I remember feeling excited when my daughter first deliberately reached for, and picked up, a favorite toy. It was her "Hippie Hare," a handmade, organic wool rattle in the shape of a rabbit. I was so thrilled about the accomplishment that I jotted down the time that it happened. She was precisely 10 and a half weeks old.
Your baby develops an ability to grasp objects fairly quickly. In just a year and a half, she goes from operating only by reflex, to having adult-like manual dexterity. If you're interested in the way your baby will develop an ability to grasp objects, here is a standard time line of development. Note that there is some variation, even among healthy babies, in the development of grasping. Talk to your baby's pediatrician if you're concerned about this, or any other, area of his development.
1. Newborns have a grasping reflex. When your baby is first born, she won't have deliberate control of many of her movements. Instead, she operates on a combination of reflexes -- a crying reflex, a suckling reflex, a startle reflex, and a grasping reflex. Interestingly, some scientists believe that we might be born with a grasp reflex as an an evolutionary holdover from the days when babies clung reflexively to their mothers' backs. During the first one or two months of life, your baby will grasp anything that touches her palm. A similar reflex, the plantar reflex, also exists in the feet.
2. Babies aim for objects at 2 to 4 months. Between 2 and 4 months, your baby begins trying to voluntarily grasp objects. She will notice an object and make an awkward attempt to swipe at it. She may begin picking up large, easy-to-grip objects, but it will be a few more weeks before she can do so reliably and accurately. At this age, your baby will also repeatedly hit or bat at items that grab her interest.
3. She'll start picking things up accurately between 4 and 8 months. Your baby's grasping skills skyrocket between 4 and 8 months of age. At this age, she starts accurately and intentionally picking up favored objects, and may bring them to her mouth to explore them. She'll also use a rake-like motion to drag objects toward her body. Toward the end of this stage, she'll start moving objects from one hand to another and releasing them voluntarily in a desired position.
4. Your baby will use a pincer grasp between 9 and 12 months of age. Some time in the last quarter of your baby's first year, she'll begin mastering the pincer grasp -- a skill which involves picking up a small object between the thumb and finger. She'll also begin coordinating the movements necessary to eat with a spoon, albeit sloppily. Most babies will still prefer to eat with their hands at 1 year of age. You may soon start seeing early signs of which hand is dominant, but this won't be entirely obvious for another year or two.
5. His fine motor skills will soar in the second year. Between your baby's first and second birthday, he will learn to grasp a crayon or marker and to scribble loosely on paper with it. By the time he turns 2, he might be able to draw a line or a vague imitation of a circle. Of course, there is plenty of variation in the way kids develop grasping skills and fine motor control. If you're concerned at any point, don't hesitate to chat with his health care provider to schedule a developmental evaluation.
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