Play Activities
The play activities below were categorized as physical, cognitive, or social. It is important to note that these activities often do not promote just one type of development, and often there is a great deal of overlap in the types of skills that a game or activity develops.
Physical Play
Pat-a-Cake (4-24 Months) The benefit of this game can be seen prior to 6 months, and starting around 9-11 months an infant will be able to imitate the hand-rolling. At first, the infants hands should be guided through the motions slowly. This will help develop motor skills and coordination (Honig, 2012). Body Part Game (10+ Months) With this game, a caretaker will point to a body part, name it, and repeat the name several times. For example, if the caretaker points to her nose, she will say, “This is your nose, nose, nose.” Then, she will ask the baby where his nose is, and the baby will learn to touch his nose based on the modeled behavior. The caretaker may have to help the baby touch his nose the first several times. This helps develop motor coordination, and a sense of body position in infants. Not only do they have to develop coordination to touch the body part, but also they have to develop a sense of where they are in the world in order to touch a body part they are unable to see, such as their nose or mouth. Eventually, this can develop into the song and dance “Head, Shoulders, Knees, Toes, “ which is appropriate in an older infant/toddler. I asked Eric to show me where his ears were.
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Cognitive Play
Where is Thumbkin? (and other songs) Singing songs together is a great way to promote language development and teach rhythm to young children. This activity may be most beneficial in later infancy, when language and fine motor skills are beginning to develop. In addition to cognitive development, this song game will promote fine motor skills with the finger and hand movements required. It also models how a simple conversation occurs between two individuals (the hands), which promotes social development. Eric had hearing problems early on, so it was especially important to work with him on language. Here he got up nice and close while we were playing.
Read My Lips
This game can be started as soon as the infant begins babbling, and this activity can promote language development. Infants will look at the source of the noise when they are talked to, and will continue to concentrate on the lips until about 12 months of age. So when the infant begins to make sound, set him or her in your lap so that they can look directly at your mouth. This activity involves responding to the infant’s coos. Speak back to the infant. This stimulation will help with language development (Munoz, 2012). Talking to your baby and acknowledging when they speak to you also promotes normal social development. |
Social Play
Give-and-Take (Starting at 7 Months) This prepares and infant for sharing and later cooperative play. Give a seated infant a desirable object, like a block. Then hold out your hand, and say “Give it to me, please” with a smile. The gift should be something like a wooden block, or other safe object that a child can chew and manipulate. Once the infant gives the object to you, say “Thank you” and give it back. This type of turn-taking will be a valuable skill later when a child begins to play with more peers (Honig, 2012). Peek-a-boo The caretaker can cover his or her face, and quickly uncover while exclaiming “peek-a-boo” in a high pitched, pleasant voice. This reinforces the idea of object permanence, which is the concept that an object continues to exist even when it can no longer be seen. To a lesser extent, it also promotes the idea that the caretaker will return, even when they have “disappeared” which promotes the development of secure attachment (Honig, 2012). Socially, this game will help the infant understand facial expressions and the importance of eye contact in future social interactions. The caretaker can also modify this game as the infant gets older, but using a cloth or something that the baby will grab and pull away to reveal the caretaker’s face. This gives baby more control, and adds a physical element to the game. An excited Eric points at me after I say "boo."
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