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Games to Play With a One Year Old Child

Playing games with your one-year-old is a stimulating and enjoyable activity for both of you. At this age your baby is very responsive and will interact and learn from everything around her. She is likely to be crawling or walking, babbling her first words or sounds, and picking up and chewing anything she can reach. Play needs to be adapted according to the time of day and your baby's mood; she may not feel like playing if she is tired or hungry. At other times a lively game of Peek-a-Boo may be just what she needs.

Hiding Games
- There are few games your one-year-old will enjoy more than playing Peek-a-Boo. Play this simply by hiding behind your hands or hide one of his favorite plush toys and let it peek out and surprise him. These kinds of games are useful to entertain him when you are someplace without a toy, such as waiting in line. At bedtime let him hide under a blanket or towel and peek out by himself. Incorporate some gentle prods and tickles; hide his toes under a blanket and ask, "Are there some toes to tickle under here?" He is learning that parts of his body are still there, even if he can't see them.
Musical Games
- Sing nursery songs and rhymes to your baby. Sit her on your lap and let her enjoy being bounced or rocked in time to the music. Play hand-clapping games such as Patty-Cake, holding her hands and patting them together, or letting her hold yours as you clap. Introduce hand puppets and soft toys to act out rhymes. Give her simple instruments such as shakers or bells to play with. Babies enjoy familiarity and repetition and she will soon develop favorites she will want to hear again and again.
Pretend Games
- Involve your baby in daily household activities by giving him toys and props to help him imitate you. He will enjoy babbling into a toy telephone, or pushing a toy vacuum. In the kitchen give him some pans and wooden spoons to play with; he is learning to enjoy pretend play and using his imagination. Involve a favorite teddy or doll in real activities; let the teddy sit at the table for breakfast, put a bib on him and let your baby pretend to feed him or give him a drink from an empty cup. Help improve your child's language skills by talking about what you are doing.
Sorting and Stacking Games
- Manual dexterity and hand-eye coordination are improving rapidly at this age. Choose age-appropriate toys which encourage your baby to improve hand and finger control, and begin to introduce concepts like color and shapes. Sit on the floor with your baby to stack wooden bricks. She may want to stack them herself, or will enjoy having you stack them for her to knock over. Show her how to bang brightly-colored peg boards and encourage her to explore shape-sorting toys. She will gain great satisfaction from mastering new skills.

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