Have you been asking yourself what are things I can be doing with my baby?
In this video I’m going to share ten age appropriate activities that you can do with
your 4 or 5 month old that will help with your baby's development.
Hi I’m Dr. Belousov.
I equip parents with knowledge so they can care for their baby with confidence.
This is the age when your baby will really start to vocalize a lot of sounds.
When she says a recognizable syllable, repeat it back to her and then say some simple words
that contain that sound.
For example if the sound of the day is ba, you can say words like bottle and box.
Read to your baby every day.
She will enjoy looking at the pictures and listening to your voice as you are pronouncing
the words.
During these months your baby’s movements will become more intentional and better controlled
as he becomes more interested in the world around him.
Play gyms like this one give him an opportunity to improve his hand eye coordination as he
swings at and grabs the objects.
Toys that are great for this age include rattles, large plastic rings that link, baby toys that
have finger holds, and baby-safe mirrors.
Around four or five months of age your baby will start to move his eyes without turning
his head.
This is the beginning of visual tracking, which is the ability to follow moving objects
with smooth eye movements without moving the head.
To help your baby improve this skill, have him laying on his back, with your hand cupped
under his head to prevent him from turning it during this exercise.
Hold a toy about 10 to 12 inches away and shake it.
When he focuses his eyes on it, move the toy up and down, giving him time to follow with
his eyes.
Bring the toy back to the middle, then move it from side to side.
During this activity carefully watch to see that he continues to follow the toy with his
eyes.
If he looks away, shake it again to get his attention.
Continue to do tummy time with your baby for at least 80 minutes a day broken up into multiple
sessions.
By this age your baby should be able to roll from his tummy to his back.
If you need more guidance on how to teach your baby to roll, I will have a separate
video that talks about this.
It will be linked at the end of this video once its released.
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You can do activities that strengthen your baby’s neck, back and core muscles to prepare
him to roll, crawl, and walk in the upcoming months.
To do an activity that will help strengthen those muscles, sit on the floor with your
knees bent.
Sit your baby on your knees facing away from you.
Hold him firmly under the arms or around the waist.
While singing a song or talking with him, slowly move your legs side to side for several
minutes.
Another great activity to strengthen your baby’s core is to have her sitting facing
you while you are laying on your back with your knees bent and feet flat on the floor.
Your baby's shoulders should be resting against your thighs.
While holding onto her hands or wrists, let her pull herself up into a sitting position.
Gently lower her back down.
Slide your feet forward, this will lower her into a more reclined position.
Now give her an opportunity to sit up from this position, lower her back down and slide
your feet even further forward, lowering her into a more reclined position to sit up from.
A traditional and fun game to play with your baby is “this little piggy.”
It will help her gain a greater awareness of her hands, fingers, feet, and toes.
Put your baby on her back.
Hold her foot up so she can see you wiggling the toes.
Start off by holding and wiggling the big toe on 1 foot and say the poem in an animated
song like manner.
This little piggy went to market.
This little piggy stayed home.
This little piggy had roast beef.
This little piggy had none.
And this little piggy went wee wee wee all the way home.
Then move to the toes of the other foot and repeat the rhyme.
After you are finished with both feet, gently help her roll from her back to her tummy.
You can do this by straightening the leg on the side to which you will be rolling her.
Bend the other leg at the knee and hip and bring it across her body.
Give her several seconds to roll her upper body over.
If she is unable to do it, gently help her finish rolling onto her tummy.
And now you are ready to play the game again with the fingers of her hands.
You can entertain your baby by speaking with him as you are going through your daily routine.
If you are unloading the dishwasher for example, you can tell him what you are doing by naming
the colors of the dishes as you are putting them away.
It’s simple to find natural teaching opportunities as you are going through your daily routine.
Your baby is always listening and learning.
All the information he takes in at this young age provides a foundation for future communication
skills.
If you would like a free download of my baby development checklist, you can get it through
the link in the description below.
Share this video with those you know who would benefit from this information.
What are the topics that you want to see covered in future videos?
Enter them in the comments section.
This video is a part of my baby development series.
Some episodes are linked above and the others can be found on my Youtube channel Friendly
Kid Doc.