Munari Mobile · Beadbar

Safety

Use only while the infant is awake and an adult is watching; never hang any mobile over a crib, bassinet, or other sleep space.
Hang it so no piece or thread is within reach of the infant's hands or feet, and take it down as soon as the infant reaches toward it.
Attach it to a secure ceiling hook, or to a stand with a wide, weighted base that cannot tip onto the infant.
Check the threads and the fixing of the clear sphere before each use; use an acrylic sphere instead of glass where licensing restricts glass.

Presentation

1
Choose a time when the infant is awake, fed, and calm, and lay them on their back on the movement mat.
2
Hang the mobile about 20–30 cm above the infant's chest. Check that no piece or thread can be reached by the infant's hands or feet.
3
Check that the mobile turns freely in the air of the room. Do not spin it by hand.
4
Sit a short distance away and stay quiet. Point of interest: the shapes turning and the clear sphere reflecting light.
5
Watch the infant's eyes: note whether they fix on the mobile, follow a piece as it moves, and how long they look.
6
When the infant looks away, fusses, or closes their eyes, end the session: pick them up or change their position, and take the mobile down.
7
Offer the mobile again at later awake times. When the infant looks at it only briefly for several days in a row, replace it with the Octahedron mobile and store the Munari out of reach.

Extensions, easiest to hardest

Hang it at a different point above the mat so the infant turns their head to find it
Hang it where daylight falls on the pieces, keeping direct sun out of the infant's eyes

Control of error

None in the material; the adult observes where the infant looks and for how long, and changes the mobile when interest drops.

Ready to move on when the child…

Fixes their eyes on the mobile within a few seconds of lying under it
Follows a moving piece with their eyes, turning the head a little
Looks for longer periods than in the first sessions
Later looks away quickly or ignores it: the sign to change to the Octahedron mobile

Guide note

Designed by Bruno Munari. Some sources offer it from the first two weeks; this draft starts at about 1 month (3–6 weeks), following Montanaro (1991) and Davies and Uzodike (2021). At home, the mobile hangs over the movement mat, not over the crib or changing table.