Parents are often interested in how to develop a baby at 4 months. Indeed, at this age, he already sleeps less and is more interested in what is happening around. He willingly makes contact with loved ones, reaches for various objects. For a four-month-old child, there are tons of games and activities that will not only affect their skills, but also bring them closer to their parents.
Infant at 4 months
Features of the development of a four-month-old baby
A child at 4 months begins to consciously relate to the world and everything that surrounds him. He already recognizes those close to him and rejoices when they come up to him, smile and, moreover, take him in their arms. If the kid has not seen, for example, his grandfather for more than a week, then he will most likely forget him. At a new meeting, he will carefully look at him, studying and slightly fearful.
By the age of 4 months, vision is focused in children. Newborns can see well at a distance of about 30 centimeters. Everything else fades before their eyes. Matured babies are able to distinguish between the faces of people and objects that are 2 meters away from them. Therefore, they study everything, consider. After all, almost everything in their environment is unfamiliar to them. They try to get to know the world, not only memorizing objects, but also touching them and even tasting them.
What a kid should be able to
A typical four-month-old has the following skills:
- Holds his head well, lying on his stomach;
- Shifts toys from one hand to another;
- Tries to crawl, and does it deliberately. Children who are just born have a reflex, thanks to which they push off from the support. If their legs rest, for example, on the mother's hand, they will crawl. Over time, this reflex fades away, which is the norm for the development of the baby. Self-crawling is the result of motivation, usually the desire to get to the toy lying on the side;
- Turns over from the right side to the left, from the back to the stomach;
- Examines color pictures;
- Squeezes and unclenches toys. If earlier he did it reflexively, when a thing proposed by his parents appeared in his palm, at 4 months he himself chooses what he wants to take, touch;
- Distinguishes the intonation of the voice. So he is frightened if his mother yells at him or breaks into a smile when she starts talking kindly;
- Pronounces sounds. The little one manages not only to gag, but to speak the syllables "ma", "pa", "ba";
- He laughs. To do this, you can tickle the baby or talk to him in a funny voice, leaning towards his face.
Baby laughs
Don't worry if your baby hasn't mastered all the skills. It must be remembered that not all children develop the same way. Some babies, for example, at 4 months already pronounce syllables, while others are just mastering letters. They speak sounds similar to "v", "f", "s", "b", "m".
Note! The main thing is that the congenital reflexes have died out by 4 months, usually their absence is checked by a neurologist.
What abilities can be developed
At 4 months, the baby is ready to interact with the world, people and objects. We need to help him with this. By playing with your child, you can teach him basic skills that will definitely come in handy in the future.
Physical
There are sets of exercises designed for babies. Gymnastics helps:
- Establish an emotional connection between the baby and the parents;
- It will affect the physical abilities of the baby, it can stimulate the child to roll over or crawl.
The kid will be able to take what he wants, thanks to this, new opportunities will open up. Having already reached the toy, he will touch it, bite it, compare it with another. As a result, he will understand that there are different shapes, textures, some things are soft, others are hard, and others are prickly.
At this age, babies may still have tone in the arms and legs, in order to reduce it, massage courses are recommended. There are simple exercises that mom can do herself at home.
Massage and gymnastics with a child
Creative
You can introduce your kid to creativity by showing him various illustrations, bright pictures. It is better that they reflect reality, the sun is yellow and the clouds are white.
Children at 4 months old perceive music, listen with pleasure. They have a favorite melody. If they hear her, they rejoice, try to dance, move their arms and legs. You can acquaint your child with new compositions, include not only children's songs and fairy tales, but also classical music.
Psychological
A four-month-old baby reacts to the emotions of others. He distinguishes when they speak to him angrily, and in which case they are friendly. So he notices that mom does not always smile happily, but can get angry or upset.
Note! You should not hide all your emotions, the baby should know that parents are people who react to what is happening, and their mood changes.
Social
Usually, children are suspicious of strangers, some even get scared and start crying. But do not keep the baby locked up, showing him only close relatives. He must know that the world does not end with his family.
The fact that the baby makes sounds is the basis of his future speech. Already now he is trying to talk about his emotions or ask his parents something. Therefore, it is so important to voice everything that the child sees and comment on his actions. In this case, the words must be pronounced slowly and clearly.
The kid should not be in silence, the more you talk to him, the faster he will move on to deliberate and understandable speech.
Others
At 4 months you can develop your baby's hearing. At this time, he was already actively interested in musical toys. You can build noisy fixtures yourself. Any jar filled with, for example, different cereals will do.
Note! The kid is already able to establish causal relationships, if he presses the button, a sound will appear. Therefore, toys with many keys will be useful for him.
How to develop a four month old baby
A child at 4 months old can be developed, how to do it at home, so that there is a sense, depends on the mood of the parents. The main thing is that both the baby and the mother should have fun during the process of playing or practicing. You need to show imagination to diversify the baby's leisure time. Parents involved in the process rejoice at each success of the baby as if it were their own.
Joy while playing
General recommendations
Do not work with a baby if he is not in the mood, hungry or tired. If rather active games are planned, then it is better to postpone them to the first half of the day, and spend time calmly before going to bed.
