Activities for 12 month old babies

  There are many good activities for babies 12 months and over. Some examples are:

• play 'pat-a-cake' with him by holding his hands and patting them together whilst singing.
• play 'peek-a-boo' by ducking under the table and popping up again to delighted smiles.
• pretend to drink from an empty cup and offer it to him to copy.
• set him down on the kitchen floor to play with old pots and pans and lids. He will enjoy the noise it makes especially when you add a wooden spoon to it.
• plastic sets of dishes and utensils make good play toys too.
• play 'round-round-the-garden' with his toes and fingers. He will love it.
• give baby a wet cloth with water squeezed out to clean his table or himself. He will be happily occupied for a while with the moist material.
• read a baby book of pictures to him and allow him to thumb through the pages with you.
• roll a ball to him and get him to push it back.
• sing songs to him or together with him.
• action songs are fun for older babies as they are able to copy them.
• reward baby with a smile and enjoy the activities with him.
• always supervise baby.

Pointers:

• It is essential to prepare and give ample warning to change of events to your baby such as "Now it is time to pack up and clean up. 5 minutes!" and allow him a few minutes to finish his activity as it will help prepare him for the next activity.
• If you are going to do another activity by yourself first, for example, tell him you will be clearing the table in the same room and come back to resume play with him so as not to cause any anxiety.
• keep your instructions to a minimum or it may be too confusing for baby.

Quick Overview of Child Development.

  This is a rough general guideline what your child can do at different stages of their growth, keeping in mind that all children are different and grow at their own pace:

• At Newborn stage they can assume the fetal posture.
• At 1 month, lift their chin up.
• At 2 months, lift their chest up.
• At 3 months, reach for objects.
• At 4 months, sit with support.
• At 5 months, can grasp objects.
• At 6 months, can sit alone.
• At 7 months, stand with help or stand holding on to furniture.
• At 8 months, crawl and creep well.
• At 9 months, walk with help.
• At 10 months, pull themselves up to stand by furniture.
• At 11 months, climb stairs on hands and knees.
• At 12 months they can stand by themselves.
• At 13 months they can walk alone.

Reference: F. Rice 'Child Development' 'Sequence of motor development in average infants'.