Is it normal for my baby to crawl backwards?

Yes. When your baby starts learning to crawl she will choose the easiest way to do it.

Your baby may feel stronger on her arms than her legs, in which case she'll push or scoot backward. Lots of babies do this, and it doesn't mean that your baby is skipping a developmental milestone.

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Backward crawling probably won't bother your baby if she can move to where she wants to go. As her legs get stronger, she'll learn to crawl forward on her own.

If you want to encourage your baby to move forwards, put her favourite toy in front of her, just out of her reach. The struggle to get there might frustrate your little one, but give her a few moments to try to reach the toy without your help. This will help to strengthen the muscles she needs to crawl forward.

It's completely normal if your baby never crawls forward, or skips crawling altogether. It's getting mobile that's important, no matter how your baby does it.

If your baby was born early (before 37 weeks of pregnancy), bear in mind she may reach this and other milestones later than her peers.

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BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organisations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals. We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies.


This article was written using the following sources:

Hall DMB and Elliman D. 2006. Health for all children. 4th ed (revised). Oxford: Oxford University Press, p.248

NHS. nd. Birth to five development timeline. NHS Choices, Tools. www.nhs.ukOpens a new window [Accessed August 2011]
The BabyCenter Editorial Team
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