As soon as the child starts to get distracted, frown, turn away, he is tired. The lesson must be stopped or paused. With a crumb, it is enough to exercise for a few minutes a day, but if he is involved in the process, he likes, as can be seen from his emotions, then you can extend the lesson. So you can keep him busy all the time, while he is awake, monitoring his state of health and mood.
Note! With a 4 month old baby during the game, you need to constantly communicate. It is advisable to pronounce everything that happens, providing details. For example, talk about the color of a toy, how it feels to the touch.
Types of activities
Classes are aimed at developing certain skills. At 4 months, children need communication, contact with adults. Therefore, talking is one of the activities. You can not only tell your child about what is happening at home or on the street, but also read him short stories, poems, nursery rhymes. They can accompany other games, for example, while the crumb is busy studying tactile bags or new cubes.
Komarovsky notes that for the development of a baby, you should not buy newfangled bright toys. The child does not understand their value. He is ready to sort out stones, bottle caps, play with glasses. All this develops motor skills and creates variety for tactile sensations.
At this age, a little boy or girl already has musical toys. The child is fascinated by rattles and other objects that make different sounds. He understands that if you shake or press, rustle or music is heard. Perhaps the kid still does not know how to use the buttons himself, but he will soon learn to do this.
During classes, the child develops coordination, motor skills, vision, hearing, speech, memory, attention. It is on improving these skills that you need to work to make it easier for the baby to adapt to the world around him.
Educational games with a child
For a 4 month old baby, games to develop memory and attention are suitable:
- Take some of the child's toys and show him. Give him time to remember them. Then hide and put it in front of the baby again, but in a different order. In the next step, add a new item. In this case, you need to monitor the child's reaction, that he is happy at the sight of a familiar toy and is surprised when another appears;
- It is good to take any object, show it to the baby, if it interests him, and the baby wants to touch it. Then hide behind the side of the bed or box. The kid should be interested in where the toy disappeared. Make it appear in a different place, and repeat all over again. The child will begin to understand how the object moves and will wait for it to appear in the right place.
Another useful game for a 4 month old baby will require the use of bells. It's good if they sound different. If they are the same, you don't need to get upset, the game won't get any worse. A rope must be pulled over the baby's bed, bells must be tied to it. Already attach ribbons of different colors and textures to the bells. Show the kid that if you pull on them, a sound will appear. The child will try to grab the slipping tape, which will have a positive effect on the development of motor skills, and it is also useful for coordination. Pulling the strings, the baby will begin to understand that this is what leads to the appearance of sound.
You can include a mirror in games with a 4 month old baby. For example, bring a child to him, then move away so that the baby understands that the image is changing. He will learn to distinguish himself from his mother, who holds him in her arms, will see toys and other objects in the room in the reflection.
Kid in front of the mirror
Developmental activities with a four-month-old baby
For classes with a 4 month old baby, it is important to focus on the development of fine and gross motor skills. Among them, the simplest, but very useful are the following:
- Offer your baby balls and balls of different sizes and different materials from which they are made. So they can be plastic, fabric, rough, prickly. The main thing is that they are safe, without protruding parts that can scratch the crumb, and without damage. It will not be superfluous to give the child cubes that are also different from each other. In this case, you need to make sure that the baby takes objects entirely. His fingers should wrap around the toys offered to him as much as possible;
- Put rice, peas, rolled oats, beans, cotton wool in cloth bags. It is important that they feel different to the touch, the baby can feel the difference. You can put everything that is at hand in them, beads, sequins, beads will do. It is important to ensure that the bag does not open and the contents do not spill out. Small details will interest the baby, and he will definitely want to taste them. Also, the bags themselves can be sewn from different textured fabrics.
Pouches
You can develop the memory and attention of the baby by showing him various images. At this age, he already focuses his vision, realizes that he is near, that is far. For such kids, a great option is cards with vegetables, fruits or animals. In this case, showing the picture, you need to name what is shown on it. You can do this at any time, not only at home, but also on the street.
Note! While the child's short-term memory predominates, therefore, if the lesson is postponed for at least a week, he is unlikely to remember the pictures. When parents do it every day, the baby remembers the images and smiles happily when he sees the familiar.
To develop speech, you need to constantly communicate with the child, pronounce words clearly and clearly, pronouncing sounds. It is useful to change the intonation and volume. In this case, the baby will become interested and begin to listen to the speech. Also, children usually carefully observe the movements of the lips. If you pronounce words in a drawn out, remembering about articulation, most likely the child will want to repeat. He will also try to move his lips, which is a good precondition for the appearance of speech. You can speak vowels without sound, just moving your lips. This will also attract the attention of the crumbs, because the lips move as usual, but nothing is heard. A developed articulation apparatus will facilitate the development of sounds, syllables and bring the moment when the baby speaks. By the age of one, many children already have a certain vocabulary.
When performing exercises for the development of speech, you need to remember about simple rules:
- Pronounce letters and syllables with drawl, observing the baby's reaction. Perhaps he will not be interested in some, on the contrary, he will like others, and the baby will laugh;
- Repeat familiar sounds each time, and only then add new ones;
- Pause to allow the child to digest the information received and, if desired, respond with sounds.
In the fourth or fifth month, babies become more active and sociable. Parents are trying to provide the child with the best, buying up all kinds of educational toys. Most of all at this age the baby needs communication. In the course of it, new games most often appear that the child likes and brightens up his pastime with his parents.
