Life with a young infant is just constant amusement. Moreover, your little one has recently started noticing and reacting to their surroundings. It is safe to say that it’s time to bring on the toys! Yes, your little one does not have to wait to become a toddler to start playing with toys. In fact, introduce your child to the concept of baby development toys at the right age. It is the best way to stimulate a developing brain.
Have you ever made a funny face to which your baby instantly reacted with spurts of giggles? Well, such interactions help them learn more about the concept of language, emotions, action-reaction and so on. Once they start to make sense of how the things relate, they begin to try and figure out how things work. Here’s where baby development toys play an important role.
It can be quite confusing for new parents to choose toys for babies. The reason is given the variety of options one can find in the market today. To make your choice easier, we have made a list of the best baby development toys to help your little one learn better.
Best Baby Toys For 0 to 6-Month-Olds
Here, your baby is in their young infant stage which primarily begins with observation. Nearing the 4-month mark is where most babies start developing gross motor skills. So, toys that help with grasping, shaking or even just holding will do wonders at this age.
You can look for toys that are easy to hold like rattles, squeezy toys, soft dolls and teething toys. Textured ring balls or dangling toys with rounded edges are also good options.. This is also a good time to get a mobile nursery where you can hang different colored objects. It will definitely intrigue your baby. It will not only help develop their attention but will also stimulate vision.
At 5 months, your baby is basically an adventurer. Well, we say this because babies develop self-exploratory skills at this age. This means the sense of smell, touch, taste, sound and all other sensory information are being developed. Some safe toys for babies of this age include colorful ring stacks, plastic cups or spoon and soft building blocks. Colorful boxes, chiming rattles and nesting toys are other options. Babies are also particularly fascinated by the mirror around this age.
So, putting up a mirror in a safe place where your baby can look at their reflection will be great for their development. Noticing their reflection and staring back at their own expressions can be a good way to make sense of action-reaction and emotional development.
For 7 to 12-Month-Olds
At this age, your baby is now a grown infant. Through this phase, you can expect them to learn how to crawl, identify body parts and recognize names. They also learn to pull themselves up to stand and even learn to walk. Along with fine motor skills, this is also the age where babies usually understand the concept of cause and effect. Apart from this ,they also learn problem-solving and self-exploration.
To enhance these abilities, you can look for baby development toys like cones with different colored rings, soft toys, building blocks or shape sorters, push and pull toys, soft colorful play mats to crawl over, dolls, jack in the box and so on. If your baby is fascinated by moving objects, you can even look for spinning tops or even a hand-held walker with rattles which will help pull themselves up and make an easy transition from crawling to walking.
It is also the best time to invest in interactive books with lots of pictures, colors and illustrations. Things like sound books and board books are among the best educational toys for babies around this age.
Something to be mindful of before purchasing baby development toys for your little one is the size and material of the toy. Since most babies this age are teething, they are likely to chew toys, so ensure that the material is not toxic in nature. In terms of size, babies can swallow or choke on smaller objects so it is best to look for toys that are at least 2 inches in diameter and have rounded edges.
So, parents, there need not be any room for confusion! When it comes to investing in toys for your little one, all you need to bear in mind is one thing- the simpler the better.
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