[boatbaby]

My sixth month old DS still mastering the arts of rolling over and starting to dive into the world of mobility.

My question is... is it better or worse to help him? Like if he is on his belly and flailing about, should I give his feet a boost to help him figure out how to move forward? Or would he then just be learning it wrong?
And with rolling over, should I gently roll him around so he gets the feel of it, or just let him figure it out at his own pase?

I am not rushing him, he has fun when we do this. I am just wondering if the mama training wheels do any good?

 

[plantmommy]

I don't think they hurt! If it's fun for both of you, why not?

 

[artgoddess]

Sounds like you two are having fun

.

I have to admit I did very little to help my son learn mobility. But I suspect DH of working with him behind my back. It had nothing to do with letting him figure it out, I knew that he would regardless of our help or not. I just was so in love with each stage that I wanted it to last forever. He's not a year yet, but growing too fast.

I'm sure he loves your help. You are teaching him he can rely on mama for support when he needs it. Sooner than we like these boys will no longer *need* us and I say enjoy as much of it as you can now!

 

[Kate'smommy]

I play games with my 6 mth old that involve rolling her back and forth and then tickling her and sometimes I "help" her crawl, but I think of it more as fun interaction rather than teaching her. I don't worry about teaching her wrong -- she'll learn it all eventually, as I learned with my oldest. When my oldest was a baby, I played rolling games and let him push on my hands with his feet, but he still rarely rolled and didn't crawl until long after he learned to walk. Just keep having fun.

 

[LizD]

I think such things are fun and beneficial as long as you don't expect anything from them. Your baby is on his/her own timetable of development, and learns more from simply having fun than working on any particular skills.

 

[~*~MamaJava~*~]

I "encourage" my boys when they are discovering any skill, even one as seemingly basic as rolling over...just now Luke is trying to turn over and I'll hold his little hand and he'll pull himself all the way around. I don't think it really does anything as far as getting them to do it sooner, but it certainly makes the process more fun and less frustrating.

 

[rubelin]

we'd play rolling games and sometimes I've pressed my hand on the bottom of a foot so he had something to push against but mostly just to cut down on the frustration like Christina mentioned

 

[Tanibani]

I don't help.

I don't have any data to back it up, but I just feel it's "better" to let the baby experience it (feeling her own sense in space, as she is learning to use her muscles/body) on her own.

It's really amazing to watch... I just love to observe her learning how to use her body.

When DS or DH try to help her roll on her tummy, I yell no!!!

"Let her do it herself." She hasn't learned anything "wrong" yet.

She hasn't crawled yet. But she loves her tummy time.

 

[Frazzled Mama]

I help out a bit. I really wanted my 6 month old to master sitting up on his own. It broke my heart to see him do a face plant everytime he reached for a toy. I don't think it would hurt to aid him in crawling or sitting. They will eventually master in on their own anyways, you are just showing them that it can be done.

 

[veganbaby]

I don't roll her over, but I do help by putting her on her side and letting her do the rest. I don't want her to get too frustrated. I have not helped her to see what happens and she gets very frustrated and she starts crying. Not just a little whine, but an all out crying. So when she starts to fuss a bit, I will put her on her side. She will roll over by herself on her side. I only help her when I feel as though seh is asking for my help.

 

[super duper]

i used to help with rolling over. dd would get 3/4 of the way over but get "stuck" on her arm. so id either put my hand to her heel so she had something to push off of or id gently roll her over her arm so she could get a feel for what she was supposed to do. i have no idea if i actually helped her or harmed her.

as far as crawling, i think dh helped her by moving her arms and legs but that kind of bothered me. i think she would have figured it out, and she didnt seem bothered by his help. i have no idea why that one gave me issues.

i did teach her to climb the stairs by placing her hands and feet and showing her how to push up. she learned that in 2 very brief sessions so im sure she would have figured it out eventually.

now she is learning to walk and i "help" her all the time. she holds my fingers and walks all over the place.

all in all i only do these things if they seem fun to her, as you said. if she was complaining about walking around i wouldnt do it. but she seems to like it so i keep doing it. i say let your child "tell" you if he enjoys your help. if he enjoys it, then keep it up.

 

[TerriKay]

Some days I help, some days I don't.

Yesterday I sat on the couch and "willed" him to be able to roll over. I just knew it would be the day, so I sat quietly on the couch with video camera in hand!!

Then to my joy, ds rolled over from back to tummy for the VERY first time by himself!!!! AND I got it on video!!!

My dd started crawling at just under 6 months. The night before she took off, her dad was showing her "how to crawl", then the next day, she saw a newspaper across the room and took off to get it!!

I think that if they are getting upset, it doesn't hurt to help out a bit, but if they are content to try on their own, just sit back with the camera and enjoy the show!! They will learn when the time is right!!