Coming up with activities for your baby can be tricky. Here are 10 activities you can do with your baby to encourage learning and bonding! *Please supervise your baby!
Activities for babies
Noodles, noodles, noodles!
Sit your baby in a big plastic bin with some cooked noodles. They will love the sensory experience, and this activity is taste-safe. *Please supervise your baby!
Read together
Reading aloud to your baby is so important! And, it’s important to let babies explore books, so give them bath books and/or board books to play with! There are lots of board book options with texture elements that your baby can engage with. *Please supervise your baby!
Shaker eggs
We use shaker eggs in our kindergarten prep program, but you can make them for your baby too! Fill a plastic Easter egg halfway full with dry beans or rice. Either glue or tape the egg shut. Your baby can shake these musical instruments! For an added literacy element, you can read nursery rhymes aloud or sing a song while your baby shakes the egg. Also, there are some super fun shaker egg songs out there! *Please supervise your baby!
Water, water, water!
Fill a bin with water and let your baby splash away! You can even set your baby in the bin with shallow water. Encourage the baby to splash and play! Include bath toys or simple kitchen tools in the water for added play elements. Sponges are a popular choice for water play here! *Please supervise your baby!
Fabric play
*This idea is from School Time Snippets! Gather up fabric scraps and ribbon, put them in a container, and let your baby explore! Depending on his/her age, your baby will dump out the container and fill it back up, touch every piece of fabric – squeeze it, hold it, drop it – and/or toss the fabric pieces around. *Please supervise your baby!
Play in forts
*This idea is from Messy Little Monster! Build a fort for your baby. You can use a blanket and some furniture to create a little hide-away for your baby to play in. Fill it with some fun toys and play inside with your baby! *Please supervise your baby!
Make your own play board
*This idea is from Teach Me Mommy! Use any sturdy, flat surface you have around – cookie sheet, cardboard piece, even posterboard can work – and tape/glue/secure different items all over it. Fabric, cotton, toys, plastic kitchen items, cupcake liners, craft supplies (such as feathers or craft poms), etc. Let your baby explore the board! You can prop the board against a wall or lay it on the floor. *Please supervise your baby!
Mess-free painting
*This idea is from Tales of a Teacher Mom! Your child can practice fine motor skills and paint without the mess! Let your baby use a paintbrush, a cup (filled up a little bit with water), and some paper to make water art! Essentially, paint with water! *Please supervise your baby!
Craft poms grab
*This activity is from Little Learning Club! Fill a whisk with craft poms, and encourage your baby to pull the poms out! If your baby is more interested in sharking the whisk or carrying it around, that’s great too! *Please supervise your baby!
Magnet play
*This activity is also from Little Learning Club! Use a cookie sheet and some child-friendly magnets. Let your baby explore, move, and play with the magnets! As Little Learning Club did, you can use letter magnets for an added literacy element. *Please supervise your baby!
Why process art?
Learn more about process art with the video below.
