Pediatric Physical Therapy for Dayton & Cincinnati

Movement plays a crucial role in a child’s development. And while every child learns movements at an individual rate, developmental delays may cause concern and hardship.

Provide your child with the extra help and practice he or she needs with pediatric physical therapy in Cincinnati. Our experts will enhance your child’s gross motor development in fun and creative ways.

Gross Motor Skills for Young Children Include:

  • Holding up the head
  • Rolling
  • Crawling
  • Sitting
  • Standing
  • Coordination
  • Walking
  • Jumping
  • Bouncing a ball
  • Riding a bike
  • Balance
  • Strength

These and other activities use large muscle groups and require coordination and strength. Our pediatric physical therapy near Cincinnati and Dayton, OH helps children magnify their abilities by building these skills and more.

Developmental Checklist

Is your child meeting their developmental milestones? 

Find Out Now!

Our Physical Therapy

We use exercise to strengthen muscles, boost coordination, and improve your child’s overall mobility. With age-appropriate equipment and play-based techniques, we inspire creativity and make movement natural and fun.

Our innovative playground gym has an array of activities to further develop your child’s physical abilities. In our safe and enjoyable environment, children can feel comfortable and excited to learn.

We are here to support you, and we want your child to feel capable and strong. Our pediatric physical therapists celebrate with you over each physical milestone your child makes, however small.

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Gross Motor Skills

Gross Motor Skills are the large movement skills our body develops throughout our growing years. These include rolling, sitting, crawling, walking, jumping, riding bikes, and climbing. Proper development of gross motor skills requires strength, balance, postural control, and coordination. It also requires appropriate function of our joints and muscles.

Humans were meant to be upright! Gross motor skills are very important to a child’s overall development, health, learning experiences, and self-esteem. Being able to keep up with peers on the playground encourages social and emotional development. Performing gross motor skills facilitates overall body health because it allows children to be physically active. This leads to a healthier heart, lungs, bones, and gastrointestinal system. The developmental process of gross motor skills affects other skill areas. The human body follows a step by step process, where one area often relies on another to achieve full function.

Each milestone that is achieved throughout the first years of life is dependent on the one that came before it. To get into the sitting position, we must first learn to roll. We need to learn how to stand before we learn how to walk. We need to walk before we run and jump. The body goes through a complicated movement process. If a child is not achieving a milestone within a reasonable time frame, it is important to ask questions and seek out guidance right away because the next set of skills is coming up fast. The longer you wait, the further behind the child will fall. The earlier an intervention is provided, the more effective it can be.

Physical Development – Parent Checklist

If you have any questions about your child’s physical development, browse our parent checklist below and give us a call today.

0-4 months

  • Holds head in alignment
  • Tracks an object
  • Moves arms and legs when laying on back
  • Lifts head a little when laying on belly, can prop on elbows
  • Brings hands together when laying on back
  • Props on elbows in prone with neck extension
  • Rolls back to side
  • Grasps rattle when placed in hand
  • Likes looking at a human face more than other things
  • Responds to a smile with a smile
  • Looks into caregiver’s face and eyes with interest
  • Reaches toward and touches toy
  • Hits at dangling objects with hands

5-6 months

  • Sitting using hands for support and starting to sit independently
  • Grabs both feet and holds them when on back
  • Brings feet to mouth
  • Reaches to a toy when playing on belly
  • Props on extended arms when on belly
  • Begins to belly crawl
  • Rolls back to belly
  • Holds and shakes a toy
  • Puts fingers in mouth
  • Smiles at self in front of mirror

7-8 months

  • Maintains sitting for 60 seconds
  • Retrieves a toy in sitting and returns upright
  • Rolls belly to back
  • Rolls back to belly
  • Belly crawls 3 feet forward

9 months

  • Assumes hands and knees position (all fours)
  • Transfers from sitting to hands and knees position (all fours)
  • Rocks back and forth on hands and knees for 5 seconds
  • Creeps forward on hands and knees
  • Scoots forward in sitting for 3 feet
  • Pivots in sitting 90 degrees to both sides
  • Walks with two hands held

10 months

  • Maintains sitting for 60 seconds while playing with a toy
  • Transitions to sitting from belly
  • Creeps (on hands and knees) over your legs
  • Bounces while holding onto your fingers
  • Cruises 4 steps along furniture
  • Lowers to sitting from standing without falling
  • Plays in standing for 3 minutes
  • Stoops at table to retrieve object from floor

11 months

  • Cruising on and between furniture
  • Pivots in sitting
  • Standing for 5 seconds without support
  • Walks 4 steps with 1 hand held
  • Walks with a push toy 10 feet

12 months

  • Transitions to stand using hands and feet
  • Walks 8 feet with one hand held
  • Walks 5 steps independently
  • Traps a ball with arms and hands in sitting

13 months

  • Maintains kneeling position on knees for 5 seconds
  • Stoops to retrieve object from the floor without using a stable surface and takes 3 steps
  • Rolls a ball 3 feet forward in sitting
  • Flings a small ball while standing

