In this article:
- Why is early intervention essential?
- 8 tips to promote baby developmentÂ
Parenting is as rewarding as it is exhausting! We know it for a fact! It’s an endless cycle of feeding, burping, diapering, rocking, and repeating! But is merely caring for your newborn enough? Certainly not!
In the digital age, parents strongly believe in participating in their babies’ growth and development from the very beginning. This not only fosters baby growth but also helps them form a strong bond with their little one. So what can you, as a parent, do to boost your baby’s development early on? Read on to find out!
Why is early intervention essential?
Your little one’s development begins in the uterus itself, long before your baby is even born! According to experts, a baby’s neurological system starts to form in the first week of gestation and is essentially in place by the fourth week of pregnancy.
This explains how a 17-week-old fetus can hear sounds in the womb. So, in order to encourage their growth, it’s never too early to begin reading, singing, and doing other growth activities with your newborn angel.
But where to start? How to proceed? Worry not! Here are the best techniques to foster infant growth and strengthen your relationship with your newborn baby. These activities will help you assist your little one’s language and motor skill development and attainment of important milestones.
Top 8 tips to boost baby developmentÂ
1. Bonding with your baby
Human interaction from birth is the most critical thing you can do to help your infant develop motor skills and language. This involves holding your baby close and chatting or singing to them. You can also do other hearing-stimulating activities like playing soft music, etc.Â
Stimulate your baby’s vision. Make sure they can see your face when they are awake. Babies love human-face-shaped items and patterns. Smile at them and tell them about what you are doing and why you are doing it.
2. Stimulating the senses
In the second and third months of a baby’s development, infants begin to explore and learn more about their environment. At this stage, allow your baby to experience different textures. Let them touch a variety of surfaces and expose them to plenty of sights and smells.Â
You can take their hand and rub it on things that are rough, soft, smooth, cold, or warm, and talk about what it is that they are feeling. This kind of detailed exposure will not only teach your baby about the environment but will also help them develop motor skills and language.
3. Giving them comfort and security
Responding to your baby when they cry will let them know that you are there for them. Infants need to know that their needs will be met from the very beginning of their lives. Be attentive to your baby’s cues.
To support your baby’s growth, parents must be dependable in their responses to requirements. By maintaining regular care and predictable routines, you foster connection and trust. You feel more in control when you have a plan for activities like feedings and naps. Babies grow into confident, self-reliant youngsters in such a setting.
4. Bringing toys in the picture
Give your baby interactive toys that promote learning and development at the age of six months, when they can sit up, grip, and toss objects. Toys that roll entice babies to chase after them and motivate them to move during tummy time. Pop-up toys and bright toys are also appropriate at this time.Â
5. Playing interactive games
At 9 months, babies learn that things can exist even when they are not there. At this stage, playing peekaboo with a baby is a lot of fun because kids love hearing, “You disappeared… and then you came back!” Also, it’s too cute when babies hide their eyes and believe that their entire body gets hidden!
6. Avoiding screens at all costs
Babies don’t require screens like TV, computers, or smartphones for the first 12 months of their lives. These displays may even impair a baby’s growth. Babies learn language and other skills best when they interact directly with other people. This is because they need feedback right away.
For example, if a child watches TV and talks about an object in the right or wrong way, the characters won’t praise or correct them.
On the contrary, when a baby reads a picture book with a parent, the parent will remark, “Yes, that’s right!” or “No, it’s a cat, not a dog.”
7. Describing things instead of commanding
How well a baby learns language depends a lot on how many words they hear and how well they are said. Generally, parents resort to command words to instruct their children, such as “Put on your shoes” or “Brush your teeth.”
Instead of using command words. Parents must describe things for their babies, as they are better at assisting children’s language development, according to studies.Â
The number of descriptive words a child hears is closely linked to how well they do in kindergarten. For instance, “Wow, you placed your shoes on the correct feet†and “You have two shoes, and they are blue!” are examples of descriptive words.
8. Your baby needs YOU
According to research, the most crucial factor for a baby’s growth is the parent-child connection. As your baby grows from a newborn to an infant to a toddler, you should never stop talking to, touching, and spending time with them. These are crucial activities for babies and help them grow in more ways than one.
In a nutshell
Your baby’s development started even before birth. So, there is no reason why you should not help them develop their senses, motor skills, and language from day one!
Participate in your baby’s growth and development; do fun activities to boost development and motor skills. BabyVerse is your go-to app for all your parenting needs! With BabyVerse, you get access to expertly curated growth activities for your little bundle of joy from day one and tools to track their development—all in one place!
