As a mother or a father, all of us want our children to grow up to be the best. This means that their infant years are quite crucial since these are the major years of their development. You need your child to reach their developmental milestones so that they are not left behind. You do not need to do activities only for fun and entertainment. You can bond with your child while helping them develop in the right manner. Skills such as language and motor skills should be developed by the second year of your child being born. Here are some fun ways of helping them.
Connect with your child
The first and foremost thing that you need to do is to create a safe and secure connection with your infant. Infants respond most to their caregivers only because they have a sense of secure attachment with them. Engaging them in human contact will help you develop their language and motor skills. Holding them close to you, singing or talking to them, and anything else that stimulates their hearing is good for them. Also, remember to motivate their sight. Make sure that they can see your face, smile so that they reciprocate, and hold them closer so that they can see you with ease.
Enhance their senses
By their third or fourth month, your baby will become more curious about the environment around them. This is when they start grabbing things and understanding texture. Allow them to touch different things such as the carpet, a block, food, etc. This will make sure that they can see and smell new things, which will stimulate their senses even more. You can also take their hand and rub it on different textures and talk about what it feels like. This will also help engage their language skills.
Use toys
Toys are not only meant for fun but they can also enhance your baby’s development. Around 6 months of age, they will start developing motor skills. This is when they start grasping objects and picking things up. You can get some infant development toys such as some cubes. Rolling toys will also stimulate their senses and movement and they will follow the toy. Colorful toys will also engage their sight in a good way.
Turn the TV off
During the first year, children will not need stimulation from a TV or even a computer. Try to switch the TV off and instead read some books to them in order to help develop their language skills. Direct human interaction is the best way to do this. If they name an object correctly, give them praise so that they want to do it more and develop their language faster. A TV will not tell them if they guessed the name wrong or even give them any praise when they get it right. It is important to engage them and not just put them in front of the TV.
It is important to keep a check on your baby’s development. Make sure that they attain all milestones at the right age.