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Fun in the BathThe bath is a great place to help babies and children

get used to the feeling of water. This can be a natural step towards swimming lessons and help improve their water

confidence. Below are some fun activities you can do with your child to make bath time even more beneficial and enjoyable.

Safety First

Activities

• Never leave a baby or child unattended in the bath• Always make sure you check the temperature of the water

before a baby /child gets in• Look out for clues that a baby is getting cold or wants to get

out: shivering, crying or lip trembling• Make sure there is a towel at hand for when a baby / child

comes out of the bath. Dry them as quickly as possible.

1. Encourage baby / child to splash their hands and toes. Toencourage them, use the rhyme: ‘this is the way we splash our toes’‘this is the way we splash our hands’

2. Using a cup or watering can, gives them an opportunity to play andexplore how the water moves. They can also pour water onto orover themselves

3. Place a ball on top of the water, push it down and let the ball popup out the water

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4. Use a mirror to play Peek-a-boo. Try putting bubbles on top of baby / child’s head, this may amuse them and help them relax

5. Place floating boats in the water and encourage your baby / child to blow the boats along. You could join in and have a race as confidence grows

6. Encourage baby / child to kick their legs, pushing the boats out to sea with the big waves they are making

7. Try making a bubble bath party using 4 tablespoons of baby shampoo or bubble bath into the bath to see how many bubbles it makes

8. Add some sinking toys into the water and encourage baby / child to look and reach for them

9. Use building blocks to allow baby / child to build towers and knock them down, splashing into the water

10. Sing the wheels on the bus using different actions for the different verses

• Wheels on the bus go round and round (move hands around in the water)

• Wipers on the bus (move baby / child side to side)• Rain on the bus (using your hands make droplets onto baby

/child’s head)• Horn on the bus (splash hands, like beeping a horn).