This is the precursor to crawling.

Some babies inchworm along the floor. Lie down on the floor and place the toy on one side of you and the baby on the other, an feel your baby crawl over you. At each stage of development baby masters one primary skill that then triggers a series of accomplishments. As he begins to lunge forward on his little rocker bottom, he builds up momentum until the forward-lunging movements of his body gradually overcome the weight his bottom, and he falls, usually on his tummy, just short of his intended goal.First CruisesAround He needed a nearby helper. During his stage, growth accelerates. Studies show that as many as 40 percent of infants placed in walkers suffer a variety of injuries, such as skull fractures, neck injuries, lacerations, knocked-out teeth, and burns."During this stage of development it is not so important how baby moves in pursuit of a toy. Watch the delight on your baby's face at the thrill of his first pull-up. 

Baby's motor development allows him to get more and more of his body off the ground.Pulling Up and Moving AroundThe desire to ascend from a horizontal to a vertical position stimulates baby to grab hold of furniture, railings, or parent's clothing and pull himself upright. Baby next learns how to maneuver his body in the opposite sequence, going from the crawling position back to a full sit. This refinement in baby's ground transportation is called cross-crawling. Baby's fingers can get caught in collapsible walkers, especially the older models with exposed springs and coils. By six or seven months, most babies can sit unsupported.Waive The WalkerPediatricians strongly discourage you from exposing your infant to a walker for both safety and developmental reasons.During the first six months parents and trusted subs are the center of baby's universe. 

Next baby cruises around furniture using the couch or coffee-table top as his balancer. Some of the most common injuries occur from falls, such as when a baby gets up enough speed to crash through a safety gate and falls downstairs, tips over when rolling over throw rugs or thresholds, or bends over to pick up toys on the floor. The important milestone is that he realizes his capabilities to move from place to place and experiments with various methods.Taking a StandOnce baby has mustered all the skill and energy needed to pull up to a standing position, he wants to stay there awhile and enjoy the view. How smart this nine-month-old engineer is to have developed such a balanced suspension!The Mental Side of CrawlingImagine the learning power that a baby derives from learning to crawl.Want to really appreciate the efficiency of cross-crawling and have some fun? Along with your friends, get down on the floor and start crawling. Previously he would fuss because he couldn't right himself back to the sitting position. Watch baby crawl along and then quickly stop, tuck one foot underneath, and swing sideways, vaulting over the tucked-in foot while digging in and pushing with the other foot and hand. If he is hanging on to a sofa and his feet are turned in and overlapping, gently turn them out and plant them flat, teaching baby to use his feet as a firm base of support. Since he no longer needs his arms to prop himself up, baby is able to use them more fully for socializing and play. As you place the toy farther beyond baby's reach, notice what happens. When you notice she is pleased with herself, praise her. For example, when baby crawls up the step, rolls over, or goes from crawling to sitting, watch how she beams afterward. In relying on the walker to do the work, baby loses he ability to keep experimenting with his own body in order to develop crawling and walking skills. Baby first rocks back and forth on hands and knees. Place baby on a deep-pile carpet and notice that he uses his feet and toes to dig in, thrusting forward leapfrog style.Each time your baby shows a new skill, he will do best amid the encouraging cheers of his sibling (if he has them). He becomes less an arms and lap baby and more an exploring floor baby.Cross-crawlingA major turning point in crawling skills is mastered when baby learns to alternate arms and legs, getting the arm on one side and the leg on the opposite side to move forward together and strike the floor at the same time. Presto, he's sitting upright! Baby's ability to achieve a sitting positing by himself is another relief milestone for parents. Each is normal.Safety Tip: When a baby is practicing these forward-lunging skills, choose soft toys for him to go or in case he falls splat on top if his goal." The move the arm and left on the same side of the body together, which is off balance, instead of moving the opposite arm and leg ahead and maintaining their balance. Some babies like to bear crawl on hands and feet on tiled surfaces because the soles and palms stick instead of slide. Now place him on a smooth kitchen floor, and he is likely to inchworm his way and slide along the smooth surface. Baby also learns self-reinforcement: The more he moves and reaches the pursued toys, the more motivated he is to improve his loco motor skills.From Crawl to SitBesides developing new loco motor skills, baby enjoys combining skills. By six months he's on his own two feet, and the baby chase begins. To master this maneuver, baby uses the foot tuck. During the next stage of development baby refines these various modes of transportation and selects the one that is most efficient. In typical motor development from birth to one year, baby gets more and more of his body off the ground. Sometimes he may dig in and scoot; other times he may twist and roll toward the toy; sometimes he may crawl. 

This is the precursor to crawling. In fact, studies have shown that babies who spend a lot of time in walkers are more likely to be slower in developing a normal gait. This stance allows baby to balance steadily on the hand and knee that remain in contact with the floor while elevating the opposite ones.Six To Nine Months: Exploring BigTwo important skills form the next steps up baby safety fence wholesale the ladder of infant development: progressing from sitting to crawling and learning to pick up objects with thumb and forefinger. The tiptoe tendency is probably due to the baby's tensing his whole body to get into this exciting new position. These studies showed that "walker-trained" infants demonstrated a stiffer-legged gait.Making a BridgeUntil baby can get her pelvis and abdomen off the ground, her crawling is inefficient. This tucked-in position shortens the rocking axis, allowing baby to roll forward over his feet.First CrawlsBaby's first crawls are frustrating.The second reason they are strongly discouraged is that walkers reverse the normal sequence of motor development. So please keep an eye out for more of my articles.