Toys for 1+

[myshel]

Chalk this up to me being a first time mommy, but I'm really at a loss as to what kind of toys I should be getting for DS. He's turning one this week.

Quite honestly, we've never gotten him many toys before this point. Everything he played with from birth-10 months came to us as gifts. Now, however, he is not interested in these toys at all. The few "bigger boy" toys we have seem to bore him, because he's been playing with them for the past two months exclusively. My sister suggested switching toys out, but we don't have enough to do this.

This is what we have:
Peek-a-Blocks
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002YDPRO.16._SCLZZZZZZZ_SS260_.jpg

Laugh and Learn Tool Bench
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/B0002YDPX8.16._SCLZZZZZZZ_SS260_.jpg

He also has a FP walker,a play dust buster, a few assorted bouncy balls, books, and a few train/truck toys.

He's getting this for his birthday:
http://trus.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pTRU1-2878963reg.jpg
Along with a chatty phone-- you know, like the ones we had a kids.. rotary dial, pull string.

Can you ladies suggest items that are a must-have? Or ones that you've had successful play time with? Right now, the only things of interest to DS are the tv remotes, large brooms, and wires.

Thanks so much!

[Renrel]

I love questions like this. I should work in a toy store.


If you have the room I really really recommend the laugh and learn home by Fisher price. It has lots of differnt play options that teach lots of different things. There are shape sorts, 2-3 different kinds of doors and windows, a ball drop, switchs and buttons, a door to crawl through, it is sturdy enough for pull up and cruising, there are learning songs for numbers, shapes, colors, letter. A clock and pictures of the alphabet. And more. This is a toy that can keep a child entertained daily for a year or more.

The La Maze Dancing Bugs should be entertaining for at least another 6 mths or so, and I have found older kids gravitate back to it when it comes out for a new baby.

A toddler/infant designed basket ball hoop.

Some sort of blocks - Soft foam can be good becasue the have grip so are easy to get stacked and also float and stick for bath play. Duplex blocks are another option. And those nesting boxes are alot of fun too. Lots to learn about balance and size and inside and under and over from playing with these.

I really liked the Chicco Car shape sorter. It combines the skill of turning the crank and color matching with the shape sorting, but it may be too redundent with your other shape sorter.

If you child is into shape sorts than there is a wooden cube with three shapes on each side which is much more challenging than the one you have. DS really liked it, but he was fasinated with shape sorting.

Simple puzzles with knobs.

white board and water proof markers

Musical instruments - There are many out there. I think there is one by parents company called bee bop or something that is a drum filled without instruments. (To me the noice that come from this kind of play is totally acceptable while the noice from the electonic toys is not, you may disagree)

I don't believe in using flash cards for quizzing kids but DS has had lots of fun playing with the baby einstien flash cards. At first his favorite thing was to put them back in the box, but talking about the pictures informally is a good way to learn language skills, like reading a book with the pages all torn out.

Books, books and more books - Ones she can practice turning pages in herself so that she learns how a book works. The first pre-reading skill.

Toddler friendly baby dolls and assessories - stroller, high chair, ect

Play kitchen and/or play food and food tools. You may want to wait till next year for the big kitchen but there are some small ones for playing while sitting.

[njnewyearsbride]

my DD is 14 months.. the only toys she plays with consistenly are her books... she loves to "read" them or be read to..

lately shes been dragging her FP puppy on a string all around the house.
http://www.fisher-price.com/us/img/product_shots/h9447_b_3.jpg

i agree with the FP learning home - we have that and its a great toy!

any kind of ball is fun too!

[Renrel]

Pull toys are certainly popular with alot of the walkers in DS old toddler class (age 2 to 2.9)

Toddler friendly cars (chunky, easy to hold and push) are also usually a hit with the boys, though my son was pretty late in taking an intrest in these.

Some kind of toy that has a ramp for cars to go down. We had the old version of the little peoples amusement park (Before they make the slide a loop da loop and it was played with alot, but the fisher price garage, with ramp and elevator, lasted longer interest wise, though the elevator may frustrate a younger child.

[Dally]

I'm glad you posted this. I was just thinking I wanted to get some more toys for my 14-month-old. :)

Renrel--I love your suggestions. My DD has the Beebop drum filled with musical instruments and she has so much fun with it. She plays with the instruments, and enjoys stuffing them in the drum and then taking them back out.

