3-6 Month Motor Milestones

Do you have a trusted resource for milestones? 🖤⁣ I’m here to tell you, it most likely shouldn’t be your baby apps or Google. What I’ve found is that often these checklists aren’t based in research. But that’s why I’m here :) to be a source for peace-of-mind knowing when the research shows your baby may hit certain motor milestones.

I want you to remember, though: milestones are a RANGE. I usually allow about a 6-8 week window on the tail end to give grace if a milestone isn’t met 👍🏻 ⁣but if this happens for every milestone, seek intervention, friend! 

Another important thing to remember is that if your baby is meeting all other gross motor milestones but behind in ONE, it’s not cause for panic! They may be working on another skill or another realm of development and just need a little extra time to catch up 😘⁣

If, however, you are consistently noticing your babe is behind in their motor milestones, talk to a trusted healthcare provider and advocate fiercely for a PT referral. Watch and wait never did anyone any good 😅⁣ Or if you’re needing strategies to decide whether or not to pursue PT intervention or try to work on things at home, be sure to check out my courses. The courses were all developed with simple play-based strategies to get your baby moving and reduce your overwhelm!

I’ve also got a ✨Free 0-24 Months Milestone Checklist✨ that puts everything below into a nice tiny package for you to print off + follow along. Let this be a gentle guidepost toward their development though, rather than a source of anxiety and constant comparison 🤟🏻⁣

I also have super fun Motor Milestone + Purposeful Play card decks (that also make a great baby shower gift). Each card comes with the milestone + 3 play strategies to support it!

Let’s dive into this huge burst of development from 3-6 months—such an exciting time where baby finally feels like a real, tiny human with thoughts and feelings and a sense of wonder :)

Some things to be mindful of during the 3-6 month window:

• If you find your baby “swimming” on their tummy, it is a completely normal phase called the Landau reflex. The more they do it, the closer they will be to moving through it. If you find they’re frustrated, though, check out this post for some ideas!

• If you see babe crunching up from their back, this is also normal. It’s a sign they may be interested in attempting some prop sitting. You can learn more about how to encourage sitting play safely here.

• It’s also completely normal if babe rolled tummy to back super early and then stopped. Often this is because those early rolls were reflexive and now they’re working toward more refined movements.

Scroll below to see video examples of each milestone!

If you find yourself worried that your baby may already be a bit behind in some of these, you’ve got to check out my Ultimate Guide to Tummy Time and my Rolling Course: Roll on Track. They have all my best simple strategies for building a strong foundation from day one!

Or if you’re curious what’s to come, be sure to check out my 6-9 Months Motor Milestones post.