What are baby classes? Are they worth doing? And if yes, when is the perfect age to start them?

These are perhaps some of the questions that has brought you to my blog today! Well I am going to try and answer all of them- and chuck in some details of my personal experience in case that helps!

So What Are Baby Classes?

Well, as you have probably noticed, there are a wide range of ‘classes’ from baby massage, to baby sign, makaton, baby gym, swimming, baby music, sensory classes and more. And even some of the same types of classes have different names! Each type of class has slightly different benefits and different ages at which they are probably most appropriate for you and baby, and I will look at all of that with you!

Classes for newborns

Classes for newborns can be a wonderful way to engage and stimulate your child’s early development. BUT I want to start by saying, you should feel NO pressure to go to classes at all. Especially if it is your first baby, those early weeks and months are quite the rollercoaster of just trying to figure out this wild ride we call parenting and doing classes may be just all too much to even think about.

Remember, everything that baby is seeing and experiencing across a normal day with you is completely new and that alone is helping in their development. In addition there are lots of easy things you can do during their daily routine; singing them a lullaby, reading your book out loud to them, stroking their skin. All of these things provide sensory stimulation which is essential to baby's development and helps you learn about them and their cues which promotes bonding.

But if you do want to do a class with your newborn,  then I did a 'baby massage' class with my daughters and highly recommend it.

What Are Baby Massage Classes?

Baby massage itself, is the gentle, rhythmic stroking of your baby's body using your hands. Touch is a vital sense in terms of communication, bonding and calming, paticularly in those early days.

Baby massage classes *typically* start from 6 weeks onwards and a qualified instructor will guide you through a number of massage 'routines' such as ones that can be good when baby has trapped wind, or before bedtime, or more upbeat fun massages. The course I did was 6 weeks long to start with and had about 7 other carers in the class which took place in a local social centre.

Benefits of Baby Massage Classes

Now of course, this is an example of an activity that you can do at home with baby without the need to go to a class, but here are some advantages if you are in a position to do so:

1)  In my case, it was the perfect opportunity to get out of the house and meet other parents/carers in my area. It was made clear from the very beginning that we should feel comfortable to feed baby, change baby and just hold them any time they needed and join in when we could. All very low pressure and calming.

2) It helped me get more confident with my baby and learn her cues better.I became more confident handling in her in general and picking up on signs she liked or didn't like something even at this early age.

3) And, as I mentioned before, you learn massage routines that I still use to this day with my toddler to calm her down at bed time.

If you like the sound of baby massage but aren't in a position to go to a class then this is definitely something you can do at home, there are lots of resources for following routines online, just be sure to follow ones from reputable sources and suitable to your baby's age.

Classes for your 3-6 months old

Sensory Style Classes

As your baby starts to become more aware of their surroundings, you can consider classes that focus on sensory stimulation, such as baby music or sensory play. These classes are designed to engage your baby's senses through music, colorful visuals, and tactile experiences. If you want to read more about these classes and my experience with my daughter's I have a really useful blog you can read here:

What are sensory baby classes and why should you care?

Swimming Classes

Unless your baby is born premature, baby swimming classes are available with some providers from birth onwards. I started with my daughter at 12 weeks which felt right for both me and her. Personally, and this is just me, it is when I felt comfortable enough, with the smallest sense of a routine, to cope with all it entailed to get me and baby to a swimming pool, do the class, feed her, get home etc! It's a lot, but wow is it fun and my daughters always slept well afterwards and love water to this day! 

6 months and beyond

Once your baby is a bit older and can sit up with support, you may want to explore classes like baby gym, or baby sign. The sensory classes I mentioned above are excellent at this age also as they adapt as they grow, develop and become more mobile. All these activities can help with physical development, socialization, and early communication skills.

Help, I can't get to a class!

There are many, many reasons why you may not be able to attend in person baby classes, one of which may just be you find it overwhelming needing to be at a certain place at a certain time every week! In my case when my second daughter was born- there was a worldwide pandemic and were on complete lock down for the first 7 weeks. Even when we were allowed out classes didn't start up again for a very long time afterwards!

And so, I started to look for classes online that I could follow along with. Whilst I had an idea of sensory activities from the classes I had taken with my oldest I was shocked at the lack of resources for anything new to follow along with online. There were lots of videos designed for my baby to sit and watch alone but that’s not what I wanted. I wanted to entertain my baby, help in her development alongside her, to bond with her. And so I set about learning all I could about sensory development in babies; completing the Sensory beginnings master course and combining it with my knowledge of music ( I'm a rusty flute player), background as an english teacher and child Red Cross First Aid certification.

And so Wriggle and Roll was born!! Wriggle and Roll classes are available to follow along with from home, they are prerecorded so you can just do them any day or time that suits you. Always with a different fun theme to keep it interesting and newly stimulating! If you would like to find out more about Term 1 of the course, that includes 6 weeks of classes  ( that you have access to for life) then take a look here:

https://www.wriggleandroll.com/baby-wriggle-and-rollers