The Benefits of Play

The first months and years of a child's life are the most critical to his developing brain, everyone agrees, but what can a parent do to help that development? After all, it's too soon for flash cards and math toys. The answer? Play with your baby. Play, says Marilyn Segal, coauthor of the series YOUR CHILD AT PLAY: BIRTH TO ONE YEAR (Newmarket Press), helps babies adapt socially and develop interest in the world around them.

But how do you have fun with someone who can't yet play Ultimate Frisbee or Scattergories--let alone walk or talk? "There's really no secret to, no mystique about, playing with children," says Fran Reitzes, coauthor of WONDERPLAY: INTERACTIVE AND DEVELOPMENTAL GAMES, CRAFTS, AND CREATIVE ACTIVITIES FOR INFANTS, TODDLERS, AND PRESCHOOLERS (Running Press, 1995) and the director of the Center for Youth and Family at the 92nd Street Y in New York City. Every family designs their own brand of fun as they go.

To help you get started, try some of these baby games, and improvise as you like. Only one word of caution: Be sensitive to your baby's cues, and stop when you sense she's had enough.

Christine Olson Gedye is a freelance writer in Seattle, Washington.