Table 3 - Developmental milestones and feeding skills birth to 36 months


From the following article

Swallowing and feeding in infants and young children

Joan C. Arvedson

GI Motility online (2006)

doi:10.1038/gimo17

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Age (months)Development/postureFeeding/oral sensorimotor

Source: Adapted from Arvedson and Brodsky10 (pp. 62–67).

Birth to 4–6Neck and trunk with balanced flexor and extensor tone
Visual fixation and tracking
Learning to control body against gravity
Sitting with support near 6 months
Rolling over
Brings hands to mouth
Nipple feeding, breast, or bottle
Hand on bottle during feeding (2–4 months)
Maintains semiflexed posture during feeding
Promotion of infant–parent interaction
6–9 (transition feeding)Sitting independently for short time
Self-oral stimulation (mouthing hands and toys)
Extended reach with pincer grasp
Visual interest in small objects
Object permanence
Stranger anxiety
Crawling on belly, creeping on all fours
Feeding more upright position
Spoon feeding for thin, smooth puree
Suckle pattern initially Suckle right arrow suck
Both hands to hold bottle
Finger feeding introduced
Vertical munching of easily dissolvable solids
Preference for parents to feed
9–12Pulling to stand
Cruising along furniture
First steps by 12 months
Assisting with spoon; some become independent
Refining pincer grasp
Cup drinking
Eats lumpy, mashed food
Finger feeding for easily dissolvable solids
Chewing includes rotary jaw action
12–18Refining all gross and fine motor skills
Walking independently
Climbing stairs
Running
Grasping and releasing with precision
Self-feeding: grasps spoon with whole hand
Holding cup with 2 hands
Drinking with 4–5 consecutive swallows
Holding and tipping bottle
>18–24Improving equilibrium with refinement of upper extremity coordination.
Increasing attention and persistence in play activities
Parallel or imitative play
Independence from parents
Using tools
Swallowing with lip closure
Self-feeding predominates
Chewing broad range of food
Up–down tongue movements precise
24–36Refining skills
Jumping in place
Pedaling tricycle
Using scissors
Circulatory jaw rotations
Chewing with lips closed
One-handed cup holding and open cup drinking with no spilling
Using fingers to fill spoon
Eating wide range of solid food
Total self-feeding, using fork