As your baby increases her neck strength and head control, you can take her on some gentle pony rides. Choose a favorite nursery rhyme, or sing the ones below.
Materials:
Your knee
Small, soft blanket or towel
Balance
Head and neck control
Language development
Social interaction
What to do: 1. Lay a small, soft blanket or towel over your knee, for your baby's comfort. 2. Seat your baby on your knee, facing you, and hold her arms for support. 3. As you recite a rhyme, gently bounce your baby up and down. 4. Repeat the rhyme several times before moving on to another. Following are some rhymes to try:
Humpty Dumpty
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall,
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the king's horses and all the king's men,
Couldn't put Humpty together again.
To Market, to Market
To market, to market, to buy a fat pig,
Home again, home again, jiggety-jig.
To market, to market, to buy a fat hog,
Home again, home again, jiggety-jog.
One, Two, Bounce My Shoe
One, two, bounce my shoe;
Three, four, tap the floor;
Five, six, give a kick;
Seven, eight, legs stand straight;
Nine, ten, start again.
Safety: Don't bounce your baby too hard, and always hold her so she doesn't fall.
Help your baby learn about his environment by expanding his world through his senses. Water play provides the perfect sensory-motor stimulation, so turn bath time into a sensory experience!
Materials:
Turkey skewer
Plastic bottle, such as a liquid dishwashing bottle or ketchup/mustard bottle
Baby bathtub or regular bathtub
Enjoyment of the environment
Sensory-motor development
Social interaction
What to do: 1. Use a turkey skewer to poke holes on the bottom and sides of the plastic bottle, making holes about one inch apart. 2. Place your baby in a baby bathtub or get into a regular bathtub with him, if you like. Lower your baby into the water gently, to give him time to get comfortable with the strange sensation. 3. Fill the plastic bottle with bathtub water. 4. Hold the bottle up so your baby can see the water pour out from the holes. 5. Hold the bottle over your baby's body and let the water gently tickle him. 6. If your baby's game, hold the bottle over his head to make it rain!
Safety: Try not to get water in your baby's eyes, especially if the water is soapy. If your baby doesn't like getting his face wet, just trickle the water on his body.
Help your baby learn about his environment by expanding his world through his senses. Water play provides the perfect sensory-motor stimulation, so turn bath time into a sensory experience!
Materials:
Turkey skewer
Plastic bottle, such as a liquid dishwashing bottle or ketchup/mustard bottle
Baby bathtub or regular bathtub
Enjoyment of the environment
Sensory-motor development
Social interaction
What to do: 1. Use a turkey skewer to poke holes on the bottom and sides of the plastic bottle, making holes about one inch apart. 2. Place your baby in a baby bathtub or get into a regular bathtub with him, if you like. Lower your baby into the water gently, to give him time to get comfortable with the strange sensation. 3. Fill the plastic bottle with bathtub water. 4. Hold the bottle up so your baby can see the water pour out from the holes. 5. Hold the bottle over your baby's body and let the water gently tickle him. 6. If your baby's game, hold the bottle over his head to make it rain!
Safety: Try not to get water in your baby's eyes, especially if the water is soapy. If your baby doesn't like getting his face wet, just trickle the water on his body.
As your baby’s vision improves, he can see objects more clearly at greater distances. To work on his focusing and tracking skills, keep a Play Puppet “handy” for feeding, changing, or play time.
Materials:
Clean white sock
Permanent felt-tip markers
Language development
Social interaction
Visual acuity
What to do: 1. Buy a pair of white socks, large enough to fit over your hands. 2. Use permanent felt-tip markers to draw eyes, eyebrows, noses, and ears on the socks’ toes. Outline the heels to create mouths, and draw red tongues inside the folds. 3. Place your baby in your lap, on the changing table, or in his infant seat. 4. Slip one puppet onto your hand and entertain your baby with songs, rhymes, or simple conversation. Slip the second puppet onto your other hand for two-handed fun.
Safety: Don't let your baby suck on the sock, since the ink might come off.
As your baby grows and develops, his five senses contribute to his knowledge of himself and the world around him. Playing in a tub of water provides a complete sensory experience, along with a lot of fun!
Materials:
Bathtub
Your hands
Motor control
Sensory exploration
Social interaction
Understanding of environment
What to do: 1. Run a warm bathtub of water for your baby (and yourself, if you like). 2. Slowly place your baby in the water, allowing him to get used to the water. 3. Show your baby the properties of the water by lightly drizzling, splashing, and pouring water over him. 4. When your baby is ready to play Water Wiggler, hold him firmly on his tummy with both hands, and move him slowly back and forth over the surface of the water, being sure his head is above the surface. 5. Make motorboat sounds while you wiggle your baby back and forth in the water. Let your baby rest a few minutes between rides.
Safety: Be sure your baby’s head does not get submerged and the water does not get on his face, in his eyes, or in his mouth. Make sure the water is not too cold or too hot.
It's time for a baby workout, set to the tune of "Wheels on the Bus." These exercises will help keep your baby in shape. He's never too young to start!
Materials:
Soft blanket or towel on a soft surface
Your voice
Language development
Motor movement and control
Physical exercise
What to do: 1. Lay your baby on a blanket or towel, on his back. 2. Sing the following song, moving the assigned body part on your baby as you sing.
Wheels on the Bus
(Bicycle your baby's legs as you sing the first four lines.)
