How to Entertain a Newborn Baby
Now that your baby has been fed, changed, and cuddled, you may be thinking, “Now what?” Playing with your newborn is a great way for them to learn about their surroundings!
As newborns are small and immobile, you may be wondering how to play with them. Rest assured, there are plenty of activities you can do with your baby! Once their basic needs are met, you can begin meeting their social and emotional needs. Continue reading to learn more about how to entertain a newborn.
When Can I Start Playing With My Baby?
There is no age restriction to playing with your baby! Keeping them happy and entertained is important once they are fed and clean. Babies learn about the world around them through all of their senses, and these senses start working the moment they are born.
A common question is how much playtime a newborn needs. Similarly to adults, babies don’t need to be entertained at all times. While they enjoy playing with their caregiver, they can become overwhelmed by too much play! Once they have enjoyed a bottle and had their diaper changed, they can play for a little while before going down for a nap.
When babies are newborns, play can be as simple as relaxing on mom or dad and listening to the sound of their voice. They aren’t able to engage as much as older babies, but they can move their heads to locate familiar voices and sounds, as well as attempt to focus on a toy in front of them.
Once they hit their second month, babies can play a little more! You will notice that during tummy time, they can hold their heads up and look all around them. Then by the time three months roll around, your little one should be offering consistent smiles and coos to communicate and interact with you!
It may seem difficult to determine when your baby is ready to play. Playtime is perfect to have after your baby is full and clean, as this prevents them from being uncomfortable during their downtime.
How Do I Engage My Baby’s Senses?
Babies learn through sight, smell, touch, sound, and taste. Thankfully, there are plenty of ways for you to stimulate these senses! Some ideas for you to engage your baby are:
Colorful rattles
Textured toys
Toys that play music
Indestructible mirrors
Babies are born color-blind and especially enjoy looking at white and black objects as there is a strong contrast. The pictures should also have curves and various shapes to stimulate their senses. You will notice that as your baby gets older, they will have the ability to interact more with their environment.
How Do I Play With My Baby?
The thought of what to do with a newborn all day may seem overwhelming – they’re so little! Newborns enjoy simple playtime, so try not to overcomplicate it! If you need some ideas on what to do with your baby, try these activities:
Making faces at your baby. Smiling, sticking out your tongue, and making various facial expressions allows your baby to learn from you and eventually practice on their own!
Grab a rattle to shake around for your baby to follow with their eyes.
Give your baby some tummy time. Tummy time is important for your baby to develop strength in their muscles, such as their neck and shoulders. Babies can become frustrated in this position and get upset, so they should be supervised at all times. While tummy time is important during playtime, it's important to note that infants should never be put to sleep on their stomachs.
Read to your baby. The more books, the better!
Listen to soothing music together. Rocking back and forth while listening to music is a great way to connect to your baby.
Sing to your baby. They love listening to you!
Engage them in your chores. Babies love being around their caregivers no matter what they are doing. Bringing your baby around the house with you as you do chores such as dishes, laundry, and cooking is a great way to keep them involved. They will enjoy watching you clean dishes, fold various colors and textures of clothes, and the smells of the food. They just want to be included in your everyday routine!
Stimulate them through their sense of touch. Just as we’re sure you enjoy a relaxing massage, so will your baby! Laying them down and rubbing their back, feet, arms, and legs is a good way to connect to your baby. An added bonus is stretching out their legs and pedaling them (this can help them release trapped gas).
At the end of the day, your baby just wants to spend time with you and is more than happy to follow you during your normal daily activities!
Track Playtime With Baby Connect
Playtime helps your baby to learn more about themselves and their environment. Keeping track of their progress will help you work on increasing their strength, such as during tummy time.
Playing with your baby is important for their development. Playtime allows them to socialize with their loved ones and learn how to make facial expressions, and eventually talk. Every baby is different and may enjoy different ways to play, so keep trying new activities and toys until your baby finds something they like!
Recording playtime is a great way to see how much your baby is progressing for their age range. Why track this information on spare pieces of paper when you can use an app that does it for you? Baby Connect is designed for you to store all of your baby’s information to review as needed. This is helpful not only for you, but for those times at the doctor’s office when the pediatrician has specific questions.
Try out Baby Connect for free to keep track of all your baby’s progress!
