At 5-6 months, your baby is learning about who they are. Your baby is also working out the difference between parents, caregivers, strangers, adults and children. At this age, your baby has made important attachments to you and other close family members or carers and likes spending time with these people.
Around this time, your baby might seem more aware or afraid of grown-ups they don’t know well – this is the beginning of stranger anxiety. It’s a typical part of learning to feel safe in the world. If you give your baby time, they’ll eventually get used to new people.
Your baby can express emotions – laughing, squealing and smiling with happiness, joy and pleasure. At this age, your baby smiles when they want to. But your baby also grunts, frowns and cries if they’re angry or sad.
When it comes to communicating, your baby might babble and make sounds like ‘baba’ or ‘gaga’. But your baby will also let you know what they want using other noises, movements and smiling.
Around this age, your baby can move their head on their own and is starting to move their body more by reaching, wriggling and rolling.
Your baby is also much better at using their eyes to guide their hands. Your baby can reach out for objects with one hand, grab things and put them in their mouth or move them from hand to hand. Touching and tasting is how they learn about things now.
Your baby’s appetite is growing, and they’re ready to experience how different foods taste and feel. Around 6 months is a good time to introduce solid foods.
At this age your baby might also bang or shake toys to learn how they work. And your baby might sit up with some support and use their hands to help them balance when they’re sitting