Your baby's socialization lays the foundation for his ability to communicate. It also supports language development and the formation of a sense of empathy. The first element that strengthens your baby's social aspect is their parents. Because as a parent, you contribute to the socialization of your baby by communicating with him from the moment you hold him in your arms. Interacting with your baby face-to-face helps him distinguish between different sounds and perceive how people express their emotions. Making eye contact with your baby, smiling and singing to him helps his social relationships develop.
One of the most enjoyable and effective ways of socialization for babies is to make them play games. You can play with your baby one-on-one, or you can encourage them to play in a game or group of friends. Being in different environments helps you understand your baby's temperament and observe the sides that need support. You can support your baby by playing games that will contribute to his social development, either individually or in a group.
Games to Socialize Babies
You can create your own baby games using the baby game ideas we have prepared as a starting point. As long as you show love and encouragement to your baby, he or she can be a self-confident and active individual in social life.
Here are the games that will socialize babies;
1. First Toy (0-3 Months)
Socialization in babies begins in the family after birth. You will be your baby's first source of entertainment. When your baby looks at your face and hears your voice while you smile, it is the moment when he takes his first socialization step. You can give your baby the opportunity to have fun by gently touching his stomach or hitting other objects while singing. You can also introduce different emotions to your baby by sticking out your tongue and imitating happy, surprised, sad expressions.
2. Huge (3-6 Months)
“How big is it?” one of the parents said the baby's name. he asks, and the parents open their arms and answer, “Kocamaaaan”. Babies need lots of repetition to learn something. Repeat this game several times in a row. Even if your baby is not accompanied, he will smile when you open his arms to the side and say "huge" and he will be included in this fun.
3rd Place (6-9 Months)
Babies may act warmly towards people they know in the family, while they may be shy towards people they have just met. You can support your baby with the "who's turn" game so that he can communicate more easily. Your baby learns the cause-effect relationship during this period. For this reason, he shows interest in toys that light up or make a sound when pressed. By choosing a toy with sound and light, you can encourage your baby to play a game with someone they see for the first time. Take the toy first, press the button and dance to the music. Then "Who's next?" say and give the toy to the person who is new to your baby. Let this person pass the toy to your baby after they dance, and you slowly move away from them. Sit at a distance where your baby can see you and watch him socialize.
4.Where are you? (9-12 Months)
Make a hole in the bottoms of each of the two tin cans. Thread a long string through the holes in the two boxes and knot the ends. Hold one of the boxes against your baby's ear and the other close to your mouth. “Where are you?” by saying your baby’s name. call it. Your baby will have fun with the sound coming from the tin and will start to imitate you. You can also play this game, which improves language, speaking skills and dialogue, by singing songs between the boxes.
5. Finger Puppets (12-18 Months)
Language development is one of the developmental processes that are effective in the socialization of babies. Between 18-24 months, your baby's vocabulary begins to develop. In other words, he can now start using language as a more active tool for socializing. Getting finger puppets to talk to each other or to your baby is also a great way to express emotions such as joy, sadness, and anger. This both supports your baby's emotional intelligence development and gives him the opportunity to establish a dialogue. In fact, sometimes you can observe that your baby is telling the puppets, even by humming, that he is trying to communicate.
6. Travel Time (18-24 Months)
Sit in a circle with parents behind, babies in front. Get one of the pull and drop cars. Say the name of one of the babies, say “Time to go”, pull the car and leave. After repeating this game several times as parents, babies will also understand the game and show a willingness to participate in it. Babies' social relations will improve thanks to such games that they can play with their peers. Is your baby social or not? You can try to take advantage of the game's developer power before you question it.