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Home › Articles › Guiding Baby's Development › Baby Steps

Baby Steps

Helping Your Child Learn to Walk

By Heather Johnson Durocher

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Of all the milestones your baby will reach during the first year of life, the most amazing is taking those first precious steps – alone.

Beth Skarupa, mother of four, is looking forward to her youngest child reaching this milestone. At 10 months of age, Joey "cruises on anything now – the couches, chairs – he pulls up on absolutely everything," his mother says.

How Does It Happen?
Most children walk by the age of 1 year, experts say, although walking may occur as early as 8 months or as late as 18 months of age. This is important to keep in mind should you feel discouraged your child isn't walking as early as other children the same age.

"Every milestone leading up to walking is important: holding up the head, pushing up, rolling over, sitting up, crawling, standing and cruising," says Sally Goldberg, parenting specialist and author of Constructive Parenting (Allyn & Bacon, 2001) and Baby and Toddler Learning Fun: 50 Interactive and Developmental Activities to Enjoy With Your Child (Perseus Publishing, 2001).

While walking may not occur until later, Goldberg says it is developmentally important for your child to be standing up or cruising around objects by 1 year of age. If this isn't happening, parents should consult with a child's health provider to ensure appropriate development.

While crawling is important as a stage of development, Goldberg says, it's "not a necessity for being able to walk."

A Little Encouragement

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