General massage for 8 month old child

An 8-month-old child: what the baby can do, educational games and exercises.

Baby 8 months: Features of child development at 8 months, educational games and exercises.

A child is 8 months old: what is important to know about the baby’s development and what to do

Age 8 months– one of the determining factors in the development of a child. By the end of the month, the baby’s entire development period (from 6 to 8 months) ends.

From this article you will learn:

features of the child’s social development,
features of cognitive and speech development of an 8-month-old child,
features of physical development,
educational games and exercises for an 8 month old baby,
what the baby can do by the end of the month and by the end of the important three-month period of his development.

Features of social times birth of a child aged 8 months

One of the leading baby development lines at 8 months– social development, which enters a new stage this month.

First feature. Business conversation. The baby really wants to know what kind of objects surround him, what can be done with them, how his mother uses them. For him, just affection is not enough; he requires business communication with a close adult and with interesting subjects. The baby begins to imitate adults - he is ready to pick up a cup and spoon, and perform movements in nursery rhymes.

Second feature– new in communication with adults. An 8-month-old child has a good sense of how people treat him. The child already understands your emotional attitude towards the life situation in which he is now. If he is scolded, he reacts to it emotionally. Never scold him, assessing his entire personality (“What a mischief you are!”); rather, say: “I don’t allow you to do that” or “You are so wonderful. I love you so much. But now you have upset me.” This applies not only to the age of 8 months, but also to all other ages of children.

It should be taken into account that at the age of 8 months a baby cannot control his behavior, guided by the demands of adults or their prohibitions. Therefore, it is much more effective and easier to switch it to another activity or another subject than to ban it.

He begins to observe other children, older sisters and brothers.

By the end of this month of development, the child will begin to focus on the evaluation of his actions, i.e. he repeats the approved action and stops the disapproved action. He rejoices at rewards and gets angry or offended in response to reproach. Therefore, we need to be especially attentive to when and how we praise the baby and when we blame him. At the age of 8 months, joint actions with an adult are very important for a child, encouraging the baby to imitate an adult - requests “give”, “show” and others.

Third feature– emotional attachment to mother or another close adult. At this tender age, the baby really needs an emotionally positive relationship with his mother and a positive attitude in the family as a whole. When he wakes up, he needs someone to talk to him, call him by name, read a nursery rhyme or sing a song, pat him on the head, and maybe dance. Together with your baby in the morning, you can greet the toys: “Hello, bunny! Hello, Lala!” It is very important that the family does not quarrel or sort things out in front of the child; the baby feels it.

Fourth feature. A child at this age is more independent and can already do a lot on his own. When playing with toys together with an 8-month-old child, a reasonable adult does not rush to do everything for the child, but gives him the opportunity to try it himself. If everything works out, you need to give him complete independence.

But it is very important that there is a good result in the game and that the child, already at this age, receives positive impressions from cooperation with people. Therefore, if the child does not succeed, then the adult helps him.

At 8 months, you can already tell your child prohibitions, that is, tell him “no” - in cases that are dangerous to the child’s life. But there shouldn’t be many prohibitions. We, adults, need to make sure that the baby feels safe and that we forbid him something as little as possible.

Games for sensory development and the development of actions with objects with a baby of 8 months

Main activities for baby at 8 months- This activities with objects. He can connect and separate parts, put them in and out, and do many other things. Moreover, the child’s movements at 8 months become more precise and clear.

For the development of speech, it is very important to accompany all games with objects with your speech - to comment on what is happening, developing the understanding of speech: “take”, “show where”, “on”, “give”, “collect toys”.

Starting from the eighth month of life, at 8 months and beyond, the section in the child’s cerebral cortex that registers and stores memories begins to fully function. Therefore, he is already acting purposefully, reproducing his experience and achieving results: crumpling, sticking and sticking out, taking out, opening and closing, stringing and removing from the rod, throwing and lifting, hitting a drum or tambourine. The baby loves to repeat the same action many times, which is natural, because the main thing for him is the repetition of sensory impressions and the desired result.

This you need to know:

— In order to develop tactile sensitivity, it is very useful to offer your baby educational toys of different textures (smooth, rough, fluffy, soft, hard, cool, warm).

— At the age of 8 months, it’s time to teach your baby tweezer grip(the thumb and index finger grasp the object like tweezers, the fingers close almost along the entire length) and pinch grip(the pads of the thumb and index fingers are closed). To do this, let your child grab a variety of ribbons and laces, bright threads. And then slowly, while playing, pull them out of the baby’s hands - he will try to grab them and hold them with his fingers.

- You can also offer your baby objects of different sizes to put in a box or bucket - the baby will take large objects with a handful, and small ones with the tips of his fingers, since you can’t take them by the handful.

- It is very convenient to use stable bottles and jars with a narrow neck - the baby, together with you, will put small objects into them with his fingers, and then pour them into the box. It is impossible to push a small object into a narrow neck with your entire palm. Therefore, this is a good exercise for tweezing and pinching small objects.

Game 1. “Box of toys.” Developed by L.N. Pavlova

You will need a cardboard box (approximate side size is 40 cm), ribbon and several small toys ranging in size from 3 to 7 cm.

