As adults, we take for granted movement in an environment dictated by gravity. We lie down, sit, stand, walk and run all with assistance from a surface beneath us. We are grounded.

Babies, however, are not. When born, they are dealing for the first time with the concept of gravity. They have independent movement, but not independent mobility. It takes them months to figure out how to move in a controlled manner through space, first by rolling on the floor, then transitioning to sitting, crawling, pulling to stand, cruising along surfaces, and finally, walking! We know that the foundations of movement for these motor milestones are best developed when baby is placed on his tummy from the start, but there are other ways to introduce and practice these essential basics.

When we move our babies through space, picking up and placing, picking up and repositioning, picking up and handing off, we often don’t think about how this feels. If we put ourselves in our babies’ “shoes,” however, one can imagine that this might feel a bit overwhelming, where you don’t have much control, and that gravity that held you down in one spot all of a sudden disappeared. Adults don’t jump or fly from one position to another, but yet, that is exactly what we are imposing upon our babies. Imagine instead introducing the concept of a controlled weight shift, which IS how we move. Combine this with talking about the movement you are doing with them and you have provided a rich, multi-modal, experience of movement. You teach them what movement is supposed to feel like and you’ve drawn attention to parts of their body and what they are doing in the present moment. These strategies are especially useful for young babies that are more sensitive or that tend to startle with changes in movement and position.

An example of this kind of handling is when placing baby down for diapering. Rather than just placing baby down on her back when changing her diaper, try to have the first point of supported contact on the table, pad, or bed be her bottom and legs, as if sitting. Then slowly shift her over one hip and lower her down to her side, finally rolling her onto her back (the next time you place her down, transition over the other hip). If this is difficult to imagine, perform the transition yourself as if you are going from a sitting to a lying position in bed, then help your baby do the same movement. She will not help you at first, but you are providing the sensory experience of movement that will eventually be the way she does it independently. Practicing both sides will help develop symmetry. If you perform this movement every time you change her diaper, she will expect it, anticipate it, respond better and start helping you more. You have given her an opportunity to explore her own independent movement rather than only relying on you. You can reverse this transition to then pick her back up from the table.

Now, think of other times during the day when you pick up and place your baby. How can you alter these experiences to mimic more closely what she will do when moving independently? In our somewhat sedentary culture, it’s never too early to introduce independent movement and provide positive and happy experiences associated with movement to start instilling the value of active play!