Playing games with your baby is a lovely way to pass the time. You’ll get to enjoy the smiles and squeals of delight as your baby has fun interacting with you, and your baby will love having some focused one-to-one time you with. Games can also help to develop social, emotional and developmental skills. Here are five fun games to play with your baby:
- Peekaboo
This classic game is sure to be a hit with your baby. Use a thin blanket to cover up a toy and then pretend you don’t know where it’s gone. Pull away the blanket to reveal the toy beneath and shout ‘peekaboo!’. As your baby gets the hang of the game, you can start hiding yourself behind the blanket. Your baby will have fun whilst learning about object permanence.
- Obstacle course
When your baby is mobile, an obstacle course is a good game to help develop coordination and motor skills. Place objects around the room that your baby must crawl through, walk around or climb over. Don’t make it too complicated to begin with, but you can add additional objects as your baby masters the course.
- Hide and seek
Help to develop your baby’s problem-solving technique and make the most of his natural curiosity with a quick game of hide and seek. Use a musical toy and hide it under a blanket, then help your baby to find it. He’ll soon work out that it’s easy to find by simply following the sound. Start off easy but be sure to make the game more difficult as your baby gets the hang of it.
- Body parts
Naming the body parts will help your baby to learn these essential words and develop a greater understanding of his own body. Point out and name the body parts on yourself and your baby. After a while, your baby should be able to point at the right body parts when asked. As your baby’s language skills develop, he may even attempt joining in with the naming.
- Sensory fun
Babies use all of their senses to learn about the world around them. They explore the taste, touch, smell, look and sound of the things they come into contact with throughout the day. Sensory play is play which encourages babies to use all of these senses, heightening their learning experience. Find a clean muffin tray and turn it into a sensory play station by adding different objects to the different holes. Make sure you have a few objects that will encourage your baby to use each of his different senses.
What games do you enjoy playing with your baby?
Written by Fiona (@Fiona_Peacock), mother, writer and lover of all things baby related.
This information is not intended to replace the advice of a trained medical doctor. Health & Parenting Ltd disclaims any liability for the decisions you make based on this information, which is provided to you on a general information basis only and not as a substitute for personalized medical advice. All contents copyright © Health & Parenting Ltd 2016. All rights reserved.
