Visual Tracking Activity
Parent moves a colorful ball or toy slowly in front of baby to encourage visual tracking. The agent coaches the parent to observe whether baby can fixate on and follow moving objects, building foundational visual processing and early hand-eye coordination.
Opens a guided voice session in TogetherTime.
What you'll need
Baby on back, alert and awake. A colorful ball or brightly colored toy ready. Good lighting so baby can see clearly. Hold toy about 10-12 inches from baby's face.
How it works
- 1~20s
Hold the ball still in front of your child's face, about arm's length away. Wait for their eyes to find it and lock on. You might need to wiggle it slightly to get their attention. Once your child's eyes are focused on the ball, hold it still for a few seconds. Can your child look at it and hold their gaze there?
Watch for: Baby fixates gaze on an object held at arm's length, maintaining focus for a few seconds.
- 2~30s
Now that your child is focused on the ball, slowly move it to the left. Go really slowly — about one inch per second. Watch their eyes. Do they follow the ball? Then bring it back to center and slowly move it to the right. Does your child's head turn along with their eyes? You can hum or sing a little tune while you do this to keep it fun!
Watch for: Baby follows a slowly moving object with eyes and possibly head turning.
- 3~25s
For our last observation, let's see how your child's head moves. While they is on their back, move the ball slowly to one side — far enough that your child would need to turn their head to keep seeing it. Does your child turn their head to follow? Try the other side too. This head turning while tracking tells us about neck strength and visual motivation working together.
Watch for: Baby turns head left and right while on back to follow a visually interesting object.