“‘Once she starts talking, she’ll never stop!’
I hate that phrase so much. From birth, babies can ‘ask’ for milk – whatever its source!
From rooting to crying to eventually patting and signing and talking.
They all communicate their needs waaaay before they start ‘talking.’
And they watch and listen to everything we say and do, constantly exploring with their hands, mouths, and the rest of their bodies and senses.
There are plenty of ways even newborn infants can communicate.
Whether through eye gaze (even in those early weeks!), a social smile, grimacing or wiggling, or reaching for a desired item, it’s up to us to read their signals!
On this week’s corresponding podcast episode, Communication: The First 6 Months, we used a nice, simple shaker…
With the benefit of repurposing the corks from the wine bottle(s) you recently polished off!
Don't Miss our Corresponding Podcast Episode!
Materials to create your DIY corks-in-a-box shaker
- A few corks (3-4 or more, depending on the size of your container)
- A small container, easy for little hands to hold
Instructions to create your DIY corks-in-a-box shaker
- Place your corks in the container
- Ensure the container is sealed completely
- Shake, shake, shake!
Ages
- From birth, infants can benefit from hearing lots of different kinds of sounds.
- From 3-4 months, typically babies start to reach and grasp objects
- Around the age of 6 months, or when a baby starts to babble (putting a consonant and vowel sound together), we often see rhythmic banging/tapping of the arms as well.
- Regardless of whether your child chooses to mouth, shake, grab, watch you play, or play an instrument herself, she is learning about its properties!
- For an example of how to use this instrument in musical play, go ahead and have a listen to Episode 9 of the Learn With Less podcast, Communication, The First 6 Months.
This post contains affiliate links. All activities described by Learn With Less assume close and continuous supervision of the child by an adult.
Such a simple set up and I bed it kept little one occupied for hours! Thanks so much for sharing on #ToddlerApprovedTuesday
Thanks, 3 Princesses & 1 Dude! Lots of fun for the whole family 🙂
Simple but effective! Babies and young toddlers will surely love making sounds with this DIY toy
Thanks, Tina! I subscribe to the "keep it simple" school of thought 🙂
Very simple, but good for little ones to learn and hear different sounds.
Thanks for sharing with #LetKidsbeKids
Thanks, Let Kids Be Kids! I try to keep my activities simple, to remind parents/caregivers that it’s the interaction that counts – and much of our young childrens’ learning comes from exploring simple objects!
What a great and simple idea! Very beneficial for kids and their growth as well. Thanks for sharing it with us on #shinebloghop this week 🙂
Thank you, Maria! Thanks for reading!