Boost Your
Baby's Brain Power
When you provide loving, language-enriched experiences for your baby, you are giving his brain's neural connections and pathways more opportunities to become wired together. In turn, he will acquire rich language, reasoning, and planning skills. These easy tips, stimulating books and supervised, interactive activities will help make sure your young child’s brain is primed for years of learning ahead.
1. Give your baby a good
start before birth. Stay healthy while you are pregnant, and be aware
that certain drugs can be destructive to your baby's brain in utero. Many
children who were drug-abused in the womb struggle with severe learning
problems and suddenly act with unprovoked aggressive behaviors. Studies have
also revealed that cigarette smoking during pregnancy is linked with lower
fourth-grade reading scores.
2. Turn up the baby talk. Respond to infant coos with delighted vocalizations, and slowly
draw out your syllables in a high-pitched voice as you exclaim phrases like
"pretty baby.” This way of speaking is called parentese, and the
exaggerated facial expressions and drawn-out vowels help your child absorb all
the sounds of our language. Remember: The areas of the brain responsible for
understanding speech and producing language need your rich input.
Book Pick: Baby Shark This silly sing-along story based
on a well-loved song can easily be read in parentese. Your baby will absorb the
many sounds of the English language as you talk about a baby shark, mama shark,
and grandpa shark, and sing the melodic “Doo doo doo!” verses in between.
3. Play games that involve
hands. Activities like patty-cake, peekaboo, this little piggy, or
even puppets engage your baby and capture her attention. Using your hands shows
young children how we physically interact with our world — plus, hands-on
activities are simply more fun for both of you!
Toy Pick: Narwhal & Jelly Finger Puppet
Pair Make playtime hands-on with
these fun-sized, dynamic duo of puppets, which spark the imagination of your
child while providing hilarious, interactive play.
4. Be attentive. When
your young child points, be sure to follow with your gaze and remark on items
or events of interest to her. This "joint attention" confirms how
important her interests and observations are to you.
Toy Pick: Hand Pointers Set of 3 For little learners ages 3 and up, these hand pointers
make it even easier for you and your child to interact about topics of
interest—and they’re also great for imaginative play, like pretend school!
5. Foster an early passion
for books. Choose books with large and colorful pictures, and
share your baby's delight in pointing at certain images or even making noises
that correspond with the book — like glub glub when you see a
fish. Modulate the tone of your voice, simplify or elaborate on story lines,
and encourage toddlers to talk about books (here are some good options for
sounds and wordplay). Remember that building your
baby's receptive language (understanding spoken words) is more
important than developing his expressive language (speaking) in infancy.
Book Pick: 1, 2, 3 in the Sea Colorful sea creatures including whales
and fish star in this vibrant board book, which features gatefolds and a giant
pop-up to show children just how fun reading can be.
6. Build your baby's love of her own body. Stroke her tummy and hair when reading, playing, or even
diapering. Studies have shown that babies who are not often touched have brains
that are smaller than normal for their age, and interacting with her close-up
also helps direct her attention to your speech.
Book Pick: I Love You Through and Through Make reading time extra cuddly
and touchy-feely with this classic book, which features a sweet storyline about
unconditional love. Bonus: It comes with a soft, snuggly bear for your baby or
toddler to hug!
7. Choose toys that allow babies to explore and interact. Toys such as a windup jack-in-the-box or stackable blocks
help your baby learn cause-and-effect relationships and "if-then"
reasoning. For instance, if a child stacks too many blocks without
straightening them, they fall down. If he successfully stacks blocks on top of
each other, he "wires in" that information.
Toy Pick: Activity Blocks Make blocks an even greater learning opportunity for your
child with this block puzzle set with 32 blocks. Each has upper case printed
letters and punctuation marks, two styles of lower case letters in print and
script, along with animal pictures, and mosaic patterns.
8. Respond promptly when your baby cries. Soothe, nurture, cuddle, and reassure her so that you build
positive brain circuitry in the limbic area of the brain, which is involved in
emotions. Your calm holding and cuddling, and your day-to-day engagement with
your baby, signal emotional security to the brain.
Toy Pick: Nursery Verse 11” Goose Musical Soothe ruffled feathers with this adorable, soft plush,
which plays “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” to help comfort an upset little
one.
9. Build trust by being attentive and focused. When your child is playing, resist the temptation to check
Instagram. Instead, get on the ground and spend time interacting with him.
Babies who are securely attached to you emotionally will be able to invest more
energy in the pleasures of exploration, learning, and discovery.