How to make a box for playing with a child:

- Make holes on opposite sides of the cardboard box (for example, on the left side of the box and on the right side of the box). The size of the holes is 15 X 15 cm.

— Tie all small toys with a chain onto a satin ribbon (little animals, bells, balls, cubes, etc.). Pass the ribbon through the holes in the box and tie its ends.

— You will get a garland with toys that fits into a box and can come out of it (such a detail in modern educational books for kids is often called “tug of war”).

How to play with the box:

- Show your child how to operate the box: pull the ribbon so that a toy appears from the box, then a second, third, fourth, fifth. Let your baby play with them, touch them, examine them.

- Let the baby handle the box himself, pull up the ribbon to get the toys out of the box. If it doesn’t work, help him (you can use the “hand in hand” method - take the child’s hand in your hand and work together, then remove your hand)

- Untie the ribbon and place it in the box so that only one end shows. Pull the end (or let your baby do it himself). Let your child take all the toys out of the box. When all the toys have been pulled out of the box, show the empty box to the child and say, “There is nothing! Empty!

Game options: change toys on the tape. You can take objects of the same shape, but from different materials (knitted, sewn, plastic, wooden, fur balls). Or take one shape, but a different color (bells of different colors, knitted animals of different colors, cubes of different sizes and colors). For the parts of the tape, you can use parts of the rattles that you previously gave to your baby.

Game 2. “Rings”

You will need 5 pyramid rings (you can use a single-color one, but if you don’t have one, then take multi-colored rings). Do not give the pyramid rod to your child during the game - hold it in your hands!

How to play: tilt the rod with the pyrimid rings towards the baby (it is very important that the rod is tilted towards the child!) Ask him to remove the rings: “Mashenka! Take off the ring! When the child takes off all the rings, tell him: “No rings. Mashenka took off all the rings!” Then put the rings back on the rod. Kids can happily repeat the same action - remove the rings. Let him do it. Fill the rod with rings and let him remove them again. Repeat several times until the baby is interested. You need to finish playing with rings when the child is still interested in it.

You can also play with multi-colored barrels or buckets - inserts, bowls or plates (put them in a stack on top of each other and then arrange them - take them apart)

Game 3. Buttons

Sew buttons of different sizes, shapes, colors, textures onto the pillowcase (buttons must be sewn very firmly to ensure the safety of the child). Examine them with your baby, be sure to give your baby the opportunity to stroke the buttons (feel the different textures), trace them along the contour with his finger (a round button or a button with corners has different tactile sensations). Name the color, button size (large, small), texture (smooth, rough). Yes, the baby does not speak yet, but he hears you and remembers words, selects familiar words from the flow of your speech.

Similarly, you can make garlands for viewing and examining with your child by stringing multi-colored cubes from different materials and different textures onto a ribbon (you need to make holes in them for stringing) or small toys of different shapes and sizes.

Game 4. “The bunny went out for a walk” - Screen

Make a simple screen (cover the back of a chair or crib with a scarf). Prepare a toy - for example, a bunny. The baby is sitting in the crib, and you hide behind the screen with the toy. Start reading the poem behind the screen:

"One two three four five. The bunny went out for a walk." If you have a different toy, replace the words of the rhyme: “The bear went out for a walk” or “Lala went out for a walk.”

After reading the lines, show the child a toy - a bunny over the screen from its edge.

The baby will begin to wait for the toy to appear, first at one end of the screen, then at the other end.

Game 5. Pour out of the bag (take out from a bucket, box or other object)

In this game we will teach your child to turn over containers and empty the contents from them.

Take a clean milk carton and put small toys in it. Prepare a second similar bag for the baby. All toys or objects used must be safe for the child. Take the bag and quickly pour the toys out of it: “Bang! They fell! Let the baby also turn the bag over and pour out all the toys: “Boom! Boom! They fell!

Game 6. Box of sensations

For an 8-month-old child, a very interesting activity is to sort through scraps of fabric of different textures, colors, and thicknesses. Place 10x10 cm scraps of different fabrics (corduroy, velvet, cotton, felt, knitwear, silk, wool, faux fur, faux leather) into the box. Add there also squares of other materials - wood, plastic, rubber.

Game 7. Getting to know the cup. Author – Yu.A. Razenkova

Place your baby on your lap. Place a small cup on the table. Show it to your baby: “Here’s a cup!” Bring the cup to your mouth, pretending that you are drinking from it and say: “Drink, drink” (the child will then understand this word when he hears it in your speech - therefore it is important to say the word in this form). Smack with pleasure: “Oh, how delicious!” Offer the cup to your child, saying, “Drink.”

Helpful advice: The cup from which the baby drinks should be light and small. Pour in just a little bit – literally 2 teaspoons of liquid. A small portion will not frighten the baby, he will not choke or spill himself. It is advisable that the baby's first cup has two handles (if you find one).

When you feed your baby with a spoon, then give him a spoon or a crust of bread in the other hand.

Play cuddling with the doll. Place real pieces of bread, banana, or boiled vegetable on a toy plate. Place a spoon nearby. Place a doll at the table and “feed” it - show your baby how to do this. Then give the spoon to the baby and let him “feed Lala.”

