| ToThe first two years of life are thought of as the | | | | patterns, or an unbreakable mirror. Change |
| sensory motor stage of development. Thismeans that | | | | visualorientation by repositioning the infant in the crib or |
| infants, babies and toddlers learn about their | | | | by various holding positions. |
| environment, their family, andthemselves through their | | | | Auditory Infants can recognize and discriminate |
| physical senses and their movement experiences. | | | | sounds. They usually quiet to the sound of afamiliar |
| Crawlers and toddlers can move around a room using | | | | voice and will respond to sounds and voice |
| their natural curiosity to explore and manipulate | | | | characteristics. They enjoy the sounds that they can |
| everything in their path. Infants, who are much less | | | | make through their own noises and babbling. Adults |
| mobile, rely on caregivers to provide them with | | | | should identify and talk about what the infant is |
| sensory stimulation and movement experiences. | | | | attending to during alert movements. Talking, reading, |
| Adults, who actually become educational consultants | | | | singing and humming are great ways to vary and |
| for infants, can enrich the learning experiences by | | | | enrich the auditory stimulation of an infant. These are |
| providing appropriate toys and props to stimulate the | | | | especially good strategies for diaper changing, bathing, |
| infant’s visual, auditory, and tactile capabilities. | | | | and playtime. |
| Motion and touch are exceptionally important types of | | | | Tactile Tactile stimulation is one of the most important |
| sensory stimulation which provide infants with | | | | ways to communicate to an infant. It isessential that an |
| information about their bodies, the location of their | | | | infant feels secure and develops a basic sense of |
| bodies or body parts, communication from the | | | | trust. It is the adult caregiver who determines the |
| caregiver, and can be either soothing or stimulating. | | | | nature of the interactions. Playful touching and |
| Sensory actions can be maximized in the following | | | | massaging will convey tenderness, security, and |
| ways: | | | | attention. As parts of the body are touched or stroked, |
| Visual: Most infants prefer looking at people, rather | | | | the infant develops a sense of body awareness which |
| than things. They can focus and followslowly moving | | | | will be essential in babyhood and toddlerhood. |
| objects. They can distinguish shapes and forms, | | | | To learn how to safely stimulate your child - you can |
| especially faces. For the bestvisual inspection, mobiles | | | | use an all in one sensory stimulation kit that contains all |
| should be hung about twelve inches from the infants | | | | the necessary materials and a handy DVD to learn the |
| eyes and could include the upper half of a face, bold | | | | techniques. |