Babies are constantly growing and learning new skills. This can make it tricky to come up with new ways to play and engage with them. Playing and engaging with babies is not only fun, but it is also good for their development. Babies learn a lot from copying the things that their loved ones do. Look below for ideas on how you can play and engage with the baby in your life.

One to Three Months Old

• Gently clap your baby’s hands.
• Read to your baby.
• Gently stretch your baby’s arms and legs. You can reach your baby’s arms above their head, across their chest, or side to side. You can stretch their legs by pedaling their legs as if they are on a bicycle.
• Talk to your baby and make facial expressions. One day your baby will start copying the sounds and faces that you make.
• Watch and interact with your baby when they do tummy time.
• Shake a rattle or move a toy in your baby’s vision. This will teach your baby to track (follow) objects with their eyes. Your baby likely will be able to follow an object with their eyes around five weeks old.
• Babies like black and white images. Loosely tie a piece of black and white cloth around your baby’s hands. This will help your baby to discover their hands.
• Babies love paper. Tear or crumple a piece of paper and see how they react.
• Take your baby on a sound tour around your home. Show them things like the beeping sound the microwave makes, the doorbell ringing, or the vacuum cleaner running.

Four to Six Months Old

• Sing nursery rhymes to your baby.
• Place your baby in front of a mirror so they can see their reflection.
• Play peekaboo or patty-cake.
• Hide a toy under the edge of a rug or a blanket within reach and encourage your baby to find it.
• Ask “Where are your toes?” then touch their toes and say, “Here are your toes!”. Switch out “toes” for different body parts.
• Give your baby one toy at a time. Place it slightly out of reach to encourage your baby to stretch for it.
• Talk to your baby and react to the noises that they make. Try describing things to the baby, such as what you see or hear.
• Play music for your baby.
• Give your baby toys that move or make sounds when your baby interacts with them. This will teach your baby that actions cause things to happen.

Seven to Nine Months Olds

• Build a tower of blocks for your baby to knock down.
• Have your baby turn the light on and off when you enter or exit a room.
• Put ice on a baking sheet for your baby to play with. This will show your baby different temperatures and textures.
• Take your baby outside and let them enjoy all the outdoor textures. Just make sure that they don’t put anything in their mouth that they shouldn’t.
• Introduce animal noises to your baby when reading a book or playing with animal toys.
• Play a gentle game of tug-of-war with your baby. Give your baby a blanket to hold on to. Gently pull on one end and take turns going back and forth. This will help your baby to build upper body strength.
• Hide a toy that makes noise. Encourage your baby to find the toy using the sound.
• Stuff a piece of fabric or scarf into a paper towel tube. Encourage your baby to tug the scarf and remove it from the tube.
• Give your baby a container to fill with toys. They might enjoy dumping out the toys when they are done. This will help your baby to understand spatial relations.
• Set out spoons and pots and pans for your baby to play with. Your baby will explore sounds by banging on the pots with the spoons.

Ten to Twelve Months Old

• Hide everyday objects or toys under a cup for your baby to find.
• Roll a ball between you and your baby or you can try to play catch with a ball that is soft and lightweight.
• Begin counting and naming characteristics of things for your baby. For example, “There are four balls. This ball is orange and heavy.”
• Practice waving “hi” and “bye” with your baby.
• Introduce push toys to your baby. This will help your baby learn how to stand and how to walk. If you don’t have a push toy, put some heavier items in a box or laundry basket for your baby to push around.
• Make a ramp and show your baby how to roll a ball down it. For an extra step, put a tower of blocks at the end of the ramp for the ball to knock over.
• Involve your baby in picking up toys. Show them where they can find toys and where they can put them away.

For even more ideas, check out Pathways. They suggest games and activities for each week of your baby’s life from birth to two years old.