Game 8. “Take off your hat”

Pull the hat over the child so that it fits slightly over the eyes. Ask him to take off his hat - “Take off your hat. What a clever girl!”

Game 9. “Car Tunnel”

You will need a package of chips (cylinder) or any other “tunnel” - a cylinder made from scrap materials. Tie the toy car to the braid, pass the braid through the hole in the bottom of the cylinder and tie the ends together (you will get a ring).

Pull the ribbon and the machine will “come out” of the tunnel. Pull again and she will hide. Show your baby how to play with this toy. Make sure that he pulls the braid with two or three fingers (show how this is done, and if necessary, hold the baby’s hand in your hand). Rejoice when the car appears: “The car has arrived. Beep!" And when it disappears, say: “No machine, no beep. She left."

Speech development of an 8 month old child. Development of babbling

What parents need to know about baby babbling

Baby at 8 months babbles actively New sounds and syllables appear in his repertoire. He understands his name and can find the object (“Where...?”). In the babble of an 8-month-old baby, entire chains of sounds (ba-ba-ba) are repeated. Gradually, different sounds begin to be combined in babbling. Most often in babbling there are labial sounds (p, p, b, b, m, m), lingual - midpalatal (кь, ь), lingual - posterior palatal (g, k), vowels a, e.

Watch the baby babble. The most important thing to remember and understand is that the baby’s babbling should become more complex and enriched. And don’t compare your baby with others, the main thing for you is the dynamics of your baby’s babbling, and not the number of sounds today in comparison with the neighbor’s baby.

While babbling, the baby plays with sounds, he repeats syllables with different intonations, he can babble alone or in the presence of his mother. It is very important that the mother “support” the baby in his babbling, repeating his syllables after him. Perhaps the baby will repeat the syllables after you. There will be a roll call.

This is a very important game of sounds for the timely and complete development of speech. Most often, in such roll calls, the baby repeats those syllables that the mother emphasizes in her voice, for example, draws out a vowel or says intonationally expressively. During roll calls, you need to be face to face with the child and so that nothing distracts him from you. If you have never spoken to your baby before, try starting with simple vowels and repeating after the child. For example, say: “Ahh” with some intonation (interrogative, exclamatory). Ask your child: “Say aaah too.”

Usually at this age you can already play roll call with syllables with your child. Don’t try to get results from your baby – just play, repeat the syllables after him first. Then introduce new sound combinations yourself and tell them to the baby, “answering” him. And then the moment will come when the baby will repeat after you.

Scientific research tells us that babbling occurs at the same time in healthy children of all nations, regardless of nationality or social living conditions of the family. Those. babbling is a certain level of maturation of the organism. Babbling also occurs in children with hearing impairments, but it does not develop further in such children.

You need to understand that even if in babbling a child at 8 months repeats syllables like bababa or mamama, these are not words yet, this is only babbling, since at this age there is still no connection between the chain of syllables and the meaning of the words. This connection - the sounds of words and their meanings - will begin to form later. At 8 months, even if you encourage your child to repeat sound combinations, he will be happy to demonstrate his achievements to his dad, grandparents, calling them... mammamama! 🙂

By the end of the month, the baby will develop a new type of babbling - it is called "verbal" or "modulated" babble. This is babbling with complex combinations of sounds, for example: “vowel - consonant - vowel” (aba, ata and other options). And by the end of the first year of life, the child’s first long-awaited words will appear from such verbal babble.

Warning signs associated with babbling in an 8 month old baby that you need to pay attention to:

First. In deaf children, babbling appears at the same time as in normal children. But then the baby babbles less and less, and no complication of babbling is observed. What does this mean? If this is observed in your baby, you need to see a doctor. Perhaps your worries will be in vain, but it is better to be safe than sorry. This also suggests that for the development of babbling it is very important that the child hears the speech of an adult addressed to him. Otherwise the babbling fades away.

Second. If a child does not babble at 8 months, and babble appears only after 10 months, this indicates a possible risk of future problems in terms of speech development. This phenomenon is often observed in children with alalia, dyslexia, and also in autism. It is necessary to monitor the baby and consult with specialists.

Third, when to see a doctor:

If the child does not have consonant-vowel combinations in his babble, and the child is already 8 months old,
If you simply have nothing to repeat after an 8-month-old child in roll calls, since he only speaks individual vowel-like sounds,
If there is no dynamics in the development of the child’s babbling (normally, the baby moves sequentially from stage to stage. First: syllables like ba. Then - chains of syllables, for example, bababa, gagaga, dadada, dididi, tititi, tatata. Then - to various chains of babbling - bapumenidya, and eventually to babbling words - uncle, grandfather, aunt)
If a child starts babbling and stops,
If your child never repeats any sounds or sound combinations after you.

How to develop a baby’s speech: looking at pictures

At 8 months you can already look at pictures with your baby, and this is very useful. You can show your child not only individual pictures, but also pictures in books - realistic, bright, without distracting details, in an understandable perspective. Of course, the baby will even taste the pictures, crumple them, squeeze them, because... he does not yet understand the value of the book. For him, a book or a picture is an ordinary object that must be examined from all sides. Over time this will pass.

