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Playing by Touch: Tactile Fun for Your Baby

Your baby's awakening sense of touch is a large part of their first year of life. Have some fun with your little one's fascination for all things tactile with these "touchy" activities from our friends at SoSmart.com.

Touch Glove (younger babies)

Developmental Benefit: This activity lets your baby experience various tactile sensations.

Materials:

Clean cloth glove
Variety of textured materials, such as:

corduroy
corrugated cardboard
satin
feathers

How-to:

Sew a different textured material to each finger of the glove.
Put the glove on your hand and let your baby feel each finger.
Talk to your baby about each texture he/she is feeling.

Safety notes:

Make sure the glove is clean, and do not leave your baby alone with it.
Make sure objects are not small enough to fit in your baby's mouth.

Texture Bag (older babies)

Developmental Benefits: This activity will help connect your baby's sense of touch with a particular object and its appearance, as well as aid in motor coordination.

Materials:

Cloth bag
Items with varied textures, such as:

rubber ball
tennis ball
napkin
small satin pillow

How-to:

Place the textured items in the bag.
Have your baby reach in and pull out the various items.
Talk to your baby about the texture of each item as he/she feels it.
Encourage your baby to put the items back in the bag.

Safety notes:

Make sure the bag is clean, and do not leave your baby alone with it.
Make sure objects are not small enough to fit in your baby's mouth.

Homemade Play Dough

Developmental benefit: Tactile stimulation

Materials:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 cup water
1 teaspoon cooking oil
food coloring (optional)

How-to:

Mix the flour and salt.
Add the cream of tartar, water, and oil.
Add some food coloring for fun if desired.
Mix well.
Cook over medium heat until ingredients form a ball.
Turn out and knead until smooth - 1 to 3 minutes.
Let baby feel the consistency and squish through her hands!

Safety Tip: Do not leave baby unattended with her Play Dough. It is not for eating!