Childproof the house or specific rooms so that your infant can move around freely and safely. If he spends too much time in a playpen, bouncy chair, or infant seat, it restricts his movement and limits his opportunities to make discoveries about the physical world. Play with your infant on the floor and encourage him to explore with his body. Place infant toys on either side of his body to encourage him to figure out how far he needs to reach to touch the toy.

Offer your child objects with a variety of textures—smooth, rough, fuzzy, soft. Children naturally explore a variety of textures, especially when crawling. Toys with simple buttons, jack-in-the-boxes, and busy boxes help teach cause-and-effect relationships, ex: If I push the button, the toy will light up. If I dump the blocks out of the bin, I will have to pick them up.

Play silly and playful back-and-forth games, encouraging your child to imitate your actions and sounds. You are your child’s best toy! If your child has difficulties with imitation, imitate what he is doing. Once he understands the game, vary your actions and sounds slightly when you respond to him, to expand the play. Remember that children are able to imitate simple actions before sounds.