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Your baby at 6 months: development milestones & what to expect
Your 6 month old is hitting big milestones. From starting solids to sitting up, see what to expect and how to support their development.
8 min
This is a big month for your little one, and for you. Half a year old, ready for solids, almost ready to sit independently, and perhaps even moving into their own room. Six months feels like the most significant milestone yet. So let’s get cracking with all the things you and your baby might be experiencing this month.
Physical development milestones at 6 months
If you haven’t already started baby proofing – start now. Your little one is about to be on the move. Those babies who are already happily rolling from front to back will likely start rolling from back to front soon – at which point, watch out! Soon enough they’ll be covering the whole room. Some babies skip rolling and go straight to crawling – these little caterpillars might still be going backwards for now, but it won’t be long. And then there’s the core crusaders – those with the strength to sit upright independently (at least for a moment!). This opens up new opportunities for play – just make sure you surround them with cushions for when they inevitably go boink.
Your beautiful living room might have become a total baby play zone, but it’s hard to be mad about it when you watch them zooming around, playing with their toys, and discovering every cobweb you’ve ever missed.
In practice, baby proofing doesn’t have to be a full-on operation; nor do you need to buy a lot of stuff. It’s just a matter of putting everything dangerous – the small things they could choke on and the big things they could pull onto themselves – out of their reach. Look out for loose change and loose wires, both of which present a hazard. It might be that your lovely lamp is better off in a different room for the time being. And one thing that is worth buying is a packet of latches to keep cupboard doors closed.
The other side of baby proofing is all about supervision and clear communication. Your baby may not yet speak your language, but they will soon learn the word ‘no’ – and when it comes to that socket they are drawn to, supervision and ‘no’ are your best bet. You can’t take the socket out of the wall, and it’s best to teach them early what’s ok to play with and what’s not.
Milestone checklist
- Sitting up – At 6 months old your little one should be able to sit supported and will soon be able to sit independently. They look so different like this – really quite grown up!
- Moving – However far along your baby is with rolling and crawling, they are definitely moving right now – reaching, grabbing, kicking and flailing their arms around. The world is their playground.
- Teething – Some babies get their first teeth around this time – and then you get to see their toothy smile! Teething can be a real pain, so check out our complete guide to teething for advice and guidance.
Child brain development at 6 months
‘Ga’, ‘Da’, ‘Ka’, ‘Ma’ – if DuoLingo did a baby language course, we’d all take it. Fortunately, babies at this age are really quite expressive and a lot of the time you can interpret from their body language and highly animated eyebrows just what it is they need.
Your little one’s motor skills have been developing day by day, and now your baby can probably pass things from one hand to the other. Have fun with your baby by passing them things and letting them pass them back to you. If they decide to take this game on the road, look for toys you can attach to their buggy, so you’re not forever losing them.
Once your baby is sitting up, you can introduce new toys that are meant to be played with in a sitting position – such as shape sorters, stacking cups, and the kind of thing you can hit to make a noise. All of this will feed your baby’s curiosity and that sense of ‘oh, if I do this, that happens’ – which is basically how they start learning about the world and their place in it.
Social & Emotional Development
Getting out to baby groups is so much fun at this age. Your baby isn’t quite ready to make friends but will be interested in other children – and will learn so much by copying others. Six months is a great age to start something like Sing and Sign, where you can introduce signs alongside key words and encourage your baby to start communicating with you in a more structured way. Many baby groups take a staged approach to their activities, so if you enjoyed baby sensory when your little one was tiny, you might find there are new things to enjoy at this age.
Spending time with other families is also a great way for you to see what other babies are doing. Of course, every baby is different and they won’t all hit the same milestones at the same age – there’s always at least one unicorn baby in every group! – but it’s good to observe what the range is and learn how other parents are managing the different stages. For example, how do other families manage baby picnics now that there’s food involved? And what can you use to distract your little one from the thing you really don’t want them to do? Your baby is learning every day, but as parents we’re also being exposed to new experiences all the time – and it’s great to have some support with that.
