These games will be interesting to your baby and will help in his further development.
"Grab and pull." Any part of your body turns into a desired toy. When my children learned to develop their fingers using the hair on my chest, I cried out, “Oh!” and their faces lit up with delight at their own achievement. At this age, babies can reach and hold on to a bottle or mother's breast while feeding.
From Martha's diary: “Matthew now grabs my nose, chin, lips. He tries to grab my chin, pull it down towards him, and sucks on it with his mouth. He really enjoys doing all this.”
Dice game. There is no better toy for this age than blocks. This is what the cubes should be like:
Place your baby in a booster seat with pillows on the sides, as he is still too small to sit upright without support. Place the cube on a stand or table in front of your child and watch his adorable movements as he plays. So he grabs the cube with all his fingers, gently strokes it, examines it, moves it from hand to hand and, finally, brings it to his mouth. Soon he will learn to knock on the blocks, throw them or stack them. In the meantime, he moves the cube from hand to hand again and again.
It is better to start with one cube to give the child time to get used to it. Then place another one in front of him and watch how the baby, holding one cube in his hand, will try to grab a new one with his other hand. He looks at his hands, each holding a cube, and seems to be wondering what to do next. Perhaps he will start knocking them against each other. In a month he will learn to put down one cube to take another. Your baby can learn a lot from playing with blocks. He manages to do whatever he wants with it, and this encourages him to master a more complex skill - he learns to pick up objects using only his thumb and forefinger. This ability will be honed over the next few months.
Fun at the table. Sit at the dining table and take your baby on your lap. Let him play with the napkins and spoons for a bit.
BE CAREFUL: Do not allow your child to reach dangerous objects on the table and take knives and forks. Also keep hot food and drinks away from your baby. If a child accidentally grabs a sharp object, do not try to take it away by pulling it out of a tightly clenched hand. This can only lead to the child clenching his fist even tighter and, as a result, cutting his hand. Instead, lightly tap the back of your hand and wrist. This will prevent the baby from holding the knife tighter in his hand or starting to swing it. Tapping the back of your hand with one hand, gently unclench your fingers with the other so that the knife simply falls out.
WARNING. Cubes and balls should be at least 1.5 inches (4 cm) in diameter to prevent your baby from swallowing them.
Games with a pillow. Starting at 5 months, we usually recommend playing with different pillows - cylindrical or wedge-shaped (in the shape of a triangular prism).
You can use leftover foam rubber, giving it the appropriate shape and covering it with material with a contrasting pattern, preferably black and white stripes.
Cylindrical cushions (rollers) with a diameter of 7-10 inches (18-25 cm) and about 2 feet (60 cm) in length are good devices with which a child can perform a lot of interesting exercises. For example, you can put the baby with his stomach on the bolster and, supporting his legs, ride him (playing “wheelbarrow”) or, sitting the child astride the bolster, watch what he comes up with in the new position. He can push himself along with the roller to reach a toy on the carpet, or roll back and forth on it, helping himself with his legs.
Wedge-shaped pillows (shaped like a triangular prism) can serve as a support for the baby's chest, allowing him to hang his head over the edge of the pillow and play with nearby toys. For children this age, use pillows that are 3 to 4 inches (8 to 10 cm) high.
From Martha's diary: "Matthew still gets very upset when he lies on his tummy and realizes that he could move if he could just get his tummy off the surface. He flails his arms, he kicks his legs, but it doesn't do anything. That's why I think he's like this. loves foam pillows and bolsters - after all, they at least allow you to raise your tummy above the surface, and this gives the baby a feeling of moving forward."
A five-month-old baby is interested in everything, he often breaks away from feedings to study any new objects and phenomena. It is important for parents to ensure his full development, both physical and emotional. To do this, you need to play special games with the baby, do gymnastics and massage, and communicate.
By five months, the baby has already learned a lot, he has actively trained the muscles of his arms and legs, and has become flexible, which allows him to actively explore his body and the objects around him within his reach. It is important for you, as parents, to encourage your child’s curiosity and help him learn new skills.
It is important to conduct all activities and educational games with the child when he is well-fed, happy and healthy. Then they will bring the greatest benefit. If the baby is unwell, is capricious, or doesn’t like the new fun, there is no need to be zealous; postpone classes until better times. The main thing that needs to be gradually taught to a child at 5 months is the development of new skills. Now he can hold his head up for a long time, leaning on his forearms, manipulate his arms, roll over from his stomach to his back and back. During the period of being on your stomach, you can gradually prepare for future crawling this month. The formation of a skill does not take place quickly, and parents can significantly help the child with this so that the skill develops more quickly in the future. Let's start with how to entice a 5-month-old baby to try to crawl? Typically, children of this age already show a keen interest in various toys, things and objects (telephone, TV remote control, etc.). Place the desired object in front of the baby at a distance slightly further than his outstretched arm, and place a support under the legs with your own hands. The baby will try to reach the object, pushing off your hands with his legs. In this way, he will understand the mechanisms of crawling and gradually strengthen those muscle groups that are necessary for further crawling.
