5 Months Old Baby Milestones

The fifth month is a time of several transformations for your baby. Your 5-month-old baby may have started babbling and may be ready to start crawling. You may also find your 5-month milestone baby holding out her arms when she wants to be picked up, learning to sleep for longer stretches, possibly trying solid foods, and rolling as se goes! There are several things that your baby will do at the age of 5 months that will amaze you. Moreover, you will start to see a pattern in your baby’s behaviour. Let’s learn what you can expect during the 5 months baby milestone.

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Developmental Milestone Chart for 5 Months Old Baby

The table below shows the achieved and emerging developmental milestones of your 5-month-old baby:

What Are 5 Months Old Baby’s Developmental Milestones?

These are the various developmental milestones of a 5-month-old baby:

1. Physical Development/Motor Skills

• Reaches for objects: Your baby has better hand and grip control than before. She reaches out and grabs objects. She may hold her feeding bottle on her own.

• Puts weight on both legs when held vertically: The baby will put her weight on both legs and lock them in place when held vertically on the solid ground. She may also make bouncing movements by relaxing and locking her knees.

• Rolls both ways: By the 5^th month, your baby will be able to roll onto her tummy if placed on her back, and may also roll onto her back when placed on her tummy.

• Sits with support: Your 5-month-old baby will be able to sit with support, and will soon be able to sit independently without support.

• Distance and colour vision improve: Your baby’s distance vision will improve by the 5^th month, and she will also be able to see the differences between shades of the same colour.

• Better muscle coordination: Your 5-month-old will raise her chest using her elbows when placed on her tummy. She also has a raking grasp which is when the baby reaches for an object, spreads out her fingers and pulls it closer.

2. Cognitive Developmental Milestones

• Tracks moving objects: At 5 months, your baby will start tracking moving objects and people with her eyes.

• Finds partly hidden objects: When you hide your face partially behind a cloth, she will tug it down to see if you are there. She understands that objects exist outside her sight. She enjoys playing peek-a-boo games.

• Responds to ‘No’: Your 5-month-old will start recognising and responding to the word ‘No’.

• Tests cause and effect: She will repeat her actions to see if the same effect occurs. For example, if she hears a rattle making a sound, she will move it again, and even hit it against another object to see what happens.

• Watches objects and people keenly: Your baby will be captivated by objects and people, and will watch everything keenly.

• Is easily distracted and fascinated by new objects: She will be fascinated by various objects, and can hence be easily distracted by a new toy.

• Sleeps for longer durations At night: Your 5-month-old baby will sleep for longer durations, especially at night.

3. Social and Emotional Developmental Milestones

• Responds to other people’s emotions: He/She will laugh if you tickle her gently or make funny faces and sounds.

• Can distinguish emotions from your tone: Your baby will begin to recognise your emotions from your tone. She will know something is wrong if she hears a raised voice, and will calm down if you talk to her in a soothing voice.

• Loves to see her reflection: She will love to see her reflection moving in the mirror.

• Appears joyful: Happiness is a 5-month-old baby’s primary emotion.

• Loves playing with parents: She will enjoy playing with her parents.

4. Communication Skills

• Responds to her own name: By the 5^th month, your baby’s communication skills have improved. She will respond to the sound of her own name by turning her head.

• Responds to sounds by making sounds: If you talk to her, she responds by babbling. She will also raise and lower her voice as if she is having a real conversation.

• Uses voice to express joy and displeasure: Her voice changes to indicate her emotions. She will express joy by squealing in delight, or displeasure by crying.

• Babbles chain Of consonants: She babbles a chain of consonants like ‘da-da-da’ or ‘ma-ma-ma’ repeatedly.

5. Senses

• Sense of taste increases: The mouth has maximum nerve endings, so your 5-month-old will put everything into her mouth to see what it feels like. Her sense of taste also improves in the fifth month.

• Can distinguish between colours: She has a full-colour vision now and can distinguish between colours and shades.

• Better hearing: Your 5-month-old baby’s hearing is better, and she will turn her head towards the sound.

