How to Interact with a Baby

Just because your baby has yet to learn how to use words to communicate, it doesn̵7;t mean that you can̵7;t interact with your little one. You can engage your baby in all sorts of entertaining and engaging activities. These interactions are the foundation for social skills, language development and healthy attachment.

Things You'll Need

  • Books
  • Age-appropriate toys
  • Radio

Instructions

    • 1

      Read to your baby. Grab a few books and situate her on your lap. Pull out colorful board books and let your baby gaze at the pictures. Textured books help stimulate her senses. You can use different voices for various characters in the story. Ask questions about the story, such as ̶0;Where is the kitty?̶1; Then point and say, ̶0;There̵7;s the kitty.̶1; Label different objects as you go along.

    • 2

      Play age-appropriate games. For a newborn, you can hold brightly colored or patterned objects about a foot away from his face and slowly move it back and forth. Play copycat with him. Hold your 1- to 3-month old in front of a mirror and make faces with him. Play peek-a-boo while he̵7;s in his crib or on the changing table. Lay on the floor with your 4- or 5-month-old while he has tummy time. Crawl around with your 6- to 8-month old or stack blocks with him. Set up little obstacle courses for your 8- to 12-month-old with pillows, cushions and blankets.

    • 3

      Sing and dance with your little one. Put some music on at a low to medium volume and sway back and forth with your baby in your arms. Always support her head and neck during this activity. Sing along with the music or sing your own songs. Your baby will simply enjoy hearing the sound of your voice, so don't worry about your singing ability -- she won't judge you if you miss a note or two.

    • 4

      Transform everyday duties into exciting activities. Make faces at him and talk about daily life as you change his diaper or feed him. Pat his feet and hands together as you change his clothes. Go ahead and pull out the silly noises when you feed him, such as a spoon airplane going in for a landing.

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