Baby behaviour: in a nutshell

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If you smile at a baby, she will probably smile back. Scowl at her and she might burst into tears. You can learn a lot about what your baby is feeling by looking at her face.

What baby is feeling

The world is starting to make some sense. Your baby has expectations, and unexpected things can upset him. He is very attached to certain people and things. He might love one toy over all others and will accept no substitutes.

Your baby probably has a favourite person (usually Mum or Dad). She understands where she ends and you start. She might also recognise her name or her face in the mirror. She  might be scared if you leave the room because you might not come back. A terrifying thought!

Crying is still your baby’s main way of communicating needs. If you attend to your baby’s needs promptly, she will tend to feel safer and will actually cry less.

Your baby is busy soaking up the world. Just like his parents, he appreciates a bit of down time in his day to relax and be comforted. 

What baby is doing

Your baby wants to discover and explore. Her natural curiosity will drive her to experiment with objects to see how they work. Even light and gravity are things she has to figure out. This might involve dropping your phone in the cat’s water dish or tipping the sugar bowl onto the rug. She’ll watch your reactions to see whether she’s doing the right thing. She’ll also do things like pinching, biting or hair pulling just to find out what happens.

Babies are born to experiment. Their behaviour is part of an innocent learning process – your baby is not trying to test your patience. You will just need to create a safe environment for exploration so your baby doesn’t hurt himself or break your new DVD player.

Boundaries start with keeping no-no things out of reach. Eventually, you can tell your baby which things are off limits.

Your baby is figuring out how to find her way in the world – and you are her navigator. She will learn a lot about how to behave by watching you. Your years as an important and influential role model have begun.

Discipline

For a baby, smacking just causes confusion and fear. A baby might even start to flinch or cry when a person who has smacked him comes near. Smacking a baby to stop him crying will only make him harder to comfort. Hear what other parents think about physical punishment in our film clip on smacking.

Some parents might hit their child because they are trying to relieve their own tension or stress in a situation. For more help with managing stress and angry feelings, read Feeling stressed and When you feel you might hurt your child.

Until the age of 12 months, babies have almost no awareness of their own behaviour. To prepare for the toddler years, read our 15 tips for encouraging good behaviour and view our film clip on encouraging good behaviour.

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  By Raising Children Network

  By three months, the world is starting to make sense to your baby. And by looking at your baby’s face you can learn a lot about what he is feeling. As he explores his new world, you can create a safe environment by keeping dangerous or precious things out of reach.

  • Feelings: your baby can respond to your presence with a smile or may be upset by your absence or something unexpected.
  • Behaviour: your baby is naturally curious and wants to experiment and discover new things. Crying is still his main way of communicating.
  • Discipline: your baby won’t be aware of his behaviour until the age of 12 months. Remember: smacking is never an effective form of discipline for children of any age.

  This article is an extract only. For more information visit raisingchildren.net.au/behaviour/babies_behaviour.html

  Sourced from the Raising Children Network's comprehensive and quality-assured Australian parenting website www.raisingchildren.net.au