Before first words begin to emerge, children use gestures to communicate with those around them. They may wave when saying, “hello” or “goodbye,” or raise their hands up when wanting to be held. Gestures may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of overall language development but early gesture use has been linked to the correct prediction of a child’s language skills at the age of three. An easy rule of thumb when tracking your child’s gesture use is to remember that children should have 16 gestures by 16 months. 

Nursery rhymes have been around for centuries and they play a significant role in your child’s development. There are a number of developmental areas that can be influenced by nursery rhymes. Read on to learn more!

The holidays are upon us! Many parents are buried in a to do list which might include shopping for gifts for little ones. You also probably have family members asking you for gift ideas for your children. The giving season is a great time of year to reflect on the purpose of toys – which is to play! Play is a child’s work! It is how they learn, explore, and engage! Read more to discover ProActive’s favorite toys!

Halloween is officially over, we have moved into the season of shorter, chillier days. Are you looking for some ideas to keep your kiddos active both indoors and out? Here are a few seasonal ideas to engage with your child and encourage their development.

Back to school time is an exciting – but stressful time of year! You might be so excited but also dreading getting back in that back to school routine. Check out our latest blog post for some tips and tricks to make it a little easier for you and your kiddo!

Toe walking is when kids favor walking on the balls of their feet without heel contact. It’s a common immature walking pattern among new walkers, toddlers, and children with neurological involvement including cerebral palsy. It typically takes ~3 months of independent walking for your little one to adopt a mature walking pattern. Read on to learn more about toe walking, when it becomes a concern, negative effects to toe walking, and exercises to help! 

Sleep is essential to promote optimal health for everyone!  For children specifically, it is associated with better health outcomes including: improved attention, behavior, learning, memory, emotional regulation, quality of life, and mental and physical health while lack of recommended amounts of sleep is associated with attention, behavior, and learning problems.  That being said, it’s not only the quantity of sleep that is essential, but also the QUALITY of sleep! Read on to learn more.

Correct oral rest posture is mouth closed, tongue lightly suctioned to the roof of the mouth, teeth slightly apart, and breathing through the nose. Correct oral rest posture is important because it supports our overall health and well-being. When individuals don’t have correct oral rest posture, they may suffer from attention difficulties, sleep difficulties, enlarged tonsils/ adenoids, headaches, and more.  

“The Golden Hour” is the period (at least 1 hour or more) immediately after a mother gives birth. Ideally, this hour or more would be undisturbed with mom and baby skin to skin. If possible, hospital procedures such as weighing, measuring, bathing or routine newborn care would be delayed during those first few hours after birth. 

Often when we hear, “core strength” we picture an adult in the gym doing sit ups for swimsuit season. But what about our children? Just as a tree needs a strong trunk to be able to hold its branches up, and withstand elements in its environment, a child requires a strong core to participate in life’s daily activities efficiently. Core strength, or otherwise heard of as postural control, is not only the anchor, but the launching pad for everything we do! Read on to learn more about what core strength is, importance in having and how to recognize when your child has poor core strength. 

Holiday break and impending winter weather may have us parents with littles ones nervous for all the time stuck inside. Instead of letting your little ones rip into their presents early, try these fun ideas to entertain them while promoting language!

How you choose to feed your baby is a deeply personal choice. Bottles are often necessary when Mama goes back to work, or just needs a break. Here’s our favorite bottles and why! You can use this to help guide your decision on which one would be right for you. If you’re struggling with breast or bottle feeding, don’t hesitate to reach out to our team, we are here to help!