There are many options for keeping a 5-month-old baby occupied - these could be musical mobiles in the crib, large toys with sound and light that attract attention and develop. You can also read useful materials in magazines and the Internet to decide what to do with a 5-month-old child. It is important to equally develop all senses - hearing and vision, touch and taste. Give your child different types of objects in his hands - soft, hard, bags of cereal (rice, peas, beans). Pass different objects over the skin - cold, warm, rough, smooth. This gives new knowledge and sensations. You can conduct various educational activities for children 5 months old. These can be special rugs with arcs and pendants that stimulate several senses at once. Exercises in the water are useful; during bathing, allow the baby to swim freely in the bath, supporting the head or wearing a bathing ring. Rattles made of several links, different in color and sound, and soft cubes with sides of different textures will be useful.
Many parents think that at this age there is no special need for games with children - after all, kids still understand little. But these are misconceptions; children learn new knowledge through play. If you don’t know how to play with a child of 5 months, you can start with something simple - finger games, poems and nursery rhymes, which are accompanied by your actions, will be great entertainment. Children are usually very happy when they hear familiar words accompanied by actions. Educational games for 5-month-old children will also be useful. Such games can be simple variations - “peek-a-boo”. When parents approach the baby, give him the opportunity to communicate, and then hide behind the crib, cover his face with his hands or put on a mask. The baby will look for them if they are hiding, or change their facial expressions and sounds if the parents’ face disappears.
You can play with a finger puppet with your baby. Holding it in front of the baby's face, speak on her behalf, touch the baby with the doll, show simple actions - this amuses and develops the baby, trains his attention. You can show him large figures of 2-3 animals and demonstrate with your voice who “speaks” what. You can use a cat, a dog and a cow - this activity is useful for stimulating memory.
Another important question is what toys does a 5 month old baby need? It is important to remember that for the baby now games with parents and communication are more important than toys, and you should not buy him many different items. A mobile for the crib, a pendant with rattles and a couple of bright and hand-friendly rattling toys will be useful. At this age, toys for a 5-month-old girl or a boy are not significantly different, if you want - the difference can only be in the color scheme. There is no fundamental gender difference in the choice of toys for a five-month-old baby; at this age, the division into cars and dolls is not yet relevant.
Five to six months is the age when the baby no longer looks at all like the helpless baby he was at the time. How about moms and dads who want to raise their child into a full-fledged personality, entertain and develop him? I am a Parent has prepared seven games for a six-month-old baby.
By six months, the baby can roll over from back to stomach and back. Some children are already crawling with all their might, while others are just trying to get to a distant toy. The first attempts to sit up appear, the baby can rise up, leaning on one hand, and playing with the offered toys with the other.
The child begins to manipulate objects - take toys, feel them, transfer them from one hand to another. He already clearly contrasts his thumb with the rest of the fingers of the hand.
The child is able to find a hidden object, recognizes familiar objects, and begins to distinguish colors and shapes. He studies everything that is around him - toys, the faces of his parents, things, feeling and examining everything he can reach.
The child begins to hear distant sounds, distinguish extraneous noises, and determines the source of the sound. The baby turns to his name, looks for a familiar object with his eyes when an adult asks where it is, and repeats some syllables and sounds after his parents.
A six-month-old child is already a full partner in the game; he reacts vividly to the actions of an adult. What games will benefit him?
Purpose of the game: encourage the baby to crawl
It's good if your baby has already mastered crawling. If this is not the case, the baby should be encouraged to crawl. Any bright toys are suitable for this. As soon as the baby turns onto his tummy, place an interesting object at some distance from him. He will definitely try to crawl towards him. If the baby is still crawling poorly, help him by letting him rest his feet on the adult’s hand and allowing him to push off a little.
To make the game easier, you can position your baby so that he can push off his legs from a wall or other support.
Purpose of the game: development of gross motor skills, muscle muscles of the child
To play you will need a not very large ball. An adult throws it so that the child can hit it with his arms or legs.
Purpose of the game: to develop the ability to oppose the thumb to everyone else
Inflate the balloon not too much to avoid accidental pops, and tie small ribbons to it. Show the ball to your child, play with it and attract attention. Then give the child a ribbon in his hand so that the baby grabs it on one side with his thumb and on the other with all the rest. Teach your child to pull the ball towards him and push him away, taking it in his palms, and then back by the ribbon.
