School › Growing up › Ages 6–7
From baby to grown-up
Everybody was once a tiny baby. Find out how babies grow and learn new things, what the stages of a human life are, and how much you have grown already.
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Every person starts life as a tiny baby. A baby grows inside its mother for many months before it is born.[1]
A newborn baby is only about 50 cm long. It can already hold on tight to your finger and suck milk.[1]
Babies learn new things step by step. First they hold up their head, then they learn to sit, then to crawl, and then to walk.[1]
Your brain grows fast too. By the time you are 6, your brain is almost as big as a grown-up's brain![1]
A human life has stages: baby, child, teenager, adult and older adult.[1]
Everybody grows at their own speed. That is normal, because we are all different.[3][1]
Try it: How much have I grown?
You need
- A roll of paper or string
- A metre stick or tape measure
- Scissors with round ends (for the teacher or with help)
- Sticky tape and a pencil
Safety
Only the teacher or a helper uses the scissors. Measuring is in pairs with a friend you choose; nobody has to be measured if they do not want to. Talk about growing, not about who is tallest: everybody grows at their own speed.
What to do
- With your teacher, measure and cut a strip of paper 50 cm long. This is about how long a newborn baby is.
- Lie down on a big sheet of paper (or stand against a wall) and let a friend mark how tall you are. Cut a strip as long as you.
- Put the baby strip next to your strip. How much longer is yours?
- How many baby strips fit along your strip? Count them.
- Talk about it: what can you do now that a baby cannot do?
What happens, and why?
A newborn baby is about 50 cm long. Since you were born you have grown a lot, so your strip is much longer, maybe more than two baby strips! You have also learned to sit, crawl, walk, run and talk.[1]
Play: Newborn or later?
Can a newborn baby already do this, or does it come later as you grow? Tap the right group.
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Quiz
Other ages: Ages 10–11 · Ages 15–16