Your baby has entered the "growing up so fast" phase. Every day, they surprise you with new movements they've learned. Wouldn't it be great if they could add sitting to their repertoire? However, babies need to be ready for this milestone. If you're sure your baby is ready, you can help them a little with it. How can you teach babies to sit? What are the exercises for baby sitting? You can follow some steps for this. Here are the step-by-step stages of baby sitting:
1. Before the Sitting Stage:
Babies can start attempting to sit from around 4 months old, but it may take until around 9 months for this milestone to happen. Don't rush it. Instead of worrying about questions like "When do babies sit?" or "When do babies start sitting?", focus on the sitting skills your baby needs to develop. It might be more helpful to focus on the question, "How do babies start sitting?" For a baby to sit, they need to be able to hold their head up, maintain balance, and have developed core muscles. Once you're confident that these skills are present, you can start counting down to their first sitting attempts.2. Preparing for Sitting:
From birth, your baby's neck, abdominal, and back muscles start to strengthen. Even actions like lifting their head to look at you while lying on their tummy or kicking their legs while lying down indicate muscle development. If you want to strengthen your baby's muscles and improve their motor skills, change their position frequently while lying down. Encourage them to reach for you, lift their arms, and hold their head. Baby sitting exercises are crucial for strengthening their abdominal and neck muscles.3. First Attempts:
Babies can typically hold their own heads up around 3-4 months old. Once they have discovered motor skills like this and completed exercises to strengthen their muscles, you can start the initial practice. First, sit your baby on your lap and support them by holding their hands to control their head. Alternatively, place them in a seat and surround them with pillows to help them stay balanced. Never take your eyes off them. At this stage, they might quickly topple to one side. As time goes on, their sitting time will increase.4. Continuing the Exercises:
If your baby can maintain balance and sit with the support of pillows, you no longer need them. For the last stage of baby sitting, place your baby on a soft surface. It should not be a chair or an unsafe seat but rather a cushion or a mattress. Sit them down and gently support their back. When you remove your hands, they should be able to sit, but it's still good to keep them under control. Over time, you'll see them sitting on their own.Tips for Baby Sitting Training:
- Each baby's development, including supported and unsupported sitting times, may vary. By applying baby sitting exercises and stages, you can provide support for your baby during this process.- To support your baby's sitting, focus on strengthening their muscles and increasing tummy time activities. If you need ideas for tummy time activities, you can read our article "Tummy Time: What is it and Why is it Important?"
- During tummy activities, maintain constant communication with your baby. Singing and talking can encourage them to stay on their tummy longer, reach out to you, and hold their head up for an extended period.
- Initially, your baby may not sit for long periods. Even if they lean to the sides, don't give up on the exercises. You can continue the sitting exercises by supporting them with pillows.
- To encourage sitting, place their toys in front of them and sit facing them to play together. Sitting babies can observe their surroundings more comfortably and play with their toys more easily.
