The question "How to teach a child to roll over?" excites many parents of babies, especially if this is their firstborn. Parents often relate to the development of their second child more calmly - they already have some experience and knowledge, respectively, of less worries and worries. "How to teach a child to roll on his stomach?" - ask mothers (and sometimes dads) from the pediatrician and other parents at the baby forum and at the playground. Well, they waited, on the belly the child had already learned to roll over. Questions do not end there. And how to teach a child to roll over on his back?
Motor activity is the basis of the development of the baby
From birth, the child learns the world, learns everything new. At the beginning of life, the knowledge of the world around the child is closely related to his physical abilities. In addition, at an early age, physical activity is inextricably linked with mental development.
In what order do new skills usually appear?
Young parents often worry that their child is not yet sitting or rolling over, or not yet crawling. The pediatrician is “bombarded” with questions: how to teach a child to crawl, how to teach a child to roll over, etc. The pediatrician often answers that the child is still small enough for these movements. Let's see how everything happens in order.
A child grows and develops up to a year very quickly. In a newborn baby, the muscles are still very weak to hold the head and lift it. But after a couple of months, the child’s cervical muscles become stronger and he can easily lift and hold the head in this position for some time. Further, the child seeks to raise his shoulders and chest, thereby training the corresponding muscles. And the next movement that the baby learns to do is turn over - from the supine position to the tummy and vice versa. Then the peanut tries to sit down on its own, then it learns to crawl, and by 12-18 months a healthy child is confidently walking without support.
How to teach a child to roll over?
But it happens that some kind of movement does not work out for the child or there is no desire to perform it. Often there is no desire precisely because it did not work out right away - despite the fact that the child is just a baby, he already has a character from birth. But children, like adults, are different: some stubbornly go to their goal, while others try a couple of times and, faced with failure, immediately stop trying. You can try to interest the child in a bright toy - show the toy and put it next to the child so that he can take a closer look and take it only after the coup.
It also happens that the baby already confidently raises and holds its head, it is time for him to turn over already, and he still lies and looks at the ceiling. If the child is physically developed enough for his age (a local pediatrician is able to evaluate it), then it is possible that he is just a quiet dreamer or he simply cannot manage to perform this movement. In both cases, parents should help the little one.
Massage
You can help your baby as follows: with the help of massage and special physical exercises. It is good if the massage is carried out by a qualified experienced masseur. Parents will be able to perform some massage movements - it’s easy to stretch the back and arms, the main thing is to use a baby cream or special baby massage oil. It is not necessary to rub the skin, but to massage the muscles themselves, having previously felt them with stroking movements. Passive muscle training with massage is just as useful as active exercise.
Physical education for the little ones
Of the physical exercises that can help teach a child to roll over on his stomach, this is very popular and easy to do: put the child on his back on a hard surface (on a soft surface the crumb will be uncomfortable and more difficult to perform the exercise, you should also pay attention to the baby’s clothes - she should be free, do not constrain movements), with one hand hold the child’s leg in the ankle, and with the other hand gently take the other child’s leg, bend it slightly in the knee, turn to the side and rest the leg the child on his knee into the surface. In response to this, the child will try to turn around with his whole body and turn on his tummy. After this, the same exercise should be done with the other leg, thereby helping the child roll over across the other side.
Other exercises to help children learn this type of movement can be found in the relevant literature or in the children's clinic.
Safety regulations
A child who already knows how to roll over on his tummy and / or on his back needs to be monitored especially carefully, in no case should he be left unattended on a bed, sofa or changing table, since the crumb may roll over and fall.
It should also not be assumed that if a child aged 2 months or more still does not know how to roll over, then he does not need such increased attention. The fact is that a developed baby of this age can at any time try to roll over on its back or tummy. And yet again, it can end with a fall from a height (even falling from a low height is dangerous for babies, since they cannot fall correctly, and because of this they can get a head injury or any injury - hands, feet and other).