Your baby has been growing so much in his first year, and this includes his emotional development. You’ve experienced all of his emotions (sometimes quite loudly!), but you may have noticed him beginning to take an interest in the feelings of others. As R. A. Thompson and R. Goodvin state, “(i)n infants the raw, basic experience of emotion is readily apparent, but the infant is also sensitive to the emotions of others and strives to comprehend their meaning.”¹

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At the age of 9-12 months, you’ll be able to see your baby’s growing Expressing Feelings skills as he becomes more aware of the emotions of others. You may see him mirror your own feelings by giggling when he hears you laugh or looking upset when he hears your voice turn angry.² You may even notice him developing a sense of humor as he falls into fits of laughter when you make a silly face or tickle his belly.

As always, take care to be a good role model and show your baby positive social and emotional behaviors. He will learn how to process and express his own feelings by watching how you follow social rules and share your emotions.¹ By modeling positive behavior and responses to others, you are helping your baby learn the proper and polite way to respond in different situations.^1,3 In the long run, the time you spend modeling positive situations and behaviors for him will pay off by helping him successfully interact with others and therefore making friends, building higher self-esteem, receiving the respect of others, and all in all, having a socially successful life.

Another development at the 9-12 month stage is your baby’s newfound ability to express his likes and dislikes. You will notice him reacting positively to familiar daily routines and developing a preference for favorite blankets or dolls during nap time.^4,5 By 12 months, he will be able to express happiness and joy when he sees familiar people and objects like a parent, a favorite toy, or his self-image in a mirror.

His attachment to favorite familiar objects will let him better calm and self-soothe himself. You may also observe your baby using other Self-Control strategies to regulate his emotions and behaviors, including babbling and singing to himself or sucking on a pacifier or his thumb.⁴ He may also begin to use social referencing to calm himself.^6,7 Simply put, social referencing means checking in with a familiar person to see how to behave or react appropriately in a given situation. For instance, if a loud noise startles your baby, he may look to you to see if this noise is something to be concerned about.⁸ A reassuring smile from you will help reduce his fear and need for further comfort.

Play Tips:

Do you want to know how you can support your baby’s development of these Expressing Feelings and Self-Control skills at this age? It’s easy! Read on for some simple tips to incorporate into your daily play time together!

1. Provide your baby opportunities to self-soothe.⁴ At this age, your baby should feel secure in his attachment and bond with you. If he cries or fusses over a small frustration, give him a moment to try to calm himself before coming to his rescue. If his crying persists, incrementally respond with gentle reassurance, such as a soft touch or kind words, before picking him up.
2. Celebrate what your baby likes (and dislikes). Over time, you will know what foods, books, and toys your baby prefers. Show pictures of familiar people and objects to him and describe how he feels about each object (e.g. “You like blueberries. They’re delicious, aren’t they?”). Share his enthusiasm for his favorites and acknowledge his dislikes.
3. Encourage your baby to travel with his favorite toy. If your baby has a favorite doll or object, suggest that he bring it on outings to keep him company and make him feel secure. If he has not developed an affinity towards any object, that’s okay, too. Help your baby find a favorite object by giving him plenty of opportunities to play with a variety of toys. This way, he will naturally develop a favorite. When he does find a favorite toy or object, consider buying a couple so that you have a replacement if the original gets lost or destroyed.
4. Maintain established routines and schedules.⁴ Establishing a routine will help your baby know what will happen next, which will help him trust that everything will be okay. Before or during a new experience, talk to him about what is happening so that he is not surprised by the unknown.

(SPECIAL OFFER: Sign up for Playful Bee’s Bee Well developmental learning program to give your baby the best start in life. The first 10,000 children enroll for FREE! Sign up today.)

Developmental Milestones:

Has your newborn achieved the following Expressing Feelings and Self-Control developmental milestones yet? If yes, check off all the skill(s) he has already mastered to date using Playful Bee’s developmental milestones tracker. It’s absolutely FREE and so easy to use, just click HERE!

• Has favorite toys and people.

Sources:

¹Thompson, R. A., and Goodvin, R. (2005). The Individual Child: Temperament, Emotion, Self and Personality. Developmental Science: An Advanced Textbook (5th edition). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

²Gellens, Suzanne R. (2013). Building Brains. St. Pau, MN: Redleaf Press.

³Fredrickson, Barbara L. (2000). Cultivating Positive Emotions to Optimize Health and Well-Being. Prevention & Treatment, 3(1).

⁴Maryland State Department of Education (2010). Healthy Beginnings: Supporting Development and Learning from Birth through Three Years of Age.

⁵West Virginia Department of Health and Human Services, et al. West Virginia Early Learning Standards Framework: Infant/Toddler.

⁶Walden, Tedra A. and Ogan, Tamra A. (1988). The Development of Social Referencing. Child Development, 59.5, 1230-40.

⁷Striano, Tricia, and Rochat, Philippe (2000). Emergence of Selective Social Referencing in Infancy. Infancy, 1(2), 253-264.

⁸Kansas State Department of Education. Kansas Early Learning Standards: Building the Foundation for Successful Children.

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Playful Bee

Education Team at Playful Bee

Playful Bee is an e-Preschool that delivers inquiry-based preschool learning from the classroom to your home. Our preschool curriculum was created by our talented team of rock star teachers. With years of hands-on preschool and Kindergarten teaching experience, they've developed a high-quality preschool experience that is convenient-to-use and easy-to-teach by you, grandparents, or your nanny at home.

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