Bathing older babies

Once your baby has progressed to the ‘big’ bath, you will need to use a bath mat to prevent him slipping on the bottom of the bath. Make sure you still have everything ready in advance, as it is dangerous to leave a baby or toddler - even for a minute - while you pop out to get something, as they can quickly drown in very shallow water.

When your baby is a few months old, you can introduce some games at bath time:

• ‘Swim’ him up and down the bath, first on his back, supporting his head and bottom, then on his tummy, supporting his chin and tummy

• Use a beaker to pour water gently over his body

• Introduce him to some first bath toys, and talk to him all the time about what's happening: long before he speaks, your baby is learning to assimilate language, and enjoys the sounds of different words

• Holding him firmly under the arms, ‘whoosh’ him out of the water, then lower him back in again, but take care to keep him in the water longer than he’s out of it, or he’ll get chilly

• If he's reluctant to have his hair washed, sing to him to distract him: 'This is the way we wash our hair, all on a Monday evening'