How to play with your newborn?

Ø  Face

There is nothing more enjoyable for your newborn than a good face – making session. Spending time face to face with your newborn not only makes them happy, it also helps develop that bond between the two of you that will likely lay the foundation for a healthy relationship in the months and years to come. Your baby will be especially excited to observe wide open eyes and genuine smiles. Look your baby in the eye and respond to any actions the baby makes by changing your expression.

Ø  Imitate / Interact

By engaging with your baby by imitating her sounds, facial expressions and movements, you are teaching her about the basics of back and forth communication. Know that you will need to initiate almost all interactions with your newborns for the first few months of their life.

Ø  Talk to her

Hold your face close to your newborn while speaking to them to get more face to face time together as well. Newborn babies may prefer the silly noises often associated with speaking to babies but you can also simply speak softly using an actual human language.

Talk to your newborn while feeding, bathing and changing them as well.

Ø  Sing

Your baby will be especially interested in listening if you are singing. Sing songs that incorporate a physically active component and move their arms or playfully touch your newborn as you sing to them. Incorporate singing with hand motions into your baby’s daily routine.

Ø  Read

It’s never too early to read to your baby. Start out with books that have highly contrasting colours and simple pictures. Exposure to your voice, the rhythm with which you speak and structure sentences and the vocabulary you use will all steadily increase your baby’s understand of verbal communication. Make sure to eliminate extraneous noise when reading to your baby. Turn off any televisions or other devices emitting distracting audio.

Ø  Dance

They may not ever take the lead, but swaying back and forth with your newborn is delightfully playful and will greatly increase your bond with your baby.

Ø  Toys

Your baby’s visual capabilities will drastically change during the first few months of their lives. Your newborn will likely be fascinated by the different ways things feel to the touch. Provide a variety of toys and fabrics to your newborn to expose them to how vastly different things can feel.