TIPS FOR INFANTS

TIPS FOR INFANTS (0-12 MONTHS OLD)

PLAY MUSIC We all have a natural love of music. Share this love with your child. Play gentle music or sing when you are together. This is a fun and easy way to expose your child to rhythm and patterns. Lots of nursery rhymes and children’s songs involve counting.

MOVE TO THE BEAT Clap, tap, rock, or kiss your baby in a steady rhythm. Count while you do it. For example, while dressing your infant, tap their tummy three times. Repeat this. Have fun and make silly faces. This is a good way to teach your infant about counting and patterns.

COUNT OBJECTS Count groups of things, starting with small numbers. For example, count your child’s toes or pieces of fruit. Infants learn through all of their senses, so hold objects up for your child to see and touch. “Look, there’s one…two bananas. Two bananas.”

COMPARE Provide opportunities for your child to touch and explore things that are the same and different. For example, let your baby shake things that make different sounds, or touch fabrics with different textures. Talk about how they are similar or different.

FILL UP AND DUMP OUT For example, use a container to scoop and dump water in the bathtub. Use words like “in,” “out,” “full,” “empty,” "more," and "less."