Sensory Development in Infants

The five senses begin to develop while the fetus is still growing in the uterus, but they are limited at birth. The senses develop very quickly during a baby's first four months, and by the end of that period her senses are nearly as mature as those of adults. The maturation of senses prevents a child from being too overwhelmed while she adjusts to life outside the womb, according to Tiny Love, a maker of developmental toys.

  1. Hearing

    • Within a newborn's first hours, he will be able to distinguish his mother's voice. Newborns also prefer high-pitched sounds to those that are low pitched. During the first few months, most babies react to sounds the same way: they are startled by a loud noise, or are soothed and comforted by soft lullabies and white noise. Infants can distinguish their native language, according to parenting.com. Being able to tell the difference between familiar and unfamiliar sounds eventually will help a child learn to process and understand verbal language.

    Sight

    • An infant can only clearly see as far as the approximate distance to her mother's face while being held in the feeding position. During the first two months, a child will prefer sharp, contrasting colors to soft, muted pastels, and black and white toys stimulate her vision. By the start of the third month, she can comprehend other colors. A baby will search her parents' faces, and their expressions can sometimes help her to understand things as much as the words that are said, according to parenting.com.

    Smell

    • It takes some time for an infant to distinguish odors, but even from birth she can distinguish, and shows a preference for, her mother's scent. As vision and hearing develop during the first few months, she won't have to rely on her sense of smell to determine who's who and what's what. Infants also can tell the difference between foul odors and pleasing scents. Babies associate good smells with comfort and happiness, according to parenting.com.

    Taste

    • Infants generally prefer sweet-tasting food. Transitioning from the sweeter-tasting breast milk to pureed peas or green beans might provide a challenge to parents; and while it may take a few attempts, taste preferences eventually will change. Texture of food may affect a child's eating preferences in the same way taste does.

    Touch

    • For a child to thrive, she needs to feel the loving and nurturing touch of her parents from the beginning. To help her transition from the womb to the outside world, swaddling her in a blanket will make her feel warm and secure. While a child certainly touches many things with her hands and fingers, she also will use her mouth to explore the world around her. By four months, she will start to put everything she can into her mouth, which is why it is so essential to childproof a baby's environs.

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