What should 5 month old babies be doing

Your little one will surprise you each day with their new tricks. Where has the time gone? Getting Pregnant. Popular links under Pregnancy First Trimester. Popular links under Baby Baby Month by Month. Popular links under Toddler Toddler Month by Month. Baby Products. Baby can now spot a toy just out of reach, and grab it. Go baby! Baby will turn their head to hear a rattling sound and may start to turn their head when they hear a voice. How cute! What do 5-month-old babies do?

Can a 5-month-old be teething? How often should a 5-month-old poop? My 5-month-old is constipated. How can I get my 5-month-old baby to poop? My 5-month-old has diarrhea. What should I do? My 5-month-old baby a cough. My 5-month-old is vomiting. My 5-month-old has a fever. My 5-month-old has a stuffy nose. Five-month-olds need plenty of rest. Your baby is getting stronger and she is working on building those all-important core muscles. By now, she can raise and hold her head and chest when lying on her stomach.

She'll continue to strengthen these muscles as she pushes her head and chest further up. Perhaps she'll enthusiastically move her legs and rock back and forth on her tummy. This isn't just her being cute — it's how she's building the strength to eventually roll over and also to start crawling. Babies are fast learners and each experience will teach your little one so many things. At around 5 months old, your baby will start to learn that each action has a reaction.

Perhaps she will kick her mattress and notice the crib rocks, or she'll drop something and see that you pick it right up. This will encourage her to become curious and she will test out how she can influence the world around her. This may get frustrating for you as a parent — it's not fun to pick up a dropped rattle for the umpteenth time — but indulge her as long as it's safe.

Make sure she doesn't play with anything she can choke on, or that's breakable, sharp, or toxic. Experimenting helps her brain develop and will also help her better understand how she can impact her environment. As your baby's cognitive abilities expand, you'll be fascinated by her ability to soak up information like a sponge.

Engage her eager mind by taking her for walks around the neighborhood, talking to her, and showing her new things. She will love books with large, brightly colored pictures.

You can also help her develop her language skills by calling out the names of the new things she sees.

She may even babble back as if she has understood you. Show references Hide references. Enter your due date or child's birthday dd 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 mm Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec yyyy Trying to conceive? We use your health information to make our site even more helpful.

By clicking the button, you agree to our policies and to get emails from us. Join BabyCentre. Sign up to receive free emails and track your baby's development.

Track my baby. Most popular in Baby. See all in Community. See all in Getting Pregnant. See all in Pregnancy. See all in Preschooler. It can be made of soft plastic, cotton or paper — as long as it's big enough to cover the chest and tummy, you're good to go.

What to Expect follows strict reporting guidelines and uses only credible sources, such as peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions and highly respected health organizations. Learn how we keep our content accurate and up-to-date by reading our medical review and editorial policy. What to Expect selects products based on independent research and suggestions from our community of millions of parents; learn more about our review process. We may earn commissions from shopping links.

The educational health content on What To Expect is reviewed by our medical review board and team of experts to be up-to-date and in line with the latest evidence-based medical information and accepted health guidelines, including the medically reviewed What to Expect books by Heidi Murkoff. This educational content is not medical or diagnostic advice. Use of this site is subject to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Registry Builder New. Medically Reviewed by Lauren Crosby, M. Medical Review Policy All What to Expect content that addresses health or safety is medically reviewed by a team of vetted health professionals. Your 5-Month-Old Baby.

Your 5-month-old baby's development. See Month 5 Videos. At a Glance. Sleeping basics. They also nap for three to five hours a day, spaced between two or three naps.

Feeding basics. Breastfed babies should get 24 to 36 ounces of breast milk a day spread out over about five or six feeds. Formula-fed babies should have 24 to 36 ounces of formula in about five feeds. Did you know? Your baby will love playing games like peek-a-boo and hide-and-seek as she begins to grasp the concept of object permanence. Are Teething Gels Safe?

Read More. Could baby have allergies? Allergy symptoms in babies tend to resemble those of cold symptoms, and include runny noses, sneezing, coughing, watery eyes and congestion. Hand, foot and mouth disease Contrary to its dire-sounding name, hand, foot and mouth disease HFMD is very common in babies and children under the age of 5 and tends to be a fairly mild infection.

The telltale sign is a painful, bumpy, red rash or blisters that appear on — you guessed it — the hands, soles of the feet and inside of the mouth.