Hi 👋 my name is Vishal and I run Grow With Me, a subscription box of educational and developmentally appropriate toys for children between 0 and 2 years of age. I’ve written this guest blog for Motherhood The Real Deal to help guide readers on what baby sensory play is and what its benefits are. I also include some ideas for activities you can do with your young one to support their development through sensory play.
What is Baby Sensory Play?
Baby sensory play refers to a range of activities that are designed to stimulate and engage a baby’s senses. These include activities such as exploring different textures, listening to music or sounds, and playing with toys or objects of different shapes and colours. The goal of sensory play is to encourage babies to use their senses to explore and learn about their environment.
The Benefits of Sensory Play
Sensory play is an essential component of a baby’s development. It can help babies learn about the world around them and develop key skills, such as hand-eye coordination, cognitive development, and problem-solving.
One of the main benefits of sensory play is that it helps babies develop their sensory integration skills. Sensory integration is the process of taking in sensory information and organising it into meaningful responses. One example of this is the development of object permanence, which is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen. This important concept can be taught through sensory play with simple games such as peek-a-boo.
Sensory play can also help babies develop their language and communication skills. Activities such as singing songs or reading stories can help babies learn new words and understand the meaning behind them. It also helps babies learn to communicate their needs and desires as they grow.
Structured and Unstructured Play
We can divide most play into 2 subsets: structured and unstructured. Structured play involves activities that are planned and directed by an adult, such as playing a game or doing a puzzle. Unstructured play, on the other hand, involves activities that are child-led and free-form, such as being given a set of blocks and working out what to build with these.
Both structured and unstructured play have benefits for a baby’s development. Structured play can help babies develop specific skills such as learning the alphabet or counting, while unstructured play can help them develop their creativity, confidence and independence. It’s important to provide a balance of both types of play to ensure a well-rounded approach to a baby’s development.
Activities for Sensory Play Development
Here are some examples of sensory activities that you can do with your young one:
- Sensory Bins: Fill a small container with different textures, such as rice, sand, or beans, and let your baby explore and play with the materials. This activity can help babies develop their tactile skills and fine motor skills.
- Music Time: Play music and sing songs with your baby to help them develop their language and communication skills. You can also incorporate instruments, such as shakers or drums, to help babies develop their hand-eye coordination. At Grow With Me, we include several musical instruments in our boxes, including this Mini Piano by Hape.
- Mirror Play: Place a baby-safe mirror in front of your baby and encourage them to look at themselves. This activity can help babies develop their self-awareness and cognitive skills.
- Stacking Toys: Ring stackers are all-time favourites of babies and toddlers. These are also great for sensory development as they enable children to develop their hand-eye coordination, problem-solving skills, and spatial awareness, while also exploring different textures, colours, and shapes.
- Puzzles: Completing puzzles is another excellent activity for young children, as it helps to develop problem-solving skills, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills.
Grow With Me
At Grow With Me, we’ve built a subscription box service that makes it easy for you to get the toys you need for young one’s sensory development, without the need for spending hours researching them yourself. Each box we send is tailored to the age and stage of development of your child. You can find out more about what’s in our boxes here. Our boxes include several items and toys that enable activities above. For example, we have stacking toys in our range, the 10 to 12 month box contains a mirror with soft padding (to make it safe for a baby) and we include several puzzles across our boxes, each increasing in complexity as your baby develops.
Each of our quarterly subscription box also contains 2 books for you to read with your child. There is a growing body of research that highlights the benefits of reading to babies. For example, a study published in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioural Paediatrics found that infants who were read to frequently had higher scores on cognitive tests at two years of age than infants who were not read to as often. Another study published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood found that reading to babies can help to promote their language and literacy development, as well as their social and emotional development.
Conclusion
In conclusion, sensory play is an essential component of a baby’s development. It helps babies develop their sensory integration skills, language and communication skills, and overall wellbeing. Providing a balance of structured and unstructured play, as well as incorporating sensory play activities, can help support a baby’s development and lay the foundation for future learning and growth.
I hope this article has been helpful for you.
Vishal