Looking at books and pictures, name what you see: “This is a ball. This is a cup. This is a meow-meow cat.” There is no need to “train” the baby by teaching him like in school: “Where is the ball? No, it's not a ball. Show me where the ball is,” and there is no need to demand anything from him. The moment will come when he himself will “give you” everything that he can do. In the meantime, let him look at the pictures with pleasure and joy. Encourage all attempts to look at the books and interest in them. If the child makes a mistake when looking at the pictures - for example, you asked to show Lala (that is, a doll), and he showed a bear, then say: “You showed the bear. But Lala,” without repeating the mistake. Let me explain with an example.

Incorrect option:“This is not Lala. You showed it wrong. Here's Lala. And it was a bear. Show me where Lala is” - the baby will get confused in your remarks, in which one word or another is used.

Correct option:“This is a bear. And this is Lala” (pointing gestures to the pictures) - everything is clear, understandable, without unnecessary words, and - this is important - with an intonation of approval of the child’s actions!

While looking at pictures and books, say what the animals say: “This is a frog. She says: qua-qua. This is a mouse, it squeaks: pee-pee-pee.”

Remember that the main thing is your joy from communicating with your baby, and not your achievement of planned results. Without joy there will be no results! We cannot force events and force the child to say a certain syllable today. The time will come and he will definitely say it. If we scold him for what he does wrong, then we will only discourage any desire to study with pictures and books.

How to develop speech in the course of everyday life: commenting

It is very important to talk to your baby, commenting on your actions and his actions, but at the same time speak slowly, slowly, clearly: “Give me a pen, let’s get dressed. Where is your pen?". How to comment:

- Be sure to pause so that a dialogue can develop - and so that the baby can respond to you with a gesture, a smile, or sounds and syllables.

— An 8-month-old child still needs time to respond to your cue. Give him time to respond.

— Just as complete silence is harmful, speech as constant noise is the background to a child’s life. We need to find a middle ground.

- Attracting the baby’s attention, name objects, people, actions, properties and qualities. This is the basis for the further development of the child’s speech.

— Know that you will never be replaced by any so-called “educational video” or “educational audio” 0+. The baby learns words only in real life communication with a close adult, in which he acts with objects. From a video, that is, from the speech of someone else's uncle or aunt, accompanied by flashing pictures on the screen, words are not learned. This has already been proven in both domestic and foreign studies.

Games with an 8 month old baby for speech development

Game 1 “Where?”

Get your baby's attention by calling him by name and starting to talk to him. You can play it as if you lost your baby and suddenly found it: “Here is our Anechka! Here she is – our baby!”

Bring your baby to the mirror and ask: “Where is mommy?” Here's mom! Where is Anechka? Here's Anya! (we touch ourselves first with our hands, then the child). Speak slowly, expressive intonation, pause, and don’t chatter with kids.

Then find familiar objects in the room: “Where is Lala (doll)? Where is the B.B. machine?

Then show a new toy and call it a simplified word: “This is a tick-tock clock” (first we say the usual word, then onomatopoeia). Select onomatopoeias so that the child can pronounce them in his babbling speech.

Game 2 “Where is my nose?”

Take the baby in your arms and go to the mirror. Start saying a poem and touch your nose, cheeks, ears, mouth, neck, and so on according to the text: “Nose, nose, where are you, nose? Mouth, mouth! Where are you, little mouth? Ears, ears, where are you, ears?” And then we improvise a continuation, listing different parts of the body.

Game 3. “We jump and talk.”

You will need a large exercise ball. If there is no ball, then you can jump on the sofa.

Sit on the gymnastic ball, place the child on your lap, hug him. Start jumping rhythmically, pronouncing different syllables in rhythm: “Yes, yes, yes. Ta-ta-ta! Doo-doo-doo, ma-ma-ma. Whoa, whoa, whoa! Moo-moo-moo. So so so. That's it. Hop-hop-hop." Songs or nursery rhymes with repeated syllables are also suitable. After each phrase, pause so that your child can answer you. Have fun playing - this is not a school exercise, but fun communication!

Game 4. “Singing syllables.”

Take any sounding toy - for example, a rattle. Take one for yourself, give one to your baby. Hum any favorite melody of a folk or children's song and rhythmically rattle the rattle. First, sing a song with regular words. Hide the rattle behind your back: “Oh, where is the rattle? No rattle! Where is she? Here she is!".

Then repeat the game with the rattle, but sing the song on the same syllable. Choose a syllable that your baby can already pronounce (for example, sing a melody for “mama” or “dada”). With this song we encourage the baby to make babbling sounds and sing along with them. The game was developed by Yu.A. Razenkova

Features of the physical development of an 8 month old child

What parents need to know about the physical development of a baby at 8 months

Typically, an 8-month-old child lives approximately according to this regimen (although all children are very individual): he is awake for 2 hours, sleeps for 2 hours, sleeps 10-11 hours at night, feeding 5 times a day. Of course, this is a very approximate diagram.

The most important movement for a child in physical development at the age of 8 months is crawling. It is very harmful if a child, without crawling, immediately begins to walk (this happens if the baby is not allowed to crawl).

During crawling, favorable conditions are created for the development of muscle mass, symmetrical movements of large muscle groups of the body develop, and the muscles of the back and abdominals are formed.

