# Day 271: Month ten

> Nine months old today. The 12-month list is the new frame, read as 'by 1 year, most babies'; what the 9-month visit left you with; and corrected age, still.

- Series: Your tenth month, day by day (https://chorevia.com/learn/tenth-month), day 271 of 365, week 37
- Canonical URL: https://chorevia.com/learn/tenth-month/day-271
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-21
- Publisher: Chorevia (https://chorevia.com)
- Cite as: Chorevia. "Day 271: Month ten." Last reviewed October 21, 2026. https://chorevia.com/learn/tenth-month/day-271

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Nine months old today. The last month's notes are at [your ninth month](https://chorevia.com/learn/ninth-month). The 9-month visit is behind you, or nearly, and this month's frame is the next list: what most babies do by their first birthday.

## Heart

By 1 year, most babies play games with you, like pat-a-cake; wave "bye-bye"; call a parent "mama," "dada," or another special name; understand "no"; put something in a container; look for things they saw you hide; pull up to stand; walk while holding on to furniture; drink from a cup without a lid as you hold it; and pick up small bits of food between thumb and pointer finger ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/1-year.html)). Your baby is 9 months old; that list is three months away, and "most" means skills at least 75% of babies show by that age, so a missed one is a reason to check in, not to wait and see ([Zubler et al., 2022](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35132439/)). Born early? Use corrected age ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx)).

## Head

The 9-month visit left you with a screening that was a conversation, not a test ([Lipkin & Macias, 2020](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843861/)). If anything was referred, your state's early intervention program does a free evaluation and you don't need a referral ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/families/concerned.html)). If nothing was, the next fixed point is the first birthday, when your baby will be checked for anemia and, depending on risk, lead ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-12-Months-Old.aspx)). Between the two visits, the watching is yours.

## Body

What the month looks like: pulling up to stand, often before a baby knows how to get back down, then cruising sideways along furniture ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Movement-8-to-12-Months.aspx)); most pinching with thumb and finger by the end of this stage ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Hand-and-Finger-Skills.aspx)); pointing and gestures to say what they want toward the end of the first year ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Language-Development-8-to-12-Months.aspx)); separation anxiety peaking between 10 and 18 months ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Emotional-and-Social-Development-8-12-Months.aspx)). Not on the list: taking a few steps alone and pointing to ask are 15-month milestones ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/15-months.html)), and crawling isn't on any CDC checklist ([Kretch et al., 2022](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35876833/)). Each gets its own day.

## Try today

### The twelve-month frame

- **Time:** 10 minutes, with your partner if you can
- **From the guide:** [Milestones by 12 months](https://chorevia.com/learn/7-12-months#milestones-by-12-months)

1. Open the CDC's 1-year list on your phone or print it ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/1-year.html)).
2. Read each item out loud and mark it "started," "not yet," or "haven't tried." No scoring; the list describes a baby three months older than yours.
3. For every "haven't tried," write the day you'll try it: a cup you hold, a block and a cup, a toy under a cloth. Those are activities, not tests.
4. Put the page on the fridge next to the after-visit note, and leave it there until the first birthday.

**Make it work:** If you were told to use corrected age, use it here too ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx)).

## Watch for

- **Normal:** a 12-month list that's mostly "not yet" at 9 months; it describes 1 year ([Zubler et al., 2022](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35132439/)). **Bring it up now**, if it wasn't raised at the visit, if your baby doesn't sit without support, look when you call their name, or babble lots of different sounds ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)).
- **Normal:** a skill that showed off in the exam room and vanished for a week at home. **Talk with your pediatrician** if your baby has lost skills they used to have ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html)).
- **Normal:** a warm, cranky day or two after the visit's shots. **Call within 24 hours** if your baby has a fever with no other symptoms for more than 2 days, any fever that lasts more than 3 days, or a fever that comes back after a day without one ([AAP](https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever)).

## For you

A new month, and the same short list for you, because it runs for a full year after birth. Care now, not later, for a headache that won't go away or gets worse, dizziness or fainting, changes in vision, a fever of 100.4°F or higher, extreme swelling of the hands or face, trouble breathing, chest pain or a fast-beating heart, severe belly pain that doesn't go away, heavy bleeding, overwhelming tiredness, or thoughts about harming yourself or your baby, and tell whoever sees you that you were pregnant within the last year ([CDC](https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html)). The quieter line: if sadness has lasted more than two weeks, go to your own doctor without waiting for a visit ([Office on Women's Health](https://womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/childbirth-and-beyond/recovering-birth)). Nobody hands you a questionnaire at nine months; read this one yourself.

If you're the partner: the fridge list is the baby's. Add one line at the bottom for her, and ask about it on the first of every month.

## Sources

- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Milestones by 1 Year." Learn the Signs. Act Early. program, updated 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/1-year.html
- Zubler JM, Wiggins LD, Macias MM, et al. "Evidence-Informed Milestones for Developmental Surveillance Tools." *Pediatrics*, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35132439/
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Corrected Age For Preemies." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2018. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/preemie/Pages/Corrected-Age-For-Preemies.aspx
- Lipkin PH, Macias MM; AAP Council on Children With Disabilities, Section on Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. "Promoting Optimal Development: Identifying Infants and Young Children With Developmental Disorders Through Developmental Surveillance and Screening." *Pediatrics*, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31843861/
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Concerned About Your Child's Development?" Updated 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/families/concerned.html
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Checkup Checklist: First Birthday (12 Months Old)." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2021. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/Your-Childs-Checkups/Pages/Your-Checkup-Checklist-12-Months-Old.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Movement Milestones in Babies 8 to 12 Months Old." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2021. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Movement-8-to-12-Months.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Hand and Finger Skills." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2009. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Hand-and-Finger-Skills.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Language Development: 8 to 12 Months." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2009. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Language-Development-8-to-12-Months.aspx
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Emotional and Social Development: 8 to 12 Months." HealthyChildren.org, updated 2009. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/Emotional-and-Social-Development-8-12-Months.aspx
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Milestones by 15 Months." Learn the Signs. Act Early. program, accessed 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/15-months.html
- Kretch KS, Willett SL, Hsu LY, et al. "'Learn the Signs. Act Early.': Updates and Implications for Physical Therapists." *Pediatric Physical Therapy*, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35876833/
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Milestones by 9 Months." Learn the Signs. Act Early. program, updated 2026. https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/9-months.html
- American Academy of Pediatrics. "Fever" (symptom checker). HealthyChildren.org, accessed 2026. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/symptom-checker/Pages/symptomviewer.aspx?symptom=Fever
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Urgent Maternal Warning Signs and Symptoms." HEAR HER, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/hearher/maternal-warning-signs/index.html
- Office on Women's Health. "Recovering from birth." US Department of Health and Human Services, 2021. https://womenshealth.gov/pregnancy/childbirth-and-beyond/recovering-birth