Welcoming a baby into your life is such an incredible and joyful experience. And, frankly, when they are about four months old, it does seem to happen quickly, that they start really wanting to explore everything. It seems to be a little bit magical. AND this is a special time because it is not only about watching them grow, it’s about having fun together too. You know how they are curious little beings? And as they are starting to find out about their world around them there are so many simple things you could do to engage their senses and to get you both closer. I mean, colorful sensory play, in addition to some sweet tummy time, are a just a few of the potential activities, but fun to have these endless entertaining options to feed their growing curiosity. So, here’s the deal, we have curated seven fun and engaging activities that are perfect for you and your 4 month old baby. These activities are not random, they will aim to help them explore their world around them and develop their skills, all the while building that wonderful relationship between the two of you.
Understanding Your 4 Month Old Baby: Developmental Milestones and Activities
A lot is happening in terms of physical, sensory, and cognitive development at four months of age. In fact, things are changing so much that it is a big growth period, and at the same time, your baby is aware of their environment and beginning to interact more actively with it.
Improvement in head control
One of the major milestone activities that you will notice at 4 months old baby is the improvement in head control. By now many babies are able to hold their heads steady without support, and may even be beginning to push up on their elbows during tummy time. Head strength is a building block towards other functional experiences (like sitting up and crawling).
Sensory development
Sensory development is in full swing at 4 months as well, baby activities like vision and tracking are improving; your baby is seeing better, and tracking moving objects with their eyes. They will be drawn to bright colors, and fun patterns that offer high contrast, so visual stimulation becomes an important part of play so try and remember to entertain baby visually with toys too!
Development in Hearing
Another sensory area in which your baby is developing in is hearing. Your baby’s hearing has improved and they will be able to discriminate between sounds. They will start recognizing familiar voices, and will turn their head towards noise.
Cognitive Development
Cognitively your baby is beginning to understand cause and effect. Your baby will maybe start to reach for objects and start to grasp objects, and explore their textures and shapes. This is the period where socialization will really start to increase too. Your baby will smile, and laugh.
The Importance of Play in Early Childhood Development
Physical development occurs when babies are playing; their practice of movements eventually helps them coordinate those movements as they become familiar. Cognitive development occurs as they stimulate their senses and figure things out. Play is equally important for emotional development (as well as social development).
When you are playing with your baby, you are not only playing together but also providing an important emotional connection that supports the baby’s sense of being loved (it is possible to have an emotional bond without love, though this is not the case here). Each time you are with your baby you are constructing opportunities for the baby to develop trust. Trust is significant to the baby’s well-being in general.
You are not only playing together but also preparing them for future interactions with other children, and even adults. Interactions with you or another family member still count as social play and contribute to your baby’s trust in others and their social networks.
Now that you have some context about play and your baby, you will be more informed when choosing age appropriate play and activities. Age appropriate play has the potential to increase your baby’s development and create great experiences when you recall them. So let’s see some ideas and activities that you can do with your 4 month old baby.
Activity 1: Tummy Time as 4 month old baby activities
Tummy time isn’t optional; it’s foundational for your child’s physical development. We’re talking core strength with neck, shoulders, back…
The basics that set them up for future milestones like sitting up at meetings (well, eventually), crawling, and walking. Setup’s simple: Lay down a soft, clean blanket on the floor. Add a few bright, engaging toys within reach to keep your baby’s attention on target (think of it as incentivizing participation).
It’s smart to join them at floor level, too. Interact, communicate, encourage head lifts. Consider introducing a variety of textures and safe objects: soft books, rattles, tactile materials. This keeps engagement high and development on track.
Activity 2: Sensory Exploration with Textures
Sensory play activities are like the secret weapon for keeping a 4 month old baby entertained. Babies at this age are basically little detectives, grabbing at everything and shoving it in their mouths if you’re not careful. So, why not make a whole sensory basket for them? Just toss in some soft cloths, squishy rubber toys, maybe a chunky wooden block or two, and my personal favorite the crinkly paper that makes a sound like you’re unwrapping a candy bar at the movies (classic).
Let your baby dig in at their own speed. If they’re hesitant, you can always nudge their chubby little hands towards something interesting and chat about it. Like, “Whoa, this one’s super soft,” or, “Hear that crinkle” It seems silly, but talking about the stuff helps them link words to what they’re feeling. One day they’re babbling, the next they’re pointing at the dog and declaring “fluffy”.
Activity 3: Interactive Storytime
Reading to your baby is basically one of those “parenting hacks” that never goes out of style. You’re not just flipping through some pages and making funny noises because you’re actually introducing them to language, giving them a head start with words, and it’s a killer bonding move too. At four months old, your kiddo probably isn’t dissecting plotlines, but they’re soaking up the sound of your voice and the rhythm of language, like little sponges. Babies are weirdly obsessed with voices, especially yours.
