Eek! I’ve got a bottom shuffler!

Emma, I would have to say that it is very important, Braedon was a bottom shuffler and did not crawl at all, he walked at 21 months, he is now 4 and a very cautious boy, it took him along time to walk down stairs he would sit on his bum and go down that way , his speech has been delayed also and there are quite a few things he would never attempt but is getting better we have just had a referral to special ed at my insistance through our plunket nurse to have him assessed he is not thick but infact quite bright there is lots of things he is good at he is very quick on the computer but for my own peace of mind I would like him looked at, you won't be able to force them to crawl but try to encourage it for left/right brain developement and co-ordination.

well i was a bum shuffler from around 6 or 7 months and was walking at 10 months....dont think i fit any of the theorys of not crawling?

Bombshell, did you crawl during play at a later stage? Because that would have created the connections, without crawling being your main form of mobility.

daikini wrote: Bombshell, did you crawl during play at a later stage? Because that would have created the connections, without crawling being your main form of mobility.

nope apparently i got up and walked....was told this by mum, and grandma and aunty for years so i dont doubt it - and i have mega high IQ, photographic memory etc....so maybe i slipped under the radar???

One of the Mum's at Playcentre was a Paediatrician and said there was no problem with bottom shuffling. They tend to walk a little later because they can see everthing they need to when shuffling so no need to stand and walk.

I asked her about learning difficulties but she said people claimed crawling was a necessary stage for correct brain development but no studies had identified a link between bottom shuffling and learning difficulties.

DD is a bum shuffler too. She has never crawled, she always screamed when on her stomach - hated it. She has been walking since 1 year and 3 days - so no delay there. Her paed (she has serious and numerous food and environmental allergies which is why we think she never wanted to be on her tummy, it was sore) has told me we should encourage crawling but, seriously, you can't force a child to crawl - especially when they can already walk! She does mammoth walking sessions too, has very good endurance, so I don't see her crawling any time soon. It's a difficult one, isn't it .

Ok, so thought I'd check back in on this one, since I got a message saying new people have posted on here. Haven't been back here really in years. I posted on the 1st Page about Paris back then...

She is now nearly 9, rides a bike awesomely, very co-ordinated now, is super duper active, has no learning problems and reads at an 11.5 yr old level....

.....so no, as long as you foster all the important stuff and catch up by doing those games and rolling etc so that they eventualy learn the things they need to, then being a bum shuffler does completely mean that all the stuff discussed above will happen.

Each child is different and gets about their own way, it's important for the two sides to learn to work together and cross over etc, but all other aspects of development are just as important.. one single factor does not completely determine the outcome.

My 14 month daughter is a bum shuffler I was so worried because Id heard about the whole left/right side od the brain thing that I called my plunket nurse who got someone to come assess her and see. The wonderful lady said that its not true at all that crawling helps with their development more than bum shuffling. And that she is doing so well in other ways like she has quite a few words under her belt etc and that I have no reason to be concerned. Was such a relief because I kinda felt like I had failed Caitlyn in some way by her not crawling.
If you are concerned call plunket, I found them very helpful.

an interesting observation, im in ECE and 2 and a half years ago we took on the free movement philosophy, so babies never get sat up until they can do it themselves

we have not had one bum shuffler since then, they pretty much all roll to tummy, then crawl, then sitting comes next, then walking

so if you are worried about it dont sit them up and give them a chance to bum shuffle. However of the bum shufflers ive had in the past none of them seem disadvantaged when they get older