Play is an important part of baby’s learning about the environment, relationships and cognitive development. Besides learning, games are a great way for baby to bond with the family.

For parents who want their children to be bilingual and learn Chinese, there are fun games that can help build your baby’s Chinese skills, as well cognitive and physical development.

Monitor what games your baby likes to play, and how long the child plays before getting tired.

• Speak to your baby often. If you also speak Chinese, talk to your Baby in Chinese. If your baby also has a Chinese name use it often as well.

• Pause in between sentences. See how baby responds to each sentence.

• Play recordings of Chinese songs and conversations. Play videos with cute graphics, easy to follow songs and clear Chinese pronunciations.

• Peek-a-boo. Hide behind the blanket and peek out. Baby learns that objects that cannot be seen are still there.

• Where is baby? Opposite of Peek-a-boo. This time hide baby behind the blanket and ask, "Where is Baby?... There you are!"

• Where is… (other objects)? This game builds vocabulary. Where is Daddy, sister, teddybear, doll, etc. Use Chinese words if you know the equivalent words.

• Later, play "Where is…?" but not give the correct answer immediately. Baby will learn a wider range of words. Example, "Where is Sister? There’s sister! That’s not sister, that’s Blanket. Again, if you speak Chinese, use equivalent words or use simple Chinese phrases repeatedly.

• As baby grows, play "What’s That?" Let your child answer "That is a ______." This will build more vocabulary as your child names everyday items and not so common objects.

• "I spy…" This game builds vocabulary and mental alertness. Say, "I spy a/an (object you see nearby)." Let the child look for the object, and say after finding the object "Here is the (object)!" As the child grows up, the level of difficulty can increase, such as describing the object and let the child figure out what the object is based on description.

The nice thing about play is that while baby develops cognitive and language skills, the family has fun and becomes closer as well. Use these simple games for baby to learn Chinese as early as possible, and to build a solid, loving relationship with your child.