The process
Step One:
Before children can walk, they need to learn to balance, such as in
sitting, to shift their balance as occurs in crawling, and to develop
power in their lower limbs. This is why children about six months of age love to be held standing and flex and straighten their knees,
bouncing up and down.
Step Two:
Later they learn to pull themselves up to stand using furniture or
adult legs. They then prop themselves against furniture, freeing
their hands to play with objects. As they get more confident they
cruise around the furniture and later become adventurous, stretching
to cross gaps.
Step Three:
At first they can only get down by letting go and going bump. As
their muscle strength and balance improves they lower themselves with
control.
Many children begin pulling themselves up to stand at around eight
months and take their first independent steps before a year. However,
for most, walking independently occurs between 12 and 15 months.
What early walking looks like
At first children walk with their legs wide apart and take rapid
short steps. The base makes it hard for them to centre their weight
over the foot on the ground as the other leg comes forward. This
makes them "toddle", which is why they are known as
toddlers. They twist their trunk with each step and hold their arms
out in front to help with balance. They strike the ground with their
whole foot.
As they get better
In the second year they learn to stop, bend and twist without
falling over. At around 18 months they start to run. At around two,
toddlers can walk faster with longer, slower steps. They can walk
upstairs, holding onto the rail, two feet per step. At about three
they are striking the ground with their heel and lifting off from
their toe. They are starting to swing their arms alternately. Walking
on toes is common up to the age of three. If it persists past then or
only involves one foot, have you should have your child assessed by
your family doctor.
Pigeon-toed and bandy-legged
Children do not develop "straight" legs until about
seven years of age. When children start walking they tend to be
bandy-legged, pigeon-toed and look flat-footed. This often gets more
noticeable in the first few months of walking but improves by about
two years of age. From two years to three and a half years, the legs
become more and more knock-kneed. At about six to seven years of
age, children develop their adult leg alignment.
Flat footed
Infants have fat pads under their feet. They look flat-footed up
until about the age of three. Many older children who are labelled
flat-footed, are actually loose-jointed, so that their feet flatten
when bearing weight. If such a child develops an arch when standing
on tiptoes, he or she is not flat-footed. Most newborn babies have
feet that curve in along the inside border. This mostly disappears by
18 months of age and keeps improving throughout childhood.
What constitutes a genuine problem?
It is important to sort out those few children who have genuine
problems from the others who fall into the very wide range of normal.
If your child's gait and limb development fits the above patterns,
they are unlikely to have a problem. You should see your family
doctor if the difference that concerns you:
- persists beyond the normal age
- is extreme, or affects only one side
- is associated with other issues such as stiffness, weakness or other developmental problems.
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