Stimulating the sense of touch- Activity 1

Stimulating the sense of touch is important to a baby as sensory experiences help to develop the cell connections in the brain. This is how your baby learns. A newborn infant has about 100 billion brain cells. Playing with your baby helps your baby to connect the neutrons.

So what can you do to help your baby make those connections? You can do it through the sense of touch. This is how a baby learns. Basically, you will realise that your baby will look at a thing(perhaps a toy) and he will naturally reach out to them to touch them, then smell or shake them. Finally, your baby will put that thing in his/her mouth to try and taste it. This is perfectly normal. This is how your baby learns through his/her 5 senses.

So for the sense of touch, you can collect items of different materials for your baby to felt. Of course, there are many touch books available but still, I prefer to give the kids what I can find around the house.

Activity 1

The following are the different types of materials you can give to your baby:
1 ) Fabric- example: Clean Kitchen cloth / clothings / handkerchief.
2) Plastic- Plastic bags ( Cut a square piece out for safety reasons / plastic bottles )
3) Sandpaper
4)Cotton ( Cotton wool)
5) Fur
6) Metal ( Metal spoon / Metal scrub)
7) Wood ( Wooden Spatula)
8) Silk
9) Sponge

Allow your baby to feel each item one at a time. Encourage your baby to feel as you talk to them about the colours and describe the texture ( e.g. Smooth, rough)

You can explore your own kitchen to look for safe and simple items for your child to play. Remember, you don't always have to buy expensive toys for your child. You have enough items at home for your child to play. Always check to make sure it is safe for your child.