Looks where you point
What it is
Follows your finger to the thing you are showing, instead of looking at your hand.
Start preparing
- Point at something genuinely interesting and name it, then look back at the baby and wait.
- Point from close range at first — a picture in a book on the same page you are both looking at.
- Follow their gaze too: naming whatever they are already looking at teaches the same skill in reverse.
Why it matters
Shared attention — looking at the same thing together on purpose — is the foundation that vocabulary is built on, and it usually appears before first words.
When to check with a professional
If by 15 months a child does not look where you point and does not point to show you things, it is worth raising at Tipat Halav; this is one of the items the M-CHAT screening asks about.
Related
Sources
- Learn the Signs. Act Early. — milestone checklists (2022 revision) — CDC / American Academy of Pediatrics
- Speech and language development milestones — American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Compiled with AI assistance from the public sources listed above. Not yet reviewed by a clinician — check anything important against the source, with Tipat Halav or with your doctor.