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Home › Articles › Guiding Baby's Development › Learning to Crawl

Learning to Crawl

Exploring the World on All Fours

By Shannon McKelden

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Not every baby crawls in the same manner, though. Some crawl forward, as typical, but some have their own methods. Shannon Rosenberg, a mother of twins from Wesley Hills, N.Y., says that one of her twins was slightly late in getting herself moving. "[But] once she did start crawling ... she crawled backwards right under the couch," she says. "Actually, they both crawled backwards first."

Crawling backward is probably the result of uneven muscle tone (arms a little stronger than legs), but that will soon right itself as Baby progresses in developing gross motor skills. They will soon shift from reverse to forward on their own with no intervention from parents. As long as they get moving in some way, they are perfectly normal, no matter which direction they choose to go first.

Can Parents Help?
It can't hurt to give your baby some incentive to crawl. Making things too easy on them (always handing them toys they want, etc.) just encourages them to stay seated. Instead, find ways to encourage them to become active.

Parents should place age-appropriate toys slightly beyond their child's reach when baby is in a sitting position, LeComer says. "They can also engage their babies in airplane games, where baby flies through the air and then lands on his hands (supporting some weight from his body)," she says. "Or parents can use games and songs that entice baby to come to them in whatever locomotion way possible."


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