10. Give her a body massage. This can lower your infant's stress levels and enhance her
feelings of well-being and emotional security. Loving touches even promote
growth in young babies: Research has shown that premature babies who are
massaged three times daily are ready to leave the hospital days earlier than
babies who do not receive massages.
Book Pick: The Kissing Hand Communicate the idea of loving
touch with Chester from The Kissing Hand. In the book, Chester’s
mother shows him that she can kiss his hand in the morning and he’ll feel the
warmth there when you read this classic aloud.
11. Enlist help from your toddler at clean-up times. This is a wonderful way to practice categorization. Toddlers
learn that stuffed animals have one place to go for "night-night"
time; cars, trucks, and other vehicles also have their special storage place.
Children need to learn about sorting into categories and seriation (placing
things in order; for example, from smallest to largest) as part of their
cognitive advancement in preschool.
Book Pick: How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms? This sweet story about a
frolicsome dinosaur tasked to clean up promotes organizational skills and
responsibility through loads of laughter and positive reinforcement.
12. Set up a safe environment for your crawling baby or
toddler. Your mobile child will
begin to understand spatial parameters and vocabulary such as under, over, big,
little, near, and far, plus the relationship between objects of different
shapes and sizes (those that are big versus little, for instance). He will
start to establish mental maps of his environment and a comfortable
relationship with the world in which he lives.
Book Pick: The Three Little Fish and the Big
Bad Shark An under-the-sea retelling of
“The Three Little Pigs” will provide a colorful story and a big laugh for your
child, all while supporting the development of spatial skills and vocabulary.
13. Sing those nursery rhyme songs you remember. When you can, add body motions and finger play (like waving
your arms during “You Are My Sunshine” or miming rain falling during “Rain,
Rain, Go Away”). This helps your baby connect sounds with large and small motor
actions. Songs also enhance your child's learning of rhythms, rhymes, and
language patterns.
Book Pick: We Love to Sing Along! With this cheerful padded board
book, you and your child can sing along to four classic songs: “You Are My
Sunshine,” “The More We Get Together,” “Rain, Rain, Go Away,” and “Twinkle,
Twinkle Little Star.”
14. Match your tempo to your child's temperament. Some children adjust easily to strange situations —
some are bold and impulsive, and some are quite shy. Go with the flow as you
try to increase a shy child's courage and comfort level, or help a highly
active child safely use her fantastic energy while learning impulse control.
Your acceptance will give her the comfort she needs to experiment and learn
freely.
Book Pick: I Love You Because You’re You Whether a youngster is feeling
bashful or bold, playful or sad, a mother’s love knows no bounds in this warm
book about children’s different temperaments and moods.
15. Make meals positive. Say the names of foods out loud as your baby eats. Express
pleasure as he learns to feed himself, no matter how messy the initial attempts
may be. This will create pleasant associations with mealtime and eating.
Battles and nagging about food, on the other hand, can lead to negative brain
patterns.
Book Pick: My Very First Book of Food Keep mealtimes positive by
showing your child that animals love munching on food, too! In this split-page
board book, children can match each animal — from a lion to a squirrel — with
the delicious food it eats, such as milk or nuts.
16. Provide clear responses to your baby's actions. A young, developing brain learns to make sense of the world if
you respond to your child's behavior in predictable, reassuring, and
appropriate ways. Be as consistent as possible.
Book Pick: Baby Faces: Hugs & Kisses Also, show your baby an array of
expressions through books! Babies are intrigued by other babies, and this photo
collection of giggling, yawning, laughing, and smiling babies will capture
their attention as they learn about normal emotional responses.
17. Use positive discipline. Create clear consequences without frightening or causing shame
to your child. If your toddler acts inappropriately, such as by hitting another
child, get down to her eye level, use a low, serious tone of voice, and clearly
restate the rule. Keep rules simple, consistent, and reasonable for your
child's age. Expecting a toddling baby not to touch a glass vase on a coffee
table is unreasonable, but asking a toddler not to throw sand outside of the
sandbox is reasonable.
Activity Pick: Good Citizenship Flash Cards These illustrated cards take a positive, friendly approach
to teaching your child that we are all part of a larger community, and that
certain responsibilities come with that — from never calling someone names to
recycling.
18. Model empathic feelings for others. Use teachable moments when someone seems sad or upset to help
your toddler learn about feelings, caring, sharing, and kindness. The more
brain connections you create for empathic responses and gentle courtesies, the
more these brain circuits will be wired in. This helps not only with language
and cognitive learning, but with positive emotional skills, too!
