Games to play with your baby!

Finally! Time for some fun! Play is a really important party of a child’s development, and is also fun for you and helps you to bond with your baby. Through play, babies learn to be creative, it fuels their imagination and gives them lots of necessary skills for when they are older.

So rather than just stick them in front of In The Night Garden, you need get involved. You don’t need to buy expensive toys either; here are some suggestions for some simple but fun games to play with your baby, according to age:

• Copycat - Hold your baby close - they can focus best at around 20-35 cm - and when they are gazing into your eyes, slowly poke your tongue out. Do this every 20 seconds or so. It may take a minute or so, but eventually you'll notice they're sticking their tongue back out at you! This works with lots of facial expressions, but don't worry if it doesn't work first time.
• Roll and stretch – if your baby likes laying on their tummy, roll a ball in their line of sight, they will eventually try to reach for it, this strengthens important muscles

• Bubbles!
• Games that end with a tickle! Remember ‘round and round the garden’ or ‘this little piggy’?
• Balls, activity centres, toys that make sounds
• Use a torch and make a lightshow on the ceiling
• Start reading to them as soon as possible, choose books with lots of colourful pictures. Don't worry if they get bored or don't pay much attention - babies have very short attention spans!
• Peek-a-boo (this helps them understand that things do not disappear just because they cannot see them)

• Bricks and stacking games
• Banging games (if you don’t have a toy drum use a wooden spoon and saucepan)
• Books with lift up flaps, textures and sounds
• Hide under a blankets and play ‘where’s daddy?’
• Singing games like ‘the wheels on the bus’
• Lift them up and play a flying game. Don't get carried away with the divebombs though - they're only little and still very fragile!

• Hide and seek with toys
• Go through photos of family and name everyone 
• Roll a ball to your baby and get them to roll it back
• Baby swings in the garden
• Finger painting
• Finger puppets
• Action rhymes like ‘head, shoulders, knees and toes’
• Set up a basic obstacle course using pillows etc

• Talk to your baby constantly! Always tell them what you are doing. Make noises and encourage them to copy you….always encourage them when they make noises.
• Give your baby lots of praise, they may find some things frustrating while they are still developing.
• Have fun!