Sauthon Baby Sensory Ball - Rainbow

Sauthon designed this ball for the very first months: a soft, round shape 15 cm across, dressed in the brand's rainbow pattern. The Sauthon Baby Sensory Ball - Rainbow is suitable from birth (0m+), and it earns its place on the play mat for a long time, because what a baby does with a ball changes every few weeks.

A Montessori soft ball as the very first ball

A first ball has one job: to move when baby touches it, and to forgive everything else. A soft one does exactly that. It gives a little under small fingers instead of slipping away, and it is gentle when it bumps a cheek during tummy time.

It also rolls at a baby's pace. A hard ball shoots across the floor and is gone before the eyes have caught up; a soft ball travels a short way and stops within reach, which is the invitation a young baby needs to try again.

Like most Montessori toys for babies, it does one thing and does it clearly: a hand pushes, the ball rolls. At 15 cm across it is a ball for two hands rather than one, so baby pats it, hugs it and pushes it with both palms long before being able to pick it up.

From birth to nine months: what your baby does with it

• The first weeks: the ball is something to look at. Lay it beside your baby on the mat, or roll it slowly from one side to the other so the eyes can follow.
• Around 3 months: arms and legs start to bat at whatever is close. Put the ball against the hands or the feet: a kick makes it move, and that small surprise is worth repeating twenty times.
• Around 6 months: sitting up, baby holds the ball with both hands, lifts it, drops it and looks for where it went. This is the age for rolling it back and forth between you.
• Around 9 months: the ball becomes a reason to move. It rolls away, and your baby sets off after it on tummy or on all fours.

Four simple games to play together

You do not need much: a clear patch of floor and five quiet minutes.

• Roll and wait. Sit facing your baby, roll the ball gently towards them and say nothing for a few seconds. The pause is where the reaching happens.
• Hold it out. Offer the ball slightly to one side rather than straight ahead, so that an arm has to stretch across the body to touch it.
• Hide it. From about eight months, cover half of the ball with a muslin and let your baby pull the cloth away. Later, cover it completely.
• The short chase. For a baby learning to crawl, roll the ball an arm's length ahead and no further. A target that stays close gets chased; one that disappears under the sofa gets forgotten.

One tip from the shop floor: put the ball out with two or three other objects, not a full basket. A baby surrounded by toys flits between them; a baby with a ball and a clear floor plays for longer. If you are building that first small selection, our newborn sensory toys are grouped in one place.

Rainbow, Pear or Pink Floral: which Sauthon pattern?

Sauthon offers the same ball in three patterns: Rainbow, Pear and Pink Floral. The ball itself does not change, so the choice is a matter of taste and of the nursery it is going into. Rainbow is the one that suits any room, which makes it the easy pick for a new-baby gift when you do not know the family's colours.

A word to avoid a mix-up: the shop also sells a Rainbow Sensory Clutching Ball with Bell, a different toy intended for children aged 1 and over. The Sauthon Baby Sensory Ball - Rainbow on this page is the one for babies from birth.

As a present, a ball has a rare quality: it is used in the first weeks and still played with when the baby is crawling. It is covered by our 2-year guarantee, like everything we sell.

Questions parents ask about the Sauthon Rainbow ball

Is this soft ball suitable from birth?

Yes. It is rated 0m+, so it can be given from the first days. In the early weeks your baby will mostly watch it; the batting, holding and chasing come later.

What can a baby do with a soft ball?

Follow it with the eyes, bat it with hands and feet, hold it with both hands, roll it to you and, towards nine months, crawl after it. The same ball covers each of these stages.

How big is the Sauthon Rainbow ball?

It measures 15 x 15 x 15 cm. That is large enough to need both of a baby's hands, and light work for an adult to roll or hold out with one.

Specifications

• Brand: Sauthon
• Pattern: Rainbow (also available in Pear and Pink Floral)
• Dimensions: 15 x 15 x 15 cm
• Age: from birth (0m+)
• Guarantee: 2 years