Infant Activity Manual
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0 ~ 12 Months
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Gross Motor Skills
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As the baby grows he will...
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You can help the baby learn if you.....
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| turn body towards object |
try to get the infant to adjust his body to the movement of the object you are holding so he can see it. |
| gradually gain control of back muscles - sit up, with support |
play exercise games while you hold his hands |
| try (hitting (with up and down arm movement) and shaking (side to side arm movement) |
demonstrate hitting an object against a hard surface with your hand encourage baby to copy |
| bounce his body in a rhythmic manner |
bounce him on your knees to the tempo of background music |
| sit without support |
place attractive toys near him, but so that he must reach for them. |
| perform a lot of gross motor activity |
see that he has many interesting objects and people to interact with |
| pull himself up and stand firmly while holding on |
encourage him to walk while supporting him |
| crawl up and down stairs |
help baby begin upward exploration by aiding and encouraging him to climb up onto low stools etc. |
Self Care and Language
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As the baby grows he will...
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You can help the baby learn if you.....
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| cry because he needs you |
always be aware of what's happening |
| begin to try to feed himself |
give baby finger foods to practice on |
| want to use his cup/spoon to feed himself |
help him learn, even if it's messy & time consuming. |
| start trying to pickup things he has dropped |
give him chances to pick up all kinds of objects |
| begin to take off clothing the he can remove easily |
let the child do as much as possible for himself when you undress him |
| look and play with fingers and toes |
find ways to play with baby and talk about his fingers, toes etc. |
| babble and coo in baby talk instead of crying when he is alone |
notice when he's babbling to himself and make similar noises for him |
| turn his head when called by name or when familiar objects are named |
call baby by name as you talk to him name similar noises for him |
| begin to repeat words or sods of more than one syllable |
imitate his sounds and give him new words and sounds to try |
| begin to say real words such as Mama-Dada etc. |
respond enthusiastically whenever baby says a real word |
| begin to know what the names of many things are |
tell the baby the name of common things he sees |
Fine Motor Skills
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As the baby grows he will...
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You can help the baby learn if you.....
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| Look all around at things, near and far |
move around, try to catch baby's attention |
| hold onto objects, look at them, put then in his mouth |
give baby safe objects with interesting shapes that he can easily hold |
| spend time looking at his own hands |
move mobiles and other objects further away let baby look at his hands |
| bring his hands in front of his body and them together |
hold small, safe objects in front of baby so he can grab them with both hands |
| turn his body and grab an object with both hands |
let baby play with objects that he must turn toward and reach out for |
| be able to hold two toys at once, reaching across his body to get the second toy |
play toy-passing games with baby using only two toys; extend a toy to the hand that already has a toy |
| play with several toys-dropping one and picking up another, one by one |
show baby to pick things up and drop them one by one |
| learn about things by handling them - his eyes and hands are learning to work together |
give him many interesting things to look at and explore |
| begin to use the thumb and forefinger grip (pincher grip) |
show baby how to pick up these items; finger foods reward baby for practicing |
| begin to poke, pat and to discover that things stay where they are even when he can't see them |
give baby toys that will help him learn these things |
| let you keep a toy for him while he's playing with other toys |
play at passing toys back and fourth with baby; see how many he can hold |
| enjoy playing with all kinds of objects |
give baby things he can use easily, such as baskets, hats and things that fit inside each other |
| use different actions with different objects |
demonstrate how to use things; try crumpling paper, pulling a toy, squeaking a toy to make it squeak etc. |
| drop or throw objects |
start baby in a cycle of dropping or throwing a ball or a cardboard tube; keep handing it back; back an forth ball-rolling is another CYCLE game |
| put his spoon in his cup and let go; hold cup with both hands and drink |
show baby how to do this; then let him try |
INTELLECTUAL
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As the baby grows he will...
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You can help the baby learn if you.....
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| turn his eyes towards the source of sounds |
provide baby with much interaction by calling to him, playing music or making various noises to attract his attention |
| follow a moving object with his eyes but will not look for an object that has disappeared |
place mobiles over his crib or playpen that are partially screened as they move |
| reject an object or toy after playing wit it many times |
provide toys and objects that encourage handling and exploring for size, shape, color, texture, movement and sound |
| watch at fast moving object as it goes up, down or sideways |
play with baby by moving objects, including your face, for baby to follow |
| usually not turn objects over to see the other side |
show baby an object, and then turn it over, let baby try to do it; then give him the object to play with |
| look carefully at an object by picking it up and turning it many ways |
introduce baby to a variety of objects with odd and interesting shapes |
| smile and talk to faces or objects, such as a mirror |
play "peek-a-boo" games with the baby so that he can become familiar with them and learn to expect a series of actions |
| be able to find and grab an object which moves after he begins to reach for it; he will reach for toys out of his reach |
hold an object in front of baby; when he reaches for it, place it in back of something that will hide it; remove what hides it and let him reach for it |
| imitate you in doing "patty cake", hand clapping and other simple movements |
play hand-clapping games with him along with other simple motion games |
| be able to line up a cube in one hand with his other hand |
show him how to put cubes and other objects together in a line, encourage him to try |
| uncover a toy he has seen hidden |
show baby a favorite toy, then partly hide it under the blanket; see if he can uncover it and find it |
| search for a toy removed from his sight by will always look in the place where it first disappeared |
hide an object, let baby find it, then try hiding it in a different place |
| repeat his actions if he gets people to laugh and play along with him |
try not to overdo this, but help baby to be interested in continuing this kind of play and learning by much response to him |
| begin to see and handle things with more awareness |
help him become aware of the various qualities of objects |
Social Emotional
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As the baby grows he will........
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You can help him learn if you .....
