by Aneta Noé, Gwendolen House Nursery School Manager

As your little one is just beginning to develop head and neck control, follow these guidelines for doing tummy time for newborn babies from 0 to 3 months old:

1. Get into a reclined position in a chair, on a bed or on the floor, and place your newborn belly-down on your chest or on your lap while he or she is wide awake.
2. Interact with your baby by looking into his or her eyes, smiling and talking in a happy sing-song voice. This is also a great way to bond with your new baby!
3. At this stage, keep tummy time very short – start with just a few minutes at a time, two or three times a day. You can slowly increase the length and number of sessions as you see your child is enjoying the activity.

Tummy Time for Older Babies

Here's how to give your older baby tummy time from about 3 months onwards:

1. Place your baby belly-down onto an area on the floor that’s covered with a blanket, towel or play mat
2. Play and interact with your little one by getting down on the floor as well, and even dangling a toy in front of him or her. Putting toys, pictures or mirrors on the floor nearby is a great way of encouraging your baby to turn his or her head. This strengthens the neck muscles and develops visual tracking skills.
3. Keep increasing the length of tummy time sessions a little at a time. If you’ve been giving tummy time since birth you could try and aim for a total of an hour a day (broken up into several sessions) around this time.

By 4 months old most babies can hold their head up and look around. At around 5 months your baby may start reaching out for objects and a few weeks later may start passing items from one hand to the other.

At around 6 months you may see your baby pushing him or herself up on his or her arms, as if getting ready to crawl. Sometime within the following few weeks your child may learn to roll over.

How to make Tummy Time exciting for your baby:

• Dangle a colourful toy within your baby’s reach to occupy his or her attention.

• Experiment with different toys to see what gets your little one’s attention. Babies are often fascinated by mirrors, for example.

• Get on the floor yourself in your baby’s line of sight, make eye contact and entertain him or her by making funny faces or by singing.

• Instead of placing your baby on a surface for tummy time, try placing your baby on your lap or chest. This is especially recommended for newborns. Make eye contact and keep talking to your baby to give comfort and encouragement.

• Try making it easier for your little one by putting a rolled-up towel under his or her arms. Eventually, once your baby gets the hang of tummy time you can remove this extra support.