This post is about the sensory activities for 3 month olds.
Simple Sensory Activities for 3-month-olds by AGATA
The first 3 months of your baby’s development are super important for their development. As they grow, they learn how to use their 5 senses (touch, smell, hearing, sight, and taste) to explore the world around them. You can help them to explore these senses by following these 5 simple sensory activities for 3-month-olds that help stimulate their senses.
Here are some ideas of activities for a three-month-old baby to help develop all five senses.
1. Touch of Different Textures
Touch is super important for your baby’s development. They will explore almost everything through touch. One of the best activities to help them explore touch is tummy time.
Tummy Time
Tummy time is an activity that helps physical development and sensory exploration. Placing your baby on their tummy for short periods of time will help build their strength up to be able to lift their heads, develop neck strength and help improve coordination.
I started tummy time immediately, by placing my baby on my chest which she enjoyed. I then progressed her onto a smooth flat surface (bed, flat couch) which was not the favourite, to begin with. At the first sign of trouble, I quickly picked my baby up, gave her a break, and tried again later. As we got to the 3-month mark, my baby was loving tummy time and is trying really hard to move forward (i.e., crawl) and also move to the side (i.e., roll).
Tummy time is now more often an enjoyable activity than a dreaded and stressful one. The improvement that has been made in a short amount of time is so beautiful to watch.
Tummy time is an important activity for your baby, it provides a sensory experience of touch as they feel the texture of the surface you lay them on and the pressure of their own body against it.
Everyday Textures
Developing the sense of touch is super important as your baby will be touching a lot of things. My little girl is grasping things, touching different textures, and mainly trying to put everything into her mouth. Just the other day I sat there and watched as she grabbed her daddy’s face to explore his beard.
You can lay different surfaces or different textures under your baby during tummy time. Alternatively, you can give them different textures to touch.
2. Different Types of Smell
Developing our sense of smell is important for all of us! As adults, we use smell when we eat which helps out food taste better, to decide if we like something, and to warn us about things that may not smell too nice!
Breastfed babies use smell to help them find their food or the boob.
There are a lot of smells that we are surrounded by every single day! We can stimulate a baby’s sense of smell by creating a sensory basket. Filling it with different and distinct smells. For example, you could include a slice of lemon or orange. Your baby may want to put this in their mouth to explore, so you will need to supervise as always. Alternatively, you can use some essential oils such as lavender or coconut oil to stimulate their senses. Make sure that whatever smell you use is not too overpowering.
I personally loved using coconut oil as a moisturiser for my baby which allowed her to get used to a different smell. and is also a more natural moisturiser for my baby. It not only worked as a way to stimulate smell but also allowed us to have a nice relaxing massage session.
3. Hearing different Sounds
Sounds are important to help develop speech. Simply talking to your baby or reading a book may provide them with the necessary skills to develop their hearing!
Narrating
It may sound silly, but a super simple way to help your baby develop their hearing and in time speech is by narrating what you are doing. For example, when you are changing your baby, you can tell them the steps you are taking. This may seem silly but it is something that can be beautiful for both of you. If you imagine being your baby while someone is changing you and the person changing you is completely silent. To me, that is a bit more uncomfortable than me feeling silly narrating what I am doing.
Having a Conversation
You can have a conversation with your baby! Sometimes, if my baby has not fallen asleep when we are on a walk or in a shop, I speak to her. Just the other day I was shopping for dinner and could not find gnocchi in the shop so I asked my daughter where she thinks it would be and proceeded to look for it. My daughter of course did not reply but just smiled at me. I did get some smiles from other people and yes some stares but honestly, who cares? I am speaking to my baby and it does not matter what I am saying, the main priority is for interaction.
Reading
Another way to develop hearing is by reading. You do not have to read a children’s book. At this stage your baby needs to hear your voice. So pick up a book that you want to read and read it out loud. I am currently reading the Harry Potter books to my baby. Do I think they are appropriate for her age? Probably not. But it’s about her listening to my voice and for me to read something that I want to read. You will have plenty of time to read children’s books or stories later. Use this time to do something for yourself!
Music
Who can forget about music? Music is such a good way to stimulate your baby’s sense of hearing. You can introduce your baby to different types of music, such as classical, folk, or pop, and see how they respond. Singing and playing simple instruments like rattles or bells can also be a fun way to engage with your baby and encourage them to develop their sense of rhythm and melody.
4. Mirror Play for Sight
Babies begin to develop their sight at 3 months by seeing colours, shapes, and patterns.
My baby has always loved looking in the mirror. Initially, the lights that were reflecting in the mirror were interesting, but then she started to pay more attention to herself and watched as her hand moved in the mirror.
Mirror play is a great way to encourage this development. Place a small mirror in front of your baby and watch as they observe their own reflection, make facial expressions, and even reach out to touch the mirror.
5. Exploring Textures through Taste
At 3 months you may be at the stage where you are giving your baby different foods to taste. It is completely up to you if you feel that your baby is ready then that is your choice.
However, if like me you don’t feel that your baby is ready yet. You can still help your baby develop taste by introducing different textures.
Babies at three months old are starting to become more interested in exploring different textures. For example, you could offer them a soft fabric toy, a smooth plastic block, or a rubber teething ring. Make sure that these are clean and safe and always supervise your baby!
This blog post was all about simple sensory activities for 3-month-olds.
Engaging your baby in these simple activities that help stimulate their senses will help with their development. It does not have to be anything extravagant, these easy activities will help your baby explore their environment through touch, smell, hearing, sight, and taste.