Other hits right now:
stacking cups
books
This wooden push thing with blocks inside (from Parents Magazine)
Ride-on scooter (which she usually pushes while walking, unless we push her while she rides. She has us trained. :o )
My water bottle (it has a connected lid, and she'll spend time every day trying to figure out how to put that lid on and keep it on)
Boxes or other containers with stuff in them. I usually put different toys in boxes (like her shoe boxes) or tupperware and stash them around for her to find.


Question: Is the LeapPad worth it?

[Renrel]

Assuming you mean the leapad that read book to them, at this age I would definately say no. My son is very advanced verbally and he is just now at 2yr 9mths starting to show interest in the school bus little kid version I bought hm about 6 mths ago hoping it would be a good car toy for long trips. My niecies apparently showed no intrest in their leap pads either when my mom bought them for them at ages 2 and 3. They do like the leapster but that is more of a video game and for older kids, at least 3 I would say.

I would just read read read to you child, talking with them about the pictures and the story as you go. This is the best way to teach a love of reading. Over time you can start to talk about letters, sounds and how they form words ect.

The leap frog fridge phonic is probably worth while, though you could certainly wait on it. The kids take magnatic letters and put them in a hole on a base that attatchs to the fridge and the base sings a song explain the name and sound of the letter. It also plays the alphabet song, as many time as you kid will push the button, which is what most kids seem to like to do the most with this toy. Just playing with the letter is great though so that they start to become aware that these particular squiggle mean something.

I had a bath toy for DS which was foam letters that fit into foam animals. It was a great way to teach him about letters, letter sounds and animals. The manipulation of the letters to get them into the proper animal really help him learn their shapes and names early, but he is very spacial relations oriented. Different kids learn in different ways.

[Lora]

My DS 1st B-day is in Sept and I was just thinking about what to get him. I agree with everyone else about the FP Laugh and Learn house. My DD is 2 and still plays with it and my DS loves it. My DD also got a ton of use out of the Little Einstein animal DVDs, flashcards and animal books. She loved to go through and call out what everything was (probably around 16 months). She loved the LEGO large blocks and my DS likes to chew on them. At first she liked to watch my DH and I build and she would knock it down- now she is building her own towers. The Little People A-Z Zoo is also a pretty big hit - lots of parts though. You could also get some wooden peg puzzles. My DD loved all of the NO David books by David Shannon and still does. A chair of some sort that flips out was a 1st b-day favorite of my DD. She still uses it - it was Dora. A table and chair set for when they get a little older to color or read at. I need some ideas for little boys. It's hard, we have so much stuff from my DD and he has already accumulated a ton. My parents are out of town so they feel they have to bring gifts everytime they visit or see the kids-often twice a month. I feel bad not getting him much when his big sis got stuff! Well someday we'll have one heck of a sale!!

[lil_nance]

DS has been using his Leap Frog Learning Table daily since 9mo. It still holds his interest.
I got him this pop-up playhouse and tunnel at a garage sale. It's great because it folds flat for storage and doesn't take up any space.
http://trus.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pTRU1-2787536reg.jpg
Favorites from his b-day include:
Little Tikes Cozy Coupe II Car. Occupied him for a good couple of hours today.
http://trus.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pTRU1-2907869reg.jpg
FP Learning Piggy Bank
http://trus.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pTRU1-2788466reg.jpg

[BeachBum]

I love questions like this. I should work in a toy store.


I really appreciate your thoughtful responses to questions like this! You always do such a good job in talking about "how" to play with your child and you have good suggestions on what toys to buy. I've purchased several of "Renrel's Picks" ;)with great success.


We are coming up on his first birthday and I'm glad to see these ideas!

[myshel]

Thanks for all of the ideas, ladies. I now know what to do with some of DS' birthday money (we're splitting it up-- half for toys and half for college fund).

[Renrel]

Myshel - One thing to keep in mind, once you have a few more toys, is that toddler have short attention spans and tend to do best when there are a few different toys out at one time that they can go back and forth between. It looks messy but it is how toddler function. They usually only stay interested in one activity for a few minutes at a time, but may be happy to come back to that actvity after moving to another toy that caught their eye.

