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Copycats

You are your baby’s first teacher.

Your home is your child’s first classroom. Every waking hour, your child is learning something. And most likely, it’s something from you.

Your baby was born a copycat.

You don’t have to teach your newborn to copy you, because babies are born with a natural ability to copy basic facial expressions. So when you smile, your baby might smile too. If you stick your tongue out, your baby might stick out his tongue in return.

Your baby learns by copying your behavior.

Babies learn a lot by watching what you do and then trying it themselves — whether it’s positive or negative. So watch what you do. Do you yell when you’re stuck in traffic? Do you blame others when you get frustrated with yourself? Whatever you do, your baby is probably learning something from you, her most important teacher.

Your baby may remember what she copies.

By age one, babies can remember and imitate actions they observed a month ago. They learn what mommies and daddies can do by watching what you do.

Your baby may copy other people.

Every person your baby watches might teach her something. Because your baby has the ability to copy something from everyone he meets.

Your baby might copy what she sees on TV.

Research shows that children under the age of two are on average exposed to at least two hours a day of TV. If your child watches TV, he may also be copying TV behavior. A study reveals that even toddlers 14- to 24-months-old will copy simple actions they see on TV.