Vision

Newborns are born with peripheral vision. Their central vision develops a little later over the first few weeks of life.

Newborns can see about 8 to 15 inches in front of them. That’s about the distance between you and your baby when he/she is cradled in your arms.
(Neat how that works!)

By one month of age, babies see things as far away as three feet.

By six months of age, babies can see almost as clearly and as far as adults.

Newborns and very young babies are attracted to pictures with high contrast patterns and lines. TIP: Show baby pictures with black and white stripes or checkerboards and see how attentive he/she becomes.

Color vision does not fully develop in babies until four months of age. Of the primary colors, red seems to be the favorite among babies.

By 3 months of age, infants prefer more circular patterns such as bull’s eyes and spirals. That is why the human face, which is full of circles and curves, is so appealing to them.

TIP:
Hold a mirror up to baby’s face and see how she/he responds to it. Also, exaggerate your own facial expressions for baby by closing and opening your eyes wide, sticking out your tongue, blowing out your cheeks, moving your eyebrows up and down or moving your head from side to side. Baby will be tickled pink!