I find that most children either love or hate tummy time. Some people avoid tummy time altogether. Overwhelmingly my own Montessori community is in favour of it.
Otis was one week old when we started putting him on his tummy. He had the ability to lift his head up and turn it from side to side. We started with one minute at a time. Often he would rest his head on the floor, but he wasn’t uncomfortable. It wasn’t until he was three months old that he was able to hold his head up steadily.
Looking back I have a few suggestions on ways to make tummy time more enjoyable.
2. Give them something to look at. We installed a wall mirror in our nursery but a safety mirror or high contrast cards (black and white images) on the wall will make your baby happy and give them something to focus on.
3. Give them something to play with. There are lots of small in-hand materials suitable for this age group. Once they have the strength to use their arms while on their tummy, give them a rattle or other toy to use.
4. Make it social. Lie in front of your child and talk, read or sing. Include them in supervised play with siblings.
5. Change the scenery. Use a play-mat and take your child outside, move to a different room or have tummy time at a friend’s house!
Before you know it they are no longer just lifting their heads up. They begin to lift their whole bodies up and eventually… crawl.
How did you approach tummy time?
blogger / eggplant / 11551 posts
we did all these things – very helpful tips!
DD hated tummy time and would cry and fuss from the very getgo – she slowly got better over time, but i never did tummy time with her for longer than 10-min at a time.
DS, who is only 4 weeks, has been able to do tummy time since week 2 without a fuss. he really enjoys it. every baby is so different.
one thing my pediatrician told me to do was to put my hand against the bottom of their feet when doing tummy time to give them something to push off of.
bananas / 9973 posts
I LOVE that plank position pic! LO is almost 2 weeks old and gets some “tummy time” on our chests. I’m going to start trying her tummy time on the floor tomorrow, so thankful for these tips!
guest
Other things that helped us tremendoulsy….
~take a sharpie to white paper plates and draw shapes. circles, large dots, doodles, etc. put them in front of baby to look at on the floor, or prop it up against something. ours LOVED them!
~tummy time on a beach ball. best tip ever. i would set her on top of a beach ball, hold her carefully on the sides of her tummy, and rock her back and forth front to back. it was also really soothing to her stomach if she seemed to have gas.
pomelo / 5228 posts
Just saying… baby can do a better plank than me
apricot / 288 posts
I found that the mirror is definitely a favorite for my daughter while on her tummy. I use a safety mirror which sometimes I prop up next to her and other times I put under her so she can look up at our ceiling fan.
guest
The biggest revelation for me around tummy time was to learn that it didn’t *have* to be on the floor. We used a large exercise ball – while I supported – and time on my chest while I laid flat on the floor or on the same large ball. Another suggestion I got from an infant development class was to use my lap as a tummy time surface. As my baby got stronger we spent more time on the floor.
honeydew / 7968 posts
Wow he is such a cutie pie! I love how he’s concentrating on that piece of grass….
olive / 58 posts
So many good ideas here! Tummy time on your chest is a fantastic idea especially when they are so little. I love the idea of using the sharpie on a paper plate – fast and easy high contrast image! Great idea with the exercise ball too!
GOLD / nectarine / 2884 posts
That rug is INCREDIBLE! I love these tips btw!!
olive / 56 posts
Super helpful post! Baby will be arriving/coming home soon so I was wondering when we should start tummy time
GOLD / wonderful apricot / 22646 posts
SUCH A STRONG BOY!
bananas / 9357 posts
OMG, that photo with the grass is too funny! I love the plank one too. Lots of great ideas. Thank you.
honeydew / 7504 posts
These are great tips. D currently HATES tummy time (9 weeks). I’ve been laying him on my shins, then laying on my back with my legs up in the air at a 90° angle. He tolerates that the best, because he can look down at me while I talk, sing, or make funny faces at him. Even though he’s looking down, he still has to work to hold his head up so that it doesn’t flop down.
cherry / 175 posts
My LO was very much against tummy time when she was a newborn, but at 4 months now she enjoys it more. Her favorite method of tummy time is on daddy’s chest. She really likes interacting with people so this was the best way for us to get tummy time in for her.
Thanks for these tips!
guest
Just reading this now and although we did practise tummy time A LOT when mine was little, I have since discovered through RIE, that it is actually best to allow a child to discover the tummy position on their own, by spending a lot of free time to move unhindered on their backs on the floor (something I didn’t do as much of as I should – I kept putting my little one on her tummy all the time, which she loved…)
In any case RIE is a method that was developed by Magda Gerber and focuses on respect for and awareness of the child as a unique human being – very much compatible with Montessori) This post and wonderful video shows how a baby can develop and strengthen naturally: http://www.janetlansbury.com/2011/08/the-case-against-tummy-time-guest-post-by-irene-gutteridge/