Infants’ Best Educational Toys
Research shows that many disabilities and learning disorders in young children can be avoided by providing them with appropriate cognitive stimulation as early as possible. By giving your infant the right stimulation, you can ward off such problems and groom your baby for pre-school and the challenges that follow.
Remember these guidelines as you toyshop for your baby:
The visual perception of infants is limited, so make sure to buy toys in bright, contrasting colors.
Activity centers and crib mobiles fascinate newborns. Some mobiles come with an adjustable height option so that you can make sure the mobile is in your baby’s visual range.
Babies up to six months old have very limited motor skills and love high-pitched sounds. Chimes, rattles, teething rings, colorful pictures and soft blocks will stimulate your baby at this age.
For babies between six to nine months old, you can buy building blocks, activity boxes and cubes, stacking ring cones, and bath toys. Try to vary the textures of the toys.
Between the age of nine months and a year, babies are old enough to enjoy and learn from toys such as nesting cups, push and pull toys, large crayons, spades, and stacking blocks.
It always helps to keep in mind that you do not need fancy and expensive toys to stimulate your infant. You might bring home a very trendy toy for your baby only to find that baby finds the packaging far more interesting. Your young child just needs stimulation and a way to express their creativity, and this can be done with homemade toys as well.
The following are some tips for using common objects lying around the house to excite and engage your baby:
Magazines: Under supervision, let your baby flip through a magazine and enjoy the colors.
Sock puppets: On a sock, embroider eyes and a nose and tell your baby stories about the puppet. (Avoid using buttons for eyes or nose, as they are choking hazards.)
Laundry baskets: Babies love sitting in laundry baskets. If the basket is tall enough and your baby can sit up on his own, let them have a good time inside while you gently rock them.
Containers: Used (clean) containers, non-toxic and colorful cups make great toys for babies to keep things in or simply as teethers!
Cardboard boxes: These are favorites of growing babies. Boxes are simple and safe and provide great opportunity for creativity. Your baby can make the box into a playhouse and color it with non-toxic crayons to make it beautiful and personal.
Always make sure that the toy is safe and clean, free of loose parts and sharp edges. Supervise and participate in your baby‘s play and watch your little one grow!