Purpose of the game: teach your baby to transfer a toy from one hand to another
Place the child on his back in front of you, and if he is already sitting, place him on your lap. Give your baby the toy, making sure he spreads his fingers over its entire surface. Then teach him to transfer the ball from one handle to another, showing him an example.
If desired, the game can be modified: teach your child to first give you the ball and then take it back.
Purpose of the game: teach the child to find an object (picture) that has disappeared from sight
You will need a cardboard box with a bright picture pasted on one of the sides. Show the picture to your child, describing what is shown on it. Express your joy and look at the picture with interest with your baby. Then turn the box over to the other side. Express your emotions, wonder where the picture disappeared to. Encourage your child to look for the image by turning the box over. When your child finds a picture with your help, be sure to rejoice: “Oh, here it is!”
Change the images on the box from time to time.
Six months is the time to actively get acquainted with finger games. They are the ones who best contribute to the organic development of the brain and the emergence of conscious syllables. The simplest “white-sided magpie” will be an excellent option for exercising your little one’s fingers.
Take the child’s palm and begin to move your index finger along it in a circular motion, saying a well-known nursery rhyme. Then bend your fingers one at a time, starting with the little finger, massaging them.
You can also come up with your own nursery rhyme or simply tell your baby stories about each finger when you start bending or massaging it.
Purpose of the game: repetition of individual syllables
A game like ladushki is also useful for a six-month-old baby - very soon he will begin to joyfully clap his hands at the first words of the rhyme:
Ladushki, you are okay
Where were you?
- By Grandma!...
Remember that each baby develops individually. If your child has not yet mastered some of the skills described in our material, do not worry. Play with him the games recommended for, or better yet, use those that evoke the most joyful emotions in the baby.
Ekaterina Kushnir
While playing with your child’s rollovers, recite rhythmically a Russian nursery rhyme, for example:
How to train balance in a five-month-old baby?
To master body turns, and subsequently to master crawling, it is very important to teach your baby to maintain balance. In order to train balance, the child has special exercises. Here are the exercises from the book by Yu.A. Razenkova “Games with infants”. I highly recommend this book to all mothers!
Option 1. Sit on the mat. Place your baby on his tummy along your leg. Place the bibabo doll on the toe of your foot. The baby will be interested in her. Rock your leg and baby from side to side, encouraging him to shift his body weight. The baby will watch the swaying bibabo doll and at the same time try to maintain body balance.
Option 2. Do the same exercise by placing your baby on an inflatable log. While playing, read the nursery rhyme:
“Chicky-chicky-chickalochka,
Vanya (child's name) rides on a stick,
And Dunya is in the cart
He's cracking nuts."
At the age of 5 months, a child learns to pull his body up with his arms - this is called “crawl” (not crawling yet!). How can you tell if your baby has mastered this skill? If the baby sees a bright toy in front of him, then he, lying on his stomach, leans on his arms and tries to pull himself closer to the toy. This is crawling towards a toy or other attractive object.
What you need to do to develop crawling:
A child in the sixth month of life tries to sit up. But don’t force him to sit down! This is harmful for the baby’s fragile spine. The child will finally learn to sit confidently and for a long time on his own, by about 8-9 months, when his body is ready for this. And there is no need to rush forward here!
At 5 months of age, it is important to develop your baby's ability to grasp his or her feet. Pull your baby's leg towards your chest and help him grab it. You can put a bracelet on your feet, tie a bell, a ribbon, a bow to arouse the baby’s interest.
The exercises developed by Yu.A. Razenkova will be very helpful in mastering this movement.
Place a large ball at your baby's feet. Bend his legs and push the ball with your baby's legs. At the same time, say: “Jump-jump, jump-jump, the ceiling has collapsed!” Then take the child vertically under the arms and help him make movements reminiscent of jumping: “Jump-jump, jump-jump, the ceiling has collapsed!”
A five-month-old baby can take an object into his hands from any position of the body (on his stomach, on his side, on his back). He examines each object and first of all pulls it into his mouth. And even if you don’t like it, the child will still do it! Therefore, at the age of 5 months, you need to carefully ensure that toys met the requirements.
A) It is very important to buy only quality toys. It is necessary that only environmentally friendly materials are used in the manufacture of toys. safe dyes! Any toy must have a quality certificate.
B) Toys must be clean, because a 5-month-old baby always puts them in his mouth. Therefore, you need to wash them regularly.
IN) Toys for a child aged 5 months should be at least 5-6 cm in size. Smaller toys or parts of toys should always be firmly attached to a larger part or to a ribbon (string). A child can only play with smaller toys in the presence of his mother.
