Your child’s senses and developmental skills are in full bloom during his fifth to sixth month. There is obvious increase in upper body strength as he is already able to lift his chest and stomach off the ground, pushing up on extended arms. Mobility is visible as well with your baby rolling on his tummy and kicking with ease.
The environment enraptures him more than ever as he constantly reaches out for objects and practices his grasping skills to pick up, shake, hit, drop, and put them in his mouth. He begins to enjoy interacting with other people, heartily laughing and beaming to show happiness.
Busy with bubbles Blowing bubbles is a fun and simple way to keep baby’s attention, while stimulating his fine motor skills via hand-eye coordination, suggests An-Marie Bartolome-Villarin, managing director of the Terrific Tots preschool Program at The Little Gym in Taguig City, and mother to Santi. The Little Gym is a fitness and development center that provides programs for children as young as four months old.
“With the bubbles, they have to track with their eyes,” shares Villarin. “Eventually they track with their fingers and hands. And when they’re more mobile, they crawl, they follow the bubbles.”
Villarin further emphasizes the benefits attributed with physical activity at an early age. Physical activity fortifies connections in the brain via neural pathways, which are crucial for memory and learning.
“The baby has a lot of experiences in his environment,” explains Villarin. “The earlier you start to develop physical activity, the more connections he makes, the more neurons are built, so the better learning-wise. He will be more attuned to the outside world and will understand things so much easier.”
Great balls of fun Because you are your child’s primary caregiver, playtime is transformed into an even more special experience when you take part in it.
At The Little Gym, parent-child exercises not only help prepare babies for crawling and walking , they also strengthen the torso, arms, and legs, all the while fostering a closer bond between parent and child.
One such activity they employ involves balls, which promotes fine motor skills via hand-eye coordination. Parents support their child and let him experience the feeling of pushing and kicking the ball. They can also have their baby lie on his stomach on the ball or sit on the ball.
More than making your baby physically stronger and emotionally closer to you, this also helps make him confident, because he feels he is given the freedom to explore while in the safety of your presence and guidance.
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