What Happens to Babies’ Feet When They Are Learning to Walk?

Learning to walk is complicated and starts when we are very young. It takes lots of practice and typically begins with just a few steps. We conducted an experiment to understand more about what happens to babies’ feet when they first start walking. In our experiment, we compared how babies’ feet interact with the ground at two stages: First, when the babies just start walking (age 13 months); and second, when they are more confident walkers (age 16 months). We recorded pressures under their feet when they moved and used videos to help us understand if the children were walking in a straight line or turning. Confident walkers took more steps than new walkers and more of these were turning steps. This tells us that confident walkers were practicing more complicated movements. The pressure under the feet changed once babies were walking confidently. Pressure changes depended on the direction of the step.