Face-to-Face Time!
Prep: None | Activity Time: 2–3 Minutes
From birth to about age 5 months, infants are especially interested in looking at your face. Spend time with your infant face-to-face. This helps to teach him that people close to him take pleasure in his communication attempts.
- None
Step 1: Throughout the day, spend a few moments face-to-face with your baby while talking to him.
Step 2: When you are holding, feeding or bathing your baby, bend toward him so that your face is about 8-to-14 inches away from his face.
Step 3: While looking into his eyes, talk to him in slow, exaggerated speech patterns. For example, you might say:
“Hi Dil . . .lon. I’m your mom ... my!” or “There’s my special boy!”
Step 4: While you are face-to-face, try moving your head from side to side. Often, your baby’s eyes will fixate on your eyes while you are moving.
Step 5: Respond to your baby’s communication attempts while you are face-to-face by saying:
“There’s your beautiful smile!” or “I hear you talking. Goooo ... tell me more.”