A newborn baby does not really care if the hands are their own, they think of them as other objects around them. Infants perceive seeing and touching as separate activities till about they are 6 months of age. It is only after some time that babies realize they can use their eyes to direct them and their hands to execute a particular task. This is how the development of hand eye coordination in babies takes place.
Newborn babies make this discovery when they start relating motion and noise with the movement of the hands. However, developing hand-eye coordination is a massive milestone in the first year of life, as this skill will enable your little one to explore the world fully.
In This Article
- Is Hand-Eye Coordination Important For Babies?
- How to Encourage Hand-Eye Coordination In Babies?
- Which Is The Best Age To Develop Hand-Eye Coordination And Balance?
- Tips To Develop Hand-Eye Coordination In Baby
- Hand-Eye Coordination Activities
- Problems With Inadequate Hand-eye Coordination
- When Should You Consider To See A Doctor?
- FAQ’s
Is Hand-Eye Coordination Important For Babies?
Hand-eye coordination is the ability of the vision of babies to properly coordinate with their hands. The information perceived by your eyes is correctly transmitted to your hands in order to do a given or assigned job correctly, for example catching a ball or writing. Good hand-eye coordination is the outcome of correct attention of the eyes and proper execution by hands. It is very important for performing daily activities properly.
How to Encourage Hand-eye Coordination In Babies
Proper coordination between hand and eye is extremely important for performing many life skills such as writing and eating. Newborns exhibit the ability to grasp everything that comes within the reach of their tiny hands. It seems to be an innate habit. Given the importance of hand-eye coordination and development in infants, it is crucial to understand strategies to encourage their growth.
Which Is The Best Age To Develop Hand-Eye Coordination And Balance?
Your infant can pick up big things, such as building blocks, when he or she is four or five months old. They, on the other hand, will not be able to let the blocks or toys go easily. Your baby’s hand-eye coordination begins to improve around six months. They will bring an item closer to themselves and begin transferring stuff from one hand to the other.
The average age at which youngsters master the art of balance is between 18 months and 2 years. By this time, your baby will walk up the stairs with one hand and run with improved coordination.
Tips To Develop Hand-eye Coordination In Baby
Playing is a simple and easy technique to help babies learn how to grab and reach objects. The tips below can be helpful to develop hand-eye coordination in babies:
- Some parents shake plastic keys or rattle them to attract a babys attention and to encourage him/her to grab them.
- Wrist rattles are also very useful in promoting hand-eye coordination. They make noise as the baby shakes hands and this titillates him/her. Your baby enjoys shaking the wrist and hears the noise. This enhances the gross motor skills of your baby. It is a very good practice for your little one.
- You can also use wooden or plastic blocks when the baby is four or five months old to teach them while playing. You can stack the blocks one over the other and make a tower, now ask your baby to knock it down. This will instil confidence in them, and they will learn about the power of they hands. Isn’t that amazing?
- A more ‘pincer’ grasp is displayed by your baby when he/she picks up small and tiny objects easily. It is as if she is telling you that ‘Look. I can pick even the tiniest object with sheer ease and finesse.
Well, these are just a few of the so many activities that you can do to promote the crucial hand-eye coordination skill in your baby. Babies learn maximum while playing. Play is a tutorial for them. So, spend some meaningful time with your baby and play with rattles and blocks. This will not only encourage hand-eye coordination but will also strengthen your bonding with your bundle of joy.
Hand-Eye Coordination Activities
You will have to tune the fine motor skills developing after birth if you intend to improve the hand-eye coordination in your baby. According to experts, babies are taught simple ways to improve hand-eye coordination when they are as young as 4 months old with the aid of games and toys. The regular practice of this skill will help in performing their daily normal activities.
- Use baby rhymes like “twinkle-twinkle” and make finger movements that the baby can copy.
- Put the baby’s favorite toys within reach and encourage them to grab them.
- Rolling objects like balls is another activity that demands hands -eye coordination.
- Shake a rattle or a set of plastic keys to get their attention and make them want to grab it.
- Build a tower of blocks and let the baby knock them down.
Problems With Inadequate Hand-eye Coordination
Poor hand eye coordination can be due to many reasons. Some of the important ones are listed below
1. Vision Impairment
Impairment of vision is defined as a loss of ability to see things. It makes you crippled and you find the execution of daily routine activities difficult. Loss of visual acuity is an important cause of visual impairment. The objects appear blurred, and clarity of vision is lost. A baby with a visual impairment finds difficulty in hand-eye coordination and faces problems in emotional, cognitive, neurological, and physical development
2. Movement Disorders
Movement disorders are caused by impaired or disturbed body movements. Ataxia is an example of this impairment which is characterized by a loss of coordination while executing voluntary movements. The manifestations of movement disorders are clumsiness, instability, or inaccuracy. The movements appear jerky and not smooth.
3. Developmental Disabilities
Babies with conditions such as Downs syndrome, Cerebral palsy, Autism spectrum disorders, etc. can find hand-eye coordination very difficult. In such babies, most milestones are extremely delayed, and you may need to take the help of various therapies to allow this coordination in your baby.
When Should You Consider To See A Doctor?
Consult a doctor if your baby shows abnormal signs of visual development or inadequate coordination of hands and eyes. If your baby has poor control of eye movement, one or both eyes continuously turn inwards or outwards, is disinterested in looking, and fails to grip or reach at new books, toys, or pictures, you should see a doctor.
As the baby grows, they start putting the grasped things in his mouth. This is the time to be very careful and remove all dangerous things that can cause any choking problem. Keep them out of your baby’s reach. This is a good example of skill progression.
FAQs
1. Is Hand-Eye Coordination Genetic?
It is true that our genes have some bearing on the skills and capabilities we possess. It has been shown that some people have a genetic predisposition toward having excellent hand-eye coordination as well.
2. What Is Poor Hand-Eye Coordination?
The core cause of poor hand-eye coordination is difficulty with visual-motor synchronization. Babies with poor hand-eye coordination may find it difficult to engage in sports such as hitting or catching a ball. They may also struggle with their handwriting or have eye strain.
3. What Part Of The Brain Controls Hand-Eye Coordination?
The cerebellum has been shown to play a significant role in eye-hand coordination in pointing, tracking, and reaching.
