Have you noticed that every newborn baby toy, every book, everything is black and white? But why, oh, WHY? What’s with all the high-contrast baby things?! High contrast themed baby showers, nursery decoration, baby toys, cards, books (don’t tell me, babies can actually read!!), artwork… you name it, they have it in black and white. But what’s the reason behind all this? And do you need to rush out and by a bunch of black and white baby resources? Hold your horses, don’t go anywhere. I have a feeling you’ll find most of the things around you, in your own home, or you can DIY them in a couple of minutes. Read on to find out more!
WHY DO BABIES LIKE BLACK AND WHITE THINGS?
Believe it or not, there are actually two very important reasons.
One scientific reason is that when babies are born, their retinas are not yet fully developed. This means that everything they see around them is 1. very blurry, 2. only exists in shades of black and white. Yup, you’ve read that right, they can’t even see any colours for a while! Read more about how baby vision development in this post.
The other reason is biological. When feeding, your baby’s face is about 30cm from your face and that’s exactly the distance they can see.(Mother nature, you are absolutely amazing!) And what they look at is … drumroll … your eyes, which are … drumroll … black and white! Well, for their limited vision. They actually focus on the dark pupil which is surrounded by the white part of the eye.
This information is very important as it allows us to give our baby a head start in life. What you need to do is go around the house, pick up everything that’s black and white and arrange them around your baby. Easy!
WHAT ARE THE ADDED BENEFITS?
High contrast images have great benefits for your baby’s development! They…
- help to stimulate your baby’s vision development
- develop focus and concentration
- capture your baby’s attention
- stimulate brain development
HERE ARE A FEW IDEAS TO GET YOU STARTED
1. Books
If somebody asks what to get your baby for their zeroeth birthday (I just made this up🤫), ask for this. There are SO MANY black and white baby books out there, it doesn’t really matter which one you get. If you’d still like an example, we were given this one as a present and loved it.
2. Black and white baby cards
Nobody gave you a baby book? Fear not, you can make black and white cards yourself! You can either draw them, paint them, or if you have access to a printer, print them. We used these ones, there are plenty to choose from. You can print and laminate or put them in a picture frame and place them close to your baby’s face, for example during tummy time. Just make sure you change it from one side to another so your baby can change their head position.
3. Black and white toys and objects
Before my baby was born, I made a few toys for him. One of the most loved one was this crinkle toy. Just look at its state, it was obviously well-loved! One side is made of black and white felt, and the other is red and white. I put a plastic sheet between the two fabrics that I cut out from the plastic packaging of a cereal box so it made a crinkly sound.
You can easily make something similar to this one, even if you don’t have a sewing machine. Make sure your stitches are tight and always check the toy before giving it to your baby.
4. Black and white clothing
Do you have any black and white tops? If you don’t, go and get some high-contrast nursing tops RIGHT NOW. It doesn’t matter if it has stripes or polka dots. You can thank me later. You’re welcome.
5. High contrast baby mobiles
The first Montessori baby mobile out there for is the Munari, which Montessori designed with the help of Bruno Munari especially for newborns. However, you don’t have to limit yourself only to that! You can use any high contrast mobiles, such as the Whales or the Swallows.
Even better, make a baby mobile yourself! Take a look at my Pinterest board that I dedicated for homemade baby mobiles.
6. Your home
Do you have black and white curtains? Or a shower curtain? Maybe wall paper? Use it to your and your baby’s advantage! When my baby was born, we lived in a flat which had this lovely high contrast flower wall paper. My little one LOVED observing the pattern!
7. Shadow play
Even very tiny babies can perceive the difference between light and dark. Grab a lamp, shine it on the wall and use your hands to make moving shapes on the wall. Your baby will love it!
BONUS – Go outside!
Grab a blanket, grab your baby and go to the closest park. Find a nice spot under a tree with low hanging branches and lie your baby under them. S/he will delight in watching the leaves dancing in the sunshine.
FINAL THOUGHTS
When babies arrive, they are born to a black and white world, as these are all the colours they can see. It’s up to us to make this stage count for them by offering them a variety of high contrast images around them. You don’t need to go and spend a lot of money though, you can easily find lots of ideas around your home, or you can easily DIY them. They do not only help vision development, but also assist in many other areas as well.
Do you have any other black and white ideas? Share them with us in the comments section or tag me in your Instagram photos. #montessoriedited, @montessoriedited
Click here to read more about how the Montessori Visual Mobiles, the Montessori Tactile Mobiles or the Sensory Baby Toys help your baby’s development.