HearingStart · 0–4 months

Following the rattle

You move a rattle slowly from side to side as it jingles, and your baby practices following it with their eyes.

To do with your baby in the first 4 months. It works on: hearing, visual movement and visual focus. You'll need: rattle.

In the app, one activity a day for their age →

What do I need?

• Rattle

How do I do it?

1. 01

   Set up the space

   Lay your baby on their back on a comfortable surface. Bring your face about 30 cm (12 in) from theirs, so they can see you clearly.

2. 02

   Move the rattle

   Pick up something that makes a sound (a rattle, a bell or a musical toy). Move it slowly from left to right in front of their eyes, about 20–25 cm (8–10 in) from their face.

3. 03

   Add the sound

   Keep the sound going as you move it, so they see and hear it at the same time. Watch their eyes: at first they follow it in little jumps, then more and more smoothly.

4. 04

   Stop when they tell you

   When they look away or start to fuss, leave it for today. That's their way of telling you they've had enough.

What are they learning?

As they follow the rattle, they practice moving their eyes from side to side without losing sight of it, and the sound helps them connect what they see with what they hear. Around 3 months, many babies start reaching for the rattle, even if they can't grab it yet.

• Hearing

  Connects the sound of the rattle with what they see

• Visual movement

  Follows an object moving from side to side with their eyes

• Visual focus

  Keeps their eyes on the rattle without losing track of it

What the research says

1. Newborns prefer their mother's voice

   DeCasper & Fifer · 1980

2. How human eyesight develops

   Braddick & Atkinson · 2011

3. How visual attention develops in babies

   Colombo · 2001

See all 6 references

1. DeCasper AJ, Fifer WP. Of human bonding: newborns prefer their mothers' voices. Science. 1980;208(4448):1174-1176. doi:10.1126/science.7375928 doi.org/10.1126/science.7375928
2. Muir D, Field J. Newborn infants orient to sounds. Child Development. 1979;50(2):431-436. doi:10.2307/1129419 doi.org/10.2307/1129419
3. Braddick O, Atkinson J. Development of human visual function. Vision Research. 2011;51(13):1588-1609. doi:10.1016/j.visres.2011.02.018 doi.org/10.1016/j.visres.2011.02.018
4. Rosander K. Visual tracking and its relationship to cortical development. Progress in Brain Research. 2007;164:105-122. doi:10.1016/S0079-6123(07)64006-0 doi.org/10.1016/S0079-6123(07)64006-0
5. Colombo J. The development of visual attention in infancy. Annual Review of Psychology. 2001;52:337-367. doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.337 doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.337
6. Courage ML, Reynolds GD, Richards JE. Infants' attention to patterned stimuli: developmental change from 3 to 12 months of age. Child Development. 2006;77(3):680-695. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00897.x doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2006.00897.x

Reviewed by Javier Atance Ibar, PhD in Education