Your baby has entered the world with a skills set perfect for bonding with you and her surroundings thanks to her senses: taste, smell, touch, sight and hearing. While you may feel you have to cram in as much sensory learning as possible before you return to work, you don't have to help her develop her senses. Nature has taken care of that, says Kathryn Hirsh-Pasek, PhD, a professor of psychology at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Babies' senses are all well developed by age 6 months, and some begin to kick in even before birth. Studies have shown that both sound—like your heartbeat and voice—and touch are experienced in utero. The sense of smell is acute soon after birth, with research showing that infants can distinguish the smell of their mother's breast milk from others'. They can also taste sweet and sour (guess which they prefer?) from the beginning, as well as tell smooth and cuddly from rough. Sight is probably the last sense to sharpen. Your newborn can see your face or breast when you hold her close but can't really focus until she's about 6 weeks. By 6 months, though, she'll be able to connect sights and sounds."Infants come to us prepared to learn about their world," says Dr. Hirsh-Pasek. "Your job is to have fun with yours and offer simple experiences that encourage sensory exploration." So relax and give her time to look at your face and touch your skin and clothes. Talk and sing so she can hear your voice. Encourage her to feel the texture of a furry stuffed animal or a fleecy blanket. Take her outdoors to see a variety of shapes and sizes.

Then watch carefully: Your child may instinctively make faces or turn away when she doesn't like a certain taste, smell or sight. Notice the way she reacts and responds when you're breastfeeding, then respond in turn. When she coos, do you coo back? Your baby can learn to take turns this way as early as 3 months. If you stick out your tongue over and over when she's 6 weeks old, she'll eventually stick out her tongue, too, as she learns to see and then imitate.Your child has much to learn through her senses, but you can't teach these things. What you can do is offer her the time, space and ways to explore and discover the world and its joys. "Just have a good time," reiterates Dr. Hirsh-Pasek. "You're not the CEO here; you're her partner."   

Baby's Common Sense

• When you roll a ball, your baby will watch it move, see the colors and try to figure out if it still exists when it goes under the couch.
• When you and your partner say "I love you," your child tries to figure out who's talking, if you're talking to him and whether it means the same thing from both of your voices.
• When you feed him, he notices the difference in taste and texture between a frozen bagel for teething and mashed potatoes.