• Tries to touch and taste everything: At 5 months of age, your baby will try to touch, grab, and taste everything. Make sure all her toys are clean, unbreakable, and not small enough to cause choking.

When to Be Worried?

You should consult a doctor if you notice any of the following problems in your 5-month-old:

• Does not respond to sounds: If she does not turn her head towards a sound, it could indicate hearing problems.

• Poor hand and grip control: If the baby is overly stiff, or too floppy and has poor grip, this could signify a problem with muscle development.

• Displays no affection towards parents: This could signify a cognitive developmental delay, and should be checked by a doctor immediately.

• Is very quiet and does not babble: This may be an early sign of impaired speech.

• Always reaches with one hand only: This may be a sign of developmental delay.

• Cries all night or does not laugh: This is also a sign of developmental delay, and needs to be checked by a doctor right away.

Tips for Helping Your Baby Achieve Major Milestones by 5 Months of Age

• Play games and talk to your baby: This helps her develop her speech and communication skills.
• Give her tummy time: Placing her on the tummy will make her neck, back, and arm muscles stronger, as she will raise her head and neck using her elbows. It also helps develop her vision as she sees distant objects when raising her head.
• Place toys just out of her reach: This will improve her hand and eye coordination as she will reach out and grab the toys.
• Read brightly-illustrated books to her: This will help your 5-month-old develop her vision and communication skills, as she will enjoy looking at the colours and hearing you tell the story.
• Give your baby toys with bright colours and toys that make interesting sounds: This will help the baby improve vision, hearing, and hand control.
• Play music and sing to your baby: Babies enjoy music. She will clap, laugh or babble if you sing to her or recite rhymes.
• Let her meet new people: This will help her cognitive development and improve her social skills.
• Help him sit with support: If your little one is seeming to put effort to sit up on his own, then encourage her by making her sit in your lap with you for support

FAQs

1. Is It Safe to Give Food to a 5-Month-Old Baby?

Experts recommend exclusive breastfeeding to babies until 6 months of age as their body is still developing and may not have the capability to digest solid or semi-solid foods when under 6 months of age.

2. Can My 5-Month-Old Baby Understand Words?

At 5 months of age, it is highly impossible for your baby to understand words as she herself is starting to explore the world of speech, language, and actions. But it is an excellent time to start communicating with your baby with words, actions, music, and by pointing at things in her 5-month-old milestones.

3. What Should Be the Ideal Weight of a Five-Month-Old Baby?

A 5-month-old baby is expected to be double their birth weight and may gain around 500 grams in weight. However, it is important to note that every baby is unique and their growth also differs from child to child. So, it is perfectly okay if a baby is a little more or a little less than the average weight for 5 months old.

Remember that each baby is different, and develops at his or her own pace. Do not worry if another 5-month-old is able to do things that your baby is not yet able to do. Do not force your baby to do anything. Have patience, and let your baby achieve her milestones unhurriedly. Keep an eye on your baby’s progress, and consult a doctor if you have any serious concerns.

References/Resources:

1. Feeding your baby: When to start with solid foods; UNICEF; https://www.unicef.org/parenting/food-nutrition/feeding-your-baby-when-to-start-solid-foods

2. Your Baby’s Growth: 5 Months; Nemours Children Health; https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/growth-5mos.html

3. Let’s Talk About It: 5 Ways to Build Babies’ Language and Communication Skills from Birth; Zero To Three; https://www.zerotothree.org/resource/lets-talk-about-it-5-ways-to-build-babies-language-and-communication-skills-from-birth/

4. Language development: 3-12 months; Raisingchildren.net.au; https://raisingchildren.net.au/babies/development/language-development/language-3-12-months

5. Weaning; CDC; https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/breastfeeding/weaning.html

6. Age-Appropriate Vision Milestones; Stanford Medicine; https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=age-appropriate-vision-milestones-90-P02305

7. Age-Appropriate Speech and Hearing Milestones; John Hopkins Medicine; https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/hearing-loss/ageappropriate-speech-and-hearing-milestones

8. Infant – newborn development; MedlinePlus; https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002004.htm

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