A few weeks ago, we asked our readers to share information
about when their babies learned to stand (click
here to go to the original post). Specifically, we asked:
- How old was your baby when he or she first tried to pull up to stand?
- What did you baby use to pull up on (for example, furniture, toys, etc)
- How long did it take for him or her to stand alone, without holding onto something?
Today, for part 2 of this Babies’ Firsts topic, we want to
share what the research shows about how and
As we've mentioned many times, babies develop and master new
skills at different ages. The children of our staff at the Human Lactation
Center illustrate this fact perfectly! My oldest daughter, Olivia, didn't stand
until about 11 months, but my younger daughter, Charlotte, first stood at 6 ½
months. Jen G’s daughter Lily stood at around 9 months and our newest edition, Karolina’s
son David first pulled to stand at 7 months.
Our experience with our children perfectly represents what
has been shown in the developmental research! Studies show that 50 percent of
babies can pull themselves up to standing with support at 8 months and 90
percent of babies can by 10 months old.
When learning to stand, your baby will need to use his arms
to hold himself up on something and may be standing wide legged on his tip toes
until he gets into the swing of things. During this time your baby will begin
to use less arm support and may begin to shift his weight from side to side. He
will need to get used to moving and controlling his body in this new position. Soon he will be able to rotate his body around
and use one arm for grabbing objects. He will also be able to reach down from a
standing position to grab items off the floor.
By 13 months 90 percent of babies will be able to stand
without support but still need to practice staying balanced. They will begin
cruising around, that is holding on to furniture and moving sideways. Very soon
after cruising, babies will begin taking unassisted steps. They may still fall often, but don’t worry,
their brains are hardwired to keep practicing until they get it right!
When your baby starts showing interest in pulling up to
stand, it is very important to make sure he practices in a safe environment.
Pulling up on things that move easily could be dangerous, so we encourage you
to get down on his level and look for unexpected dangers. For example, when
Charlotte started to pull up, she crawled over to her sister’s dollhouse and,
before I could get over to her, she had tried to pull up on it. The plastic
dollhouse was not sturdy enough to hold her weight and it scooted across the
floor while she fell forward. Luckily, it scooted quickly so she did not hit
her face on the pointed roof, but she could have easily gotten hurt. Small
furniture, laundry baskets, and anything with wheels should be kept out of
reach until your baby gets better at standing on his own. At 14.5 months old, 90 percent of babies can
independently squat from standing and shortly after they will be able to stand
up directly from the floor without having to pull themselves up on something.
Pulling up to stand is a big milestone! If your baby is just
learning to stand, Congratulations! Soon he’ll be running around you’ll be
trying to catch up!