D) A 5-month-old child needs toys and rattles with DIFFERENT handle shapes for grasping (this is very important for the development of hand movements), different colors and shapes, and made from different materials. What is the difference here with the previous month of the baby’s life? If a four-month-old baby needed very comfortable rattle handles for gripping (he was still learning this, mastering the first movements), then a five-month-old baby already needs a variety of rattle handles - in the form of a stick, a mace, a loop, a ring, a dumbbell, a parrot's tail or another character . After all, he needs to learn to make a wide variety of movements to grab the toy and take its shape into account in his movements.
D) Be very careful when using buttons in textile toys. The baby can easily bite them off and swallow them. In my friend’s family, it was at this age that her baby managed to swallow 5 buttons from an educational textile toy sewn by his mother (fortunately, everything ended quite well and the eaten buttons simply came out naturally). It is better for five-month-old babies to buy toys with painted parts.
E) Toys should have moving parts that will surprise the baby and stimulate him to act with the toy. Such elements that are interesting for a child can be: a squeaker (the toy will squeak when the baby presses on a part of the toy), different colors of the ball on different sides of the rattle (encourages the ball to rotate), a cord for pulling up the part of the toy (if you pull one part, another comes into action detail) and others.
You will need a sounding toy (or a tambourine, a bell, a small tumbler).
For each type of handle, the hand makes its own type of movement– looping or sliding actions. They can be performed with the child’s hand (hand in hand) if grasping any toy causes difficulty for the child. This way you will teach your baby different ways of grasping objects, taking into account their shape.
G) It is important that toys have different textures (rough and smooth, soft and hard). To do this, you need to make sure that the toys are made from different materials (rubber, plastic, fabric, knitted toys)
For playing with your child, you can use pads made from fabrics of different textures - silk and wool, linen and fleece, chintz and flannel, terry cloth and velvet.
In the future, when the baby gets a little older, you can play more complex games with him - look for pairs of pillows - by texture, color, pattern on the fabric.
It is not at all necessary to sew toys. A 5-month-old child can be given not only pillows to play with, but also scraps of fabric of different textures (corduroy, broadcloth, chintz, silk, velvet, wool, knitwear). Give your baby the opportunity to grab a piece of fabric with his fingers. Once your child grabs the piece, slowly pull the other corner of the piece, encouraging your baby to hold the fabric tightly in his hand. This develops his hands.
Toys are changed regularly 2-3 times a week for games and exercises with the child, as the baby quickly gets bored with them and he loses interest in them. Therefore, it is convenient to divide all household toys into 3-4 sets and offer them to the child in turn.
Grabbing- this is a movement that also needs to be learned, just like speaking or walking. The baby's movements at 5 months are still imperfect. And if you don’t specifically work with the child, he will grab all objects in the same way - pressing his fingers to his palm. Therefore, in order for the baby to learn to confidently grab objects in different ways and hold them in his hand, he needs training.
Exercises to develop grip begin at the age of 3.5-4 months (for more details, see the article). Until 4-5 months, the baby is hung on colored ribbons with toys that are easy to grasp with different handles (toys are conveniently attached to a stand in the shape of the letter L). The child will reach for the toy and practice grasping.
By the end of the month, it is important to teach your baby to grab a toy from any body position and hold it firmly in his hand. Based on grasping, other movements are subsequently formed (for example, walking with support).
At 5 months, the baby pleases us with different sounds. And closer to six months, clear syllables appear - vavava, mmmmmaaaaa, buuuuu and others. This is babble. Babbling- This is an exercise for the child’s articulatory apparatus, which will help him master speech in the future. Babbling refers not to individual sounds, but to syllables (a consonant plus a vowel sound): ma-ma-ma, ba-ba-ba, pa-pa-pa, which the baby pronounces in a chain with different sound strength and pitch.
Babbling is observed when the baby is healthy, calm, in good health and ready to communicate. Babbling needs to be developed and encouraged. Such vocal activity is very necessary for the baby and indicates his health and well-being. If a child at this age only hums and hums, but does not babble, it means that something is wrong in his communication with his mother and other close people. It is babbling, more than all other pre-speech manifestations of a child, that actively prepares him for mastering speech. And it is babbling that is usually taught to a baby... by an adult! Yes, yes, after all, it is an adult who pronounces the rhythmic syllables in lullabies, jokes, nursery rhymes, nursery rhymes, which he says to the baby: “Three-ta-ta, doo-doo-doo” and others.
The month of the child's life has ended. The baby has grown up, gotten stronger, and learned a lot. What can a five-month-old baby do by the end of the first half of his life, that is, by six months?
I wish all readers of this article the joy of communicating with their baby! You will learn about what a child can do at the next age stage in the continuation of our “Mom’s School”.
You can read about the further development of the child, games and exercises with him in the article - Asya Valasina, Candidate of Pedagogical Sciences, author of the website "Native Path"