Motor Development Stages

This topic covers three stages of motor development, spanning the ages 0 to 12, beginning with early r
developing through the various milestones that a child reaches as they mature.

Stages of development
There are three stages of motor development in children.

The first stage is marked by extremely rapid growth and development, as is the second
stage. By the age of 2 years old, this development has begun to level out somewhat. The
final stage does not have any marked new developments, rather it is characterised by the
mastering and development of the skills achieved in the first two stages.
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0-2 YEARS OR INFANTHOOD

The Newborn Child
It is argued that many of a newborn's reflexes contribute to motor control as the child
learns new motor skills. For example the stepping reflex promotes development areas of
the cortex that govern voluntary walking. This and other examples can be seen in the table
below.
Reflex name

Method

Age Disappears

Motor preparation

Tonic neck

Assumes fencing position; 1 arm extended in

front of eyes on side to which head is turned.
Other arm flexed.

4 months

May prepare for voluntary reaching

Stepping

Lifts one foot after another in stepping

response

2 months

Prepares for voluntary walking

Palmar grasp

Spontaneous grasp of adult's finger

3-4 months

Prepares for voluntary grasping

Assessing reflexes in newborns will determine the health of the nervous system, as
reflexes that are weak or absent, exaggerated, or overly rigid may indicate some brain
damage. Therefore stages will need to be modified slightly.
The average ages at which gross motor skills are achieved during infancy may vary. This
range may be seen in the table below.

Motor Skill

Average Age Achieved

Age Range
(90% Infants)

Head erect & steady when held upright

6 weeks

3 weeks-4
months

Lifts self by arms when prone

2 months

3 weeks-4
months

Rolls from side to back

2 months

3 weeks-5
months

Grasps cube

3 months, 3 weeks

2-7 months

Rolls from back to side

4 months

2-7 months

Sits alone

7 months

5-9 months

Crawls

7 months

5-11 months

Pulls to stand

8 months

5-12 months

Plays Pat-a-cake

9 months, 3 weeks

7-15 months

Stands alone

11 months

9-16 months

Walks alone

11 months, 3 weeks

9-17 months

Builds tower of 2 cubes

13 months, 3 weeks

10-19 months

Scribbles vigorously

14 months

10-21 months

Walks up stairs with help

16 months

12-23 months

Jumps in place

23 months, 2 weeks

17-30 months

Although the sequence of motor development is fairly uniform across children, differences
may exist individually in the rate at which motor skills develop. A baby who is a late
reacher may not necessarily be a late crawler/walker. Concern would arise if the child's
development were delayed in many motor skills.

Summary of Table
1. Motor control of the head comes before control of the legs. This head-to-tail
sequence is called the cephalocaudal trend.
2. Motor development proceeds from the centre of the body outward; i.e. the head,
trunk and arm control is mastered before the coordination of the hands and fingers.
This is the proximodistical trend.
3. Physical growth follows these same trends throughout infancy and childhood.
Once the child has grasped these gross motor skills, they are then able to explore their
environment further by grasping things, turning them over, and seeing what happens when
they are released. Infants are then able to learn a great deal about the sight, sound and feel
of objects.
Reaching and grasping development is a classic example of how motor skills start out as
gross, and then graduate to mastering fine motor skills.

At 3 months voluntary reaching gradually improves in accuracy. It does not require

visual guidance of arms and hands, but rather a sense of movement and location.

By 5 months reaching is reduced as the object can be moved within reach.

At 9 months an infant can redirect reaching to obtain a moving object that changes
direction.

6-12 months the infant can use a pincer grasp, thus increasing their ability to
manipulate objects.
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2-6 YEARS OR EARLY CHILDHOOD

The period of the most rapid development of motor behaviors is the period between 2 and
6 years (also known as the preschool years). Skills that appear are:

Basic locomotor

Ball-handling

Fine eye-hand coordination

Walking leads to running, jumping, hopping, galloping, and skipping

Climbing evolves from creeping.

The following points need to be highlighted.

1. By the age of 3 walking is automatic.
2. By 4 years the child has almost achieved an adult style of walking.
3. By 3 years the child has attempted to run, albeit awkward in style and lacking
control.
4. By the age of 4-5 years the child has more control over running and can start, stop
and turn.
5. By 5-6 skills in running have advanced to the level of an adult manner.
6. Between the ages of 3 and 6 climbing proficiency using ladders, etc., has

developed.
7. By 6 years children can hop and gallop skillfully, and jumping distances are
longer.
8. At the age of 3 children begin a shuffle which evolves into skipping by the age of
6.
9. At the age of 2 children learn to kick, as their balance mechanism has developed.
A full kick with a backswing has developed by the age of 6.
10. Throwing at the age of 2-3 years is not very proficient although is attempted. This
has improved by the age of 6 when the child will include a step forward.
11. At the age of 3 a child can catch a large ball with arms straight; at 4 elbows will be
in front when catching; and by the age of 6 years, elbows will be held at the side.