Stages of motor development Flashcards
What are the main gross motor characteristics of a newborn?
Flexor hypertonia
Supine asymmetrical position
Flexed posture
Head turns from side to side
Reflexive movements
What are the fine motor characteristics of a newborn?
Hands clenched
Thumbs sometimes adducted
What are the sensory capabilities of a newborn?
Sensitive to touch, smell, and taste
Can recognize the mother’s voice and face
Can follow objects up to 90º
What are early warning signs in a newborn’s motor development?
Constant irritability
Sucking difficulties
Lack of gaze fixation
No reaction to noises
What are the gross motor developments seen at two months?
Inconsistent head support
Unilateral kicking
Decrease in physiological flexion (hypotonia)
What are the fine motor skills at this stage?
Uses palmar grasp
Looks at hands
Brings hands together at midline
Follows objects 180º
What warning signs should be monitored at two months?
Persistent irritability
Thumb adduction over the other fingers
What are the key gross motor developments at three months?
Improved head control
First anti-gravitational position (“Puppy 1”)
Strong unilateral kicking
What are fine motor characteristics at three months?
Uses a crude palmar grasp
Looks at hands and brings them together at midline
Follows objects 180º and vertically
What are key sensory developments at three months?
Social smile appears
Can follow an object 180º and vertically
Turns towards a familiar sound
What are warning signs at three months?
No social smile
Asymmetry in hand activity
Failure to bring hands to midline
No gaze following
What are the major motor developments by four months?
More stable supine position
Good head control
Turns from prone to supine
Bilateral kicking
When does rolling from supine to prone occur?
Around six months
What is the expected motor development by six months?
Non-functional sitting
Rolls from supine to prone
Initiates crawling (homolateral movements)
Transfers objects from one hand to another
What are the warning signs at six months?
Hypertonia/hypotonia
Lack of rolling
Persistent Moro reflex
Absence of voluntary grasping
What are the main developments at seven months?
Improves balance in sitting position
Begins heterolateral crawling
Rotates trunk in sitting position
What happens at eight months in gross motor development?
Functional sitting
Crawling progresses to heterolateral movement
Quadruped position but does not creep
What is the key fine motor milestone at eight months?
Immature pincer grasp (index-thumb pinch)
Begins to explore small objects
What occurs in motor development at nine months?
Crawling is well established
Creeps homolaterally
Trunk rotation is more refined
What is the major gross motor milestone at ten months?
Creeping is well dissociated
Mastery of sitting with variations
Begins transitioning to standing with support
What are the fine motor skills at ten months?
Pincer grasp becomes more precise
Can explore small objects more effectively
What are the locomotor developments at eleven months?
Lateral ambulation with support
“Bear position” (hands and feet on the ground)
Begins kneeling or semi-kneeling
What is the most important gross motor skill achieved at twelve months?
Standing without support
Taking independent steps with/without support
What are key fine motor skills at twelve months?
Voluntary object release
Mature pincer grasp
Begins pointing with fingers
What are key warning signs in motor development?
By 6 months: No rolling, no voluntary grasping, Moro reflex persistence
By 10 months: No autonomous movement, trunk hypotonia
By 12 months: No supported standing, presence of abnormal reflexes
