As a dada, you play a unique role in your child’s life and you make a significant difference in shaping his self-esteem, character and values. Your child looks to you for comfort and assurance whenever he feels insecure or uncertain. It is important for you to make time for him and learn to interact positively with him. The more time you can spend with him, the bigger the impact on his life. When your child develops an attachment to you, he will feel emotionally secure, confident to explore his surroundings and have a better social connection with his peers as he becomes older.
The way you play with your child has an important impact on his cognitive, emotional and social development, he regulates his emotions and behaviours better.
Suggestions to be a great dad and supportive husband:
Be your wife’s best friend.
- Encourage your wife as she may have postpartum anxiety and depression after birth.
- Wake up along with her at night when your baby woke up.
- Get her some healthy snacks, books or DVDs so that she can relax while she breastfeeds.
- Bring her and your baby out.
- Help her to buy groceries, prepare meals, clean the house and do laundry when she needs rest.
Click here for a recommended list of "Kids-Friendly Staycations in Singapore"!
Bond with your baby.
- Exercise together.
- Teach your baby to swim.
- Carry and cuddle your baby.
- Put your baby in a pram and take him for a walk.
- Lie beside your baby read a book and try to put him to sleep.
- Put your baby on your lap and read a book to him.
- Feed your baby with a milk bottle and solid food.
- Play with your baby.
- Carry your baby and let his feet touch the grass.
- Watch tree leaves move when the wind blows.
- Listen to birds and animals which make sounds such as cats, dogs etc.
- Look at different coloured cars and traffic light signals.
Practice makes perfect.
- Change your baby’s diapers.
- Bath your baby.
- Rock your baby to sleep.
Be your baby’s role model.
- Your baby will look up to you; so be a role model of healthy lifestyle habits for him.
- Your positive attitude will rub off on him and he will better relate with others as he grows.
- Challenge him to explore, learn new experiences and be more independent as he grows.
Visit here for more details on "Bonding and Connecting with the toddler".
More time with your child.
Indoor
- Borrow books home to read to your child.
- Spend time with your child and create memories where your child will remember.
- Throw a large softball at your child and ask him to catch it.
- Bounce and kick the ball, ask your child to bounce and kick the ball too.
- Blow bubbles and get your child to catch or chase them as they float away.
- Play different music or make sounds with voice or instruments and encourage your child to dance together.
- Teach your child to jump over or move beside the water in the floor or path and NOT step on it.
- Play snow with your child in the Snow City.
- Carry your child and pretend to fly at home.
- Let your child ride a scooter or a bicycle under your supervision.
- Let your child push toy trucks, doll prams and lawnmowers.
- Bring your child to explore and play in indoor playgrounds.
- Record your time with your child for memories. Your child will smile when know there is a video recording.
- Tickle your child with some beating sound.
- Hold your child’s hands to walk.
- Make a play pool for your child to play with water.
- Let your child use a wet cloth to clean the table after eating and a dry cloth to wipe again.
- Bath your child with toy ducks etc.
- Play music with a beating rhythm and your child starts to dance.
- Pretend to put your child on diet.
For example, 1 small shrimp and 1 small piece of egg.
- Get your child to sit on a chair in front of a table.
Put snacks in the center of the table.
Told your child not to eat till you are back, you will be back in 5 minutes.
When you are back, he gets to eat the snacks.
- Hold 4 different colour blocks like red, yellow, blue and green.
Ask your child to pick the blue block. Your child picks the blue block.
If your child picks the wrong colour, let your child try again.
Repeat till your child has the four different colour blocks.
Praise your child at the end.
- Get your child to taste new food or drink.
For example, Pickles, Seaweed, Carrot, Cherry Juice, Wasabi, Vinegar, Coconut Water, Crabstick, Cheese, Sweet Potato.
Outdoor
- Throw and chase balls in fields.
- Push shopping cart in the supermarket.
- Jump over stones or cracks in the footpath.
- Blow bubbles and chase them in a park or a playground.
- Play sands at the beach.
- Swim in pools.
- Play catching, hide and seek.
- Walk and name the different sounds heard.
- Bring your child to play swing etc in a playground.
- Walk to the library, park or shops without bringing the pram.
- Ride a scooter or a bicycle under your supervision.
- Pull a wagon with your child sitting in.
- Explore and play in outdoor playgrounds.
I hope all these pointers will help you to be a great dad and supportive husband.
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NURTURE INFANT HOUSE (Tampines)
Nurture Infant House, a leading infant care in Tampines, provides an infant care programme for infants aged 2 months to 18 months old. Teachers from our infant care Tampines or infant care at Tampines are trained, qualified, respectful, responsive to the infants. They are flexible with their approach to learning and can interchange their teaching method to accommodate your infant’s preferred method.
The infant's daily routines in our Tampines infant care include a good mix of structured activities such as introducing infants to a variety of colours, textures, and sounds etc, eat time, play time and rest.
We have over 30 years of experience in nurturing thousands of infants, toddlers and preschoolers so you are looking for Tampines infant care, Tampines preschool or Tampines childcare, do consider Nurture Infant House.
Located beside our Tampines infant care is our Genesis Childcare 1989.
If you are looking for a Tampines preschool or childcare Tampines for playgroup, nursery or kindergarten, you can consider enrolling your child in Genesis Childcare 1989. Our Tampines childcare is one of Singapore's leading childcare services. Visit our childcare at Tampines and Tampines preschool to learn more about our curriculum and how we ensure a holistic development for your child.
Lastly, would you like to visit our Nurture Infant House to find out more about our environment and setup as well as understand our operations by talking to our teachers and supervisor?
Nurture Infant House (2 to 18 months Infants)
Blk 433 Tampines Street 43 #01-61 Singapore 520433
Genesis Childcare 1989 (Playgroup to Kindergarten 2)
Blk 433 Tampines Street 43 #01-63/65 Singapore 520433
Opening hours: Monday to Friday (7am to 7pm) & Saturday (7am to 2pm)
Public Bus services: 8 / 21 / 28 / 29 / 293
Tel: 96664141