Four months without a full house of toys, anything close to you can play and learn. 🤍

4 Months No Need To Buy Sensory Toy Full House 🧸❌

Ordinary things around you invite you to learn. 👶🏻✨

After four months of Phoebus, Ma Mi began to feel that we might not have to find new activities for our children all the time.

Because for this age, "playing" is to look, listen, tap, reach, grab, move, explore and interact with the person in front of 🤍

About four months old children begin to control their heads better, pay attention to their hands, reach their arms to their targets, put their hands in their mouths, and push themselves up on their elbows in an upside-down position, so simple activities are meaningful.

👀 1. Look after the toy.

Hold the toy in a clear color or pattern and move it from left to right. Give the child time to follow. Do not move quickly to test the child.

🤲 2. Reach and grab.

Hold the toy close enough for the child to see and try to reach out. No need to reach the hand immediately. Attempting yourself helps the child relate what you see to the movement of the body.

👅 3. Explore with the mouth.

It is normal to put a hand or toy in your mouth, choose a big, strong, no small piece that comes off, suits your age, and takes care of your child while playing.

🦶 4. Kick the toy.

Place a safe soft toy near the toe. Let the ball kick and notice that it has moved and the toy has moved. No need to tie the toy to the foot.

🪞 5. Play with mirrors.

Use a kid's safe mirror. Put it in front during Tummy Time, let your child look at your face, look at your shadow, and explore what you see.

🧸 6.Tummy Time + Reach

Put a little toy in front, let the child lift his head, push his arms, and try to reach out, do not reach every time, because effort is learning.

🖐️ 7. Survey the surface.

Let your child touch safe things such as soft fabrics, fabric books, or toys with different textures. Do not make Sensory Bin complicated.

🔔 8. Listen to the left-right voice.

Shake Rattle gently from one side and wait to see if the child looks or turns along. Before changing the other side, do not shake near the ear or use loudly.

📖 9. Cloth book

No need to finish reading or teach vocabulary. Just let your child look at colors, patterns, catch, crumble, and listen to the reader's voice.

🗣️ 10. Play with "people."

The child makes a voice. Ma Mi responds. The child smiles. Ma Mi smiles back. The child looks back. Ma Mi looks back. Talking, singing, or imitating the child's voice is play and learning.

This is connected to the so-called "serve and return" development: children send signals, and adults respond with voice, countenance, look, or movement. Back-to-back interactions support communication, language, and social skills from before children speak in words.

So Ma Mi didn't want the play to become an exam, "How many activities have been done today?"

Some days Phoebus is only interested in Rattle for a few minutes, some days in the mirror, or not interested in the toy, but staring at Mami for a long time, all this can happen, and do not force the gimmick to get tired or uninterested.

Good play requires no new toys, no equipment, and no need to do all 10 things in one day. It is important that you have a safe space, move, try, explore, and have adults observe and respond.

Safety must always come first. Toys should be large, strong, without small parts or parts that fall off easily. Avoid items that may obstruct the airway, such as small items, button batteries, or items that children easily pick up into their mouths. And see age advice from manufacturers.

Tummy Time should be done when your child is awake and closely supervised by an adult. For bedtime, use the principle of safe sleep without placing toys, pillows, blankets or soft things in your sleeping area.

Do not use activities as a measure of whether you are "better" or "slower" than other children. Milestone is to help track development, not pressure your children. If you lose the skills you once did or have ongoing developmental concerns, you should consult a pediatrician.

Finally, Ma Mi thinks the most important question may not be

"What do we buy for gimmicks today?"

But is

"Have we observed the child today and interacted with him?"

Because 4 months of children's play does not have to be spectacular. Just look → answer → wait → let your child try → observe → and then reply again is meaningful.

Perhaps what Phoebus needs most is not a new toy, but Rattle, a cloth book, a safe space for him to move, and Mamie sitting in front of him.

Toys may help you explore the world, but those who love and respond to them are the key to your learning that "I send a signal and someone listens to me."

Sensory Play doesn't have to be full of houses.

The best may be one ordinary piece. A short time and someone who is really ready to play with the baby.

# Phoebus # Raising children # 4 months child # Child development # SensoryPlay