ITS FUN TO HELP BABY LEARN
It's always fun to help baby learn.
If you deal with each phase of learning at the proper time, you'll be astonished
to see how easy training is. Psychologists who have studied babies and small
children for years in the Normal Child Development Clinic at Columbia
University, say that there is a "critical time" in a child's life for learning
each different habit and skill.
Many parents have found from experience, too, that at a certain age, a child
seems to be willing to tackle a new learning situation. This doesn't mean that he
can't learn them later, but it will be harder for him, and harder for you to
teach him, too.
Children indicate by signs when they're ready for a new type of learning. For
instance when the baby is five or six month old, he needs to touch and feel
things. When he reaches out to grasp and tug, he's ready for hanging or dangling
toys, bead dolls, rattles, balls, and floating bath toys.
Children differ in the age at which their muscles and nervous systems have
developed sufficiently to permit a certain type of learning. It's better to rely
upon signs, as indicated above, rather than upon chronological age, to determine
when it's time to start a new phase in his training.
As his mother, you'll soon become adept in detecting these signs if you're on
the lookout for them. Study your baby, work with him, and play with him. When he
shows he's ready for the next step in training, start.
Always remember to keep this training easy and fun. Expect him to fail many
times before he masters a skill. He isn't failing deliberately; he simply has to
learn, as you have had to learn something new to you. Crossness and punishments
don't help when the baby doesn't understand, or isn't ready yet to grasp the
lesson. Know your own baby; then be gentle but firm in working out the things
necessary for his development.
The times at which Baby might be ready for training are suggested in website,
so you can be on the lookout and prepared to provide the training indicated.
If your baby isn't quite ready for the training suggested at a certain age, let
him take his time. If he beats the gun, then you need to prepare yourself ahead.
The period approaching right now is that of "sitting up," when your baby is
going to be ready for a whole series of new experiences and a certain amount of
independence. Independence is definitely something you want to build. Get any equipment your baby will soon
be needing to develop his new abilities.
How to Handle Fears
Baby's big enough now to be a member of the family, and to be
around everyday-living processes
which may frighten him at first. The noise of the vacuum-cleaner, the radio
next door, or the swirling of bath water down the drain may bring forth sudden screams.
Although you can head off many frightening experiences before they happen, these are things he'll have to get used to.
Instead of shielding him from contact with them entirely, show him by your
cheerful matter-of-fact handling of the situation that there's nothing to be
afraid of. Pick him up in your arms and hold him while you show him how
the vacuum works. Watch with him as the water runs out of the tub and laugh
about it as though it were fun. Make your manner extremely
reassuring, but not comforting, for no hurt is involved.
If any sudden, loud noise, such as thunder, badly frightens the child, pick
him up and talk to him. Let him feel your physical strength and protection. Once
you're sure he feels flint and safe again, start him off on a new line of
interest. However, stay at his side until a storm is over. After a while, he
will
realize that the thunder and lightning aren't going to hurt him, and he'll
conquer the fear himself. Remember, he'll soon
to take frightening experiences in his stride if he knows you are near.
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