Get some towels ready and play games with the babies in water. Animal shaped sponges provide a way for babies to get involved in an activity. Let the babies splash their hands and dunk the sponges into a dish tub with a few inches of water in it. This can be messy; to avoid soaking the carpet, spread a towel beneath each tub of water. Substitute other animals or toys for the sponges, like toy boats, rubber ducks and floating frogs.
Introduce babies to music with simple instruments and your favorite nursery rhymes and songs. Shakers, rattlers, jingle bells and drums are good choices. Sit in a circle and give everyone something to play with. Experiment with fast and slow movements and levels of volume. Popular songs to include in the classroom are "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Old MacDonald" and "The Wheels on the Bus." Incorporate simple sign language for the different animals to encourage babies to communicate. Include important signs such as "more," "milk," "please" and "hungry."
Puppets are a big hit with babies. Put on a puppet show with different animals or just move around the classroom with a puppet. Let each baby have a minute or two with the puppet. If you have enough puppets to go around the room (you can always ask parents to bring puppets with them) hand them out and sing songs. Ideas for a puppet show include "Three Little Pigs," "Little Red Riding Hood" and any other fairy tale or story worked around the type of puppets you have.
Gentle games with baby will illicit more than a giggle or two. Play games like "Peek-a-Boo" and "Round and Round the Garden." Games can be played with or without props. Bring out a mirror for each baby (look for unbreakable acrylic mirrors) and show the babies different parts of their faces. Another idea is to use a large colorful parachute. Place each baby on a blanket and gently lift the parachute up and down to create a gentle breeze. Pick the infants up and fill the parachute with light air-filled balls and pretend you are making popcorn. "Pop" the balls out of the parachute and into the air.