Vision Development: Newborn to 12 Months
A baby's vision goes through many changes during their first year of life. Your pediatrician
will check your infant’s vision at each well-child visit. They make sure your baby's vision is
developing as it should. Knowing what to expect can help you watch and enjoy your child’s
.visual development
A word about premature babies
We base the vision development milestones below on your baby's due date, not based on
.the date they were born
Newborns: adjusting to light and beginning to focus
At birth, an Infant is very sensitive to bright light. You may notice how small their pupils look,
limiting how much light enters their eyes. A newborn baby can see something next to them
.with their peripheral (side) vision, but their central vision is still developing
Within a couple of weeks, as their retinas develop, a baby’s pupils widen. They can see light
and dark ranges and patterns. Large shapes and bright colors may begin to attract their
.attention. A baby also may begin to focus on an object right in front of them
At about 1 month, your baby may focus briefly on you but may still prefer brightly colored
objects up to 3 feet away. Infants are able to see across a room even at birth, but they are
.mostly interested in objects very close to them
From 2 to 4 months: focusing and tracking moving objects
For their first 2 months, babies' eyes often do not work together very well. You might notice
your baby's eyes appear to be crossed or they may seem to wander out to the sides. In most
cases, this Is normal and they will eventually correct themselves. But if one of your baby's
eyes constantly turns in toward their nose or outward away from the nose, talk with your
.pediatrician
At about 2 months old, babies usually are able to follow a moving object with their eyes as
their visual coordination improves. In fact, at around 3 months old, your baby may have
.enough eye and arm coordination to bat at a nearby moving object
At 3 months old, your baby's eyes should work together to focus and track objects. If you do
.not notice this happening, talk with your pediatrician
From 5 to 8 months: reaching, recognizing, and recalling
At around 5 months old, a baby's ability to see how far an object Is from them (called depth
perception) has developed more fully. They are seeing the world in 3 dimensions (3-D) more
completely. They get better at reaching for objects both near and far. They also have good
.color vision at this point, though not quite as fully developd as an adult's
At this stage, a baby may recognize their parent across a room and smile at them. They can
see objects outside when looking through a window. They might even remember what an
.object is even if they only see part of It
Babies generally start crawling at around 8 months old, and this further enhances their hand-
.eye coordination
From 9 to 12 months: gripping, grasping and on the go
At about 9 months old, babies can generally judge distance pretty well. This is about when
they start to pull themselves up to stand. Your baby's eyes are probably their final color now.
.However, It is not uncommon to see some slight changes later
At around 10 months old, babies can usually see and judge distance well enough to grasp
.something between their thumb and forefinger
Steps to make sure your child's eyes and vision develop properly
Eye or vision problems can delay a baby's development. It is important to find these
problems as early as possible so you can get them the help they need to grow and learn
.properly