Books and babies

It's never too soon to start sharing books with your baby and sharing stories.  babies will quickly discover that looking at books can be a fun, cuddle time.  Sharing books with babies, toddlers and young children helps them to develop a love of books. 

Children who have lots of opportunities to handle books and listen to stories are likely to become more confident readers.  When babies are allowed to handle books, learn to turn pages and listen to the rhythm of the language of stories, books can become familiar friends.

Watch your babies reaction as you read a story and share a book with them.  Even small babies have ways of making their feelings known.  If you start to read books to your baby when they are very tiny, they will begin to associate books with a happy, relaxed time.  Before long they will respond by:

• waving their arms and kicking their legs
• smiling
• staring at the pictures
• watching the person holding them developing eye contact
• babbling and squealing
• pointing
• reaching for the book

Remember though - there will still be times when your baby might not want a book.  They may be tired or hungry and begin to squirm and push the book away, try again another time.

Give your baby the chance to explore books

Babies need the chance to explore books in the same way as they explore the rest of the world, by looking, listening, handling them and even putting them in their mouths.  They will want to know what books taste like.  This is normal, board and material books come in handy for this.   Very soon babies will want to reach and grab books.  This will show that they are interested and want to find out more.

How you can help babies develop a love of books:

• Have appropriate books around that your baby can reach
• Turn off the television so that your baby is not distracted
• Let your baby handle books
• Be aware of your babies reactions
• Join the library to loan a variety of different books - it's FREE!
• Look at different kinds of books - lift the flap, material, pop up, black and white books for babies, board books, songs books
• make sharing books with your baby a special time.  Books don't have to be shared just at bedtime
• Let your baby see you reading.  Even if it's a magazine! This is positive role modelling.

Most of all....have fun with books and stories : )

Singing with babies

Babies can benefit from hearing songs and rhymes and all kinds of music right from the very beginning, even before they are born.   Children who know many songs and rhymes when they start school are more likely to read and write easier and do well generally in their learning. 

Learning about sounds:
When babies get to know lots of songs and rhymes, they begin to connect different sounds and rhythms and pace with different things.  Babies get better and better at knowing one sound from another and one voice from another.

Rhythm:
Even before they are born babies feel the rhythm of people's movements around them as well as when they are rocked, handled or carried close to someone's body.  When parents sing rhymes and songs, the familiar movements and sounds are very satisfying.  When babies join in too with their babbling, looks and gestures, they are learning the rhythmic 'give and take' of listening and talking.

Songs, rhymes and music can bring pleasure, fun and security to young children.  When these things are part of children's lives from the very beginning, children are more likely to:

• Feel good about themselves
• Listen well and respond expressively
• Be able to distinguish between sounds
• Know many songs and rhymes

All these things are likely to help children become good learners.

Games, songs and rhymes:
Playing clapping games and peepo games together helps babies to know that what they do is enjoyed by other people.
These games can introduce lots of different sensations and encourage your baby to respond.
Singing or saying favourite songs and rhymes with your baby and encouraging them to make sounds and gestures of their own helps them with their listening and talking skills.

These experiences in the first days, months and years can have a strong impact on the development of a baby's brain.

For a really good list of songs and rhymes to use with your little one, click on the link below.

Remember songs and rhymes are FREE!  If you don't feel confident singing to your baby, they don't judge our skills they just love us to play and have fun : )

http://www.wordsforlife.org.uk/songs

Image from: pixgood.com

Peepo!

Just had to share this youtube clip from one of my favourite books : )

Developing routines: Babies

Babies need warmth, nourishment, sleep, safety and love.  For us parents, these needs can sometimes feel overwhelming and never ending. 

One of the most useful things to remember in the first years is that because babies grow and develop so fast, patterns are constantly changing.  Managing to establish a few familiar routines, even when things are changing so fast, helps babies as well as adults.  When routines become familiar and enjoyable, babies feel safer and more secure.

Enjoyable routines in the day

Routines develop from the things that happen regularly every day.  Every family is different and every bay / parent relationships is different, but it generally helps when normal daily patterns can become enjoyable occasions for everyone.  These can include:

• Eating
• Nappy changing fun getting to know
• Getting dressed
• Hello and goodbyes
• Washing / bath time
• Getting up
• Cuddles
• Bedtime

During nappy changing, getting dressed, playtime, getting up etc a good activity to do with your baby is to play Peepo.  Babies have always loved this game because of the surprise in store.  It can go on for a while depending on your baby.  Different family members can also play this game with your little one as its really easy and free!

Ideas to play Peepo...