If the child did not crawl, but immediately began to walk, then he is not ready to hold his body in an upright position. The result is asymmetrical loads on the joint and ligamentous apparatus and preconditions for poor posture. Create all the conditions for your baby to actively crawl at 8 months!

And don’t rush to stand, don’t rush - follow your baby, paying close attention to his developmental characteristics.

The most important thing to understand in terms of a child’s physical development at 8 months is: For a child, it is most important and valuable to master motor functions (that is, movements with changing the position of the body in space), and only then - static functions (that is, keeping the body in one position in space). Therefore, it is more important for a baby to learn to sit down and stand up, and not to learn to stand still for a long time.

When a child begins to crawl, what is “correct” and “incorrect” crawling of a child, what exercises prepare a child for crawling, read in the series of articles:

a set of developmental gymnastics exercises for the little ones.
for children with developmental disabilities and delayed physical development.

Read more about how a baby learns to sit and what physical exercises develop the ability to sit down and a sense of balance in the article.

Games for the physical development of a child at 8 months

Exercise 1 “Crawl to the rattle”: we stimulate crawling.

Stand at a distance of 1.5-2 meters from the child, show the rattle, sound it: “This is how the rattle rings: ding - ding - ding - ding. Anya, listen. Crawl towards her." The baby crawls up to the rattle and takes it in his hands, plays with it, examines it. Then the adult takes the rattle and goes to the other end of the room and again invites the child to crawl to it. The game is repeated 3-4 times.

In the game, you can use not a rattle, but any other toy that will be interesting to the baby.

Exercise 2 “Get a toy.” In this game we encourage the baby to get up and stand while holding onto a barrier.

Place a bright toy on the barrier (barrier of a playpen or crib) and attract the baby's attention to it. The child, holding the crossbars of the crib or playpen, stands up and takes the toy.

Exercise 3: learning to step over while holding a barrier

The baby stands holding onto the barrier. Move a short distance and show the toy, call the baby: “Vanya, go take it.” The baby, holding onto the barrier, takes a few steps - he steps with his feet, moving towards the toy. Start with the minimum distance. When the baby is already stepping confidently, increase the distance. Show something new every time that will attract the child.

Exercise 4 “Catch the ball.” We develop crawling.

Play with the ball with your baby, asking him to catch up. When the baby catches up with the ball (it is crawling next to it), invite the baby to push the ball away and catch up with it.

Exercise 5. “Hide and seek.” We stimulate crawling.

Show your baby a toy, name it, draw attention to the toy, and then hide the toy under a scarf. “Where is the bear?” Take off the handkerchief: “Here is a bear.”

Then remove the toy at a distance of about 2 meters from the baby and cover it with a handkerchief again: “Where is the bear? Anya, find the bear.” The baby crawls to the toy, picks up the handkerchief and finds it. Praise your child: “What a clever girl! I found a bear!”

Exercise 6. “Catching up” - developing the ability to crawl.

Imitate a chase: “I’ll catch up, I’ll catch up, I’ll catch up with Mashenka.” I’ll catch up!”, encouraging the baby to crawl faster. Having caught up with the child, take him in your arms, hug him, kiss him and throw him up (do what your baby loves so much). And then repeat the fun game of catch.

What can an 8 month old child do by the end of the month (that is, by nine months):

after showing the actions to adults, push the object through the hole into the box,
spend a long time working with toys by yourself - taking out, laying out and putting in parts using a finger grip,
remove the object from the rod or support (remove the rings from the rod, which is inclined towards the child and is in the horizontal plane, remove large balls - beads from the ribbon, which is in the horizontal plane),
separate the object into pieces (pull out the mushrooms from the wooden panel, pull out the wooden sleeves from the holes in the toy),
remove the lids from the boxes,
hold a toy in both hands (And if a third toy appears, the child lets go of one of the toys and takes a new one in that hand)
act with objects depending on their properties and qualities: roll balls, take small objects out of a box, look into a hole in a ring, and so on,
react emotionally in accordance with the situation of reproach or approval, be offended if adults use a harsh tone in speech addressed to him,
miss your beloved adult and seek his attention to yourself (throwing away toys, whining to attract attention, etc.),
in case of unsuccessful attempts to do something, worry or even cry,
easily come into contact with close adults, show negative reactions when imposing communication on unfamiliar adults,
pull the cap off your head,
show a variety of emotions: joy, sadness, resentment, interest, pleasure and others,
to the question “where” to find already familiar objects in the room (even if they are in an unusual place),
understand the words “give”, “get up”, “on”, “lie down”, “go”, “yes”, “no”, “bang - fell” and others that you use in communication with your child,
understand the purpose of objects - spoons, cups, plates and others that you often use with your baby,
imitate an adult with syllables that are already in his babble,
fulfill the requests of an adult - memorized movements: “Okay”, “Goodbye”, “Give me a pen”, “Peek-a-boo”
babble loudly and actively during periods of wakefulness, repeat sounds with different intonations, repeat sound combinations after mother,
drink from a cup held by an adult,
eat a piece (for example, bread, cookies, banana, boiled vegetable) that you hold in your hand,
sit up and lie down independently; stand up holding the barrier; actively crawl; step over (namely, step over, not walk), holding onto a support or with support from both hands; kneel at the support and hold in this position;
throw objects with a swing,
distinguish between your name and the names of close people (for example, the name of a sister or brother),
lower his head towards a sound whose source is below his eye level (for example, a bell),
look for a toy hidden in front of his eyes,
listen to quiet sounds (for example, listen to the ticking of a clock), catch a familiar melody.

