Activity Centers for Babies
Activity Centers for Babies
Most activities centers are given the same name by parents – exersaucers, even though that is technically the brand name for one version of activity centers. The activity center is designed to do two things – replace the walkers of old and to help baby find way to play sitting up.
The Exersaucer (And Other Activity Centers)
With few exceptions, activity centers are a cloth seat in the center of a circle. The circle is filled with all kinds of toys and activities for babies to play with and the seat in the center turns as she “walks” with her feet. Some of the exersaucers also have a bowl shaped bottom to rock and turn for added fun. Stationary or rocking, the baby sits in the center of the activity center and plays with all of her favorite toys kept directly in reach.
The low seat of the exersaucer helps her to sit upright even before she can really do it well on her own which makes the exersaucer especially great for the baby who hates to miss anything and is easily frustrated by the prone positions. The legs of the exersaucer expand as baby grows so that her feet and legs fit properly. She’ll be sitting correctly when the balls of her feet touch the base without bending her knees.
Praise for the Activity Center
Activity centers replaced the mobile walkers and gave babies a safe place to play that wasn’t in a playpen or regular infant seat. The exersaucer can be nicely educational as well depending on the sorts of games and activities present. Babies who need a bit more activity tend to love the exersaucer for the stimulation it presents, although it should be used in reasonable amounts.
Concerns for an Activity Center
The activity center should be an opportunity for your child to be enriched and play. It can also fill in for a seat if you need one for some basic snacks or even meal time, but it is not an area where baby should be for more than ten or fifteen minutes at a time. Babies can learn a bit from an exersaucer if the games are thing that involve developing skills, such as moving beads and turning pages, but if your child is only smacking a button to make the lights go, her time is better spent elsewhere.
Being in the exersaucer for long periods of time will also hamper her physical development in the areas of crawling, but it can aid in her balance and core strength as she struggles to sit up on her own and reach for areas of interest.
