How to Understand and Purchase Toys according to the Age of your Kids

February 2, 2023 Globalinfo247

In addition to being safe, good toys for young children need to match their stages of development and emerging abilities. Many safe and appropriate play materials are free items typically found at home.

Cardboard boxes, plastic bowls and lids, collections of plastic bottle caps, and other “treasures” can be used in more than one way by children of different ages. As you read the following lists of suggested toys for children of different ages, keep in mind that each child develops at an individual pace.

Items on one or more list as long as they are safe can be good choices for children who are younger and older than the suggested age range.

Toys for young infants (From 0 to 6 months)

Babies like to look at people following them with their eyes. Typically, they prefer faces and bright colors. Babies can reach, be fascinated with what their hands and feet can do, lift their heads, turn their heads toward sounds, put things in their mouths, and much more!

Good toys for young infants:

Things they can reach for, hold, suck on, shake, make noise with rattles, large rings, squeeze toys, teething toys, soft dolls, textured balls, and vinyl and board books
Things to listen to like books with nursery rhymes and poems, and recordings of lullabies and simple songs
Things to look at like pictures of faces hung so baby can see them and unbreakable mirrors

Toys for older infants (From 7 to 12 months)

Older babies are movers as they typically they go from rolling over and sitting, to scooting, bouncing, creeping, pulling themselves up, and standing.

They understand their own names and other common words, can identify body parts, find hidden objects, and put things in and out of containers.

Good toys for older infants:

Things to play pretend with like baby dolls, puppets, plastic and wood vehicles with wheels, and water toys
Things to drop and take out like plastic bowls, large beads, balls, and nesting toys
Things to build with like large soft blocks and wooden cubes
Things to use their large muscles with like large balls, push and pull toys, and low, soft things to crawl over

Toys for Kids (For 1-year-olds)

One-year-olds are on the go! Typically they can walk steadily and even climb stairs. They enjoy stories, say their first words, and can play next to other children (but not yet with!). They like to experiment but need adults to keep them safe.

Good toys for 1-year-olds:

Board books with simple illustrations or photographs of real objects
Recordings with songs, rhymes, simple stories, and pictures
Things to create with like wide non-toxic, washable markers, crayons, and large paper
Things to pretend with like toy phones, dolls and doll beds, baby carriages and strollers, dress-up accessories (scarves, purses), puppets, stuffed toys, plastic animals, and plastic and wood “realistic” vehicles
Things to build with like cardboard and wood blocks (can be smaller than those used by infants let’s say can be between 2 to 4 inches)
Things for using their large and small muscles like puzzles, large pegboards, toys with parts that do things (dials, switches, knobs, lids), and large and small balls

Toys for 2-year-olds (toddlers)

Toddlers are rapidly learning language and have some sense of danger. Nevertheless they do a lot of physical “testing”: jumping from heights, climbing, hanging by their arms, rolling, and rough-and-tumble play. They have good control of their hands and fingers and like to do things with small objects.

Good toys for 2-year-olds:

Things for solving problems like wood puzzles (with 4 to 12 pieces), blocks that snap together, objects to sort (by size, shape, color, smell), and things with hooks,
buttons, buckles, and snaps
Things for pretending and building like blocks, smaller (and sturdy) transportation toys, construction sets, child-sized furniture (kitchen sets, chairs, play food), dress-up clothes, dolls with accessories, puppets, and sand and water play toys
Things to create with like large non-toxic, washable crayons and markers, large paintbrushes and finger-paint, large paper for drawing and painting, colored construction paper, toddler-sized scissors with blunt tips, chalkboard and large chalk, and rhythm instruments
Picture books with more details than books for younger children
CD and DVD players with a variety of music (of course, phonograph players and cassette recorders work too!)
Things for using their large and small muscles like large and small balls for kicking and throwing, ride-on equipment (but probably not tricycles until children are 3), tunnels, low climbers with soft material underneath, and pounding and hammering toys

Toys for 3- to 6-year-olds (preschoolers and kindergartners)

Preschoolers and kindergartners have longer attention spans than toddlers. Typically they talk a lot and ask a lot of questions. They like to experiment with things and with their still-emerging physical skills. They like to play with friends and don’t like to lose!

They can take turns and sharing one toy by two or more children is often possible for older preschoolers and kindergartners.

Good toys for 3- to 6-year-olds:

Things for solving problems like puzzles (with 12 to 20+ pieces), blocks that snap together, collections and other smaller objects to sort by length, width, height, shape, color, smell, quantity, and other features like collections of plastic bottle caps, plastic bowls and lids, keys, shells, counting bears, small colored blocks
Things for pretending and building like many blocks for building complex structures, transportation toys, construction sets, child-sized furniture (“apartment” sets, play food), dress-up clothes, dolls with accessories, puppets and simple puppet theaters, and sand and water play toys
Things to create with like large and small crayons and markers, large and small paintbrushes and finger-paint, large and small paper for drawing and painting, colored construction paper, preschooler-sized scissors, chalkboard and large and small chalk, modeling clay and play-dough, modeling tools, paste, paper and cloth scraps for collage, and instruments like rhythm instruments and keyboards, xylophones, maracas, and tambourines
Picture books with even more words and more detailed pictures than toddler books
CD and DVD players with a variety of music (of course, phonograph players and cassette recorders work too!)
Things for using their large and small muscles like large and small balls for kicking and throwing/catching, ride-on equipment including tricycles, tunnels, taller climbers with soft material underneath, wagons and wheelbarrows, plastic bats and balls, plastic bowling pins, targets and things to throw at them, and a workbench with a vise, hammer, nails, and saw
If a child has access to a computer: programs that are interactive (the child can do something) and that children can understand (the software uses graphics and spoken instruction, not just print), children can control the software’s pace and path, and children have opportunities to explore a variety of concepts on several levels

Safety and Children’s toys

Safe toys for young children are well-made (with no sharp parts or splinters and do not pinch); painted with nontoxic, lead-free paint; shatter-proof; and easily cleaned.

Electric toys should be “UL Approved.” Be sure to check the label, which should indicate that the toy has been approved by the Underwriters Laboratories. In addition, when choosing toys for children under age 3, make sure there are no small parts or pieces that could become lodged in a child’s throat and cause suffocation.

It is important to remember that typical wear and tear can result in a once safe toy becoming hazardous. Adults should check toys frequently to make sure they are in good repair.

Reference: https://www.naeyc.org/resources/topics/play/toys