Understanding your baby: Baby cues, behavioural states and interactions
Babies are born ready to connect with those around them in order to develop emotionally and socially, and build relationships and attachments.
Babies thrive on observing and communicating with their families who support them to gradually learn about the world around them.
This section contains tips on how to recognise when your baby is ready to communicate and play with you, how to get the most out of those interactions, and how to tell when your baby is tired or has lost focus and interest and just needs to be settled again.
What are baby cues?
Babies are communicating with you all the time. Before they develop words, they use their voice sounds, facial expressions, arm and leg movements to communicate. These sounds and movements are called baby cues.
Baby cues are the way your baby shows you how they feel and how to work out what they want. These baby cues are there to draw attention, provide information and give messages to others. Cues tell you what your baby likes and what your baby doesn’t like. They signal whether your baby is coping with the environment or whether there is too much going on, letting you know whether your baby is happy to continue in an activity or needs a break.
‘Engagement cues’ are signals the baby uses to show that they like what is going on around them.
- eyes wide open and bright as the baby focuses on you
- turning eyes, head or body toward you or the person who is talking
- steady breathing
- healthy pink cheeks
- moving hands toward the mouth, often accompanied by sucking sounds
- hands clasped together
- grasping on to your finger or an object
- smooth hand, arm, and leg movements
- relaxed posture
‘Disengagement cues’ are signals the baby uses to show that they do not like what is going on around them. They let you know when your baby is stressed, over stimulated, and needs a break from what is happening.
- crying or fussing
- turning eyes, head or body away from you or the person who is talking
- irregular breathing
- gagging, spitting out
- frowning
- hiccupping
- yawning
- sneezing
- becoming red, pale or mottled
- jerky movements
- splaying fingers
- limp or stiff posture
- back arching
- falling asleep
Baby behavioural states
A baby’s ‘state’ is the term used to describe levels of their alertness. States are either asleep or awake.
Becoming familiar with these will help you learn and understand how your baby wakes and sleeps and how they maintain the ability to engage with you and stay stable and coping when awake. It will help you determine when they learn best, when to spend time playing and communicating with them, as well as knowing when they need a break from this.
Rapid transition from awake to asleep is their way of getting a break from what was causing them to feel unstable and disorganised. Remaining in a particular state shows that your baby is coping with what is happening around them, but rapid transitions from one state to another may indicate that they are not. You are more likely to see engagement cues when your baby is feeling stable and organised.
A newborn baby will have shorter times in a certain state, particularly when awake, and may have less smooth transitions than an older infant. The length of time in a particular state becomes longer by the day and week, and the transitions less abrupt.
Deep/quiet sleep
Baby’s eyes are closed, breathing smoothly and regularly, body limp with very little movement. Baby is difficult to awaken, and may startle to noise or touch, but quickly returns to sleep.
Appropriate care: put the baby down into a safe space and leave her/him alone to ensure he/she gets the needed sleep for growth and development. Discourage others from picking the baby up or disturbing him/her.
Light/active sleep
Baby moves often, smiles and eyelids flutter or open in a glazed stare. Baby may cry out or make sounds, and his/her breathing may be irregular and faster.
Babies spend a lot more time in this state compared to deep sleep. It is an important part of their sleep cycle and is the time when brain cells are making lots of connections. This is very important for brain development.
Appropriate care: don’t interrupt baby, leave him/her alone to return to a quiet, deeper sleep. This will help ensure a complete sleep cycle, which is important for rest and growth.
Drowsy
Half-awake, eyes are closed or heavy lidded but intermittently open and flickering or staring. Sucking movements and delayed responses are common. Baby may fall back to sleep or move slowly towards an awake state.
Appropriate care: give the baby something to suck on, as sucking helps organise a baby’s brain. Put him/her down to move into sleep independently. Or to awaken a drowsy baby, gently wash and move arms and legs, uncover and change his/her nappy while talking gently.
Quiet alert/awake
Baby’s eyes are open and bright. He/she is quiet and paying attention, only moving very slightly if at all. Baby responds to people and things with noises and mouth movement, and appears to focus on and enjoy faces or objects. He/she seems interested and will join in a conversation with mouth movements and sounds. He appears to, and is, processing information and learning.
Appropriate care: This is a great time to interact with your baby – it is when they are most sociable and ready to learn. Position baby to be facing you, and gently sing, move your face, talk or touch him/her. Use eye contact and wait for baby to respond with their own movements and sounds as if having a conversation with you.
Active alert/awake
Baby’s body is active, with arms and legs mobile. His/her eyes are excited and scanning around them. Baby is vocal and often shows signs of pleasure, and can be active and vocal by him/herself or with others. He/she appears excited and less focused, and may appear playful, but becoming out of control and unable to change state or settle self. He/she is more reactive than responsive.
Appropriate care: remember that active games are fun but tiring for baby. They often lead to over stimulation, particularly if continued for too long, and it is important to watch for early signs of baby becoming over excited or distressed. Baby needs help to reorganise their state, so talk gently and slowly, reduce stimulation, and use rhythm to help baby calm down.
Fussy/crying
Movements are jerky, and baby is fussing or whimpering. His/her eyes are blinking often or looking away. His/her arms and feet are flailing or pushing away, and he/she may try to self-quiet by sucking. As crying starts the baby’s eyes become tightly closed, his/her body becomes rigid and arching, with grimacing and rapid breathing or gasps. Crying is a sign of ‘overload’ – baby has lost control and needs help to return to another state. Some babies quiet quickly, some take longer and may cry harder.
Babies cry for different reasons. Most cry hard several times a day. As they get older they will cry more and you will be able to understand the different cry signals, such as hunger or tiredness.
Appropriate care: when showing fussy signs, the baby is asking for help. Think about whether he/she is hungry, tired, frightened, cold, hot or overstimulated. Parents need to take charge and fix the problem. Once a baby is crying ‘hard’, some need to be put down to self-quiet, and others need to be consoled with being held and rocked to gain control.
You can find more information and videos at: Getting to know your baby from the Institute of Health Visiting
