Best Developmental Activities for your 3-6 Month Old

Moving out of the newborn phase you are fueled up on coffee, starting to get into a routine, and ready to continue to bond with your baby who is becoming more interactive by the day! The 3-6 month age is a season of quick, but important development. 

Keeping developmental milestones in mind, I’ve curated this list of activities that will promote engagement, skill development, and curiosity for your baby. The skills they develop during this timeframe will continue to lay the foundation for overall development. 

Tummy Time: Offering Tummy Time to your baby is a hallmark of this time period and is essential for developing other skills. This moving Dino is a big hit at our house. It always keeps my baby interested during Tummy Time and encourages your baby to lift their head and turn it in both directions to watch the dinosaur move back and forth. To ease Tummy Time troubles, find recommended time frames by age, and get more fun ideas check out the 3-6 Month Old Toy Blog or Amazon Recommended Toys

Copy-Cat Chit-Chat: In order for your child to learn to talk, they need to master the skill of imitation. Imitations not limited to only speech sounds. See if your baby can imitate facial expressions like smiling, sticking out their tongue, and blowing raspberries. As your baby grows, you can engage them in mini “conversations”. Get face to face with your baby and follow their  lead by imitating a sound they make. You can then go back and forth “talking” together. It is essential that the caregiver provides ample wait time for your baby to imitate you.  It is amazing what sweet interactions can take place if we are patient!

Splish Splash: During this stage of development your baby is constantly learning about their environment through their senses. Make the most of bath time and help your child discover cause-effect relationships. Start by turning the faucet on and off, narrating what you are doing as you do it. Encourage your baby to kick and splash in the tub and notice what happens when they move their arms and legs. 

Indoor Light Show: Giving your baby a “house tour” is a fun way to build their core vocabulary, familiarize them with their surroundings, and learn more about cause and effect. Bring your child into various rooms and narrate what you see. Have an “indoor light show” and slowly turn the lights off and on, drawing your baby’s attention to your finger on the light switch. This will enhance their understanding of vocabulary as well as cause and effect. 

Sidelying Play: Laying your baby on their side places them in a natural position for bringing their hands together in the middle of their body. We want our baby’s hands to be midline because it encourages developmental skills like passing toys from hand to hand, banging toys together, and bringing toys to their mouth. Classic rings are an easy way for your baby to practice passing an object from one hand to another. It may be helpful to provide support with a rolled blanket behind their back to help your baby maintain the side lying position. 

Floor Time: Having unrestricted floor time is essential for your baby to explore their environment while promoting development of big muscle movements needed for skills like rolling and crawling. This rolling mirror has been so motivating for my boys to get moving! As babies reach for toys or grasp small items during floor play, they develop fine motor skills, such as hand-eye coordination and grasping abilities. Use engaging age-appropriate toys may make floor time more successful. **Link to Amazon 3-6 month toy List and/or blog**

Balloon Kick: Loosely tie a string around your baby’s ankle while they are lying on their back. Draw their attention to the balloon and encourage them to kick their legs to make it move. Watch as your baby begins about the concept of cause and effect as they associate the movement of their body with the movement of the balloon. Watch as your baby follows the balloon with their eyes and visually tracks the movements of the balloon. If you don’t have a balloon on hand, these infant rattle socks  can also bring awareness to your baby’s legs as they kick and explore. 

Teething Time: At this stage of development babies continue to explore objects with their mouth. Offering your baby various textures to place in their mouth is a great way to develop pre-feeding skills that will lay the foundation for successful introduction of solid foods. Watch as your baby moves their tongue side to side and learns to bite down in a rhythmic and coordinated way. Textured teething toys help soothe sore gums as your baby’s first teeth begin to emerge. My boys have loved this banana and these teethers.

Reach for the Stars: Reaching for and batting at toys are hallmark skills of this period of development. Lay your baby on their back and place hanging toys above them or place them on their stomach in Tummy Time with engaging toys in front of them but slightly out of reach.  Having a play gym with hanging toys provides your baby with an opportunity to bat at an object that catches their attention.Reaching for a desired object is an early form of communication as your baby is indicating, “I want this.” 

Supported Sitting: Assist your baby to sit upright in a seated position, or use supports like this one (we also love to use this for Tummy Time!). Place engaging toys in front of them to help them maintain the upright position. This spinning drum is the perfect height to engage your baby in supported sitting. Supported sitting is important as it strengthens core muscles and builds head and neck control. Independent sitting will be important to work towards as you prepare your baby for proper posture needed for eating solid foods 

Grasping Games: Place small toys in your baby’s line of sight and encourage them to grasp the toys. Use a small rattle or toys like the Oball that are easy to grasp. Place small rings in both of their hands and demonstrate bringing both of their hands to the middle of their body to bang the two rings together. Gently assist your baby in bringing their hands to their mouth to explore textured toys for an added sensory experience. 

Music Time: Incorporating music into your baby’s routine is a wonderful way to boost language development. Music provides your baby with an opportunity to understand the rhythms, sounds, and patterns of language. It can also be fun to incorporate social games like “itsy bitsy spider”, “wheels on the bus”, and “pat-a-cake” to help your baby associate words with motions, bond with your baby, and build their cognitive development. 

Where’s Mommy?: Play a simple game of peek-a-boo with your baby by placing a small blanket or scarf that is easy to remove over your head. Demonstrate pulling the blanket off yourself and then provide an opportunity for your baby to pull it off. Be sure to patiently wait or gently assist your baby by moving their hand to remove the blanket. This simple interaction promotes object permanence, which is the idea that something still exists even when you cannot see it. For an extra challenge, try hiding around the corner just out of sight and calling “where’s mommy?” This activity will help your child to develop sound localization which is the foundation for auditory comprehension (the language they are able to understand).