Your Baby at Term

Gross Motor and Large Muscle Development
On his back, his arms and legs are bent and flexed close to his body with his head turned to the side.  He is able to smoothly move his arms and legs, and kicks with flexed hips and knees. On his tummy, his arms and legs are bent and flexed close to his body. He is able to turn his head from side to side. He has poor head control when in a supported sitting position, and his head feels very heavy and floppy.

Fine Motor and Small Muscle Development
His hands are generally fisted.  He has a strong grasp reflex if you place your fingers in his palm.  He will have lots of random arm movements when he is awake, but makes no attempt to reach for what is seen, heard or felt.

Cognitive, Social and Visual Development
He quiets or settles down when picked up, or in response to being held or talked to.

He becomes alert to faces and voices, but may be sensitive to bright light or sunlight.  He is sensitive to the location of sound.  He sees patterns, light and dark, and focuses best at six to twelve inches.  He sleeps 70 to 80 percent of the time.  The best time for social interactions of up to five minutes is when he is in a quiet-alert state and not hungry.  He remembers and prefers his mother's voice to a stranger's voice.

Activities for You and Your Baby

• Make time for lots of face-to-face interactions with him during daily care activities. Watching your face is a wonderful learning experience for him, and he will learn how to smile and recognize your face the more he stares at you.

• Hold your face no more than twelve inches away from him when you feed, hold and talk to him. This is the best focusing distance for him to see.

• He may need to take frequent short breaks from direct eye contact during your visual interaction with him. Respect his "I need a break" signals and let him shift his gaze, look away from you, turn his head or squint his eyes to take a little break. If eye contact is difficult to achieve, this may be his way of telling you he is over-stimulated or stressed.

• Talk to him while you are bathing or dressing him. 

• Change his sleep position in his crib and place interesting things to look at on different sides so his head is not always facing the same direction. This will keep his head from becoming flattened on one side.