One of the easiest and cheapest ways to entertain your baby and assist with his development is to use a wall mirror. For any busy mother, the idea behind putting up a mirror in a baby’s play area is to ensure that he remains happy and content as you go about completing chores. Meanwhile, baby has uninterrupted playtime without depending on you to entertain him or wind up a toy.



Mirrors are also a great way for you to spend time and to connect with your baby as you play, laugh and teach him things.

Why parents love their kids to play with mirrors?
Promoting free movement and uninterrupted play is one of the main reasons that parents love their kids to play with mirrors. Safe borderless mirror are easy to obtain and are well-priced.



Parents love mirrors because:

• Concentration is promoted as babies can spend long periods of time looking at themselves in mirrors, much like they do with mobiles.

• Visual tracking is encouraged.

• Babies often smile and laugh when they see faces, including their own.

• Independent play is promoted and your baby does not need to rely on an adult to entertain him.

• Tummy time is more fun for babies in front of a mirror and it also promotes free movement around the play area. This becomes even more fun when parents and siblings join the baby in the play area.

• Coordinated movement is promoted as baby starts to connect how the movement of their arm or leg is reflected in the mirror.

• Babies that can still not crawl or walk can view the room they are in from the mirror and visually map it.

How baby can play using mirrors?



The mirror that you decide to use for your baby’s play area must be unbreakable and you must ensure that it anchored safely and securely, so that it cannot fall. The play area does not have to be in the baby's room and can be conveniently located in another area of the home where you can also keep an eye on the infant, and even join in for some playtime between chores. Lay a soft blanket or playmate for baby’s comfort.

Babies should be able to see the full length of their body, and a wall mirror is the best for that. It’s always a good idea to offer stimulation with things that they can grasp in the play area.

Each stage of your baby’s development can benefit from mirror playtime:

Newborn – 6 months



Newborns baby love to stare at faces and as their vision develops. They stare at their mom as they feed and they love to look at themselves in a mirror. At this early stage in their development a mirror next to the crib helps the baby start to encounter his reflection. Tummy time and a mirror at this age encourages head lifting so position your baby in front of the mirror so that he can see his and your reflection.

From 6 months to a year



By the age of 6 months baby, your baby will be smiling at himself in the wall mirror. At this stage, the mirror will help him to develop several important skills. These include eye-hand coordination, language, listening and imitation skills. These cognitive and physical skills are important for their development. By this stage in your baby’s development you should be playing games like:

• Asking him to point to his nose ears, tummy, etc. In order for him to grasp the game, you can start by pointing to yours first.

• Imitation skills are also fun and baby can learn to pull funny faces from you in front of the mirror. Widen eyes, stick out tongue, wrinkle nose and pull your ears are some fun ones.

• Puppet shows can be performed in front of the mirror with toys, helping baby understand the relationship between him and the mirror.

From 12 months and up
Self-awareness is now more obvious in your baby.

Mirrors are the perfect source of self-awareness



Babies only start to realize that they are actually looking at themselves in the mirror at around the age of 9 months. You will know when he has grasped this, if you place something on his face and he tries to wipe it off himself instead of going to the mirror to try to remove it from his image in the mirror.

Self-awareness can also be tested by placing a toy behind baby as he is looking at his reflection in the mirror. If he reaches for the reflection of the toy, then he has not grasped the concept yet. However, if he turns around to pick it up, you know that he has fully understood.

Types of mirrors to use
A child-safe free-standing mirror with a wooden frame or a secured wall mirror is usually the most practical option.