It’s never too early to try simple activities with your newborn. And our free printable black and white pictures for babies are the perfect place to start. There’s hardly any preparation involved. And you can use them for months!
But before we share our high contrast cards for infants, let’s talk about why they’re good for babies. How long you should use them with your little one. And the different ways you can use them.
Why Is Black and White Good For Babies?
Black and white images are good for babies because newborns like looking at high contrast patterns and shapes from birth.
Our free printable black and white pictures for babies will:
- Interest your little one
- Help to develop their vision
- Encourage them to focus and concentrate
- Stimulate the nerve cells in your baby’s brain
How Long Do Babies Prefer Black and White?
Researchers believe that a baby will prefer black and white until they’re around 3-4 months old. It’s around this age that your baby will start to be able to see the colour red. Followed by other colours.
But there are two things your little one needs to be able to do before they can see colours. First, they need to be able to spot objects. Then they need to focus on objects too. Both of these are common milestones for a 3 month old.
Free Printable Black and White Pictures For Babies
Our printable black and white flashcards have 20 different images. The file is in a pdf format and there are 4 cards to a page. You can either print all the pages or select fewer pages using your printer options.
Here’s what our black and white flashcards look like.
Note: there’s an option to download each page at the bottom of this post.
How Can I Use the Free Printable Black and White Pictures For Babies?
There are so many ways you can use the free printable black and white pictures for babies. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Put them on the wall next to your baby’s changing mat
- Use them in the car
- Make your own nursery mobile and hang it above their crib
- Use them to stimulate your babies vision during tummy time
- Hang them from your baby’s play gym
Put the High Contrast Cards For Infants Next to Your Baby’s Changing Mat
Put the flashcards next to your baby’s changing mat. It will give them something interesting to look at whilst you’re changing them.
Use Them In the Car
Hang the black and white images in the car and stimulate your baby’s vision whilst you’re travelling.
All you need to do is, make 2 holes at the top of the image, either side. Then thread a piece of string through each hole. Finish by tying the string to either side of the headrest in the car.
Make Your Own Nursery Mobile
Making your own nursery mobile means you can change the cards and keep your baby interested. A wooden hoop, string, scissors and high contrast cards for infants is all you need! Remember to use 5 or fewer images because using more will overstimulate your baby.
Check out this tutorial for a step by step guide. It uses felt but you can print your pictures onto card stock and tape them on instead!
Use Our Free Printable Black and White Pictures For Babies During Tummy Time
Show your baby the high contrast cards whilst they’re laying on their tummy. It will give them something to focus on and will distract them from being on their front. All whilst developing their vision!
First, get down to your baby’s level and lay next to them. This will allow you to comfortably hold the card. And it’ll also reassure your baby because they’ll be able to see you.
Show your newborn one picture at a time and talk about it. Then repeat with a different image and so on. Remember to hold the card quite close to your newborns face. They can’t see very far yet!
Keep trying this with your baby as they grow. They’ll soon start reacting differently!
Hang the High Contrast Cards For Infants On Your Baby’s Play Gym
It’s great if your baby’s play gym has lots of colourful toys included. But they won’t be able to see them when they’re a newborn. So try hanging the black and white picture cards from it instead.
All you need to do is make a hole at the top of a card. Then thread through some string and tie it to the top of their gym.
Use long pieces of string to make it hang lower so they can see it.
Now you know why babies love black and white. And all the different ways you can use high contrast cards with your little one. All you need to do now is download your flashcards.
Download Your Free Printable Black and White Pictures For Babies
Click the link below to download your free pdf. Another page will pop up in your browser. And you’ll then have the option to save or print your cards.
High Contrast Cards For Babies (PDF)
Looking For Other Ways to Stimulate Your Newborn?
Check out our recent post: 8 Fun Things to Do With Your Newborn
Or read more about what your newborn baby can do!
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