Dancing with your baby is fantastic for so many areas of his brain and body development and provides some lovely parent/baby bonding opportunities.

Dancing is terrific to include in your baby’s day right from the earliest weeks after birth! Remember, your baby was rocked and swayed inside mum for nine months and the gentle movement of dancing is a repeat of this soothing stimulation.

Take a look at just some of the many benefits there are to dancing with your precious bundle:

• Dancing with your baby helps in the development of balance, space and body awareness, vision, hearing and touch as he is moved through different positions.
• Dance helps to develop a baby’s sense of space, form, time, flow and rhythm. Your baby will love the soothing, rhythmic movement of dance.
• Dancing stimulates the nerve endings in your baby’s inner ear, which send messages to the brain to further help the development of body and space awareness, balance and muscle tone.
• Dance allows for imitation, repetition, coordination and exploration of movement to the rhythm, mood and feeling of music.
• Dance and songs provide opportunities for rhythm, memory training and co-ordination, even at this early stage!
• Dancing provides many loving and fun bonding opportunities. Look directly into his eyes as you talk, dance and sing.

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Tips for dancing with your baby:

• Remember to bend your knees to protect your back when lifting your baby!
• Any spinning should be very slow. Spin to the right and then spin to the left as the fluid in the inner ears needs to reach equilibrium again.
• Hold your baby gently and securely against your body. If your baby does not yet have adequate neck muscles to lift his own head, support his head in all dances.
• Pat your baby to the beat of the song and/or walk around keeping the beat – this helps develop a good sense of rhythm.
• You can dance to whatever music you prefer! Just remember to mix it up – sometimes slow and quiet, other times rock and roll or jazz! Choose the music that suits your baby’s mood. If you want your baby to settle down, then try a lullaby or a waltz!
• If you have had a cesarean, check with your doctor first before doing any lifting and moving with your baby.

Join in here!

Here is a lovely dance to do with your baby. You will find many more dances, activities and information through out GymbaROO’s free online BabyROO series here.

Let us know how you went, did you and your baby enjoy dancing together? Please share in the comments below.

Image courtesy of Shutterstock.com