This post is by Publisher Spotlight consultant Josalyn Moran.
The research is in! infant tummy time is important time! Multiple pediatric studies have been conducted to confirm the health and developmental benefits of “tummy time,” including this recommendation from Pediatrician Matthew Badget, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic, in which he points out the following advantages:
Tummy time
- helps motor skill development
- Itreduces chances of skull deformity
- Itpromotes sensory development
- provides opportunities to bond
Tummy Time! from Mama Makes Books (Red Comet Press) is an excellent example of a picture book genre supporting tummy time. One side of this fold-out book features bright high-contrast images. Since babies are hard-wired to recognize faces, there are baby photos on the other side…plus an embedded mirror…because babies love looking at themselves! The book can be spread out flat in front of babies or read together like a book.
In its companion volume, Reading Time!, based on the traditional nursery rhyme “I see the moon and the moon sees me,” little ones will be enchanted as their caregiver repeats this verse about various common items. The art is clear and engaging and the poem’s rhythm is playful yet soothing. And a third title, Playtime!, will be published Spring 2024.
Another title, also named Tummy Time, which was designed and published by Flowerpot Press is an entry in the publisher’s Baby Firsts series. In it each page features lots of friendly faces that draw baby’s attention and build their love for, and familiarity with, books. The bright photographs in this title introduce the concept of tummy time and show babies doing various activities, including playing, learning, smiling, and cuddling.
Another series that fits this developmental need is from Child’s Play and is based on the work of Professor Anna Franklin and the Sussex Baby Lab. The Look, Touch, Learn titles of Sea and Sky, illustrated by Charlotte Archer, are colorful and endearing and they stand upright by themselves. The caregiver and baby can relax side-by-side and point out Illustrations or they may lay on the other side and peek through or over the book. The tactile features are fun to explore and even to blow on.
The above would serve as a terrific collection of baby shower gifts. Choosing from this assortment of appealing sturdy books and concertinas offers a new parent the opportunity to stretch both their baby’s physical and literary developmental muscles.