BABY PLAY WITH NESTING OBJECTS
The motor skill of nesting or stacking objects, such as cups, can be developed through baby play with simple household objects as well as baby toys. Nesting refers to objects that fit one inside of the other. For example, measuring cups in your kitchen are nested on inside of the other so they fit tightly in one stack. However, they have to be placed in the stack in an orderly manner from the smallest size on top to the largest size on the bottom. Play with a stack of cups may be easier for a baby because they can be stacked without the additional skill of determining the order by the object size. Although the skill of nesting objects usually emerges after babies turn one year old and are technically “toddlers,” they will enjoy the “unstacking” part of the skill before they reach their first birthday. Try adding some stacking bath toys to bath time. The skill of nesting demands coordination as they use one hand to hold one object steady while the other hand places another object on top of or inside of the object they are holding.
KITCHEN OBJECTS FOR BABY PLAY
Babies can play for long periods of time with kitchen items. A set of nested measuring cups (with the connecting ring removed for safety) or a set of nested mixing bowls are great for baby play. In the above video from MaryAnn MamaSmilesblog’s youtube channel, a baby explores how many plastic cups could fit tightly together, one inside of the next. She also discovers how many pieces (cups) are in the stack of cups by separating each cup out of the stack or nest. At the end of the video she picks up the entire stack as one piece. Through her play she has explored how one “object” can become many separate pieces. She also explores how the relationship between these pieces changes. This stack of plastic cups is an inexpensive toy that provides excellent play and exploration. Always supervise baby play because plastic cups can break, exposing sharp corners.