Keep the baby upright and allow the soles of the feet to touch the surface of the table. Move the baby forward to accompany any stepping.

The arm and leg on the side to which the head is turned extend, while the opposite arm and leg flex.

The sucking reflex is common to all mammals and is linked with the rooting reflex and breastfeeding.

With the baby’s head positioned in the midline and hands held against the anterior chest, stroke with your finger the perioral skin at the corners of the baby’s mouth and the midline of the upper and lower lip.

Starting in the supine position, the baby is pulled by the arms to the sitting position. The head and the arms are observed during the maneuver.

The normal baby throws out both arms quickly with symmetical abduction and spreads the fingers. This is often followed by jerky adduction of the arms as though the hands were reaching for an unseen security.

The baby pushes back against the pressure, so the examiner gets the sensation that his thumb is drawing the limb out as by a magnet.

Stimulate the palm of the baby’s hands and observe the reflex grasping of your finger. Stroke the sole of the foot, and the toes will flex and curl around your examining finger.

This reflex is absent in transverse spinal cord lesions or injuries.

The neonate will attempt to crawl forward when the sole of his feet are touched.