Development at 11 Months
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Activity 1
Age Appropriate Gross Motor Development
Cruises Along Furniture
I am learning to take side steps! Position me in stand while I am holding on to low furniture. Observe if I am able to take a few side steps. This is called "cruising". Observe also if I am able to cruise to both the left and the right sides! Cruising is an important developmental stage which occurs just before I learn to walk independently. I usually develop this skill between 9 and 13 months.
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Steps
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Place your child in the standing position while holding on to low furniture.
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Observe if he is able to take a few side steps.
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Observe also if he is able to take side steps towards both his left and right sides.
Feedback
Your child is developing good cruising skills with this task. He is learning how to shift his weight side to side. He will do this before he learns how to shift his weight forwards and backwards and then is all ready to walk by himself! You may also look at suggested activities to further develop his skills.
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Encourage your child to cruise in both directions as he stands by any low furniture. This will prepare him to walk independently.
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You may also progress to having him cruise along a flat wall, which is a harder task.
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When your child is standing while holding on to support, place one of his feet on a low stool or phone book i.e. your child is standing with one foot on a low step. This will help him to develop side-ways weight shift, an essential component for cruising. Encourage him to maintain the position for as long as he is happy to. Remember to let each foot have some time on the step.
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When your child is standing while holding on to support, sit behind him and gently bend one of his knees up. This will also help him develop side-ways weight shift as well as the ability to balance on one leg, essential components for stepping sideways. Encourage him to maintain balance while on one leg for as long as he is happy to. Remember to practice on both sides.
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Allow your child to play frequently in a play pen. The play pen provides a safe environment for him to practice cruising without risk of hurting himself.
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Activity 2
Age Appropriate Cognitive Development
Searches For Toy As It Moves Out Of Sight
 Daddy, mummy, I can understand how objects move in space. When you play ball with me and the ball disappears behind the box, I will go directly to the place to look for it! How thrilling as I know that I can physically find the ball which has disappeared! I will search for a toy as it moves out of sight between 6 and 13 months old. |
Steps
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Place a long box in front of the child.
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Roll a car behind the box.
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Let the car stop mid way behind the box.
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Observe whether your child searches for the toy when it is out of his sight.
Feedback
Your child is on track in developing his spatial relationship skills in this activity. Finding the ball or car when it disappears out of your child's sight shows an understanding and mastery of his environment that is very appropriate for children between 6 and 13 months old. By looking for the toy as it disappears behind, under or through a barrier, we can see that your child is able to expect the movement of the object in space even when he cannot see it.
See our suggested activities for other ideas to play and develop your child's intellectual skill in searching for something which has gone out of sight. Your child will soon learn the idea of putting objects "inside" a container, an idea we call containerization with regards to his spatial relationship skills.
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You can play games where you hide small items like biscuits under 1 or 2 cups or behind 1 or 2 hands. Make sure you get his attention first and watch him look for it.
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Use toys that appeal to several senses (sight, sound, texture) and have fun playing hide and search with him round the house (under the sofa, behind the television).
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While the child is watching, you act as an animal and pretend to meow and crawl behind a small sofa chair where he can see you. Encourage him to look for you and show lots of excitement when he crawls and finds you.
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Play with blankets on the bed and hide under them as the child's attention is on you. Ask him to find you and once again, have lots of laugh and tickles when he has found you.
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To make the activity easier for him, you can use a half-clear barrier like a transparent container to hide the object. You can also use a toy that makes lots of sound and light as it moves and disappears under the bed or a box.
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