Month Three Development

Personal/Social

-Regard own hand:  stares at own hand for at least several seconds.  75% pass.  Tiger passes.  He prefers looking at his hand when it’s in a fist.

Fine Motor/Adaptive

-Follow past midline:  watches dangling yarn from the side of their head past the halfway point.  90% pass at 11 weeks.  Tiger passes.

-Grasp rattle:  grasps rattle when touched to back of fingers or fingertips.  40% pass.  Tiger passes.

-Hands together:  brings hands together to the midline of body over chest or mouth while lying on back.  78% pass.  Tiger passes.

-Follow 180 degrees:  follows dangling yarn from the side of their head all the way to the other side.  50% pass.  Tiger passes, although I did it with a toy, so maybe that’s cheating.

-Regard raisin:  while holding child in lap sitting at the table place raisin, cheerio, or similarly sized object on the table; pass if child looks at raisin (pointing to it is ok).  28% pass.  Not yet for Tiger.

Language

-Ooo/Ahhh:  makes vowel sounds.  90% pass at 11 weeks.  Tiger passes.

-Laughs:  laughs aloud.  85% pass.  Tiger passes.  We have to work like crazy to get him to laugh, but it’s the cutest sound I’ve ever heard.

-Squeals:  makes high-pitched happy sounds.  80% pass.  Tiger passes.  He doesn’t do it very often, but he’s done it a few times.

-Turn to rattling sound:  hold child in your lap facing you and have someone stand behind child (out of sight) and shake a rattle 6-12 inches away from child’s ear and repeat with other ear; pass if child turns to sound for both ears.  27% pass.  Not yet.

-Imitate speech sounds:  repeat a sound several times (cough, clicking tongue, kissy sound); pass if child imitates sound.  25% pass.  Not yet.

Gross Motor

-Head up 45 degrees: head makes a 45 degree angle from the surface for a few seconds while on tummy (without head being turned to the side).  90% pass at 11 weeks.  Tiger passes.

-Head up 90 degrees:  head makes a 90 degree angle from the surface for a few seconds while on tummy (without head being turned to the side).  75% pass.  Tiger passes.

-Sit head steady:  holds head upright and steady (no bobbing) for a few seconds while being held in sitting position.  75% pass.  I can’t decide if he passes on this.  When he’s screaming he holds his head up like a rock star, but when he’s happy he’s kind of bobbly.  He’s so close to passing though.

-Bear weight on legs:  supports own weight on feet and legs for a few seconds in a standing position (holding child in standing position and slowly loosening hand support, but not letting go).  55% pass.  Tiger passes.  He loves doing this.

-Chest up-arm support:  Place child on stomach on flat surface; pass if child lifts head and chest with outstretched arms.  35% pass.  Not yet.

-Roll over:  roll completely from back to stomach or vice versa at least twice.  45% pass.  Maybe.  He’s done several times, but I’m pretty sure it’s accidental.  When he’s on his belly and holding his head up high, he sometimes tips over and ends up rolling to his back.

-Pull to sit-no head lag:  with child on back, grasp child’s hands and wrists and gently and slowly pull to a sitting position; pass if child’s head stays in line with body with no lag (stop if there is immediate lag).  27% pass.  Not yet.  We had immediate lag.

Things to practice for next month:

-regarding raisin:  I’ll put objects in front of him to encourage him to focus on particular things.

-turn to rattling sound:  This one is a little trickier to practice because you kind of need someone around to help, but I’ll try sneaking up on him and rattling something by his ear.

-imitate speech sounds:  I’ll continue making ridiculous noises close to his face.

-holding head steady:  We’ll keep giving him the opportunity to hold his head on his own.  He’s almost there.

-chest up-arm support:  I’ll help him get into position while he’s in tummy time so he knows what it feels like.

-pull to sit:  We’ll keep trying it.  I have a feeling we’ll get closer once he can hold his head more steadily.