10 Toys for Baby’s First Year

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Christmas is coming and family and friends may be asking, “What do you need for your baby this Christmas?” Or maybe you’re doing a little Santa shopping and wonder which toys are best for your baby’s development?

With money tight for many, I’ve compiled a list of ten toys that promote optimum brain growth and are great investments for your baby’s future development.

Black and white visual stimulation cards – Research suggests that babies can only see the colors black, white, and gray until the first few months after birth. And maximizing this opportunity in those early months can ensure a newborn baby achieves the required visual stimulation to fully develop their eyesight.

Baby safe mirrors – Babies love faces! And they especially love the faces of their parents and caregivers. They also enjoy seeing other faces in books or mirrors. You can make funny faces and identify eyes, ears, and mouth to teach language and body awareness. Encourage laughing and kissing the reflection in the mirror to teach social skills, such as affection and eye contact.

Foam floor mats – Babies need a safe place on the floor to do tummy time play, practice rolling, crawling, and explore toys. A foam mat provides a safe floor surface that is easy to clean. For non-mobile babies, you can place a blanket on top to soften it a bit.

Balls – For younger babies, the balls with easy grips are best. Always use balls that are not foam or felt as babies will bite and mouth them. Teething babies will bite off foam and may choke. Balls are very versatile. Babies can pick them up, toss them, place them in a container, and crawl after them. The games are limitless.

Pop-up toys – For children who are sitting or crawling, they need to use their hands to push buttons, slide switches, and twist or turn knobs. Each of these motor actions requires different muscles and greater coordination.

Blocks – For babies, regular blocks are best. Interlocking blocks, such as Duplo® or Lego®, are okay but regular blocks are more versatile. They are harder to stack which is why they are better for brain and body development. Most also have letters and pictures stamped on them. Use those images to teach words and sounds of things, such as motor or animal sounds.

Shape sorters or puzzles – For children not yet walking, select those sorters or puzzles with only a few shapes such as circles, squares, and triangles. Otherwise, your child may become overly frustrated. Shape sorters and puzzles with knobs build hand and postural control, hand precision, as well as spatial and visual skills such as up, down, in, and out.

Tunnels – Once your baby begins crawling, tunnels are excellent. Going in and through teaches your baby spatial awareness and improves physical coordination. Incorporate peekaboo by hiding at the other end to encourage your child to crawl through. You can also roll balls back and forth when your child gets a bit older.

Board books – For children, turning thick pages and pointing at pictures build hand skills and coordination. Plus, you can help your baby build a strong vocabulary by reinforcing the names of shapes, animals and their sounds, and common items, such as a cup, ball, or cookie.

Baby walker – As your baby gets up on their feet, a sturdy toy to push, such as an interactive baby walker, is a wonderful selection. When your baby is not walking, they can play with the switches and mirrors on the other side. 

Science consistently shows that simple, non-electronic toys, sometimes referred to as traditional toys, are best for your baby’s overall brain and body development. They are often cheaper, as well.

So, when family and friends inquire or you become overwhelmed with glitz and annoying toy sounds, go with these choices.

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(Photos: Adobe Stock)