All children are very individual. All develop in their own way. One begins to sit at 5 months, and at 8 - is already trying to stand and even take the first steps around the perimeter of the crib, while the other at this age is just mastering the sitting position. There are children who seem to be not going to sit at all - they tend to crawl right away, because in this position they are most comfortable and safe.
About skills
If the child is ahead of the calendar development, this causes pride and delight in the parents. And if he is even slightly behind his peers, mothers begin to sound the alarm and blame themselves for everything. Many are trying to help their little one learn new skills, and rightly so. With questions about how to teach a baby to crawl and whether it is worth doing it at all, they often turn to doctors.
Evgeny Komarovsky urges parents to abandon value judgments about their own child. The norms and terms of development for each baby are different, they can differ significantly from the average. Parents are especially worried about the physical development of toddlers - one child crawls at 5 months, the other does not sit and crawl at 7 months.
The best thing that parents can do for their child is to stop paying attention to neighbors and girlfriends who stubbornly instill uncertainty in the correct development of your child... If you create all the conditions for the normal development and growth of the child, as well as regularly visit the pediatrician, and he does not have any questions or concerns about the physical development of your offspring, then there is absolutely nothing to worry about.
About crawling
There are children who don't crawl. Absolutely. From a sitting position, they immediately begin to get up and take their first steps. The crawling stage, according to Evgeny Komarovsky, is very useful and necessary for the health of a person's back. That is why crawling should be encouraged and supported in every possible way. If the child begins to crawl on his own, it will be easier for parents. If he flatly refuses to move on his bellies or on all fours, this is an occasion for parents to seriously think about whether they did everything right.
Often moms and dads, in an effort to see their little one erect as soon as possible, ignore crawling in principle. They put the child on his legs and lead him by the handle, buy him various devices that help the child to be in an upright position (walkers, jumpers, etc.), but they could just crawl with him. There would be much more benefit from this.
Attempts to verticalize a fat, chubby child or an overweight baby are especially dangerous. In such crumbs, crawling should be encouraged with double enthusiasm. And all the walkers and jumpers from him (and his parents) should be hidden as far as possible.
How to teach?
The ability to crawl is inherent in nature, parents should only slightly help the baby to "remember" it. Usually, the process of moving in space using crawling begins at the age of 5-6 to 8-9 months. If a child does not sit and crawl older, it is worth consulting with a doctor to find out what the reason is - in the muscle weakness of the back and limbs or in the individual characteristics of the baby. Encouraging crawling is a necessary set of measures.
Preparatory stage
The preparatory stage is to stimulate, create motivation. If the child is not interested in crawling, he will not crawl. This means that you need to create a need for him to crawl. Put in front of him a beautiful bright toy or a very interesting object that the baby cannot reach without trying to move his body forward a little from a prone position. If the child is already sitting, this will make the task easier, if not yet - you should not force him to sit down, it is better to stimulate crawling.
The main stage of training includes a wellness massage to strengthen the muscles of the back, neck and abdomen, as well as the exercises themselves. Ideas about the best position to crawl in are just parental beliefs. Kids themselves choose a comfortable position for themselves. Even if from the side it seems that the child is crawling incorrectly, pushing off with only one leg (or crawling on his stomach, spreading his arms and legs and swinging them), there is no reason to interfere and try to change something.
Slow crawl
Quite often, children who have been helped to get down on all fours "freeze" in this position for a long time. They can swing, as if checking if they are in balance, but they are in no hurry to move forward. Komarovsky recommends not to rush such "slow" toddlers anywhere. They go through an important stage, studying the vestibular capabilities of their own body.
Wise parents will help them with this - they will turn on rhythmic music or begin to recite poetry and counting rhymes to the beat of the movement.
The specialist recommends that parents not search the Internet for a video on how to teach a child to crawl at 5 months using the Komarovsky system (this is a very popular request). There is no such video, since the age at which the child begins to crawl is different. Parents need active help to the little one when he himself is ready for a new way of moving, and this often happens much later than 5 months.
However, Evgeny Komarovsky still suggests a few tricks that will help teach the baby to crawl.
- Personal example. From the outside it looks funny and sometimes even ridiculous, but the best way to teach a child something than a personal example has not yet been invented. If the child is lying on his stomach, crawl next to him on his bellies. If he is already on all fours, stand next to him and show him how to move. Children who are afraid to move forward can be helped by supporting them with a palm under their tummy. If the whole family, including brothers and sisters, got on all fours for a couple of days, it would be perfect.
