Every parent wants what’s best for their baby. When kids are little they are like sponges, absorbing information and learning in the speed of light. In order to help your bundle of joy reach its potential and boost its brain development, you really don’t need to spend a ton of money. In fact, if you cannot or do not want to participate in various mommy-and-me types of classes, there are some simple actions that will help you nurture and support your kid’s brain development.
1. Sticking out your tongue
It is funny how we spend years teaching our kids not to stick out their tongue because it’s rude, especially in public, but this same gesture can boost your baby’s brain development. When your kid is around 3 months old, stick out your tongue in various ways during the diaper change or playtime, and give your little baby time to do it back to you. This way you will easily encourage it to practice tongue control, which can be useful with eating and speech development. In addition, this way you will start to communicate with your infant.
2. Tummy time!
When the baby is six months old, put your kid on its stomach so it can develop physical strength and coordination. During tummy time lie down next to your little one, talk to it, let your baby look in the mirror or bring toys to make this time more fun for the both of you.
3. Fun with fabrics
Find long scraps of fabrics (which your little one cannot easily swallow) and let your baby explore them while you keep an eye on it. While your child is examining the fabrics, talk about them using rich, descriptive language. This way your kid will learn through his or her senses and easily develop a strong vocabulary later on.
4. Playing with your child
Interacting with your little one and playing with it is crucial for positive brain development. A simple thing like playing with Mom or Dad helps children build a strong relationship with their parents and this secure bond your kid forms with you will help it build friendships, be part of a team, cooperate with others and establish healthy romantic relationships later on. Playing with your kid is free, but the value of this activity is immense. Nowadays you can find stimulating toys for 2 year old girls and boys that are designed to develop motor skills and auditory abilities, as well as enhance the imagination. You can also make toys together with your child and play with those.
5. Big or little
When kids are between 2 and 3 years old, they love sorting various items and putting them into ‘big’ and ‘small’ piles. Encourage your toddler to do so and you will easily teach it about the concepts of big and little, as well as support its early math skills.
6. Turning on the radio
When they are little, kids develop millions of neural pathways every day that are used throughout their lives to collect information. These pathways help with cognitive, social, and emotional development and listening to music is one way to easily stimulate them. Turn on the radio or make a playlist on your computer so you can expose your little one to different types of music that vary in tone and meter.
7. Singing!
Singing with your baby is a lot of fun and a great bonding opportunity. However, it is also a great way to boost brain development. Hold your baby close to you and exaggerate your mouth’s movements. Also, when your baby tries to sing imitate her or him in order to provide positive reinforcement which will encourage more spontaneous sound and movement activity. Sing to slow songs as well as fast ones, sing loudly and softly and rock your baby to the beat of a song.
Deciding what might be the best for your growing child can be stressful, but don’t worry. By providing your kid with loving, stimulating, fun, language-enhanced experiences, you can boost your baby’s brain development resulting in rich language, reasoning, and planning skills later on.
