Imagine arriving to a brand new planet with so many unknown things to observe and experience. Never before seen sights, sounds, colors... Everything's vibrant, and there are infinite details to explore. But first: put on a blindfold.
This is not unlike the experience of a newborn. It's all fascinating, mesmerizing, but also, an arduous task. Welcome to Earth, sweet baby.
When babies are born, their sight is far worse than that of someone who'd be declared legally blind. They see muted, contrasting colors and shades in those first weeks as their vision works hard to develop.
How can we help?
- Hold baby close. They see about 10-12 inches in front of them. This is the same distance from your chest to your face while feeding them. Coincidence? By keeping them close, they learn your features while also developing feelings of security and closeness.
- Offer contrast. Hang a mobile with simple black and white shapes. Hold up flashcards with black and white patterns. Read books featuring black and white illustrations. The key here is simplicity. Basic geometric shapes, thick lines, minimal fine details--these will do the trick as baby's eyesight strengthens each day.
- Don't rush. Staring at lines on a card or the same page of a book for long periods of time sounds dull to me, but for a newborn, that's brand new information and stimuli being introduced. That's the coolest thing they've seen all day. Let them take it in for as long as they're interested. Last week, I watched my newborn, Isla, as she gawked in amazement at the ceiling fan for 15 minutes straight.
Over the next couple weeks, your baby's vision will improve. That's when we'll introduce primary colors and gradients.
Want to learn more about the science behind newborn vision? Check out https://lozierinstitute.org/dive-deeper/the-newborn-senses-sight-and-eye-color/ (where I sourced the above image)