It's amazing how much time babies can spend in the same position looking forwards: in the buggy, the car seat, the bouncy chair, to name just a few. Although ‘baby containers’ like these are needed at times, they place babies into positions that their bodies aren’t developmentally ready for yet and do not encourage the recruitment of muscles required for sitting or standing.
However, putting a baby onto their tummy is really beneficial for their development. Tummy time, or prone play as it sometimes called, changes babies’ world view by a 180 degrees, changes how they can interact with it, and is immediately stimulating.
Tummy time helps children to develop their muscles and postural control. It improves their shoulder stability, hand strength and overall core strength. When babies are given opportunities to explore movement freely, to push up and move against gravity and to receive multimodal sensory stimulation it supports all of their physical milestones: sensorimotor skills and coordination with the skills that motivate them to learn and move more.
Movement allows for vestibular input (the balance mechanism inside the inner ear that provides information about head position and balance) as well as proprioceptive feedback (deep pressure to receptors in the joints and muscles that feeds back to the brain about body awareness and how to judge force of movements) which enables a child to feel safe in their body and with their movement.
Research shows a clear link between movement and cognitive development and, interestingly, emotional development. Tummy time is the foundation for all other developmental milestones, it supports rolling, crawling, sitting and walking. It even helps to develop visual perception - key for developing a three-dimensional picture of the world.
In the longer term, tummy time helps to develop the strength children need to sit on a chair, to hold a pencil and to attend to a task. Those without such a strong core are more likely to wriggle at carpet time and may need to prop themselves on their arms. When I work with five and six year olds to support their development, I find that those struggling have often spent less time than average on their tummies.
As educators we understand that play is developmental and an important part of social interaction - there’s more about this in my recent free Guide to Developmental Play which I’ve published with Tapestry, the online learning journal.
Tummy time enables us to interact with babies in a different way, and gives babies the chance to discover their environment from a new perspective. However, creating more opportunities for tummy time in our settings is sometimes challenging. Below are some strategies for increasing the amount of tummy time in your setting.
- Switch up holds – when carrying baby, try using prone holds such as ‘tiger in the tree’. Place baby tummy down on the forearm (making sure airways are clear). Be sure that baby gets a stretch on both sides, by adults remembering to switch arms.
- Tummy time with a blanket – prop baby up under the chest with a rolled blanket placed in a rainbow shape to support their posture. Ensure arms are facing forwards so they can start to prop. This makes tummy time more enjoyable for younger babies and builds upper body strength.
- Remember to make tummy time an interactive time – introduce stood up board books, laminated pictures, and mirrors. Or get face to face with little ones so they can explore expressions such as tongue out and smiles.
- As baby gets older (from 3 months) bring in age-appropriate sensory elements such as tummy time sensory trays or zip lock pads taped to the ground.
- Provide opportunities for movement such as ‘pivot games’ – place books, photos, high contrast toys around baby in a circle so that they are motivated to pivot and move. Put the toys close enough that they can be successful and, on a diagonal, so they get the right weight shift.
Although some babies seem to dislike tummy time, it is worth remembering that even 30 seconds of tummy time is better than none at all. Short bursts built up throughout the day can have huge developmental benefits. When we make it a playful activity rather than just an exercise to get on with, I have yet to find a baby who doesn’t end up enjoying this important position for play.