The smile of a small child is always a small celebration for his mother, father, grandfathers and grandmothers. And what can we say about the first smile - it is like a gift from heaven, a reward for sleepless nights and hard parental work. When will the baby start smiling? Why doesn’t he do this, while the neighboring peer kid gives everyone a smile? These questions are asked by many young parents. We will try to answer them in our article.
A child’s smile is not only a pleasant event in family life, but also an indicator of normal mental, physical and mental development, the beginning of the baby’s socialization. Therefore, the moment when the child begins to smile consciously, is kind of the next step in the long road of his development.
"My child began to smile even in the hospital!" - say many mothers. Do not take their words to heart. What they call a smile is just a grimace, an unconscious contraction of certain muscles that looks like a smile.
Answering the concerned parents about the appearance of the first conscious smile in the baby, the pediatrician will tell them the age of 1.5-2 months. This smile is addressed, as a rule, to mother (or to the person replacing her). Here a lot depends on the environment of the crumbs: if from the very first days next to the baby the caring parents, who constantly communicate with him, often pick up, maintain eye and voice contact, he will begin to smile as early as 6 weeks. If less attention is paid to the child, this will happen only by two months or a little later. Therefore, do not be discouraged if your child does not smile a month, there is nothing wrong with that. You just have to wait.
When the child begins to smile, we can talk about the formation of his so-called revitalization complex. This is the emotional-motor reaction of the baby in response to the appearance or appeal to him of an adult. This complex begins to form at the age of three weeks from birth: the child freezes and looks intently when an adult speaks to him. Later, by two months, this reaction develops into a smile, a walk, and physical activity when communicating with an adult. The peak of the formation of the revitalization complex is four months old. Later, laughter appears, but strangers rarely get a smile, even if they speak kindly to the baby, often he will even cry in such cases.
By the fact how many months a child smiles, it is possible to some extent judge the atmosphere in the family, the attitude of the mother, her emotional state. Even if you think that the child does not understand anything, talk to him, so you will accelerate his speech and psycho-emotional development: he will begin to walk, smile earlier.
Specialists argue that boys are less likely to look in the eyes and later begin to smile than their peers girls. Therefore, if your son is growing up, spend more time communicating with him.
The period when the child begins to smile can be decisive in the formation of his relationship with his father. The baby begins to send signals, and if the father answers him with facial expressions and voice, a special emotional connection will be established between them, even if it was not there before.
The day when your child begins to smile will be the beginning of a long but interesting process in his life - socialization.