Welcome to The Roots & Shoots Pathway.
Wandering through a forest can be daunting. Even if you've wandered one path before, there is still so much of the forest yet unexplored.
That's a bit like how parenting can feel too.
Use this page like a pathway through the forest. It's been designed to signpost you to guidance, ideas and resources that are all suitable for understanding and supporting childhood between 6 and 12 months.
What is this stage about?
Movement. Curiosity. Early communication.
Your baby is learning how their body works and how they influence the world around them. This stage is about exploration, experimentation, and building strength - physically, socially and cognitively. Development accelerates here, but it still builds in layers.
What matters most right now?
1. Freedom to Move
Floor time matters. Rolling, pivoting, crawling, pulling to stand - movement builds coordination, strength and brain connections.
2. Repetition Without Rushing
Babies learn through doing the same thing again and again. Repetition strengthens neural pathways. There is no need to keep moving them on too quickly.
3. Responsive Communication
Babbling, pointing, eye contact and gestures are all early language. Responding back, even before, and without words, builds strong communication foundations.
4. Safe Exploration
A simple, predictable, accessible environment allows your baby to explore confidently and safely, and develop their skills they're innately wire to do so.
5. Shared Attention
Looking at the same object together, naming what they see, following their gaze - these moments build language, connection and understanding.
What does play look like during this stage?
Play becomes more physical and curious.
It looks like reaching and grabbing.
It looks like dropping something just to watch it fall.
It looks like rolling, crawling, pulling to stand.
It looks like banging, shaking, exploring with their whole body.
Simple objects are enough. Repetition is powerful.
Play is experimentation.
Play is movement.
Play is making links.
- THE KNOW SPACE -
Branches & Leaves
of Knowledge
Understand more about what’s really happening developmentally in the baby stage, and why it matters.
Inside this space, you’ll find practical guidance, real-life reflections and research-backed insight, so you can feel calm, confident and informed as your baby grows and changes.