I wish you the joy of communicating with your kids! Surely, you will come up with your own games and ideas for the development of the child. I will be very glad if the article helped you.

I would be grateful for comments and reviews :). See you again on the “Native Path!”

Massage is an important procedure that allows you to gradually strengthen the baby’s muscles and helps the child learn to perform simple actions. Massage techniques and certain exercises must be selected taking into account the age of the child. Massage for a child at 8 months helps to master and consolidate those new movement skills that will be useful to the baby in the future. Regular massage for an 8-month-old child will help get rid of excess tension due to severe muscle hypertonicity.

Massage for an 8 month old baby. Hygienic requirements

The child should be massaged in a ventilated, bright room (at an air temperature of about 22 degrees). In summer, you can massage your baby naked. And in autumn, early spring and winter, only the massaged area can be left open.

Massage for an 8-month-old baby should be done gently and gently. The child’s reaction to this procedure must be positive. You cannot perform a massage if the baby is capricious for some reason. It is best to start the session with those techniques that give the child the most pleasure. Massaging movements must be directed along the flow of blood vessels. You cannot massage the liver area and the genital area of the child, and when massaging the back, you cannot use tapping and patting in the kidney area.

If the baby has any rashes on the skin, it is better to refrain from the procedure for a while. Massage for a child 8 months old is contraindicated for heart pathologies, hernias (inguinal, umbilical, femoral), as well as for infectious diseases and rickets in the acute period.

Massage technique for an 8-month-old baby

Massage for an 8-month-old baby may consist of stroking, rubbing, kneading and vibration. Stroking is always performed at the beginning of the procedure, since this technique is considered the most gentle. Stroking helps relax muscles, improve blood circulation, and relieve pain.

This massage technique is performed with the back of the hand or palm in the direction of movement of the lymph towards the lymph nodes. On the arms, movements are performed from the hand, and on the legs, from the foot to the genitals. The movements are performed slowly, with light and smooth movements. In the abdominal area, circular strokes are performed clockwise. Then the oblique abdominal muscles are stroked. Massaging movements are directed towards the navel and spine. Stroking the chest is performed in a circular motion, and stroking the back along the spine (the spine should not be touched).

After stroking, kneading is usually used. In kneading, two techniques are alternately used - felting and tong kneading. The long muscles of the neck, legs and buttocks are massaged using forceps-like kneading. With this massage technique, the baby's skin is moved with the thumb, index and middle fingers. In this case, the middle and index fingers should be located opposite the thumb.

Felting is used to massage the feet. With this massage technique, one palm touches the outer surface of the lower leg, and the other touches its inner surface. And then at the same time, with both palms, clockwise, massage the leg of the foot to the thigh and in the opposite direction. Movements should be energetic, but at the same time gentle and soft.

The vibration technique includes several types - shaking, tapping and shaking. All vibration movements during a massage for an 8-month-old child are performed softly, rhythmically and quickly. Shaking is used when massaging the breasts. At the same time, they place their palms on the lower region of the child’s chest and, as it were, clasp it, making rhythmic light pressure.

The shaking technique is used when massaging the limbs. Rubbing during a massage for an 8-month-old baby improves blood supply and tissue nutrition, and calms the nervous system. This technique has a positive effect not only on subcutaneous tissues and skin, but also on tendons, ligaments, and muscles. Rubbing is done with the fingertips in a spiral and straight line. When massaging the shins and arms, a circular rubbing is performed. All movements are done quickly, with light pressure. In this case, the fingers should not slide over the surface of the skin, but move it.

A massage for an 8-month-old child should be aimed at strengthening the muscles of the back, legs, and abdomen to prepare them for walking, as well as warming up the feet and palms, developing fine motor skills. In order for the baby to develop properly, in addition to massage, it is necessary to include gymnastic exercises in the daily routine.

The eight-month-old toddler is a very active and nimble creature. At this age, the majority of children already know how to sit up independently from a position on all fours and play with various toys in this position. perfectly, so the speed of movement within the apartment is very high, especially if there is a goal, for example, some new object or toy. Parents will have more trouble creating a safe zone, since having reached the intended goal, the baby rises, stands on its feet and tries to reach the object of interest, for example, a kitchen knife. Children are happy to hold their armpits or arms. The first syllables appear in speech: ma-ma, pa-pa, ba-ba.

Play gymnastics for kids.

Gymnastics for children's legs.

Raising straight legs from a supine position. Hold your baby's legs so that the knees are straight. Repeat 6 times. Flexion and extension of each leg in turn from a supine position. Do it 6 times. To prevent your little one from getting bored, tell him poems or nursery rhymes during class, and sing songs. But he will most likely perform the next exercise - “marching” with great pleasure. Hold him under your arms, and he will step with his legs, taking steps in place. If it is easy for him in this position, then let your hands or fingers become a support.

Finger gymnastics for kids.

