Games for 9 to 12 months

10:14 (GMT+2), Wed, 18 April 2012

Crawling games provide loads of fun. Cut biggish carton boxes into tunnels and make a bit of an obstacle course for your crawler. Call to her from the one side so that he feels encouraged to make his way through to you. Also, encourage her to move in and out under tables and chairs and up and over objects that aren’t too high. This is fun learning at its best!
Hold your baby securely and fly her around the room or garden, occasionally twirling her around, and up and down. Stop if her enjoyment starts to tail off, but this is one that dad's strong arms can cope with for quite a while, and to the great delight of their babies, who’ll soon show that they want more.
Play telephone. Invest in a play telephone and while you talk into the receiver of your real phone, let your baby do the same with the play set. Have animated conversations and send kisses down the line too.
Let your baby become a drummer. You'll probably enjoy this one less, but a saucepan, a wooden spoon and a baby are a sure recipe for a half hour of engrossing, if noisy, fun!
Stacking toys is a firm favourite and encourage dexterity.
Wooden and fabric books with animal pictures provide tactile stimulation of the most valuable kind – you can even make these yourself.
A magnet and a bunch of keys provide endless amusement!
Toys that challenge baby to match shapes are appropriate for this age and stage.
Tell stories with the aid of hand and finger puppets.
Give your little one a few scarves, underpants and T-shirts and place her in front of the mirror.