Baby at 6 months
Updated 25 Oct 2026
Skills most babies can do at 6 months
Social and emotional
- Your baby can tell familiar faces apart and starts to recognise whether someone is a stranger
- Your baby loves playing with people, especially their parents
- Your baby responds to other people's affection, and your little darling often seems very happy and cheerful
- Your baby especially loves looking at themselves in the mirror. Isn't that cute?
Language and communication
- Your baby responds to sounds they hear by making sounds
- Your baby can string vowels together and make little sounds like “a”, “e”, “o”. Your baby especially loves making these sounds with you – which means your baby loves it when you chat with them.
- Your baby recognises and responds when someone calls their name
- Your baby makes sounds to show happiness or displeasure
- Your baby starts to say consonants such as “m” or “p”
Cognitive (learning, thinking and problem-solving)
- Your baby looks around at the space and things around them
- Your baby brings things to their mouth
- Your baby shows curiosity about things and tries to get things that are out of reach
- Your baby starts passing things from one hand to the other
Movement / Physical development
- Your baby can roll over both ways (from tummy to back and from back to tummy)
- Your baby starts being able to sit without support
- When standing, your baby can support their weight on both legs and can even bounce
- Your baby starts learning to move back and forth; sometimes babies crawl/shuffle backwards before they can crawl/shuffle forwards
If your baby shows any of the signs below, take them to see a doctor soon
- Your baby doesn't try to reach for or grasp things within reach
- Your baby doesn't show affection for their parents or main caregivers
- Your baby doesn't respond to sounds around them
- Your baby has difficulty getting things into their mouth
- Your baby doesn't try to make vowel sounds (“a”, “e”, “o”)
- Your baby can't roll over in either direction
- Your baby doesn't laugh or make squealing sounds
- Your baby's muscles seem very stiff
- Your baby's muscles seem very floppy, like a rag doll
Things you can do for your 6-month-old
- Play on the floor with your baby every day
- Learn to read your baby's mood. If your baby is happy, you can carry on with what you're doing. If you notice your baby is unhappy, take a break and comfort them.
- Help your baby learn to cope with feeling upset when they are angry. Your baby may suck their hands as a way to soothe themselves.
- Play the “copycat” game – when your baby smiles, you smile; when your baby makes sounds, you copy them.
- Repeat the sounds your baby makes and say simple words that go with those sounds. For example, if your baby says “ba”, say “bà” (grandma) or “ba” (dad).
- Read to your baby every day. And praise your baby when they babble as if “reading”
- When your baby looks at something, point to it and say something about it, such as its colour, shape or name.
- When your baby drops a toy on the floor, pick it up and give it back. This game helps your baby learn about cause and effect
- Read colourful picture books to your baby.
- When there's something new, show it to your baby and name it
- Hold your baby upright while they sit, or support them with pillows. Let your baby look around and give them toys to look at while they balance.
- Put your baby on their tummy or back and place a toy just out of reach. Don't forget to encourage your baby to wriggle towards the toy.
Signs that need a doctor now
If you notice any of the signs below, please go to the nearest health facility to be checked by a doctor.
Bluish skin around the lips, hands and feet, or the whole body
A bluish colour around the lips, on the hands and feet, or over the whole body is a sign the baby is short of oxygen. Call 115 or take your baby to the nearest hospital at once.
Difficulty breathing, fast breathing, chest indrawing
Breathing faster than 60 breaths a minute, chest indrawing, flaring nostrils or pauses in breathing are signs of breathing difficulty in a newborn. This sign needs to be checked by a doctor. Please take your baby to the nearest health facility now. If the baby stops breathing or turns blue, call 115.
Convulsions (fits) in a baby
A convulsion in a young baby is a danger sign. Call 115 or take your baby to the nearest hospital at once; lay the baby on their side and do not put anything in the mouth.
Signs of dehydration
No wet diaper for 6 hours, a dry mouth and lips, and few or no tears when crying are signs of dehydration. Sunken eyes, a sunken soft spot, cold hands and feet and excessive sleepiness are signs of severe dehydration and an emergency. Please take your baby to the nearest emergency department now or call 115.
Source: Vinmec – Mất nước ở trẻ sơ sinh
Fever of 38°C or higher in a baby under 3 months
A baby under 3 months with a temperature of 38°C or higher needs to be seen by a doctor, even if the baby seems otherwise well. Please take your baby to the nearest health facility now.
Jaundice spreading to the belly, arms and legs, or appearing early
Jaundice that spreads to the belly, arms, legs, palms or soles, appears within the first 24 hours after birth, or lasts more than 2 weeks needs to be checked by a doctor. Please take your baby in now, especially if the baby is feeding poorly or very sleepy.
Source: Bệnh viện Đa khoa Tâm Anh – Cách chăm sóc trẻ sơ sinh bị vàng da
Poor feeding, lethargy, hard to wake
Feeding problems, clearly reduced activity, or a baby who feels cold are danger signs in a newborn. This sign needs to be checked by a doctor. Please take your baby to the nearest health facility now.
Fever after birth
A temperature of 38°C or higher after giving birth can be a sign of infection. This sign needs to be checked by a doctor. Please go to the nearest health facility now.
Source: CDC – Hear Her: Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms
Heavy bleeding after birth
Soaking through one or more pads in an hour, or passing large clots, is a sign that needs emergency care. Call 115 or have someone take you to the nearest hospital now.
Source: CDC – Hear Her: Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms
Thoughts of harming yourself or your baby
You are not alone, and these thoughts need a doctor's support soon. Please tell someone you trust right away and go to the nearest health facility today. If you feel unsafe right now, call 115.
Source: CDC – Hear Her: Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms
Sources
Content advised by our doctors.
- HealthyChildren.org (AAP) (accessed 22 Oct 2026)
- CDC (accessed 22 Oct 2026)
- Vinmec (accessed 22 Oct 2026)
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: Vinmec – Triệu chứng suy hô hấp ở trẻ sơ sinh
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: WHO – Newborn mortality (fact sheet)
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: Vinmec – Mất nước ở trẻ sơ sinh
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: Vinmec – Trẻ bị sốt, khi nào cần đưa đi khám?
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: Bệnh viện Đa khoa Tâm Anh – Cách chăm sóc trẻ sơ sinh bị vàng da
- Source for the signs that need a doctor: CDC – Hear Her: Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms
This article helps you understand and prepare. It does not replace a check-up. For an answer about your own situation, please ask the doctor who is caring for you.