• You can use anything to hide your face from your baby - a tea towel, scarf, hat, etc.  Try see through material or a see through scarf for younger babies so that they can see that you are still there and don't get distressed.
• Try making different faces, sounds or animal noises
• try the game using a special teddy or similar peeping out
• Try whispering Peepo and then get louder and louder - but not shouting

Playing Peepo helps babies to:

• Have fun getting to know people
• Develop a sense of humour
• Develop communication skills - babbling
• Look, listen and respond
• grow in confidence

Every day see through scarves are the best...check out your wardrobe : )

The great outdoors....Out and about

The outdoor environment provides lots of everyday learning experiences.  So how can children's skills be developed when out and about?

• They get to explore and investigate their outdoor environment. 
• It encourages their curiosity and encourages them to explore
• It can help to develop their imagination and their role play ideas

A walk in your local area can provide lots of different experiences such as sounds, smells, shapes, numbers, colour, language opportunities as well as listening skills.

Road signs come in all manners of shapes.  Cars have registration numbers and buildings are made of shapes and patterns.  Finding out about the post office and who works there, the bank, the hairdressers are all every day opportunities to help extend your child's learning.

Ideas for the outdoors:

• Making mud pies - Mixing, decorating then using natural objects, e.g. leaves and twigs.  Draw patterns in mud using sticks
• Treasure hunts - Hide different objects outside.  Ask the children to find them using clues and following a trail.  You could also have a pattern hunt, number hunt or shape hunt
• Water play - Enjoy splashing in puddles, explore the idea of floating and sinking.  Paint with water on the floor or the walls,  what happens as the water dries?
• Music - Make a music tree.  Attach instruments the child has made or already has to the tree.  Children can then make their own music.  You can attach items to a fence if no tree.  Try adding spoons and pans from the kitchen
• Imagination - Develop your child's imagination  using small  characters such as soldiers or fairies in the garden
• Nature - make daisy chains.   Collect fir cones and see what you can make out of them.  Collect big, small and middle sized ones to sort
• Windy days - Blow bubbles outside using simple mixture made from washing up liquid and water and see what happens.  Make some paper streamers and watch how they move in the wind

Fun at bath time

Bath time is a great opportunity to help develop your child's language.  Your child has your undivided attention, making it a great time to talk and play. 

Here are some ideas to try:

• Name items: Engage your child's attention and name the bath items you use (e.g. soap, shampoo, sponge etc.).  You could name the parts of the body as you wash and dry them, e.g. hands, feet, nose, ears
• Describe items: Talk about the colours of items, e.g. white towel, blue sponge etc.  Talk about how things feel, e.g. fluffy, soft, slippery etc.
• Compare items: Engage your child's attention and compare the size of different bath items or talk about opposites, e.g. the towel is bigger than the flannel etc
• Make a bath time basket: Bath time baskets contain items from around the home for your child to explore in the bath as you are with them all the time.  Most bath toys are made of plastic which is good for cleaning but not very tactile for children....so grab a basket, box or something similar and let you child help you to fill it for bath time. 

Ideas include:

• Clean flower pot  acts as a sieve
• Bath books for a story
• Bath mitt - You can use a character mitt to tell a story and sing with as well as to wash your child with
• Rubber glove - put a small pin prick in each finger of the glove ad let your child fill with water.  Then squeeze.  Great fun and a great stress reliever for you too.  PLEASE NOTE: this is only for children who are not allergic to LATEX and is only to be used under adult supervision
• Empty plastic bottles  and jugs for filling and pouring
• Doll or teddy - let your chid wash a favourite toy.  This helps them to practice social skills and develop their imagination skills too.

Books and stories with babies ....Part 2

Introducing books at an early age helps develop the skills needed to be able to learn to read

They will learn how to handle books, e.g. how to turn the pages and how to enjoy the pictures.

When looking at the pictures they learn to recognise objects.  Pictures are a very important part of storybooks - even babies point at pictures.  When you talk about the pictures it helps them gain information from them which is a skill they can use when they come to learn to read.

Books are a great source of vocabulary for young children.  Sharing books helps a child to settle and encourages attention and concentration skills which are vital to be able to learn effectively. 

Libraries welcome babies and toddlers.  Babies can join the library from birth.  Don't worry if a book is lost or damaged, there are no fines to pay for books taken out on a child's card.

Tips on how to share books with babies

• Find a quiet place and turn off the TV and radio so there are no distractions and background noise
• Model how to hold a book and turn pages
• Point and name things in pictures as well as talking about the pictures
• Encourage prediction (lift the flap books are perfect for this)
• Show how words go from left to right when they get a bit older by running a finger under them as you read
• Use different voices and sounds, facial expressions and gestures
• Use props such as puppets.  This helps books come to life and give your baby something to hold onto that relates to the story