Book Pick: Try a Little Kindness Every page of this sweet picture
book illustrates the importance of kindness. Your child will learn just how
much it means to others when you tell them they’re special, share a treat, and
much more.
19. Arrange supervised play with messy materials. It can be water, sand, and even slime or goop! This will teach
your child about the properties of liquids, solids, and mixtures — sensory
experiences that are crucial for the learning brain.
Activity Pick: The Magic School Bus Diving Into
Slime, Gel, and Goop Science Kit Let your young scientist explore a slimy, goopy mix of
textures and materials with this set of fabulous experiments. With the guidance
of Ms. Frizzle, little learners can create glue from milk, grow jiggly marbles,
and even make snow from crystals!
20. Express joy and interest in your baby. Let your body language, your shining eyes, your attentiveness to
babbling and baby activities, and your gentle caresses and smiles validate the
deeply lovable nature of your little one.
Ever
marveled at the complete concentration of a child trying to solve a puzzle? The
utter focus your child displays in that activity can be truly incredible. For
that matter, does your child show mental fortitude when attempting to catch a
ball?
Well,
did you know that play is not just about improving fitness but can be a
fantastic way to boost brain development as well?
So,
what better way to improve your child's brain activity than through toys! After
all, there is no child who does not love them. As children, we often played
with action figures and building blocks. They kept us occupied for hours and,
at the same time, taught us to think and use our brain thereby, helping us
develop our gross and motor skills as well.
Today,
children rarely spend time outdoors. Instead, they are hooked to the television
or a device, watching cartoons or playing games. However, rather than
dissuading them from doing this, which will only make them want to do it more,
give them toys that will keep them entertained and enhance brain development.
Toys
that can improve brain activity
1.
Wooden alphabet puzzle: Children love to assemble and arrange puzzle
blocks into shapes they can easily identify and recognize. This toy is ideal
for teaching children alphabets in a creative way. It has a puzzle board (made
of wood) with colorful vegetable-shaped blocks. To play, your child needs to
assemble and put together blocks that match the corresponding slots on the
board. This will develop your child's ability to focus, recognize shapes and
colors. It can also help enhance motor and problem-solving skills.
|
Wooden alphabet
puzzle is recommended for children 2 years and above |
2.
Puzzle cube: A puzzle cube is an excellent brain development toy. It has
been around for ages and is simple and inexpensive. Your child will need to
figure out how to solve the cube. This will help develop memory, hand-eye
coordination, and also hone analytical and problem-solving abilities.
|
Puzzle cube is
recommended for children 3 years and above |
3.
Tangram: Helps children get familiar with geometric shapes and develop
strong problem-solving skills. This normally comprises one parallelogram, one
square and five triangles. The objective is to form one specific shape using
all seven shapes. This toy can help children think logically, develop
visual-spatial awareness and understand mathematical concepts better.
|
Tangram is
recommended for children four years and above |
4.
Rock-a-Stack: As a child, did you go to local fairs and try your best win
an item from a stall? It used to be such fun even if you ended up empty-handed!
A rock-a-stack can be engrossing and fun-filled too, for your child. This toy
will help your child learn to sort and stack. What's more, there are other
benefits involved. To begin with, the bright shades and swirling beads
stimulate visual development in children while placing rings on the pole
strengthens hand-eye coordination. The toy also helps children learn to
differentiate between colors.
|
Rock-a-Stack is
recommended for children 6 months and above |
5.
Flexi ball: This brightly colored toy is great for keeping your child
engrossed for hours. It also gets her to use her hands and muscles. The soft
and flexible plastic material makes this ball easy to hold, bend or squeeze;
the rolling rattle ball inside is a great way to captivate her attention with
the fun sound it makes.
|
Flexi ball is recommended
for children 5 months and above |
6.
3D snazzle: Children are sure to love this rainbow-colored, animal-shaped
toy which is also a puzzle. It is an exciting way for your child to learn about
numbers, alphabets, colors and animal shapes. It aids color recognition, mental
agility and brain development.
|
3D snazzle is
recommended for children 3 years and above |
7.
Wooden intelligence sticks: This toy is a great way of visually teaching
your child how to do simple math calculations. Your child needs to pick up and
place pieces in the correct order to play the game. This toy serves three
purposes it teaches children numbers, basic mathematical operations and helps
children identify colors.
|
Wooden intelligence
sticks is recommended for children 3 years and above |
Toys
are a part of every child's growing-up years. Selecting the right toy at the
right age will not only keep your child engrossed but also contribute to his
overall development. Toys that stimulate brain activity can strengthen
cognition and other skills thereby enabling your child's healthy growth into
adulthood.
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