Babies are born with an eagerness to learn and a natural curiosity of the world around them. You can help your babies growth and development as well as her mastery of basic skills by providing her with plenty of fun interactive play. Simple games and lots of love and cuddling can enhance brain development in infants at any stage of growth.

Between 0 and 3 months, your baby will mostly sleep and eat, but in those few moments that she is awake, you should give her lots of attention, cuddling, and hugs. Play short games that use your babies senses, especially sights, sounds, and touch. Peek-a-boo is a classic baby game that never fails to amuse little ones. Hide behind a blanket or towel and then peek out at your little one to help her understand object permanence. The Galt Frog in the Box is a terrific toy to add to your game of peek-a-boo.

Play games with your baby’s fingers and toes to aid in her self-discovery. Move her arms up in the air and then back down again. Play “This Little Piggy” with her toes or let her grasp your finger in her hand. Play bicycle by gently moving your baby’s legs in a circular motion or give her a gentle foot massage.

Find various fabrics, like slippery silk or a rough piece of burlap and let your baby explore the different feelings of the textures. Hold her in a standing position barefoot so she can feel the textures with her feet, place her hand on the fabric piece, and rub it softly on her face. Sing to your newborn and read to her as well. Repetition of songs and games help your child learn. Many newborns are easily over stimulated so only play as long as your baby is interested and then move on to a new activity.

For your baby, language acquisition is an innate skill – babies’ brains are programmed to learn language. The critical window for speech development is from birth to age three. Here are some milestones to look out for:

By his first birthday your baby can produce most of the vowel sounds of English, and about half of the consonants.

Between 12 and 18 months, your baby slowly accrues new vocabulary items.

At around 18 months, your baby’s vocabulary hits a critical mass and she acquires one new word every day or two.

By the time he’s six, your baby understands around 13,000 words.

If intelligence is defined as the ability to learn, then babies are geniuses. Her brain has such high plasticity that for your baby, language learning is effortless. Simply by providing positive mental stimulation, you can help strengthen the neural pathways that lay the foundation for her cognitive, emotional and social intelligence.