5 Ways To Prepare Your Child For A New Sibling

You have a toddler at home and are getting ready to introduce a new baby into your family? If yes, this article is for you!

You might be wondering how your little one will handle the transition. While you’re having visions of matching outfits, bedtime cuddles and backyard hide-and-seek games, it’s also important to remember that the sibling bond isn’t always immediate.

Although you can’t predict how your child will react to their new sibling, you can help make their first meeting go as smoothly as possible. Here are some of the tips for introducing a new sibling.

Ways To Prepare Your Child For A New Sibling

Some of the ways to prepare your child for a new sibling:

1. Introduce your older child to their new sibling before the baby is born: You can encourage your child to talk to your baby bump. Your child can talk about anything – what’s going on around, what are their favourite toys, or the fun things they’ll do together after the baby is born.

You can also sing or read stories to the baby together.

2. Explain what it’ll be like when the new baby comes home: You can talk to your older child about what life will be like once the baby arrives. This also gives them an opportunity to ask you questions if they have any.

You can also read books about welcoming a new sibling with your child. It will be fun and will go a long way in preparing your child for a new sibling.

3. Practice role play: Make your child understand how to change diapers or tip-toe near the playpen or crib. You can also try rewarding them with their favourite toy or a chocolate.

You can even give your toddler his/ her own set of baby supplies so that he can help you take care of the baby when the new member arrives.

4. Make any physical changes ahead of time: Try to make the physical changes ahead of time. This can include transitioning your toddler from a crib to a bed to make way for the new baby.

You might consider making those changes before the baby comes.

Your toddler might feel bad if he/ she sees you try to take “his”/ “her” crib and might resent the baby.

Making the changes ahead of time and celebrating the fact that your toddler is a “big kid” now will make the transition easier.

5. Try to keep the first meeting between the new siblings positive: It’s common for you to be cautious when introducing the new baby to their sibling. You’ll want to make sure that your older child is gentle.

You might be a bit nervous when you let your big kid hold the baby. This is normal! But your stress has the potential to rub off on your big kid.

Hence, try to stay positive and try not to say “stop that” or “don’t do that.” This might make your child feel afraid to interact with the baby or they might be angry that the baby always gets them into trouble. 

Instead, you can try saying something like “can you show me how gentle you can be with the baby?”

If your toddler doesn’t seem interested in the new baby, it’s completely fine and there’s no need to force it. Your toddler might take some time to adjust and prepare to observe the baby from a distance for now. So, give your kid the much needed time and let this transition happen naturally.