Play Time
Rubbabu Bouncy Ball Toy Torpedo Aqua
$6.00 – $10.00A soft, velvety ball that bounces well on floors and carpets. Made from foamed natural rubber it's squishy and safe for babies and toddlers. The tactile texture makes it fun...
Abrams Appleseed Book My Grandma Is Great!
$7.99Is your grandma more fabulous than a flock of flamingos?More magical than a million mermaids?More adventurous than a pack of pirates? Celebrate all the things that make Grandma great with...
Abrams Appleseed Book My Grandpa Is Grand!
$7.99Is your grandpa more fun than a ton of treehouses?More adventurous than a sea of sailors?Smarter than a school of fish? Celebrate all the things that make Grandpa grand with...
Abrams Appleseed Book Bananas For You!
$7.99From the superstar creators of My Mom Is Magical! and My Dad Is Amazing! comes this vibrant, humor-filled board book—the perfect way to tell your loved ones you're bananas for them. Do you...
Penguin Stomp Stomp Book
$8.99Flip the flaps, move the sliders, and trace the trails in this bright, quirky board book about dinosaurs!Where will Little Dino play today? Flip the flaps, move the sliders, and...
Mudpuppy Coloring Book Andy Warhol
$9.99Mudpuppy's Andy Warhol Coloring Book features the iconic pop artist's greatest hits ready to be colored in and customized by young artists. Introduce well-known classics like Andy's Campbell's Soup Cans...
Penguin Who's Hiding in the Rain Forest Book
$9.99There are lots of animals in the rain forest. Where are they hiding and what are they doing? In this innovative lift-the-flap book, little ones can pore over the beautiful...
Penguin Who's Hiding on the Savanna Book
$9.99There are lots of animals on the savanna. Where are they hiding and what are they doing? In this innovative lift-the-flap book, little ones can pore over the beautiful collaged...
Penguin Who's Hiding on the River Book
$9.99There are lots of creatures by the river. Where are they hiding and what are they doing? In this innovative lift-the-flap book, little ones can pore over the beautiful collaged...
Penguin Who's Hiding at the Beach Book
$9.99There are lots of creatures at the beach. Where are they hiding and what are they doing? In this innovative lift-the-flap book, little ones can pore over the beautiful collaged...
Gibbs Smith Moby Dick A BabyLit Ocean Primer
$10.00Little Master Melville teaches little ones the language of the sea in Moby-Dick: An Ocean Primer. From ships and sailors to squawking gulls and moody good captains, Alison Oliver’s brilliant...
Penguin Where's the Dog Book
$10.00Five beautifully illustrated spreads show a series of friendly animals hiding behind bright felt flaps. A mirror on the final spread makes for a satisfying ending to the book’s search-and-find...
Penguin Where's the Bear Book
$10.00Five beautifully illustrated spreads show a series of friendly animals hiding behind bright felt flaps. A mirror on the final spread makes for a satisfying ending to the book’s search-and-find...
Rubbabu Little Plane Rubber Toy
$10.00These Rubbabu Little Planes come in bright appealing colors with soft wheels that will delight little ones. These airplanes are sized for little hands and safe for babies and toddlers. ...
Gibbs Smith Book Un Elefante: Numbers/Numeros
$10.00A Lil' Libros Bilingual Counting Book Inspired by one of the most beloved nursery rhymes in Latin America, “Un Elefante se Balanceaba,” is a traditional children's song in Spanish that...
Gibbs Smith Book Vamonos a Bogota
$10.00Teach your little reader about the magical capital of Columbia through illustrations and words that will teach them about the world in English and Spanish. Introduce your little readers to...
Gibbs Smith Book Vamonos a Lima
$10.00Teach your baby about Lima in the country of Peru, one of the largest cities in South America, through illustrations and words that will teach them about the world in...
Gibbs Smith Book Vamonos a Antigua
$10.00Teach your baby about a small city surrounded by big forested hills and volcanoes through illustrations and words that will teach them about the world in English and Spanish. Introduce...
Gibbs Smith Book Vamonos a Panama City
$10.00Teach your little reader about the captivating capital of Panama through illustrations and words that will teach them about the world in English and Spanish. Introduce your little readers to...
Gibbs Smith Book Where is?/Dónde Está? El Chavo
$10.00Inspired by the internationally acclaimed sitcom "El Chavo Del Ocho," this book will introduce little ones to their first English and Spanish words as they explore La Vecindad in search of the...
Gibbs Smith Book Around The World With Alrededor ...
$10.00A Bilingual Geography Book Inspired by one of the world’s most iconic comedians, Mario Moreno (better known as the inquisitive Cantinflas), this book will take little ones around the world...
Manhattan Toy Atom Teether Toy
$12.00The Atom Teether Toy is out of this world! Twelve bendy arms perfect for teething, surround the colorful plastic ball center. Each arm features vibrantly colored plastic clacking rings that...
BeginAgain Color N Eggs Bilingual Puzzle
$12.00The Color N Eggs Puzzle is a wooden puzzle, language learning toy, and character play set all in one! The chicken characters are great for inspiring storytelling and introducing colors in...
BeginAgain Dog Family Bilingual Color Puzzle
$12.00The Dog Family Puzzle is a wooden puzzle, learning toy, and character play set all in one! The dog characters are great for inspiring storytelling and introducing colors in both English...
Play is essential for children because it contributes to their intellectual, physical, emotional and social development. When children play, they exercise their creativity, develop their imagination, master their dexterity, improve their cognitive ability and build physical strength. Experts agree that the best kinds of play allow kids to set their own goals, negotiate challenges, develop and share ideas, and make their own rules.
But how can we make sure our kids are getting enough healthy, unstructured play time when they’re growing up in an overscheduled and stressful environment, when parents are overly focused on producing high academic achievers, and safety concerns prevent us from letting our kids roam around freely and unsupervised? Perhaps the best thing we can do for our kids is to make sure they have the right kinds of toys at home to make play time most rewarding.
First and foremost is safety. Safe toys for young children are sturdy, without sharp parts or splinters, free of pinching hazards, and easy to clean. If the toy will be used by an infant, it’s important that parts aren’t small enough to become a choking hazard.
Toys must be made from non-toxic materials and coated with lead-free paints. You should steer clear of antique toys, second-hand toys and homemade toys that have not been tested and approved by a certified testing lab, or may have been produced before the current regulations governing toy manufacturing were in effect.
In addition to being safe, a good toy will match the child’s appropriate stage of development and abilities.
The best baby activity toys for infants between 0-6 months are things they can reach, grasp, suck on, shake, and make noise with. Some age-appropriate toys for little babies are squeeze toys, teething toys, soft dolls, textured balls, and board books.
Infants between 6-12 months are starting to crawl, sit up and pull themselves to a standing position. They are capable putting things in and out of containers and placing objects on top of each other. Some of the best baby activity toys for this age group are dolls, vehicles with wheels, bath toys, large beads, nesting toys, large soft blocks, wooden blocks, and push & pull toys.
As your child continues to grow, look for toys that will encourage them to explore, create, pretend, imagine, and learn from trial and error.