The Playbook

Your Baby at 5 Months: Rolling, Grabbing and Getting Ready for Solids

By the Guide to Fatherhood editorial team. Last reviewed . 2 min read.

Checked against guidance from organizations like the AAP, CDC, ACOG and NHS (linked below). This is general information, not medical advice. Read our medical disclaimer.

Your to-do list this month

  • Get down on the floor and babyproof at baby's eye level: cords, small objects, plants, low cabinets.
  • Anchor dressers, bookcases and TVs to the wall if you haven't already.
  • Watch for solid-food readiness signs: good head control, sitting with support, and interest in your food.
  • Read the same few board books over and over. Repetition is how babies learn language.
A conversation to have this month

"How do we want to approach starting solids: purees, baby-led feeding, or a mix?" Read the basics together so meals become a shared job.

What your baby is doing

Five-month-olds are busy. Many are rolling from tummy to back (and some back to tummy), reaching for and grabbing toys with both hands, passing things to their mouth, and babbling to get your attention. They’re very interested in your reactions: watch how your baby checks your face after a new sound.

Coming up by 6 months, the CDC lists milestones like laughing, reaching for a wanted toy, rolling from tummy to back, and leaning on hands to support themselves when sitting.

Getting ready for solids

The AAP recommends introducing solid foods around 6 months. Signs your baby may be ready:

  • Holds their head steady and upright.
  • Sits up with support.
  • Opens their mouth when food comes their way, and watches you eat with great interest.
  • Can move food from a spoon to the back of the mouth and swallow (instead of pushing it out with the tongue).

Use this month to plan: a high chair with a harness, a few soft spoons, bibs that will absolutely be destroyed. Read starting solids together.

Babyproofing starts now

Rolling becomes scooting, then crawling, faster than you think. Get on the floor and look at the house from baby height:

  • Anchor furniture. The CPSC’s Anchor It! campaign explains why: TVs and furniture tip-overs injure children every year.
  • Small objects (coins, batteries, magnets) off the floor and low tables. Button batteries and magnets are especially dangerous if swallowed.
  • Cords from blinds and electronics out of reach.
  • Low cabinets with cleaners or medicines: move the contents up high, then add locks.

The full list is in the babyproofing checklist.

Play ideas

  • Mirror play: babies love faces, including their own.
  • Cause and effect: rattles, crinkle toys, a spoon on a pot.
  • Rolling races on a blanket on the floor.
  • Peekaboo, which is about to get very funny for your baby.

Frequently asked questions

Can I start my baby on solids at 5 months?

The AAP recommends starting solid foods around 6 months, when the baby shows signs of readiness: good head and neck control, sitting up with support, and interest in food. Talk to your pediatrician before starting earlier.

Is all this drooling teething?

Not necessarily. Drooling increases a lot around this age as salivary glands mature, whether or not teeth are coming. The first tooth often appears around 6 months, but timing varies widely.

Sources

  1. Starting Solid Foods, American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org)
  2. Anchor It!, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
  3. Milestones by 6 Months, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

We link to the original source for every medical and safety claim. Guidance changes; if a source has been updated since our last review, the source wins. How we research.