Sleep & Feeding
Rhythms and routines at this stage
The big news this month is that your little one is now allowed solid food. Maybe you’ve been waiting for this moment, or maybe you’ve been dreading it. For people who enjoy a clean kitchen floor, weaning can be quite confronting! But mealtimes with your baby, exploring new tastes and textures, can also be lots of fun. Try to go easy on yourself and take it slow. This isn’t a race. Your baby will still get most of the nutrients they need from their milk for a while yet.
Weaning
We have a whole section of our website devoted to weaning – it’s kind of our thing! – but here’s a very short need-to-know guide. Weaning begins slowly, with one food at a time, introduced over a period of days. Your early expectations should be low and it’s important to keep mealtimes low-pressure and stress-free. Your baby probably won’t know what the heck is going on to begin with, the taste and texture will be so unfamiliar. Those first few ‘meals’ may all be spat out. That’s ok. Persevere and try to keep it fun. This is an adventure.
It’s recommended you start weaning with green vegetables, like broccoli, to help your little one adjust to more bitter flavours. You can either give this as puree, fed with a spoon, or cut into ‘chips’ which your baby can feed to themselves. (This is called baby-led weaning.) Stick to vegetables for the first few weeks and then gradually introduce more complex foods and, when spoon feeding, more variable textures. Eventually, your little one will graduate to three meals a day and before you know it, they’ll be eating similar food to you.
- Take a look at this article if you’d like a guide to first weaning foods
- This one for weaning FAQs
- And this one if you have concerns about introducing allergens
- And if you’d like to give yourself a break from cooking, have a look at our range of organic baby foods for 6+ months.
Moving out
It’s recommended to keep your baby sleeping in your bedroom for at least the first six months of their life. For many families, this arrangement will continue for longer – but if you’re short on space in your bedroom, or finding you are disturbing each other’s sleep, you might have been looking forward to moving the cot out of your room and into the nursery.
To be clear, this is not essential and you shouldn’t feel pressured to do it if you don’t want to. But if you and your baby are ready for a bit more space, here are a few top tips:
- Familiarise your baby with their new sleeping environment by spending some time in there in the day. You could make this the spot for getting dressed, for bedtime stories, nappy changes, or just playtime. It’s important their bedroom becomes somewhere they feel safe.
- If you can avoid changing beds and changing rooms at the same time, this will help with the transition. That way, their immediate environment will at least feel and smell the same.
- Make sure there’s somewhere in their bedroom for you to sit during night feeds – these are unlikely to go away just yet!
- Keep the cot clear of any toys, unnecessary bedding, books, or anything that could present a risk while your little one is unsupervised. Cot bumpers are not necessary and not advised.
- A baby monitor will help you feel more comfortable about being separated from your baby, and ensures you’ll still hear them if they cry.
Some babies are unfazed by changes like this, while others will be distressed. It might take you a little longer to settle them down at night, but that’s ok. Keep up your familiar bedtime routine and give your baby plenty of reassurance. You will find a way to make this new normal work for you.
Looking after yourself
You are now halfway through your one-year maternity leave allowance, though of course not everyone can (or wants to) take the full year. How are things going, financially? The spectrum of maternity allowance is vast, with some employers offering bare minimum and others providing a generous package. Now, at the halfway point, it might be time to do a little financial appraisal. What do the next six months look like, in terms of income and expenditure? Is there money in the bank for a little holiday, or is it time to cut out the takeaway coffees and start bringing picnics from home?
Financial worries can be incredibly stressful. Particularly when you’re also staring down the barrel of hefty childcare costs, which for most people are unavoidable once both parents are back at work. It can have a very real impact on your mental health and on your relationship with your partner. Like all areas of conflict, it’s really important to keep the lines of communication open. Talk about your budget, any savings goals you have, your upcoming costs. Make sure you’re on the same page, and that the costs of raising your baby are shared equitably. If you’re already looking into nurseries and childminders, use that information to assess your future budget as well, so that you’re not taken by surprise.
Above all, don’t let it all build up. This is not your problem alone to fix. If you need help, the Citizens Advice Bureau is free to access and can provide real support.
A Note on Development Milestones
Developmental milestones are guides – not deadlines. If your baby isn’t ‘keeping up’ with your friends’ babies, it isn’t an immediate cause for concern. Every child develops at their own pace. That being said, your health visitor and GP are there to support you with any queries you might have and will always be happy to see you with your baby if you have any worries.
