# Balancing on all fours

You hold a toy up high so they let go with one hand and stay on all fours, balanced on three points.

To do with your baby between 4 and 8 months. It works on: balance and gross motor skills. You'll need: toy.

## What do I need?

- Toy

## How do I do it?

1. **Set up the position.** Place your baby on all fours, in a crawling position, on a firm surface. If they can't hold it on their own yet, help them stay there for a few seconds.
2. **Show them the toy.** Show them an eye-catching toy, holding it up a little. Encourage them to lift one hand and reach for it: “Grab it!”
3. **Watch them balance.** Notice what happens when they lift a hand. They're now holding themselves up on three points: one hand and both knees. You'll see their body shift so they don't tip over.
4. **Switch sides.** Offer the toy on the right, then on the left, so they practise with both sides. Keep going as long as they're enjoying the game.

## What are they learning?

When they let go with one hand, they balance on three points and use their tummy and lower back muscles to stay up. They'll need that balance to crawl, because crawling means lifting one hand and the opposite knee at the same time.

- **Balance**: Keeps their body steady on three points when they let go with one hand
- **Gross motor skills**: Holds the crawling position with their tummy, back, arms and legs

## What the research says

- Dusing SC. Postural variability and sensorimotor development in infancy. Developmental medicine and child neurology. 2016;58 Suppl 4:17-21. doi:10.1111/dmcn.13045 (https://doi.org/10.1111/dmcn.13045)
- Harbourne RT, Stergiou N. Nonlinear analysis of the development of sitting postural control. Developmental Psychobiology. 2003;42(4):368-377. doi:10.1002/dev.10110 (https://doi.org/10.1002/dev.10110)
- Adolph KE, Franchak JM. The development of motor behavior. Wiley interdisciplinary reviews Cognitive science. 2017;8(1-2). doi:10.1002/wcs.1430 (https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1430)
- Gerber RJ, Wilks T, Erdie-Lalena C. Developmental milestones: motor development. Pediatrics in Review. 2010;31(7):267-277. doi:10.1542/pir.31-7-267 (https://doi.org/10.1542/pir.31-7-267)
- Adolph KE, Berger SE, Leo AJ. Developmental continuity? Crawling, cruising, and walking. Developmental Science. 2011;14(2):306-318. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7687.2010.00981.x (https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2010.00981.x)

Reviewed by Javier Atance Ibar, PhD in Education.

https://papakoala.com/en-gb/activities/balancing-on-all-fours/