Brilliant Baby Games

There are so many fun activities that you and your baby can do, some of which can also help him to develop by stimulating his brain. Different activities aim to improve different things like auditory and visual skills, and can be modified to suit your child as he grows.

However, keep in mind that each child will catch on to the various activities at varying speeds. So don't worry if your baby finds some activities too hard or too easy. Modify or upgrade the games as you see fit for your little one, and let your child be your guide for the lessons!

Here are a few things to keep in mind when playing:

	The following activities require parental interaction and supervision.
	Do these activities only when your child is alert and rested; if he is bored, tired or hungry, postpone doing them, or resume them later on when you think he is more receptive.
	Turn off any background noise which might interfere with his ability to focus.

Where's Mommy? Where's Daddy?
Age Range: Newborn to 6 months
Targeted Skill Set(s): auditory discrimination skills.

At this stage in development, your baby will only be able to respond to loud noises, and her brain will start fine-tuning her hearing - linking hearing with visual activities. Eventually, she will learn that certain objects make certain sounds.

Place your baby in her crib lying on her back. Stand at the side of the crib and keep calling her name.

After a while, your baby will soon "localize" and turn her head and body towards the sound. Move to the other side and call her name again until she turns her attention towards you. Repeat this four or five times.

Peek-a-Boo
Age Range: 3 months to 6 months
Targeted Skill Set(s): memory, auditory discrimination, concept of cause and effect

Peek-a-boo type activities sharpen your baby's hearing by teaching her to filter specific sounds from the background noise. It will also improve her understanding of spoken language and strengthen her memory, as well as teach her the concept of cause and effect.

Get your baby's attention by standing by her crib and smiling at her. While she is looking, cover your face with a pillow or cloth (a bright color works best). After a few seconds, uncover your face and say "peek-a-boo" in a high-pitched and animated voice. You can also ask "Where's Mommy?" or "Where's Daddy?" and then reveal your face with "Here's Mommy!" Keep your baby interested by moving the cloth away up, down, left or right and moving to different sides of the crib. Carry on for a few minutes.

UPGRADE: Age range: 6 months to 9 months.

By this age, your baby will be able to actively participate in the activity. Try peek-a-boo again, however do not pull away the pillow or cloth and allow your child to pull it away herself. When your face is revealed, don't forget to say "Here's Mommy!" Your baby will start learning the concept of cause and effect!

Mobile Play
Age Range: Newborn to 6 months
Targeted Skill Set(s): visual discrimination skills, introduction to colors and shapes

Mobiles are great when it comes to helping your baby develop visual-motor skills. Because they move and are mobile, they encourage your baby to keep his focus on moving objects and control the direction of his gaze.

You can buy, or even make your own mobile using several different shapes or objects in bright colors (high-contrast colors such as black, white, red, blue and yellow are easiest for babies to focus on). You can make this more interesting for your baby by moving the mobile (by blowing on it), turning off the lights and shining a light on it or even tying bells onto it to stimulate his auditory senses.

Note: Make sure that when you make your own mobile that all the objects are safely fixed onto the mobile and will not fall.

UPGRADE: Skills set: visual discrimination skills, hand-eye coordination

Using some ribbon, tie one end to an object or a bell on your mobile. On the other end, tie it (gently) on your baby's wrist. This activity will soon teach your child that by moving his arm, he will cause the mobile to move, or to make a sound. When he gets bored of this, untie the ribbon. As your baby gets better at moving the mobile, try to switch to his other wrist or ankles.

Note: Never leave your child unattended during this activity and make sure that he does not get tangled up with the ribbon.

Encouraging Manipulative Play
Age Range: 3 months to 6 months
Targeted Skill Set(s): hand-eye coordination

When your baby is around 3 months old, she will have developed enough
motor skills to play with objects. By allowing her to play with different things,
she will learn to manipulate different objects; learning how they behave.

Place your baby on her stomach on the floor, with 3 or 4 soft objects and toys around her.

Encourage her to reach and play with the toys without helping her to hold objects. Let her explore for around 10 to 15 minutes and then turn her over so she is lying on her back. This will change her perspective of the objects and make things more interesting for her!

Note: Never leave your child unattended during this activity and if she falls asleep on her stomach, immediately turn her over to her back.