Just a thought....

Babies can send messages to other people from the very beginning of their lives. They might not know that they are communicating with us, but our responses to their sounds and movements help shape their behaviours into meaningful ideas. When your baby sneezes, hiccoughs, coughs, cries, or makes happy gurggly sounds it is important that you respond as if he or she is actually saying something to you. Say things like "That was a big sneeze!" or "You like it when mama tickles your tummy". When your baby wriggles in your arms ask (Do you want to move?" You can interpret everything your baby does as a message that he or she is trying to send you and you want your baby to know that you have received it. This is how babies learn to become active, purposeful communication partners.

What Babies & Toddlers Like About Books....

It really never is to early to start reading to your baby. The might not be interested in the story, but they love the sound of your voice, touching and looking at pictures, as well as sometimes "chewing" on the books. All of these behaviours are developmentally appropriate for young children! The most important tip about sharing books with your baby and toddler is that you should HAVE FUN!!! Don't worry if you don't actually read the book, just make it a pleasurable and shared activity between the two of you. Here are some ideas about the kinds of books your baby or toddlers might enjoy:

0-6 months of age: books with large simple pictures or designs with bright colours; chunky books; books that may be folded out so they can see all of the pictures; cloth and soft vinyl books with pictures of familiar objects.

6-12 months: board books with pictures of other babies; books that have different textures on the pages; books with pictures of familiar objects; books that can be taken into the bath tub; small plastic photo albums of friends and family.

12-24 months: books that are small and sturdy enough to carry around; goodnight books for bedtime; books that practice the routines of "hello" and "good-bye"; books with only a few words on each page; books with simple rhymes and predictable text; animal books; books of children doing familiar activities (e.g., bath time, bed time, eating, playing).

Peek-a-Boo Books by DK

These peek-a-boo books for babies are a wonderful series that are just right for helping children to develop a life-long love affair with books. Between about 6-12 months of age babies start to become interested in books that feature pictures of other babies as well as familiar animals and objects. They also enjoy books that have fun elements to explore such as lifting the flap and touching different textures. The DK peek-a-boo books, which are made of a heavy grade cardboard, feature beautiful photos of babies participating in familiar routines (e.g., bath time). They also include fun sensory elements such as different textured materials to touch and peek-a-boo flaps that hide more babies. A feature of these books that I really like is the heavy gauge cardboard that is used on the page flaps. Most flaps on these types of books are easily ripped, but the DK books use a cardboard that is much more difficult for young children to tear. You can find all of the peek-a-boo books at http://www.dk.com/.

Just a thought....

The best toys are not always the ones you buy for your child. Homemade toys can be just as much fun as something purchased at the store. There are several strength of toys you make yourself: (1) they can be less expensive than store bought toys; (2) you can adapt toys to meet your child's physical or cognitive level of development (e.g., making pictures larger or simpler); and (3) you can include ideas or themes that are particularly motivating or interesting to your child. The greatest advantage of homemade toys is that the only thing limiting them is your imagination. Margarine tubs filled with a few beans or rice make great shakers, old photo albums filled with simple and familiar pictures are wonderful first books, a zip-lock bag with hair gel in it can be a wonderful squishy or patting toy, and a large cardboard box makes a great house or quiet place to share books. So be creative and have fun making great toys for your child.

Musical Jack-in-the Box by Tolo

This brightly coloured little music box is an interesting toy for infants starting at about 9-12 months of age. When you turn the crank on the side of the box, the lid pops open, and a brightly coloured clown pops out. It's a great toy to help your child learn how to anticipate events and actions. Strengths: A brightly coloured toy that encourages social interaction between you and your baby because you need to operate the toy for him or her. Weaknesses: If your child is easily startled, the clown may be a bit frightening when it pops out of the box. Try and look for a toy where the figure pops out a little more gently than does this clown.

Press 'n Spin Safari Friends by Lamaze

Pushing buttons that make a toy do something funny or produce a sound is a highly popular activity for infants and toddlers starting at about 6 months of age. The Press 'n Spin Safari Friends is designed so the animals spin around and a fun and lively song plays when the top of the palm tree is pressed down. Strengths: The palm tree button is large and easy to depress, so younger children can theoretically operate the toy with some degree of independence. Weaknesses: Although the palm tree button is easy to depress, many children in the recommended age group have difficulty operating the toy. Most children are more interested in holding on to the monkey or lion than actually operating the toy for its intended purpose. If an adult then presses the button to make the toy go, children continue to hold on to the animal figures, which doesn't allow them to spin freely. Because of this the motor on the toy wears out quickly. Because of these limitations the toy is not a good play value for the money.

Walk 'n Roll Safari by Lamaze

Pull toys are always fun for toddlers and help younger infants learn to track moving objects. The Walk 'n Roll Safari offers three colourful animals that spin (the lion), bang on a drum (the monkey), and clash symbols (the giraffe) when pulled. Strengths: The toy is colourful and interesting to look at. Weaknesses: The concept for this toy is a great one, but sadly it doesn't deliver what is promised. The animals are fairly unstable so they fall down or come apart at the slightest pull of the string. Additionally the actions that are supposed to accompany the animals aren't very dramatic. Overall this is a disappointing toy from a company that is usually right on the money with their offerings.

Say Please Tea Set by Fisher Price

Toddlers between the ages of 15-24 months are beginning to enjoy imaginary play. Not only will they enjoy preparing special drinks for you, but it is also becoming fun to play along side other children their age, and tea sets seem to lend themselves well to this type of activity. This charming tea set is one that has been very popular with the children I've used it with. The teapot plays a happy song and actually asks for a drink and thanks the child once it has been poured. Strengths: The tea plate is actually a simple shape sorter (circle, square, triangle) so the toy can be used in different ways. Weaknesses: My set seems to go through batteries very quickly.

Fun & Discovery Bead Ball by Fisher Price

Bead frames seem to be everywhere children tend to be. This bead ball is a fun variation for children who are not yet able to balance safely at one of the stands. The bead ball can be held and has three colourful stands of curvy wire that have different plastic beads on them. Strengths: The toy is light enough that little hands can hang onto the wires and push or spin the beads as well as shake the toy up and down. Weaknesses: A previous version of the bead ball put out by Fisher Price actually lit up and played music when the toy was shaken. This version lacks the same big "cause-effect" reaction for baby.

Firefly & Friends Bug Jar by Sassy

This simple bug jar is a toy that seems to captivate the attention of a wide range of different children. The large pail comes with a net, 2 bees, 2 lady bugs, and one firefly, which lights up when dropped into the bucket. All of the bugs are made out of durable and washable plastic. Strengths: This toy will hold the interest of a young child for a number of months because it's function changes as the child gets older. For children at about 9 months of age the toy is fun because they can take the lid off of the jar, dump the bugs out, chew them, tap them together, and then return them to the jar. Older toddlers (12-15 months) enjoy putting the bugs in the wide slots on top of the jar. Still older children (18-24 months) can begin to use the bugs and the net for simple pretend play activities (e.g., catching the bugs, feeding them, or making them fly). Weaknesses: As the toy gets older it can be difficult to trigger the light located in the firefly.