Parenting Guide

7 brain activities to stimulate brain development in children

7 brain activities to stimulate brain development in children

Fact-checked by MFine | Last Updated : July 26th, 2022

If you want to help your child's brain development with some fun activities, here are the perfect activities that will help your child's logical and c...

7 brain activities to stimulate brain development in children

The first six years of your child’s life is one of the most critical periods as it is in this stage that your child’s brain is constantly developing and learning new things. As parents, you will need to ensure that your child gets plenty of opportunities for cognitive development and learning at this stage because it can affect their intelligence throughout their adult lives. It is at this period that they learn essential skills like creativity, analytical thinking, problem-solving and more. When it comes to your child’s intelligence, nurture is usually just as important as nature. Here are a few mentally stimulating activities that can encourage healthy brain development in children.

1. Introducing baby brain development toys

Playing with toys is a wonderful way to introduce brain development games for kids. More than just being a fun pastime for children, toys and games are actually essential for them to learn important skills. They will help your child use new neural pathways that will need repetition to avoid pruning of these neurons. These various baby brain development toys are made to encourage mental growth. At the age of 1, you can introduce them to 4-piece puzzles and colouring; this will improve their motor skills. At the early age of 3, you can introduce number and letters through rhymes like the Alphabet Song.

2. Ask or answer questions

As parents, it’s important to remember that almost everything is a new experience for your child. Because of this, they will have a seemingly unending list of questions about their environment, how things work, why things are the way they are and more. Encourage your child when they do this because this can develop their sense of curiosity. As they get older, rather than giving them a straight answer each time, you can ask them more questions in return to encourage them to think on their own. Teaching them this type of critical thinking can stimulate the analytical regions of their brain and encourage brain development in children.

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3. Listen to music

Music is one of the best baby brain development activities. String instruments like the violin and guitar can help stimulate the neural impulses in the brain. Baby brain development activities such as music and dancing can channelize positive moods, which will increase their mental activity and boost your child’s energy. This is an excellent way to encourage and develop creativity in children. It gives rise to new neural pathways that will energize your child’s development. Music can enhance your child’s learning patterns. It is proven that music tends to stimulate the right side of the brain which provides analytic measures and uses mental capacitors. The left side of the brain responds to music by stimulating the limbic system that’s involved with emotional stability. In this way, your child will develop a more enhanced mental system by listening to music.

4. Engage their senses

This is a very important early brain development activity for young toddlers. Allowing them to play with wet sand to mould shapes, clay or putty will keep them fascinated, while simultaneously developing their tactile senses. This is a great way to stimulate baby brain development as they will be fascinated with the variety of textures and colors. Through these sensory learning experiences, your child’s brain capacity will improve.

5. Instil a passion for reading

Reading is a habit that will help children continue to learn and develop throughout their life. Your child is never too young to be captivated by a good book! Right from the time when they are a baby, you can start reading out from colourful picture books. Your baby might not understand what you’re saying, but they will be intrigued by the colourful pictures and the intonation of your voice. As they grow older, you can continue making storytime sessions part of their daily routine so they learn to love books. Some of the best children books have captivating storylines that can stimulate your child's imagination and thirst to read more. This will help them grow their vocabulary and language skills, while also improving their focus and critical thinking abilities, all of which promote brain development in children.

6. Encourage them to explore

Visual and tactile stimuli are the perfect fodder for a young developing brain. Parents should encourage their child to explore as much of their surrounding environment as they want to. Many parents worry about their child accidentally harming themselves or getting lost, which is why they start restricting their child from moving around freely. Doing this, however, can make your child fearful of their surroundings and stunt their curiosity. Instead of stopping your child from doing what comes naturally to them, set up a safe area where your child is free to explore away to their heart’s content. For babies who have started crawling, for instance, you can create a ‘safe zone’ in your house that is free from sharp objects or small toys that they can swallow. Exploring and trying out new things is one of the most effective baby brain development activities that will have benefits they will be able to reap throughout their life.

7. Arts and crafts projects

This one can get a little messy, but the end result will be completely worth it. Craft projects are a wonderful way to teach your children skills like spatial reasoning, creativity, logical thinking and provide them with plenty of visual and tactile stimuli. You can teach your child simple origami shapes, help them make a photo frame or create a poster. Their projects will make for nostalgic keepsakes that you will treasure and will give them an excellent outlet for their creativity. A good blend of all the activities can bring about positive changes in brain development in children. They can use these activities to enhance motor, sensory and analytical skills. Positivity is key to any successful memory of neural pathways. If it ends in a positive consequence, it is likely to be remembered for eternity. These activities also accelerate mental skills. The first few years are crucial as the new learnings experienced and habits acquired during that time will stick with your child for the rest of their lives. A little effort every day can boost their learning and development. With the mfine app, new parents can get instant consultations with the city's top paediatricians right from the comfort of their own home.