Since the blog began, one of the most popular topics I get contacted about from readers is 'where to find new parents and baby groups in the area?', so I was so pleased when Elaine got in touch about her Baby Sensory classes coming to Stamford, Rutland and surrounding villages.
Elaine invited me to attend her class at Melton Baptist Church in Melton Mowbray earlier this week, to find out more about her fun-filled baby sensory classes for newborns to children of 13 months. Each class is carefully thought out and put together by Elaine and each hour session can include music, massage, baby sign language, singing and much more which all help with key areas of development for the child, even the youngest amongst the group.
FACT: During the first three months of a baby's life, two million neural connections are created in their brain every second, which is why sensory stimulation from birth is so important.
I was thrilled to be able to experience (and photograph) the class, as It's lovely to be able to share information about the classes first hand and share imagery from the actual class I attended so readers of the blog can see exactly what goes on, however even if you sign up for a whole year - you'll never see the same class theme twice - so this is a little teaser of what you could expect.
"You’ll understand the importance of tummy time, how sight develops and much, much more." - Elaine, Baby Sensory Stamford & Rutland
It was 'Rainforest Week' and I happened to join the class of babies aged 0-6 months. Elaine has over 70 different themes, each class may have the same play structure but each weeks theme is totally different from the next!
The class began with a welcoming song that is sung each week using sign language by the parents, sung to the babies who are all so engaged from the get-go, and it's clear that the parents enjoy it as much as the babies do.
Find out more about the classes in my interview with Elaine who runs Baby Sensory and is thrilled to be able to bring it to Stamford, Oakham, Gretton, Bourne and Elton and how you can try a class for FREE with an EXCLUSIVE discount code!
Take a read!
1. Thank you so much for inviting me to experience a session of Baby Sensory with you and your group of babies and parents. Please tell us the story and history behind baby sensory and a little background about yourself Elaine…
Thank you, Charlie, for coming along to our class, it was great to be able to share our Rainforest class with you.
Elaine: Baby Sensory is a learning and development programme specifically designed for babies from birth through to 13 months. The classes were founded in 2007 by Dr Lin Day, a renowned expert and published author within the fields of sensory and childhood development. Baby Sensory classes are attended by thousands of families both nationally and internationally and I’ve very excited about bringing these popular classes to the Rutland area.
My background is in Health and Fitness, a career spanning 13 years. During this time, I enjoyed managing various Health Clubs with Virgin Active and Nuffield Health, however, as my family got bigger it was time to readdress my work-life balance and look for a new challenge! I am a proud Mum to 3 young children – Emily, Eddie and Ellie and I attended Baby Sensory classes with all 3 of them! I loved it so much that when the opportunity came up to run the classes myself, I just had to apply! I attended many baby classes with my children and enjoyed watching them explore and learn new skills. Of all the classes I attended Baby Sensory was by far my favourite. I loved how engaged, excited and fascinated the babies were throughout the sessions plus I really enjoyed the structure and the fact that every activity is backed by research. Even attending with my third baby Ellie, I shared brand new sensory experiences with her and picked up ideas to try at home that I’d not seen before.
Baby Sensory came along at the perfect time for me and has allowed me to build my own business and do a job that I love and am passionate about, which also fits around my family life with my own children. I can tell you first-hand that the classes create truly magical moments with your little ones. Every week is a new and exciting adventure with different activities. Watching the growth and development of babies in their first year is so rewarding and I feel privileged that I now get to share these special experiences with other parents and babies.
I have been running classes in Grantham, Melton Mowbray and Bingham for 18 months and I have now expanded my business further to take more locations in and around Stamford. Plus with this new venture, I now have 2 fantastic Class Leaders, Holly and Lauren working with me.
2. Baby Sensory classes are not just fun for the babies and parents but a huge part of the babies early development and early learning. Please tell us more about the development benefits for babies between 0-13 months…
Elaine: The programme supports the early development of babies through exposure to a wide range of stimulating sensory activities using an extensive range of equipment and resources as well as everyday materials to enable parents to replicate activities at home with their babies.
We have instruments, baby signing, massage and exercise, sleep techniques, social playtime, action rhymes and songs. Each hour-long session is filled with wonderful sensory experiences for the babies and adults to enjoy! From fibre optic lights shows to glowing bouncy balls, bubbles, bells, rainbows, tickly feathers, puppets, silky scarves and water play; the possibilities for learning are endless! Each activity we do aims to enhance learning and development in some way.
