Benefits Of An Activity Blanket For Babies
In order for newborns to achieve proper sensory, cognitive and motor development, it is a good idea to use an activity blanket. Our tips in today’s article will help you choose the right activity blanket for babies.
Babies connect with the world around them through their senses. During the first months of life, the exploration of the world is purely sensory. Hearing, touch and sight are the primary means of discovering their surroundings. An activity blanket for babies is therefore a great tool that can help develop these senses.
Thanks to activity blankets, babies have the opportunity to discover new textures, sounds and colors at the same time.
Some activity rugs are made for cradles, but rugs to be used on the floor are more beneficial for children’s development. These rugs have a wide variety of colorful and flexible accessories that promote learning and play.
Generally, these rugs contain various elements that hang down from a pole. They encourage newborns to exercise and explore their surroundings.
Activity blankets for babies put defined shapes within your baby’s reach. As they play with their face down, babies gradually learn to lift their head and achieve greater mobility in their hands.
Benefits of an activity blanket for babies
Babies need to be able to move freely in order to get to know the potential of their body. From a very young age, you should place your baby face down on an activity blanket. It will encourage strength of the back and muscles, which is important for learning to sit up.
Being close to different, colorful objects, shapes and various textures motivates children to learn and explore. Bite rings, mirrors and rattles are all useful things that will help entertain and stimulate your little baby.
Activity blankets are great for contributing arm and leg strength. They have a soft bow that crosses over the blanket and it encourages babies to stretch their limbs out to reach it. It promotes coordination and it also allows your baby to train all the muscles in the body.
While using the activity blanket toys, babies learn about cause and effect. The sensory development goes hand in hand with the cognitive development. This learning contributes to children’s increasing sense of autonomy.
Finally, it is important to point out that lying on your stomach prevents plagiocephaly – or crooked head syndrome.
When children spend most of their time with their face up, it can lead to a flattening of the back of the head. This can be completely avoided by using a bit of “belly time” – time spent with the face down.
Variations of activity blankets for babies according to age
When it comes to choosing an activity rug, you will find a myriad of options on the market:
- Activity blankets for babies from 3 months and up: During this stage, babies begin to feel a need to explore the world around them. While they are still unable to distinguish between colors, they can distinguish between different contrasts.
- Play blankets up to the age of 6 months: It is great to observe how well babies assimilate the relationship between their own movements and their surroundings. As they stretch their hands out to find an object, they experience all sorts of sensations: auditory, tactile, and visual.
- If an object really catches a baby’s attention, he or she will repeat the play several times. Gradually, children begin to recognize their own toys, and they even pick out some favorites.
- Activity blankets from 7-8 months and up: At this age, it is ideal for babies to have an activity blanket that offers different textures: smooth, downy, curly, spongy, etc. They now have conscious control over their fingers and they are in able to distinguish between each surface.
More options
- Between the ages of 7 and 8 months, the gray mass in children’s brains will develop enormously. They begin a stage of deep reflection that causes them to create their first mental categories and structures. They are perfectly able to distinguish which sounds, colors and textures are more or less pleasant. Activity blankets for babies are good because they stimulate several senses at the same time.
- Up to 2 years of age: Although children have a natural desire to play on the floor, do not underestimate the importance of an activity blanket. These blankets are beneficial even when children can already figure out how to walk. Unlike many other baby things, these blankets do not take up much space. Moreover, it is pleasant for the little ones to know that they have their own little place.
In conclusion, activity blankets contribute to babies with innumerable benefits for the little ones. From 3 months to 2 years of age – and even more – the mixing of colors, textures and shapes will accompany every step of your baby’s development.
