The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1937-09-09
KEEPING UP
WITH THE
JONES' JOHNNY
Institute of Child Welfare
University of Minnesota


University of Minnesota
"How's your baby?" is apt to be the
first question with which any young
parents greets another, and the second,
not far behind, is usually, What can he
do now?"
There is a fascination about watching
the almost miraculous progress of babies
from the helplessness of infancy, thru
the period of dawning consciousness of
other people, into the time when his
unfolding mind makes possible con-
Stantly increasing repertory of acts
added from day to day to his accomp-
| lishmentS.
Before he is month old baby can
lift his chin off the bed, when placed
flat on his stomach. Shortly after he
| is two months old he can raise his
chest, when placed in the same position.
Although he can sit alone for a moment
at about six months, the average baby
can't really sit alone for any length of
time until he is about seven months old.
Although he is often able to stand with
some support, and to walk about when
led by someone as early as year, he
is not usually walking alone until he is
fifteen months old.
By this time he has any number of
other accomplishments. He has prob
ably showed some Shyness before
strangers as early as six months. He
has learned to play peek-a-boo, and
wave "bye-bye' perhaps about nine
months. His real speech, however, is
pretty limited until after he is year
lold, unless he is an exceptionally adj
jvanced baby On the average, baby
can say two words, other than mama
and daddy" by the time he has arrived
at his first birthday. He is considered
technically, to be really talking, wher
he can say several words easily under.
stood by a stranger, in addition to the
words he uses for mother" anc
father"
Now in all these progressive achieve.
ments of the normal baby there i:
great variation. There may be as much
. as three or four months difference be-
tween those of one baby and another
Notwithstanding the fact that each O
the two is quite normal. For example
a large, heavy baby will not often at.
tempt to walk as early as a small-boned
light baby. A baby who has been lef
. alone in his crib great deal, who hal
not been played with much, or VIII
has not been given articles to manipu
late, may be less good at holding OBJ
jectS than another of the same ag
who has had more practice. One bah,
will be drinking from cup very vel
indeed at twelve months, another yea
old baby may never have been given
chance to hold one.
1t is important not to try to meaSur
2 our baby against the Jones baby. It
f not only dangerous, but silly, to lie
y preconceived notions of what a bah
should be able to do at certain time
4 or the knowledge that one baby coul
do this or that, affect us. On the othe
hand, it is a good idea to learn within
q what limits of time We may expect thi
or that skill to be possible, becaus
otherwise we may not be eXpectin
+ enough of our children. A case i
+ point is the mother who still feeds he
baby at the age of two, not realizin
that many babies can eat pretty wei
$ without much spilling, by 10 months
i The wise procedure is to furnish
simple, free environment, where tn
baby will have ample opportunity 70
behaving as his developing muscles an
q needs tell him tol