Here’s the trick: pick books with wild colors and simple words, babies love that. And don’t be afraid to get goofy. If there’s a dog in the story, just go ahead and bark. Make faces, wave your arms around, whatever feels right. The more dramatic, the better (even if you feel slightly ridiculous). Let your baby paw at the pages, too. If you’ve got those books with fuzzy patches or hidden flaps, goldmine. Babies love that tactile stuff.
Activity 4: Gentle Music and Movement
You ever notice how music just grabs a baby’s attention like nothing else? Seriously, you put on a lullaby or start humming a silly tune, and suddenly they’re all wide-eyed and curious. So, crank up those nursery rhymes or whatever chill playlist you’ve got (doesn’t have to be fancy). Sway around your living room with your little one, or bounce them on your knee. They love it, and honestly, it’s kinda fun for you too.
Now, toss in some baby-friendly instruments like, we’re talking rattles, shakers, maybe even a tambourine if you’re feeling wild. Let your kiddo shake them around and make some noise. It’s more than just cute chaos; it actually gets those tiny hands working and helps with their coordination. They’re learning cause and effect without even knowing it.
Activity 5: Baby Massage Techniques
Now here’s the real deal about baby massage: Don’t let anybody tell you it’s just for fancy Instagram moms. It’s actually pretty awesome. You get this magical combo of calming your kiddo, getting them to maybe (just maybe!) sleep better, and helping their little tummies do their thing. Plus, it’s just plain adorable.
Set the scene first. I’m talking about a chill spot with no blaring TV or barking dogs. Grab some baby-friendly oil or lotion. And yeah, your hands better be warm; nobody wants cold paws on their tummy.
Start with their legs. Go slow, gentle, like you’re icing a cake, not kneading dough. Watch your baby’s face and if they give you that “nope” look, just hit pause. Try again later. This isn’t a wrestling match.
Do it regularly, so that it becomes your little ritual. You get bonding time, baby gets chill time, everybody wins. Honestly, don’t overthink it. Just enjoy the squishy baby cuddles while they last.
Activity 6: Mirror Play for Self-Recognition
It’s honestly kind of wild how much babies get out of just staring at their reflections. Like, pop a baby-safe mirror in front of your four-month-old during tummy time (or prop them up with some pillows if they’re still a little wobbly), and watch the magic happen. Babies at that age are just starting to notice, “Hey, who’s that cutie staring back at me?”.
You can totally hype it up by making goofy faces, babble, or just chat with your baby in front of the mirror. They’ll probably get super into it, maybe even try to poke or smack the “other baby.” It’s adorable chaos and bonus, it actually helps with stuff like tracking things with their eyes, grabbing at things, and all that brain development. Basically, their little minds are starting to piece together, “Wait, when I move, that tiny human moves too”.
Activity 7: Water Play Fun
Babies are obsessed with water play. It’s basically their version of a summer pool party, except it’s a Tuesday morning and you’re both still in pajamas. Grab a little tub, chuck in a couple inches of warm water (don’t go overboard, babies are tiny), and toss it on a towel somewhere you don’t mind getting a bit soaked.
Add some floating toys, a cup or two, maybe a plastic spoon. Let your kiddo be himself, Splashing, smacking, dipping those cute little toes in. Isn’t it just adorable and it’s like a full-on workout for their senses and tiny muscles. Motor skills? Check. Sensory development? Double check.
Conclusion: Making Memories with Your Baby
Babies, they change so fast: It’s like you blink and suddenly they’re already outgrowing those newborn onesies you just bought. Honestly, just messing around on the floor, doing tummy time or letting them grab at whatever’s nearby, that’s already doing wonders for their little brains. Plus, it’s pretty hilarious to watch them try to make sense of, well, literally everything.
You don’t need a fancy playbook. If your baby hates something, ditch it and try something else. Every kid’s got their own vibe. Maybe your little one’s all about squishy toys, maybe they just want to stare at your face (no pressure). The point is, don’t stress. The giggles, the weird faces, even the meltdown moments, those are the good bits, trust me.
And hey, even if you feel like you have no clue what you’re doing (welcome to parenthood), every silly game and cuddle session is building up their confidence and curiosity. So get goofy, get messy, and don’t worry if you feel ridiculous because you’re making magic happen, whether you realize it or not.
I hope that you have found the answer that you were looking for. Check out Kinzy Club Blogs for more such helpful articles.
Also do check our Kinzy App to create fun memorable stories through our advanced Ai assistant with your kids.
Try out our App:
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/in/app/kinzy/id6743426150
Play Store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=club.kinzy.app&hl=en_IN ↩︎
