From the first search for milk to the first bite of soft banana, your baby’s mouth goes through a remarkable amount of learning in one year. Oral motor skills, the movements of the lips, tongue and jaw, are the foundation for feeding and, later, for speech. Here is how they develop and simple ways to support them.
Quick answer: oral motor skills
- Newborn reflexes: rooting, sucking and swallowing.
- 4 to 6 months: the tongue-thrust reflex fades, readying your baby for spoon feeding.
- 6 to 9 months: munching, moving food side to side and drinking sips from a cup.
- 9 to 12 months: biting soft foods and early chewing.
How oral motor skills develop
- 0 to 3 months: rooting (turning to a touch on the cheek) and a strong suck-swallow-breathe pattern.
- 4 to 6 months: more control of the tongue and lips; mouthing toys and hands.
- 6 to 9 months: up-and-down munching, closing the lips on a spoon, moving food with the tongue.
- 9 to 12 months: rotary chewing begins, biting through soft solids, drinking from an open or free-flow cup.
Supporting oral motor skills
- Offer safe mouthing toys and teething rings. See why babies put everything in their mouths.
- Start solids around 6 months and move to lumpier textures within a few weeks. See signs your baby is ready for solids.
- Offer soft finger foods to practise biting and chewing.
- Introduce an open cup from 6 months, with small sips of water.
- Limit long-term dummy use in the daytime after about 6 to 12 months.
- Talk, sing and make faces together to exercise lips and tongue.
Links with speech
The same muscles used for eating help babies make sounds. Babbling, raspberries and copying mouth movements are all practice for talking. See baby language development.
When to talk to your doctor
- difficulty latching, sucking or poor weight gain in the early weeks
- frequent coughing, choking or wet-sounding breathing during feeds
- strong gagging with all textures beyond 9 to 10 months
- not chewing any soft foods by 12 months
- possible tongue-tie, such as difficulty lifting or sticking out the tongue
Frequently asked questions
Is gagging a bad sign?
No, gagging is a normal protective reflex while babies learn to eat, and it decreases with practice.
When should my baby move to lumpy foods?
Soon after starting solids, usually by 7 to 8 months. Waiting too long can make textures harder to accept later.
Do teeth matter for chewing?
Babies chew soft foods with their gums long before molars arrive.
Sources
- NHS Start for Life: Baby’s first solid foods
- American Academy of Pediatrics, HealthyChildren.org: Feeding and development
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA): Feeding and swallowing in children
This guide is general information, not medical advice. If you have concerns about your baby’s feeding, talk to your doctor or health visitor.