What should your baby be able to do

  • Your baby will now be sitting alone for 15-20 minutes, they will be able to lean forward to pick up a toy without losing balance 
  • They will be very active on the floor by rolling or pivoting round on their tummy and will be starting to crawl
  • They will be grabbing and holding objects, and swap them from hand to hand
  • They will be beginning to feed themselves finger food and beginning to help hold their bottle or beaker

How you can help

You can find useful tips, hints and advice on ways to help support your child’s sitting skills on Babycentre's website.

It is also really important to limit the use of any baby walkers and door bouncers to no more than 15 minutes at a time as these can delay your baby’s development.  Equipment that supports a baby in a standing position does not help your baby learn to walk.  It can give an unnatural experience of standing and has been shown to be unsafe. Visit APCP's leaflet for more information. 

When to seek support

  • Not rolling      
  • Not sitting independently/ without support  
  • Not moving (e.g. creeping, crawling)   
  • Not taking weight on legs when held in standing
  • Not holding objects
  • Not ‘giving’ objects on request
  • Not passing toy from one hand to another