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| recognize you, his principle caregiver |
try not to let totally unfamiliar people take him where he can't see you |
| recognize other people that are important, but will probable be shy of strangers |
always reassure him and stay with him when strangers stop to chat or play with him |
| respond to his own image in a mirror |
let baby smile and talk to himself in the mirror; use his name and talk about what he sees |
| have emotional attachments to particular people, and begin to distinguish between their angry or friendly talking |
draw baby's attention to activities and other aspects of yourself and other familiar people; talk to him |
| respond to more than one familiar person at a time |
let him go back and forth from you to other people |
| respond well to his caregiver's actions and begin to recognize his own name |
always use baby's name when you talk to him, and play with child to encourage his response |
| indicates his needs by gestures and vocalization |
try to understand what he is trying to say and respond appropriately |
Infant Activity Manual
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12 ~ 18 Months
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FINE MOTOR SKILLS
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As the baby grows he will...
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You can help the baby learn if you.....
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| hold his cup with both hands and drink from it |
Let baby practice this skill that must be learned; expect spills |
| Try to put one 2 inch block on top of the same size. |
Show baby what kinds of things he can do with blocks. |
| Scribble on a large sheet of paper while holding his crayon in his fist |
let baby do his own thing with the color of his choice on a large sheet of paper |
| Begin to turn pages in large stiff-paged books |
sit down with baby and a book; let him try to turn the pages; be patient |
| Like to run around, but will sit still for a while to play with interesting objects |
realize that this is a very active age, but try to interest baby in sitting and handing small objects |
GROSS MOTOR SKILLS
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| walk well, unsupported |
provide pull toys to encourage the child to walk |
| move from sitting or stooping to standing position without help |
help baby to explore and use his very strong gross motor drives |
| develop casting or over hand throwing; these actions are very important developmental behavior patterns |
give him toys that he can throw safely, specially balls, both large and small |
| do much exploring; travel and carry objects from one place to another; be ceaselessly active |
make a rich environment for baby to explore, both indoors and outdoors |
| try out the many ways he can run walk etc. |
let him run and play very actively, but always maintain a safe and well supervised area for his play |
| pound large pegs into a work bench |
always supervise pounding or hammering activities; show baby how to do it, then let him try; stay with him as long as he is interested. |
SOCIAL / EMOTIONAL
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| be sociable but self-contained and able to play alone for a short time |
give him toys and activities that encourage him to play alone |
| begin to imitate the actions and activities that you and others perform |
be available to show your baby many activities that he can easily imitate, and encourage him to watch and imitate others |
| show affectionate response to you and others, or start other social contacts without your prompting |
be sociable with him and let him know that you are glad that he feels happy and affectionate and wants to show it |
| start to show the beginnings of various social emotions such as affection, jealousy, sympathy, anxiety |
respond to his various emotional moods and help him to control them in a positive way |
| try to achieve a sense of self identity |
encourage and applaud all of his attempts at performing for you, and his other ways of trying to find he 'me' |
| follow simple commands and endure short waits to have his requests responded to |
let him know what things he can do and what places he can go to, as patiently and as gently as you can |
| begin to be eager to get involved in the world around him, and want to try to do more and more. |
let him try many different things; take him on short walking trips; don't let him stay in one place too long. |
| love to listen to music and to dance to it |
play music for him, sing songs for him, and let him try to sing them, use songs that will get child dancing and moving with the other children |
| become more independent of you and be able to better control his own actions and feelings. |
let him try to do things on his own and give him support when he does; let him move about the center on his own |
LANGUAGE
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| begin to say several words, combine with his babbling and try to use words to describe actions |
tell baby the names of the actions that you and he are doing |
| begin to know and name familiar objects and their owners |
reply to baby when he correctly names an object or owner by agreeing and repeating the name in a sentence |
| begin to name and point out familiar pictures in book |
look at picture books and magazines with baby letting him try to name familiar objects or articles |
| take an interest in music and rhythm |
play and sing simple songs and do finger plays with baby |
| begin to point to and name his body parts |
always refer to baby's hand, leg, etc. by name and encourage baby to repeat it |
| begin to understand when you ask him something |
show baby things he can do and say by giving him simple directions |
SELF CARE
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| start to move freely about the center, on his own |
encourage him to walk on his own if he can and wants to |
| ask you, by sounds and motions, for what he wants |
listen to the child and help him learn better ways to be understood |
| sometimes put out a foot or arm to help you while you dress him |
show him the many ways he can help you as you dress him |
| show interest in trying to make his zippers work |
help him work the zippers; patience and time is required |
| begin to tell you that his diaper needs changing |
matter-of-facility help him; he needs to feel good about his bodily functions |
| be able to sit still for a short time |
help him understand why he needs to become used to this new kind of seat |
INTELLECTUAL
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| look at and point to the pictures in a book |
sit and talk about what he sees, encourage him to point out what he sees. |
| find an object by looking in the right place when it is hidden in first one place and then another, and then a third place. |
play hiding games with baby, by hiding objects in several places; leave part of the objects exposed so that he can see it |
| find an object even if it is covered completely when hidden from him |
hide an object and then move it to another hiding place; see if he can find it when it is completely hidden |
| points to a specific object he wants and 'tell' you that he wants it |
encourage baby to ask for things by answering his signal and helping him to learn the names of things |
| when asked to point to three body parts |
use the names of the body parts when talking to the child. |
| place shapes in the proper slots of a foam board |
show baby how various shapes are similar and different |
| look towards and object or place when told to 'look at' |
put out things of interest so he becomes aware of them and where they are |
| understand and follow simple commands |
ask baby for a toy, if he does not cooperate, don't insist; try again later |
