Wonder Weeks: A guide to your baby’s development leaps
Is your baby suddenly clingy and fussy? Chances are they’re in a Wonder Week.
Babies grow and change a lot in their first two years, from lifting their head to taking their first steps. But there are also some big changes occuring with their mental development. This is where Wonder Weeks, or baby leaps, come in.
Wonder Weeks were discovered by physical anthropologist Hetty van de Rijt and developmental psychologist Frans Plooij in the Netherlands in the early 1990s. Their research found that babies go through 10 major age-related changes, or leaps, during the first 20 months of life.
Each leap brings a new set of skills and sensations and while it’s exciting, it can also be overwhelming and stressful for your baby.
As a result, during these leaps your little one will cry more, be more clingy and cranky, have trouble sleeping and will eat less. However, this period of fussiness isn’t all bad news as it’s a positive sign that they’re growing and learning!
When are the Wonder Weeks?
The Wonder Weeks theory highlights important leaps in a baby’s development during their first year. These leaps signify significant progress in how babies think, feel, and move. While every baby is different, here are the main Wonder Weeks:
Week 5: The World of Changing Sensations: During this leap, babies become more aware of their surroundings and start to recognise familiar faces and sounds.
Week 8: The World of Patterns: Babies start noticing patterns around them and may begin to like certain things more than others.
Week 12: The World of Smooth Transitions: This leap marks the beginning of more refined motor skills, such as reaching and grasping objects.
Week 19: The World of Events: Babies become more aware of cause-and-effect relationships and and might try to solve simple problems.
Week 26: The World of Relationships: During this leap, babies become more aware of people around them and form stronger bonds with their caregivers.
Week 37: The World of Categories: Babies begin sorting things and ideas, setting the stage for learning language.
Week 46: The World of Sequences: Your little one gains a better grasp of sequences and routines, leading to improvements in language and communication abilities.
Week 55: Making Connections: Babies make connections between different concepts and begin to demonstrate more complex problem-solving abilities.
Week 64: Understanding Systems: During this leap, babies start understanding more complex ideas and how different things fit together.
Week 75: Applying Principles: Babies begin to use what they’ve learned in new situations, showing more advanced thinking skills.
Remember, these leaps may not always occur exactly on schedule and can vary from one baby to another.
How can you tell if your baby is in a Wonder Week?
You’ll be able to tell if your baby is in a Wonder Week by noticing changes in their behaviour. They might be more fussy, clingy, sleeping less (or hardly at all!), not eating much and generally being a lot more difficult.
You might also notice that your baby is reaching new milestones or showing off some new skills. Keeping track of your baby’s age and developmental milestones can also help you to recognise when they’re entering a Wonder Week.
What is a sunny week?
While ‘stormy weeks’ are times when babies might be fussier and clingier due to developmental leaps, ‘sunny weeks’ means a time when your baby is generally happy and content. Sunny weeks give both babies and parents a break from the challenges of leap-related behaviour changes.
What is the Wonder Weeks book?
The Wonder Weeks: A Stress-Free Guide to Your Baby’s Behavior is a book by physical anthropologist Hetty van de Rijt and ethologist and developmental psychologist Frans Plooij. Recent editions also feature Xaviera Plas-Plooij as a co-author.
The book helps parents figure out why their baby might be cranky, clingy, or crying, and gives helpful tips on child development. It explains that these behaviours could indicate a leap in brain development, where they learn new things and see the world differently. Being fussy might mean they’re making important progress!
The Wonder Weeks: A Stress-Free Guide to Your Baby’s Behavior is a book with advice to parents about child development. Buy the book here.
The app about your baby’s Wonder Weeks
The Wonder Weeks app is a helpful tool for parents to track their baby’s developmental leaps and milestones. Developed based on the popular book by Hetty van de Rijt and Frans Plooij.
With the Wonder Weeks app, parents can enter their baby’s birth date and get personalised alerts about their baby’s upcoming developmental leaps. These alerts help parents prepare for changes in their baby’s behaviour, like more fussiness or clinginess, and understand why these changes are happening.
The Wonder Weeks app can help you track your baby’s mental leaps.
