Play Time
Plushies Slushy Plush Toy 28 Inch
$98.00The majestic Slushy Polar Bear lives in the arctic, sporting heavy fur and even being an excellent swimmer! Made in a simple yet elegant way with quality, care, and a...
Smart Games Smart Game SmartMax My First Vehicles
$29.00My First Vehicles includes 13 pieces that are building blocks to create 4 different trucks. When clicked together the trucks move on their wheels, resulting in a truly creative and...
Brio Smart Tech Sound Rescue Action Tunnel...
$30.00“Oh no! There’s a fire!”. This Brio Rescue Action Tunnel Kit brings firefighting adventures to your BRIO World layouts. Join the fire brigade and put out the roaring fire using...
Smart Games Smartmax Basic Stunt
$78.00Smart Games Smartmax Start+ is the perfect construction set for your little one to use during play time for endless fun and creativity! This set is includes everything needed for...
Smart Games SmartMax My First Animal Train
$42.00Build your own traveling zoo with magnets! Magnetic rods fit inside the train engine and the three train cars while magnetic spheres connect them in a line and let them...
Smart Games SmartMax My First Dinosaurs
$29.00Travel back in time (to a land before time?) with Smartmax My First DInosaurs! This 14 piece set includes magnetic bars to connect the bright, flexible dinosaur parts together. Encourage...
Smart Games SmartMax My First Farm Animal
$29.00SmartMax My First Farm Animals is designed for kids ages 1 - 5 years, offering an early, safe, and fun introduction to magnetic discovery. Easily build and play with the...
Smart Games SmartMax My First Tractor Set
$34.00The fun factor is guaranteed with the SmartMax My First Tractor Set, as children start creating their own stories with the farmer and his horses! With the My First collection...
Smart Games Smartmax Power Vehicles Max
$42.00Smart Games Smartmax Power Vehicles Maxis the perfect construction set for your little one to use during play time for endless fun and creativity! This set is includes everything needed...
Smart Games SmartMax Roboflex
$34.00 – $45.00Let your little ones expand their imagination with the SmartMax Roboflex set as they build and create their own version of robots. Age: 3 years+ Roboflex Medium includes 12 pieces Roboflex...
Smart Games Smartmax Start
$42.00Have fun building incredible structures with SmartMax! SmartMax allows children to explore magnetism safely. The oversized pieces are specifically designed for handling by young kids as they learn about the...
Smart Games Smartmax Start XL 42 Pieces
$78.00Smart Games Smartmax Start XL is the perfect construction set for your little one to use during playtime for endless fun and creativity! Suitable for children 3 years+ Compatible with...
Ooly Smooth Stix Watercolor Gel Crayons 24...
$24.00Begin your next art project with a rainbow of colors with a set of Smooth Stix watercolor gel crayons. With 24 brilliant colors there’s a near endless amount of creative art...
Hape Smoothie Blender Toy
$24.00Healthy smoothies are a delicious way to eat your fruit and vegetables! Make your own play smoothies with this cool blender set that comes with two cups and includes fruits...
Sophie La Giraffe So'Pure Bath Toy
$24.00A fun Sophie La Girafe takes on the traditional rubber duck! Fun bath toy made with the same all-natural rubber as the original Sophie teether. Made with 100% natural rubber from...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Abby Crying
$86.00Abby is dressed in a pretty pink heart polka-dot dress, with a complementary knit hooded sweater and booties adorned with gold bows. Abby has adorable blonde pigtails dressed in pink...
LLorens Soft Baby Doll Charlotte
$60.00Charlotte is dressed in a pretty triangle-shaped peach polka-dot dress and bloomers, with a complimentary hooded knit sweater and booties. Charlotte has adorable pigtails adorned with pom-poms. She has blue...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Harper
$50.00Harper is dressed in a pretty pink floral dress and complementary knit hooded sweater, booties and hat. Harper has lovely brown hair with a fashionable flip and bangs. She has...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Kaitlin Crying
$60.00Kaitlin is dressed in a pretty white dress with a pink printed leaf design. She wears a complementary pink knit sweater and booties. Kaitlin has blonde hair fashioned in adorable...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Kelsey Crying
$86.00Kelsey is dressed in a pretty floral dress and complementary pink knit hooded sweater, with pom pom ties and grey fur collar. Booties and blonde pigtails with bows complete the...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Marie Crying
$70.00Marie is dressed in a white star polka-dot dress, with a long-sleeve white sweater with a grey-white fur hood. Marie's black hair in bow-tie pigtails and brown eyes complement her...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Tasha
$70.00Tasha is dressed in a white star polka-dot dress, with a long-sleeve white sweater with a grey-white fur hood. The white pacifier is attached to the doll's clothing with a...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Taylor Crying
$60.00Baby Doll Taylor is dressed in a pretty peach dress, and complementary knit sweater and booties. Taylor has adorable pigtails and bangs in blonde hair. She has blue eyes and a...
Llorens Soft Baby Doll Victoria Crying
$60.00Victoria is ready for Spring with a pretty pink floral dress, and a complementary knit sweater coat, booties, and hat. Victoria has lovely brown hair with fashionable flip and bangs....
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.