whole and what they’re doing,” says Kerry.
“Some kids will have head control sooner than others, some will crawl and some will walk at different rates. There’s a range and that’s why its really important to look at your child as a whole.”
Activities for motor skills development
Babies and toddlers can fine tune their motor skills by doing anything from tummy time, to singing nursery rhymes or messing about with playdough.
Rachael Muir says interactive songs with actions can be a great activity for motor skills.
“Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes is great because it encourages kids to think about their entire body, both upper and lower,” says Rachael.
“Wind the Bobbin Up and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star are great examples because you’re stretching their hands out and encouraging those movements,” she adds.
Rolling and stretching playdough can be good for helping kids with fine motor skills, as it’s a fun, tactile way of helping them develop dexterity.
What is an example of a motor skill?
Fine motor skill examples
Picking up something small with a pincer grip
Writing
Using a knife and fork
Doing up buttons.
Gross motor skills examples
Jumping
Climbing
Swimming
What are fine and gross motor skills? What’s the difference?
Fine motor skills often involve the hands (although eye movement can also count), and require control and precision. Children tend to refine their fine motor skills over the first few years and become more dextrous as they get towards school age.
Gross motor skills are movements that involve larger muscle groups. Up to the age of two, babies learn a wide range of gross motor skills, from rolling, crawling, sitting up, to cruising along furniture and eventually walking unaided.
Kerry Bennett says it’s natural for fine and gross motor skills to develop at different rates for different children.
“If you think of a child from birth to being ready to go to school, it’s a huge acceleration of learning,” she says.
“When you put it into perspective, with all the elements that have to come together across motor skills, it takes some children a little longer in different fields. Some children might be early walkers, others might be early talkers.”
Extra resources
Kerry says parents should always feel free to ask for expert advice if they have any questions about motor skills.
“Parents may need reassurance too,” she says.
“If there are concerns, reach out your health visitor or your GP to ask for some professional .”
You can find out if there's a Family Hub in your area
Here the NHS website explains how you can find services and for parents