14 months

  • Creeps upstairs on hands and knees
  • Walks 10 feet with without falling (not walking on toes)

15 months

  • Creeps downstairs independently
  • Walks upstairs with both rails – non alternating
  • Lifts foot to contact ball
  • Throws ball overhand without loosing balance

16- 18 months

  • Walks fast
  • Walks Backward 5 steps
  • Walks downstairs with support of one finger, non-alternating

19-20 months

  • Runs forward 10 feet
  • Stands heel to toe on a line for 2 seconds
  • Kicks ball 3 feet
  • Throws ball overhand 3 feet
  • Rides a push bike

21-22 months

  • Runs forward 10 feet
  • Walks sideways 10 feet
  • Walks with 1 foot on line for 6 feet
  • Walks with one foot on balance beam

23-24 months

  • Jumps forward 4 inches
  • Jumps up 2 inches
  • Jumps down from step
  • Walks upstairs without rail
  • Throws ball underhand 3 feet
  • Kicks ball 3 feet with direction
  • Climbs up jungle gym

25-26 months

  • Walks down 4 steps without rail
  • Walks backward for 10 feet
  • Presents arms and attempts to catch ball
  • Negotiates slide independently

27-28 months

  • Takes three consecutive steps when walking on a line – hands on hips
  • Walks upstairs with a rail alternating feet
  • Throws ball 7 feet overhand
  • Walks across a 6 inch balance beam

29-30 months

  • Jumps down 21 inches independently
  • Walks on tiptoes for 5 feet with hands on hips
  • Runs 30 feet in 6 seconds
  • Throws ball 7 feet underhand
  • Kicks ball 6 feet forward using opposing arm and leg movement

30-31 months

  • Stands on one foot for 3 seconds with hands on hips
  • Jumps forward 24 inches
  • Jumps down 24 inches

32-34 months

  • Jumps over a 2 inch hurdle
  • Walks on tiptoes for 8 feet with hands on hips
  • Catches ball with arms extended from 5 feet

35-36 months

  • Walks upstairs without a rail alternating feet
  • Rides a tricycle

37-40 months

  • Runs 45 feet in 6 seconds
  • Jumps forward 26 inches
  • Throws ball overhand
  • Throws ball underhand to hit target from 5 feet

41-42 months

  • Stands on one foot with hands on hips for 5 seconds
  • Walks 4 feet on a line with hands on hips
  • Catches large ball hands only 5 feet (not using chest to trap the ball)
  • Climbs down rock wall independently

43-44 months

  • Stands on tiptoes with arms overhead for 3 seconds
  • Walks downstairs without a rail using an alternating pattern
  • Hops forward 6 inches on 1 foot
  • Throws ball overhand to hit target from 5 feet

45-48 months

  • Stands on one foot for 5 seconds
  • Runs and stops within 2 steps
  • Walks backwards on a line 4 feet with hands on hips
  • Jumps forward 30 inches
  • Hops 3-5 times on each foot
  • Throws ball underhand 10 feet while stepping
  • Walks across a 4 inch balance beam with hands on hips

49-52 months

  • Stands on tiptoes for 8 seconds
  • Walks backwards on a line 5 steps with hands on hips
  • Performs a forward roll
  • Gallops 10 feet
  • Throws overhand to hit target from 12 feet
  • Bounces a ball so it hits floor then wall
  • Catches a small ball thrown from 5 feet hands only
  • Rides a 2 wheeler with training wheels
  • Rides a 2 wheeled scooter

53-58 months

  • Stands on one foot for 6 seconds
  • Imitates 4 positions with arms and legs
  • Jumps forward 36 inches
  • Performs a turning jump
  • Hops forward 3 feet on each foot
  • Jumps over 10 inch hurdle
  • Skips 8 feet
  • Pumps self on swing
  • Able to jump over a partner turned jump rope
  • Able to roller skate – without coordination

59-62 months

  • Stands on one foot for 10 seconds with hands on hips
  • Performs 3 sit-ups in 30 seconds
  • Jumps sideways over a line 3 cycles
  • Skips 10 feet
  • Skips 10 feet
  • Jumps over 10 inch hurdle
  • Skips 10 feet
  • Able to jump over a self turned jump rope several consecutive times

63-72 months

  • Performs 5 sit-ups in 30 seconds
  • Performs 8 push-ups in 20 seconds
  • Hops 20 feet in 6 seconds
  • Kicks a ball 12 feet in the air
  • Bounce catches a ball with one hand
  • Takes three consecutive steps on a 2 inch balance beam
  • Able to roller skate – with coordination
  • Able to perform the monkey bars
  • Drop kicks a ball with direction

63-74 months

  • Able to Rollerblade

Through steady improvement, your child can attain a boost of confidence.

Help your child find new levels of independence with pediatric physical therapy in Cincinnati and Dayton, OH.