Continue finger gymnastics by including the “Finger-Boy” exercise. Starting position - all fingers clenched into a fist. Unbend your baby's fingers one at a time, starting with the little finger, to the beat of the text. First do the exercise on one handle, then on the other.
- Finger-boy, where have you been?
- I went to the forest with this brother,
I cooked cabbage soup with this brother,
I ate porridge with this brother,
I sang songs with this brother.
To vary this exercise, use different words next time and start with the thumb.
Ivan the Great - to chop wood,
Vaska the pointer - to carry water,
The middle bear needs to light the stove,
Grishka the orphan needs to cook porridge,
And for little Timoshka to sing songs.
Sing songs and dance, amuse siblings.

It's no secret that children develop most rapidly in the first year of their lives. After all, in such a short period of time they need to learn a huge number of things: sit, walk, hold various objects with their hands. Yes, a lot more. But in the very first months of his life, the baby is just adapting to a world that is still foreign to him. Some newborns can sleep 20-22 hours a day, so there is simply no time left for independent full-fledged training of the muscular system.

That is why the topic of today’s article will be massage and gymnastics for children under one year old. How exactly is it best to perform such a procedure, why is it needed and what benefits can it bring to the child? This is what we will talk about.

What is massage like?

It is unlikely that anyone can dispute the fact that a child simply needs a massage. First of all, this procedure affects the condition of the baby’s muscular system and helps improve his motor activity. Massage also has a beneficial effect on the development of the baby’s nervous system and improves motor skills.

These are moments of communication between two dearest people. Scientists have clearly established that a child who receives a sufficient amount of mother’s touch before the age of one year develops much faster and better than his peers who are deprived of such contact.

The massage procedure can be preventive and therapeutic. In the first case, the mother can cope with it on her own. In this case, massage is especially useful at 9-12 months, although it is worth starting a month after birth.

Therapeutic massage can only be prescribed by a doctor. And he should also conduct it. Using this procedure, you can cope with various diseases of the musculoskeletal system, alleviate the condition of a child with asthma or long-term treatment of pathologies of the respiratory system.

Gymnastics and massage for infants

Preventative massage for a child up to six months significantly improves the baby’s blood circulation and breathing, tones the nervous system, improves the baby’s mood and prepares him for future physical activity.

Before starting such a procedure, you need to familiarize yourself with the technique of its implementation. You can contact your local nurse or pediatrician for advice. Please note that all movements should mainly be limited to light stroking and patting. A stronger impact may damage the baby's delicate body.

Until the age of six months, babies most often receive a general massage of the whole body. Massage at 9-12 months is more aimed at strengthening the musculoskeletal system. A general session at this age is usually indicated for children with loose skin or muscles, prone to rickets or with signs of malnutrition.

Basic execution rules

During the session, use different techniques: stroking, rubbing, kneading, patting. Alternate exercises.
It is best to carry out the procedure on a table. Take a flannelette blanket and fold it 4 times. Place the blanket on the table, lay an oilcloth on top, and then a flannelette diaper.
Perform the massage exclusively with clean, warm and dry hands. Make sure there are no rings on your fingers and no watches on your wrist.
Never start the procedure if you have long, sharp nails or hangnails on your fingers. Also, you should not massage if you have calloused skin on your hands, wounds or pustules.
Perform each movement slowly and repeat no more than 5 times.
Try to maintain eye and verbal contact with your child. Smile at the baby, talk to him affectionately, you can sing a quiet, calm song.
Follow the regime. You should not massage more than once a day. The procedure is performed 1 hour before or after meals.

Developing walking skills

Foot massage for children under one year old develops the child’s ligamentous apparatus and prepares the baby for walking. Although a free and confident gait is developed only by the end of the second year of life, its formation must begin much earlier. This is what massage promotes for 9-12 months of life. At this age, children are already able to perform simple gymnastic exercises. These include, for example, the following:

Rising from a lying or sitting position. You need to take the child under the arms, lift him a little and slowly put him on his feet. You can use a little spring while simulating jumping. It is necessary to ensure that the child, while in an upright position, rests firmly on the entire surface of the foot. The exercise should be repeated up to 10 times throughout the day.
It is very useful to stimulate standing by placing an interesting toy slightly higher than the sitting child. Trying to get it, the baby will try to stand up on his own.

From this age, exercises for developing the abdominal and back muscles are very useful:

Sit or stand behind your baby. Hold the baby by the front of the thighs with one hand and the stomach with the other. Tilt the baby's torso slightly and carefully remove your hand from the baby's belly. The child will reflexively bend forward and then straighten up on his own. At the same time, the baby involuntarily tenses the necessary muscles.

When performing developmental exercises, you should not force your baby to sit down, stand up and walk prematurely. This can lead to injuries and skeletal deformities, scoliosis and other unpleasant consequences.

