Bath time with your 4 month old

Keeps her head level when propped in a sitting position, notices differences in colour shades ~ Seated buddha , seat baby in the bath with waist deep water and support her under her arm pits.  Give her a few different textured and coloured wash cloths, sponges and tea towels (new ones just for her) to play with. Water play with sponges and cloths is a great way to help her develop her fine motor skills as she learns to squeeze the water out, be sure to make them small enough for her little hands to handle and use successfully.

Bears weight on her legs when held upright ~
Monkey monkey - Stand her upright and practice holding onto the side of the bath, monkey monkey across in each direction for a bath toy.
Lizard jumps - In the shower lay her face down over your fore arm and place the other hand securely on her back. Bring her feet to touch the wall and say 'jump' as you help her to push away from the wall. Repeat this activity giving her a chance to engage her muscles and jump off the wall by herself. This activity is great for build her leg strength and teaching her cause and effect of her own movements.

Babbling will start to include more vowel and consonant combinations, laughs out loud and coos in conversation ~ Massage and chat, fill the bath up to just above your waist when seated. Lay her back against your chest and give her a little foot massage while singing "This little piggy". Turn her around to face you, lay her on your drawn up legs and practice making sounds like ga-ga-ga, ba-ba-ba in different tones and pitches and give her a chance to mimic them.

 Breath control:

Continue to build on your baby’s breath control with the following activities in the bath and at your baby swimming lessons:

Seat baby on your lap to one side, so you can see her face. Watch her reaction to the cues and for any signs she has had enough.

Wet cloth: Cue baby "Name, ready go" Wipe baby’s face from top to bottom. Practice this a few times each bath, Let baby recover and watch for their breathing to come back to normal between each turn.

Cup of water: Cue baby "Name, ready go" pour on the forehead with a water shot. After the baby becomes familiar with this activity and responds positively for a few weeks, progress to an extended 2-second and then 3-second pour on the forehead. Practice this a few times each bath, Let baby recover and watch for their breathing to come back to normal between each turn.

Shower: Cue baby "Name, ready go" Start with momentarily under the shower.

Progress to 2 seconds and then 3 seconds under the shower. Practice this a few times each shower, Let baby recover and watch for their breathing to come back to normal between each turn.

Read and respond to your babies cues and stop the activity if your baby has had enough for the day or isn't enjoying the activity. This will build trust and communication between you and ensure that baby is happy to try again next time knowing you will respond to how she feels.

Continue to bath and swimming together regularly, it’s the perfect time for you to both connect, bond and look forward to through the week.

These fun bath time activities help form a great base for baby swimming lessons together. From here keep learning together on a force free introduction to water, sign up for your free online baby swimming course & baby swim lessons at your local Welcome to water provider. Your baby can start non submersion swimming lessons from 3 months of age at your local welcome to water provider swim school.