Janice Beesley is a retired daycare supervisor, preschool teacher and kindergarten teacher. More importantly, she is also a reader of this column and we are collaborating on a three-part series to take a look at what parents can be doing at home to help their child be ready for school.
Our babies' favourite toys are their parents. Besides holding and caring for their needs, talk to them. Describe what you are doing with them, talk about the weather, and when you speak avoid "baby talk." At first all this conversation might feel weird, but it's a wonderful way to connect with your child.
Besides talking, read to them. It's easy for parents to make the mistake of thinking that because their baby doesn't communicate by talking, we don't need to read to them. If we start with books right from infancy, kids see them as a regular part of their lives.
There is a wide variety of books for babies. Young babies should be introduced to contrast books when they start to differentiate light and dark shapes. At this stage through to about eight months, there are high-definition board and cloth books. They are very brightly coloured with lots of black and white contrast.
Textured books and ones with familiar characters follow on from contrast books. Children more readily associate with facial features and stories about domesticated animals, for example, dogs, cats, rabbits, and farm animals. When reading about farm animals, refer to the sounds they make. The cat says "meow," the sheep says "baaa," etc. When they start to speak, you can switch it around and ask, "What does the cat say?"
Farm animals are the first animals to be introduced as they are domesticated and usually more familiar. Regular visits to a farm help children make an association between the real world and books.
Nursery rhymes teach the rhythms of our language and introduce vocabulary. Also, they are usually put to an easy tune. Rhyming skills cannot be overstated when it comes to later reading skills. When looking for a book for a young child, always go for the rhyming texts. Nursery rhymes are a natural way to learn rhyming skills. There are many websites that play nursery rhymes and can be found if you just Google "nursery rhymes" or "kids songs."
Let your children handle the books. If we have them treat books like precious china they will become nervous about books, but we want them to make books their friends. So if they bend a page or chew a corner, that's their way of connecting.
Mobiles and things to grab, hold and shake are appropriate for young babies. Anything that can slip through a used toilet roll holder is too small for a young child as it is a choking hazard.
Progress to playing with toys that are more interactive. When they are starting to crawl and walk they will want to play with toys that move. Trucks and cars are a great favourite. Babies should not be using any screens. TV and electronics can wait until they are older.
When my children were young I made a point of getting outside every day and my children took the same route with my grandchildren. The community health nurses ran a program at the community centre and I had the opportunity to attend with my daughter and her twins. That was a great choice. We met other young parents from the neighbourhood, learned about parenting these babies but, most importantly, the moms developed friendships that have continued as the kids grow and develop.
With our babies, the most important thing is to connect, to talk and sing and dance and enjoy them.
Next week we'll take a look at toddlers.
Kathy Lynn is a professional speaker and author of Vive la Difference, Who's In Charge Anyway? and But Nobody Told Me I'd Ever Have to Leave Home. If you want to read more, sign up for her informational newsletter at parentingtoday.ca.