- The mission must be achievable. If you put the toy too far from the child, trying to interest him in crawling, the baby will quickly realize that it is difficult, difficult or impossible to get to it at all. Then he will stop trying and resign himself to the inaccessibility of the desired object. Alternatively, he can start screaming heart-rendingly, demanding this toy. But if you put it next to it, and every day move it a little further, then the process of crawling will occur naturally, with the mutual interest of the parties.
- Movement training. It is worth adding new exercises to daily gymnastics or massage procedures that will simulate crawling and train muscle memory. You can put the child on the back and alternately bend and unbend the legs at the knees. This is not only a useful procedure, but also a fun game. You can put a soft roller under the child's tummy, take it by the legs and "roll" it a little with its stomach on the roller, while the baby should rest against the hard surface of the floor with its handles.
Another effective exercise resembles the movements of a frog - put the baby on a stomach on a hard surface, bend both legs alternately at the knees and slightly spread them to the sides (this will be similar to the manner of swimming frogs)... After a while, in this position, you can substitute the palm so that the crumbs' feet rest against it, then the baby will learn to push off and make the first inertial forward movement.
Walking on your hands will help strengthen your arms and shoulder girdle. If the baby rests well on his hands while lying on his stomach, gently grab his legs and lift them slightly, gently push the child forward so that he begins to “step over” with his hands. Do not do this too harshly, or the baby may bump his head hard.
It is enough to repeat these exercises 2-3 times a day for 15-20 minutes. If the parents carefully observe the time and regularity of classes, then the child will master crawling in 4-6 weeks.
Where to crawl?
A cramped playpen or limited space in a crib does nothing to develop crawling skills. To make the process go faster, it is best to arrange for the baby to exercise on the floor. You should not do this on a cold floor, it is best to cover it with a warm, but not very thick blanket, and lay diapers on top. You shouldn't practice crawling on the couch or bed, otherwise you can't avoid falling.
Safety
Dr. Komarovsky advises mothers to look at the world through the eyes of a child in order to better understand what he wants and what he is afraid of... To do this, he recommends that mothers lie on the floor, first on their backs, then on their stomachs, and take a good look around. It will immediately become obvious where and what is sticking out and lying badly, what attracts the child's attention. Wires, dangerous corners, alluring drawers of dressers - all this when looking from below will become obvious, and it will be easier for mom and dad to understand how to protect the child.
Some parents believe that buying a playpen for the baby is enough to ensure safety. Evgeny Komarovsky emphasizes that the playpen is a great way to create a safe space for the baby, but only for the time when the mother needs to be absent (to the kitchen, to the bathroom, to the toilet).
If the mother is free and is in the same room with the child, there is no need for the arena. While the mother is reading or working on the computer, it will be much more useful for the child to crawl on the floor.
If you have already decided to buy a playpen, then you can choose a multifunctional design that quickly transforms into a changing table, into a crib, into an electronic rocking chair with music and a night light. Many playpens have wheels on legs, with their help you can easily move the playpen with your child around the apartment. So the baby will be able to cook dinner in the kitchen with her mother or vacuum in the living room.
When do you need a doctor's consultation?
If the parents regularly do exercises, massage for a couple of months, but there are no noticeable results (besides, the child is already 9-10 months old, and he does not sit or crawl), this is a reason to visit doctors - an orthopedist and a neurologist. If no health problems are found, parents will have to go to certain pedagogical "tricks".
Little tricks
- All children are greedy. If you invite a friend to visit with a child who already crawls or even walks beautifully, and leave the children to play in the same space, the guest who is more mobile will quickly take possession of all the toys of your little lazy person. Usually, the sense of ownership takes over, and the child begins to make attempts to move to take back his property. Maybe this will not happen on the first visit of friends (and not on the second), but it will definitely happen.
- All children love to play. If you make small reins out of a sheet, which are put under the child's armpits for support from above, and the surface is equipped according to the Glen method (an inclined surface on the main one), then such leisure will be perceived by the child as a game, and crawling will become the natural ending of this game.
- Convenience. To crawl with pleasure, the child should not feel uncomfortable. Check how loose the clothes are on him, whether the seams, fly, zippers and button fasteners interfere with him. In summer, it is better to carry out these exercises in one diaper. In winter, the child should be dressed lighter than at rest, because active movement will increase sweating.
Tips
You should start actively helping your child to master crawling only if the baby himself is "lazy" or is slightly behind in development. It is better not to interfere with the crumbs who have independently chosen a crawling manner and have already begun to carry out an individual development program, even if the child moves only with one leg or even does it backwards.
Pediatric practice shows that a child who has learned to crawl quickly will begin to walk later. Therefore, the transition from crawling to standing should also be timely, correct and smooth.
For more details, see below in a small video by Dr. Komarovsky.
