Lily is 7 months old right now, and here are some things she is working on with me, her PT, and her OT:
Core Strength and Stability
1. Bounce on a ball! Alternate between bigger bounces, little bounces, and rocking side/ side and front/ back so that your baby engages their core and works on balancing themselves
Reaching Forward
Have your baby sit on something or with someone, and hold out interesting toys for them to reach for. You want for them to lean forward and reach out for the toy and use their core to stabilize.
Tongue Protrusion
I JUST learned how to encourage Lily to pull her tongue back into her mouth by herself! Chelsea did the same thing- tongue hanging out a lot, and I would just push it back in. Watch Lily's PT- she will vibrate her finger on the outside of Lily's mouth. It is MAGIC!!!
Clapping Hands
This is a fine motor skill, and a difficult one for babies that can't coordinate bringing both their hands to midline at the same time. If you try and clap your baby's hands, they will clench into fists. So instead of holding their hands, go behind them and clap holding onto their upper arms
Bending Knees
To work on getting your baby used to not locking their legs (for bouncing later and bending to sit on their bum rather than fall flat), curl their knees up to their chest and rock them.
To work on bending knees, you can also have your baby sit on a low stool/ chair/ cushion, then stand up. Baby squats!
Tall Kneel Position
Being able to balance on knees is a very important skill! Any kind of play with toys on a stair or couch cushion when the baby is kneeling is great! This will help with crawling and then pulling to stand later! Tip: Make sure those toes aren't curled up under!
Sitting Up Independently
We already went over working on sitting when I place her in that position, so now we are working on getting into that sitting position by herself.
