Chorevia

Day 357 of 365 · Week 48

Balls and bubbles

Last reviewed · 4 min read · 12 sources · Plain-text version

A ball rolled back and forth, bubbles to pop, and a teddy fed with a spoon: three games about taking turns, and the first pretend. What the research does and doesn't say about them.

A Latina mother on a living-room rug, legs apart, facing her fifty-week-old daughter sitting the same way, a soft ball between them, the four-year-old brother blowing bubbles to the side.

Every game today has the same shape: your turn, their turn, your turn. A ball, a bubble, and a teddy with a spoon are how an 11-month-old learns that other people take turns, and how you find out what makes yours laugh.

Heart

Ball first. The 1-year guide's Ball roll and kick is for a toddler who walks; today's version is the first step of it, sitting and rolling only. CDC suggests rolling balls together (CDC), and the WHO recommends at least 180 minutes of varied physical activity a day for 1- and 2-year-olds (WHO); this game itself hasn't been studied. Kicking waits: by 2, most toddlers kick a ball (CDC). The hand skill underneath rolling is the same one that made the drop game: once babies can let go on purpose, dropping and throwing become favorite games (AAP).

Head

Bubbles are the same lesson with a built-in request. The guide's Bubble turn-taking comes from CDC's suggestion to blow bubbles for your toddler to pop while you name the action (CDC): blow, say "Pop!", stop, and wait for them to ask for more, by word, sign, or point. Pointing to ask for something or get help is a 15-month milestone (CDC), so at 11 months the ask may be a shriek, a reach, or a stare at the wand. Any of those counts. Blow again right away, so the request gets answered. Passing a toy back and forth is the oldest version of the game, from the 9-month list (CDC).

Body

And the teddy. CDC suggests pretend play like feeding a stuffed animal with a spoon (CDC), and hugging a stuffed toy is a 15-month milestone (CDC). The honest evidence, from the guide's Feed the teddy: a major review found little proof that pretend play itself causes gains in language, thinking, or social skills (Lillard et al., 2013). What an 11-month-old brings to it is the "things have uses" skill: hand over a cup, a spoon, or a hairbrush and be an audience when they copy you (AAP). A spoon aimed at a teddy's ear is pretend enough.

Try today

  1. The baby, sitting, shoving a soft fabric ball away with both hands toward the mother's open palms a few feet off, her brother kneeling beside her clapping, the father watching from the sofa.

    Ball roll and kick

    Time: 5 to 10 minutes · Ball roll and kick in the guide

    1. Sit on the floor facing each other, legs apart, a soft ball between you. Push it slowly into their lap and say "Your turn."

    2. Hold out both hands and wait. A shove, a drop, or a throw in your direction all count as the ball coming back (AAP).

    3. Roll it back and say "My turn." Ten rounds, or until they crawl off with it.

    4. Skip the kick for now; the ball stays on the floor and so does the baby (CDC).

    Make it work:

    A ball too big to fit entirely in the mouth, and nothing smaller than that on the rug (AAP).

Watch for

  • Normal

    a ball thrown at you instead of rolled, with delight; letting go on purpose is new (AAP).

    Talk with your pediatrician

    if your baby uses one arm or leg much more than the other (AAP).

  • Normal

    tears when the ball rolls under the sofa; name it, "You're sad. The ball rolled away" (CDC).

    Call your pediatrician right away

    if your baby cries nonstop, or cries when touched or moved (AAP).

  • Normal

    a bubble popped on the cheek and a baby who blinks and asks for more.

    Call 911

    if your baby has purple or blood-colored spots or dots on the skin (AAP).

For you

The mother lying flat on the rug afterward with the ball on her stomach and her eyes shut, the baby crawling over her legs, the brother's bubble wand dripping onto a towel beside them.

The game of catch starts here, and it's one you'll still be playing in a driveway in ten years. Today it's played lying on a rug, which is where the week's other advice lands too: a floor you can get down to and up from without pain. If getting up is the hard part, that's a question for your own provider, and the CDC's rule for the whole first year is the one to use: if something just isn't right, or you aren't sure if it's serious, talk to your health care provider, and tell them you were pregnant within the last year (CDC).

If you're the partner: you're the other end of the ball tonight, and the bubble blower, because the baby asks the person holding the wand. Hand it to her for the last round so the asking goes both ways.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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