The wheels on the bus go round and round,
Round and round, round and round,
The wheels on the bus go round and round,
All through the town.
The people on the bus go up and down.
(lift your baby's arms up and down)
The wipers on the bus go back and forth.
(roll baby from side to side)
The horn on the bus goes beep, beep, beep.
(touch your baby's nose)
Your baby is just getting used to recognizing faces, when you introduce the Hats Off game! Your baby won’t be fooled for long, but he’ll enjoy the fun of taking off the hat and putting it back on again.
Materials:
Variety of hats
Infant seat
Your face and head
Cause and effect
Coping with stranger anxiety
Object constancy (an object remains the same even if altered)
Social interaction
What to do: 1. Collect a variety of hats around the house, or buy inexpensive hats from a thrift shop or party store. Try to include a baseball cap, a knit cap, a funny hat, a firefighter’s hat, a clown hat, a bowler, a beret, a pair of earmuffs, or a fancy, feathery hat. (Don’t include masks in your play. They tend to scare babies at this young age.) 2. Place your baby in his infant seat on the floor and sit facing him. 3. Put the first hat on your head and make a funny face as you say something interesting, such as, “Look at me!” or, “I’m a firefighter!” 4. Lean toward your baby so he can grasp the hat and pull it off, or pull the hat off yourself. 5. Repeat several times with one hat before moving on to another hat.
Safety: Sometimes babies get scared when people’s appearances change. If your baby starts to get upset, put the hat on only briefly, then remove it and show him you’re still Mom/Dad. If he continues to be upset, play the game at a later date.
For several months after your baby is born, she has a reflex to grasp objects in her palm, but she has trouble letting go. Here’s a game to help her gain further control of her hands and her grasp reflex.
Materials:
Medium-size toys easily grasped in your baby’s hands, such as rattles, stuffed animals, teething rings, blocks, and so on
Table or highchair
Grasping and releasing
Fine motor development
Fine muscle control
What to do: 1. Collect a variety of graspable toys that fit in your baby’s hands. 2. Seat your baby in your lap next to the table or in her highchair. 3. Place a toy near your baby, so she has to reach a little to grasp it. 4. Encourage her to take the toy. 5. After she has grasped the toy and enjoyed it for a moment, gently peel open her fingers and remove the toy. 6. Place it back on the table. 7. While your baby’s hands are free, sing the following song as you open, shut, then clap your baby’s hands.
Open, Close Them
Open, close them, open, close them,
Give a little clap!
Open, close them, open close them,
Put them in your lap!
Safety: Since your baby is sure to put all toys into her mouth during these months, be sure they are clean and have no sharp edges or small parts that could come loose and become a choking hazard.
To help your baby enhance his visual skills, play a game of Roaming Spotlight. This is a quiet game you can play at night, just before your baby goes to sleep, or to calm him down.
Materials:
Dark room
Flashlight
Cause and effect
Depth perception
Understanding of environment
Visual tracking
What to do: 1. Find a room that can be made completely dark. 2. Sit on a chair or on the floor, with your baby in your lap. 3. With the lights off, turn on the flashlight and shine it on the wall, catching your baby's attention. 4. Say something about the light, such as, "Oh, look at the light!" 5. Move the light beam around slowly, resting it on interesting objects. 6. Say something about the object as it lights up, such as, "There's baby's teddy bear!" 7. Continue moving the light around until your baby grows tired of the game.
Safety: Don't shine the light in your baby's eyes. If your baby becomes afraid in the dark, turn on a night-light, which should not diminish the flashlight's beam too much.
To help your baby enhance his visual skills, play a game of Roaming Spotlight. This is a quiet game you can play at night, just before your baby goes to sleep, or to calm him down.
Materials:
Dark room
Flashlight
Cause and effect
Depth perception
Understanding of environment
Visual tracking
What to do: 1. Find a room that can be made completely dark. 2. Sit on a chair or on the floor, with your baby in your lap. 3. With the lights off, turn on the flashlight and shine it on the wall, catching your baby's attention. 4. Say something about the light, such as, "Oh, look at the light!" 5. Move the light beam around slowly, resting it on interesting objects. 6. Say something about the object as it lights up, such as, "There's baby's teddy bear!" 7. Continue moving the light around until your baby grows tired of the game.
Safety: Don't shine the light in your baby's eyes. If your baby becomes afraid in the dark, turn on a night-light, which should not diminish the flashlight's beam too much.
Your baby will soon lose two reflexes she had at birth—the grasp reflex and the baby-doll reflex (she opens her eyes when she sits up)—as she gains more control over her movements. While she still has them, play Upsy-Daisy to take advantage of these reflexes!
Materials:
Soft, unslippery surface
Your hands
Anticipation and surprise
Grasping
Head and neck control
Social interaction
What to do: 1. Lay your baby on a soft, unslippery surface, such as a carpet. 2. Sit at her feet, facing her. 3. Place your thumbs in your baby's palms and let her grasp them. As she does, wrap your fingers around the backs of her hands. 4. Slowly pull your baby to a sitting position and say, "Upsy-Daisy" as you go. 5. After your baby's had a moment to see your happy face and enjoy the game, lay her back down and play again.
Safety: Be sure to hold on to your baby's hands in case she lets go of her grasp. Move slowly so your baby doesn't get a neck injury.
* Play and Learn activities reprinted from "Baby Play and Learn" with permission of its author, Penny Warner, and its publisher, Meadowbrook Press (1999.)
All About Play