Gymnastics at 9-12 months

Baby massage at 9-12 months is quite different from the “infant” procedure. Although all movements remain smooth and pleasant, many of them are aimed at developing the child's activity. During this period, it is not so much the massage itself that is relevant, but developmental gymnastic exercises. For example, these:

Bending/extension of legs at the knees.
The work of the hands in the elbow joints imitates the movements of a boxer.
Exercise “Coachman” - wave-like movements with the hands as a driver does when driving a horse with a whip.
Pelvic rotations from a supine position with legs bent at the knees.
Torso bends. Place the child on the floor, holding his knees with his hands, ask the baby to give you an object lying on the floor.
"Swimming" on the ball. Take a large ball, such as a beach ball or fitball. Place your baby face down on it and gently rock it back and forth. Hold your baby to avoid falling.
Spinal bending exercises. Place the child on his back and, firmly grasping the arms, gently lift him first to a sitting position, and then to a standing position and back.

Also at this age, massage of the feet, back, buttocks and tummy has an excellent effect. Circular stroking in the area around the navel helps solve the problem of colic. A gentle massage of the back and buttocks has a calming effect, promotes sound sleep and a good appetite.

The “Flyer” exercise is very useful: holding the baby under the tummy, lift him into the air in a horizontal position and spin him around a little. The baby reflexively tenses all muscle groups and trains them.

Exercises for one-year-old babies

After 9-12 months, massage is also not canceled. But still, it is increasingly being replaced by game and training exercises. Massage movements are becoming less and less like stroking and pinching and more like the “adult” version, only in a very light form.

To the previously described exercises you can add the following:

“Bicycle” is an imitation of riding this type of transport while lying on the back.
Squatting and crawling, imitation of animal movement.
Climbing on short stairs, on a sofa, armchair or chair.
Twisting the body, rolling or throwing the ball.
“Reverse bridge” - place the baby on his tummy, take him by the arms and pull him up a little, causing the baby to bend in the lower back.

The benefits of massage for children under one year old

Proper and regular activities with your child will certainly bring only positive effects.

Strengthening the muscular system and musculoskeletal system.
Relieving hypertension.
Prevention of physical inactivity and rickets.
Organizing the proper functioning of the digestive system, eliminating the problem of colic.
Strengthening the immune system and nervous system.
Healthy sleep and appetite.
Development of motor skills and vestibular apparatus.

And this is not a complete list of all the advantages. Anyone can add a few more points to it.

Contraindications

However, there are moments when giving a massage to a child is not only impossible, but also quite dangerous:

heart disease;
large hernias;
hepatitis;
rickets;
acute nephritis and other diseases of internal organs;
bone tuberculosis, acute arthritis;
various abscesses.

You should also not do massage during any other illness in the acute or subacute period. Especially if there is a fever, vomiting or diarrhea. There is a fairly small list of diseases for which massage is not only not prohibited, but also allows you to recover faster. These include torticollis, flat feet, umbilical hernia, asthma, dystrophy, leg deformity and some others. But all procedures in this case should be carried out exclusively by a doctor.

A set of exercises for a 7-8 month old baby. Wellness and strengthening massage For infants.

A child aged 7-8 months continues to actively develop. Sitting and standing poses are mastered, the child masters crawling on all fours. Movements are becoming more and more coordinated. Passive-active and active gymnastic exercises are used. The duration of the massage reaches 12-15 minutes.
Classes with children at this age are held according to the following scheme.

Alternate extension of arms.
Raising both legs at the same time.
Transition to a sitting position with support.
Raising the body.
Circular movements with legs.
Turn from back to stomach.
Raising the legs and torso.
Retrieving a toy, object, etc.
Crawling for a toy.
Back and stomach massage.

1. Alternately extending the arms forward. The child lies on his back. The mother alternately raises the child’s straight arms forward and lowers them. The massage is performed 6-8 times.
2. Raising straight legs. The child lies on his back. Taking the child's straightened legs so that her thumbs clasp the calf muscle from below, the mother lifts them, presses the hips to the stomach, then lowers them. Repeat 4-6 times.

3. Transition to a sitting position with support. The baby is lying on his back. Supporting both hands, the mother encourages the baby to sit down. Repeat 2-3 times.
4. Raising the torso. The child lies on his back. The mother grabs the legs at the hips so that the big toes are at the back and the other four are in front above the knees, and lifts the child’s torso above the table surface. The baby rests his arm straight on the table. Repeat 1-2 times.

5. Circular movements with legs. The child lies on his back. Grabbing the baby’s shins, the mother bends his legs, moving his hips to his stomach, then spreads the bent legs to the sides, straightens them and brings them to their original position. Repeat 3-4 times.
6. Turn from back to stomach. The massage is performed from a supine position, with the legs facing the mother. Grasping the child’s hand with her left hand, the mother brings her right hand under the shins from below, placing the indicated finger between the closed shins. Helping the turn with a slight pull by the hand, the mother ensures that the child completes the turn onto the stomach. When turning in the opposite direction, the position of the mother’s hands changes. Perform 1-2 times in each direction.
7. Arching the back. The baby is lying on his back. Grab the child's legs with your left hand at the ankle joints so that the thumbs are on the bottom and the rest on top. Holding the child under the back with her right hand, the mother raises the body up above the table, the head does not come off the table surface. Perform 1-2 times.
8. Taking out a toy. The baby is sitting. The mother picks up a bright toy and encourages the child to take it out. Repeat 6-8 times.
9. Crawling for a toy. The child lies on his stomach. Lay out the toys and, gradually moving them away, encourage the child to actively crawl, taking them out. Repeat 6-8 times.
10. Back and stomach massage (