Most Effective Infant Learning Toys for Infant Development

There are many forms of environmental stimulation that an infant's brain needs for proper development. These can be situations that parents create for them or one's they create themselves. For example, parents can communicate with their babies via sign language and by speaking to them over and over, having them move towards the sound of voice. This would be an example of purposeful stimulation. Babies often tend to stimulate themselves also, by trying to move around, by grasping and kicking, and by observing faces and objects and listening to various sounds.

The more parents interact with their babies, however, the more stronger their relationship and bond will be. Parents, too, can stimulate their infants through physical movements, cognitive games and play, and through sharing emotions with them. Some of these activities can even involve using learning toys for assistance. All of these positive actions will help your baby to achieve the milestones that are essential to their overall development.

Let's take a look at an infant's 5 senses and what happens in the various stages of development:

0-1 Month

Sight

• Very low visual acuity
• Only sees objects at a very short distance ( between 8-10")
• Can mostly see black and white (some bolder colors like red or green are sometimes identifiable)
• Can see motion, but is quite blurry

Touch/Movement

• Hands are still closed in fists
• Have very uncoordinated movements
• Enjoy being rocked gently and held closely
• Begin to develop basic reflexes like coughing, rooting, sucking, grasping, etc.
• May hold head up for short periods of time
• Prefers soft textures
• Legs begin to stretch out a bit

Hearing/Speech

• Responds to sounds and voices by quieting
• Startles easily
• Prefers soft music
• May make cooing sounds
• Frequent crying

1-3 Months

Sight

• Begin to detect movement back and forth (left to right) and in a smoother motion.
• See more color patterns
• Can see further away
• May begin to recognize faces and track your movements
• May notice their own hands!

Touch/Movement

• Lifts head while on tummy
• Begin to keep their hands open
• Prefers soft movements and soft textures
• May begin to kick and wiggle a bit
• May start to put feet down and bear a little weight

Hearing/Speech

• Begins to turn towards sounds they recognize (voices)
• May begin to vocalize more (coos and gurgling even some squealing)
• Cries begin to become distinct

3-6 Months

Sight

• Begins to develop depth perception
• Better at tracking objects and can begin to see smaller objects
• Decipher between similar colors like orange and red.
• Recognizes your face and those other familiar faces

Touch/Movement

• Begins to grasp objects
• May begin to roll back to front and front to back
• Some advanced ones may start to do the "army crawl" on their bellies and do "mini pushups"
• Can sit up with support
• Some advanced babies may even stay sitting upright for a few seconds without support
• May be able to bring hands together and in front of their face
• Plays with hands and feet
• May begin to pass object from hand to hand
• Can bear weight on legs
• Tries to reach for objects

Hearing/Speech

• Turns toward loud sounds
• Turns towards sounds they recognize (your voice)
• Imitates sounds
• May recognize their name when called
• May develop more vocals like giggling

The sense of smell and taste are explored continuously throughout an infant's development. All babies make faces at various smells and they prefer sweet tastes overall. In fact, one study has shown that when giving an infant a vanilla-scented toy over one that was unscented, they played with the scented one more. At every stage in development, a baby will turn their noses up to something stinky, or make faces after tasting something sour. It has also been proven, that babies really enjoy the sweet taste of their mother's milk, and they even can decipher (from birth) the difference between their mother's smell and another woman's or mother's smell! Another thing to keep in mind, is that the sense of taste is being explored constantly, mostly due to teething. Everything goes into the mouth!

On the next page, you will learn about some great infant learning toy suggestions for stimulating your baby's growth.