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Did You Know at 5 Months I Can

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Publication Number: IS1640
View as PDF: IS1640.pdf

Language Development

  • Babble the b, m, and p sounds
  • Laugh
  • Make gurgling sounds

Talk, sing, and read to me so my language will continue to develop. Make sure I can see your mouth when you are speaking to me, so I can see how your mouth moves when making different sounds. Speak clearly so that I can practice the sounds of your words. I also love to play “peek-aboo” and “pat-a-cake.”

Physical Development

  • Begin to reach, grasp, retrieve, and put things in my mouth
  • Bring my feet to my mouth and suck my toes
  • Hold my bottle by myself
  • Lean over to look for something that has fallen
  • Start to scoot or crawl
  • Roll over from my back to my stomach

To support my physical development, make sure to give me safe toys and plenty of room to move and explore. Make sure all my toys are clean and safe with no broken parts. Make sure I am eating the right foods. I should still be breastfed or using formula. Make sure to keep me up-to-date on my shots and check-ups.

Social/Emotional Development

  • Have a lot of emotional energy and laugh a lot
  • Become afraid of strangers or new people

To help me adjust to meeting new people, introduce them to me slowly. Give me time to get to know them and stay close by. To help me become comfortable with my environment, try to keep me on a schedule, but be flexible as needed. Set daily routines for me, like reading a story after bathtime.

Since I am learning to talk, I love to be sung to. Sing these songs to me:

“Baa, Baa Black Sheep”
Baa, baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
One for my master,
One for my dame,
And one for the little girl who lives
Down the lane.
Baa, baa black sheep
Have you any wool?
Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.
“Where, Oh, Where?”
Where, oh, where, oh, where is (child’s name)?
Where, oh, where, oh, where is (child’s name)?
Where, oh, where, oh, where is (child’s name)?
BOO! I see you!

Play these games with me!

“Reaching”

For floor time, put me on my stomach on a soft surface on the floor. Place a toy in front of me several inches away and just out of my grasp. Encourage me to move toward the toy to reach it. After several tries and stretches, if I am not quite able reach the toy, place it in my reach and let me play with it, and then try the process over again.

You can play “Five Little Monkeys” fingerplay with me:

Five little monkeys (hold up five fingers and move them as if jumping) jumping on the bed
One fell off and bumped his head (bop one finger and then rub its head)
Mommy called the doctor (hand up by ear like a phone) and the doctor said,
“No more monkeys jumping on the bed!” (shake index finger as if disciplining)
Four little monkeys…
Three little monkeys…
Two little monkeys…
One little monkey…

“Where is Thumbkin?
” Where is Thumbkin? (hide both hands behind back)
Where is Thumbkin?
Here I am! (bring right thumb out)
Here I am! (bring left thumb out)
How are you today, sir? (wiggle right thumb)
Very well, I thank you. (wiggle left thumb)
Run away. (put right thumb back behind back)
Run away. (put left thumb back behind back)
Where is Pointer?...(index finger)
Where is Middle?...(middle finger)
Where is Ring finger?...(ring finger)
Where is Pinky?...(pinky finger)

Here are some books that I may enjoy:

Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton
That’s Not My Puppy…Its Coat Is Too Hairy by Fiona Watt
From Head to Toe by Eric Carle
Rainbow Zoo by Martina Hogan
It’s Time to Sleep by Roger Priddy

Each day, I should have supervised tummy time. Tummy time is important to help improve my motor skills and strengthen my muscles that are necessary to help me learn to crawl and walk. It also helps prevent flat spots from developing on the back of my head. Start out tummy time for about 5 minutes two or three times a day. During tummy time, you can place me on a soft blanket on the floor with one of my favorite toys.

There are toys you can make for me using things from around the house, like a homemade drum.

Materials

empty can (formula can or coffee can) wooden spoon

Instructions

  1. Clean the empty formula or coffee can, and secure the lid and tape any rough edges.
  2. Allow me to bang on the “drum” with a wooden spoon. You can model how to use the drum and talk to me about the different sounds I make.

Sleep helps me grow and develop. I should get 12–15 hours of sleep a day. To reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), place me on my back in an empty crib. An empty crib is important to prevent me from suffocating, so avoid having bumper pads or stuffed animals in my crib.

Remember that each child develops at his or her own rate, and this handout is meant only as a guide of what to expect of your child’s development at this age.

For more information about parenting and developmental milestones, contact your county Extension office or visit extension.msstate.edu.

References

American Academy of Pediatrics. (2010). Policy statement—prevention of choking among children. Retrieved from http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/ content/pediatrics/early/2010/02/22/peds.2009-2862. full.pdf

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (n.d.). Birth to one year: What should my child be able to do? Retrieved from http://www.asha.org/public/ speech/development/01/

Mississippi Department of Health First Steps Program. (n.d.). 1-12 months developmental checklist. National Sleep Foundation. (2015). How much sleep do we really need? Retrieved from https://sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-much-sleep-dowe-really-need

Safe to Sleep. (2015). Babies need tummy time! Retrieved from https://www.nichd.nih.gov/sts/about/ Pages/tummytime.aspx

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Authors

Portrait of Dr. Louise E. Davis
Extension Professor
Child and Family Development, Child and Family Well-Being, Child Care-Giver Training, Parenting Educ

Your Extension Experts

Portrait of Dr. Louise E. Davis
Extension Professor
Portrait of Ms. Jamila B. Taylor
Director, Head Start & EHS Prg