Can my child skip crawling?

This is a topic that comes up a lot!  Not only with families with infants but even with older children who never crawled as a developmental milestone. This milestone is SO important for many areas of development as their bodies and minds grow and mature.   Not crawling can impact their cognitive, fine motor and gross motor development!

Why does it matter?

The understanding and importance of the hands/knees and alternating crawling position is a passion of mine.  We see SO many older toddlers and even young athletes that have core weakness, motor planning difficulties or even scoliosis associated with the milestone of crawling traced all the way back to infancy. 

When crawling, our bodies are gaining so many skills that lay a foundation for life!

To name a few:

 - core and hip postural strength (the foundation of our body to walk, run, climb) 

-learning how to coordinate the opposite sides of our body (foundation for walking, skipping, crossing midline, multi-tasking)

- developing an palmer arch for writing, utensils, picking up small objects

- oral motor strength (strength in our mouth for feeding, speech, suck/swallow reflex)

How can we encourage crawling?

- It is important to encourage crawling on hands and knees (quadruped) so that the important postural muscles can be activated.

- Know what they REALLY like.  Sometimes infants just like toddlers need to be motivated to do things they don't want too.  I suggest having a box of toys/safe household items that are their favorites (maybe they don't get to regularly play with them so it's novel). 

- Lift the toys off the floor and onto surface 2-3 inches high (small box, bin) so that your child has to look up higher....this will encourage them to push up higher!

- Get behind them when in quadruped (hands/knees) and help them move one leg forward at a time (tip- go slow so they have a chance to move their arm forward).

- Climbing: take a couch cushion off and put it on the floor in front of the couch so they can climb first on the cushion then on the couch where the cushion is missing then the next cushion.  You just made their own play gym!  Be sure to be behind them in case they lose their balance 

When should I reach out for Physical Therapy services?

- If your child is older than 10 months and not crawling

- If your child is crawling with an atypical pattern (using same side of their body, keeping their tummy on the floor, scooting on their bottom instead of crawling).

If your child's arms or legs feel "stiff."

- If you have questions or want to consult a professional.  CT is a direct access state and you can reach out to Coastal KIDS Physical Therapy any time (203)518-8447.

www.coastalkidsphysicaltherapy.com