Journal Entry #3: Grabbing

• Newborn- A baby is born with the grasping reflex. For the first eight weeks this is instinctual and involuntary. Usually, a baby's hands will be clenched in a fist. An example of this is when i was holding my newborn baby cousin and she would curl her tiny fingers around mine.
• 3 Months- At this age, a baby begins to notice things that he/she likes and tries to hold or pick them up. They start to develope hand eye coordination and can do things such as bat toys over and over. An example of this is when a child that I was babysitting had a mobile over his play pen and when he would lie down, he would often reach for the mobile and try to grab it.
• 4 Months- By this time a baby can pick up large objects, such as blocks, but they do not yet have the ability to pick up small objects like peas. Before something like that can happen, they have to develope better finger dexterity. An example of this is when my cousin could pick up her favorite toy, which was a large finding nemo.
• 9 to 12 Months- Child begins to pick up objects with little effort. Their thumb and forefinger is more developed which allows them to pick up small objects. With this increased coordination, they may begin to use utensils when eating. At this time, a child also starts to have a preference for being left or right handed (caregiver wont be able to tell untill the ages of 2 to 3). An example of this was when I was at the beach and I would sometimes get my cousins their lunch and they were now able to pick up all of their food, even if it was small finger foods such as cherios.