During the first year, babies learn more than at any other time of life. Connections made between neurons will double the weight of the baby’s brain by their first birthday. Everything that the baby hears, sees, touches, smells or tastes provides a basis for all future learning. This is why sensory stimulation from birth is so important.
We offer split-age classes, which includes activities designed specifically for babies from birth to 6 months, and from 6 to 13 months. Each activity is supported by information so that parents know how best to facilitate the learning and development of their babies in the most important year of their lives. Another key part of the class is developing the bond between the parents and their babies.
Over the weeks you’ll learn how music will help your baby’s maths, and how ‘shhh’ mimics the comforting sound of blood rushing through the placenta. You’ll understand the importance of tummy time, how sight develops and much, much more.
3. I was so lucky to attend Rainforest Week and wish I could’ve got involved myself. It was fascinating to see both babies and parents interacting with each other as well as with each area of the morning - I particularly enjoyed the rainforest floor activity! Please explain how you go about deciding each theme, what’s involved, what parents can expect...
Elaine: We have a different theme every week. In fact, with over 70 different lesson plans you could attend classes with your baby for a whole year and never see the same class twice!
One week we might be smelling beautiful flowers and watching buzzy bees fly by in our ‘Magic Garden’ and the next we might be dipping our toes in the water and singing sea shanties before exploring an underwater world in our ‘Baby Pirates’ session.
We also have seasonal delights too including Winter Wonderland, Baby Pumpkin, Christmas, Easter, Mothers’ Day, Fathers’ Day, Baby Valentine and much more! We love to create imaginary worlds for your babies to explore and interact in together.
Parents can’t wait to attend classes the following week with their baby to find out what we have in store for them next. Even though we hold our sessions in many different venues, parents are constantly amazed by the quality, quantity and variety of props we produce each week. Not surprising when you consider that no two sessions are the same.
4. Although I’m yet to have a child myself, I formerly worked as a Nanny part-time and my godchildren are a very important part of my life and I’ve seen the importance of such classes and groups can benefit the parents as well as the children. Please tell us more about the social aspect…
Elaine: A Baby Sensory class is a particularly sociable event, where strong friendships are soon formed. For if you are sitting next to a mum whose baby is just two days younger than yours, you’ll probably find you’ve got a lot in common! The social setting in class offers an invaluable extension of postnatal care.
Although we offer a different theme each week the structure of the class is always the same which builds a routine for the babies to make them feel comfortable and relaxed in the environment. For the first section of the class, we do sensory activities together, we then take a break to our exploratory play area before coming back to do more sensory activities together for the final part of the class. This structure follows the baby’s natural cycle of play-rest-play which ensures they are not under or overstimulated.
Another advantage of the exploratory play is that it provides an opportunity for parents and babies to socialise, move about and take advantage of the equipment and materials set out in our play area, which again to offer variety changes each week.
While becoming a parent is one of the most amazing experiences we ever have it can also be overwhelming and lonely. Having a social network of people who understand and can relate to your new life is so important for well-being. Our Baby Sensory classes are structured so that you have an opportunity to connect with other parents in your local area. Many lifelong friendships have arisen out of attending Baby Sensory which is another one of the many benefits of our classes.
5. It’s so exciting that Baby Sensory is coming to Rutland and there are so many locations where the new parents amongst our readers can get involved… Please tell us more about Baby Sensory in the area...
Elaine:Our new classes will be running weekly at the following venues:
Mondays at All Saints Church Hall in Oakham
Tuesdays at Edenham Village Hall in Bourne
Wednesdays at Stamford Free Church
Thursdays at Gretton Village Hall
Fridays at Highgate Hall in Elton
Once these classes are up and running we may look to add more locations as well!
6. Thank you again, Elaine, for getting in touch to share Baby Sensory Stamford & District with myself and the readers of the blog. I’m looking forward to the day I have a child and can join in myself! Please explain how parents can get in touch in joining in the sessions before it’s too late!
Elaine: Our Autumn Term starts this week and you can check out our full timetable online at www.babysensory.com/corby
To celebrate the launch of the new classes we are also offering a limited number of FREE trial places if you would like to come along and try a class before committing to the term.
To claim your FREE trial place quote when contacting us: "RUTLAND BLOGGER"
We look forward to welcoming you to classes soon.
Baby Sensory
Tel: 07786 741766
Instagram: www.instagram.com/baby_sensory_stamford
[Please note this blog post contains sponsored content]