Beachbum - Thank you :o. It is always nice to hear that I am actually helping and not just feeding my ego with my wordy advice.

lil_nance - We also have a playgut tunnel and tent, though the tent is not a pop up one but rather needs poles to be stuck in holes. They are great toys that will remain interesting for a few years I think. The tunnel is pretty long and we often pretend it is a cocoon and when we come out we fly around the house like butter flys. We also play with what it is like to stand it on its side or roll inside of it. DS like to turn the tent into a "big top" and have a "show" where he calls out "ladies and gentlemen, the show is about to begin!" Though he tends to get a bit unsure about what happens next.

Oh, and for you owners of the laugh and learn home, it makes a great extra wall to a tent made by drapping a sheet over chairs or table or whatever you use. Fun to have an actual door on your tent.
--
Other ideas for 1st year are water and sand tables. Kids are fasinated by play with these two things. One of the few items that keeps young kids occupied for extended period, though it can be messy. It is also some how emotionally soothing. I read some where that in daycare it is often the first place kids who are sad about mommy or daddy leaving head. Of course you can also just have a deep pan of water or sand, play in the bath or have a outdoor play pool or sand box. Same kind of play.

Once kids are walking toy shopping carts are also fun as well as other kinds of toys that let them do things they see you doing.

[myshel]

Renrel: We already have that going on right now-- several toys out that he migrates to and from throughout the day. I've noticed that if we don't put the toys out for him to see, he doesn't really pull them out to play with them.

Maybe you can suggest something else for me, since you're so good at this. We only have a small living room and have been struggling with storage ideas for toys. Got any ideas?

[Renrel]

All I can really suggestion is keep toys visible and accessable, particularly the ones you want him to play with the most. I don't have them yet but I want shelves in our playroom. I hate toy boxes but that is where many of his toys are stored now. Thosetoys get the least use, unless he happens to remember he wants a particular toy and I tell him to look in the toy box for it. We have the same issue with a pop up hamper we store some other toys in in a closet.

In daycare they also have different toys pulled out at different times during the day. There will be 3-4 stations set up (for example - paper and crayons on the table, dora house in housekeeping, a train set and blocks in the block area and musical intruments in the loft). Those will all be cleaned up before going out to the play yard and new ones taken out for play before lunch, cleaned up at lunch time, and yet a third group taken out for afternoon free play.

At our house we have lots of boxes and open baskets around the room to store toys by catagory. A laundry basket for all the balls, one of those cloth lined baskets I got to store infant items is now filled with musical intruments. Blocks are stacked up in see through boxes. In his room his book shelf has the two bottom shelves filled with his books and the third shelf has some toys we play with in there.

Playfood and stuff is stored in his toy kitchen which kept in the dining room next to our kitchen, near that is is toy table and chairs and an easel which always has marker and paints and paper available. (He is not that intreged by art so I like to keep it visible to inspire him. He is also very good about not drawing on walls and closing his markers, so I am not that worried about them being accessable)

Stuffed animals live in his crib with him, or stacked on his chairs in his room.

But he has been in full time daycare since 11 mths, so most of his toy play happens away from home. I miss buying toys but try to limit them since he only really needs entertain for a few hours a week.

By the way, I found I get alot of really good toys at Marshal and TJ Max for great prices, you just can't go looking for something in particular.

Oh, one more tip, try to keep out some toys that are just outside child's current ability and help him to play with them. Like holding a tower of wooden blocks steady for him to put another block on top of, until he learns how to stack them straight. (This kind of help is called scaffolding) This is how kids learn and grow. There is some frustrastion of course as they learn, but they need to learn about that too. It is fine for a child to play with things they have mastered. It help them feel confident to be able to do something well, but that should not be all they get to play with.

[Dally]

Renrel--Thanks for your thoughts on the leappad. That's kind of what I figured. :)

To the PP who said their DC had a Leapfrog learning table. We have that, too, and DD does play with it every day (we've had it since she was 9-10 months). She likes to make "music" with it.

[lil_nance]

We use a plastic laundry basket in the living room for toy storage. It's navy and looks ok with our decor. I like that it's low enough for DS to get in it and remove any toy he wants and with the open sides things are still visible. Easy to toss things into it when it's time to clean up.