Play Time
Guidecraft Stacking Rainbow Pyramid
$36.00Six hardwood stacking squares feature inset-colored plexi for stacking, sorting, building, sequencing and creating imaginative, colorful constructions! Doubles as a stand-alone manipulative or an addition to hardwood block construction. Hardwood...
Ooly Standing Sketchbook Awesome Doodles
$12.00Sharks, spaceships and rockin’ guitars make an inviting cover to a stand-out sketchbook. The Awesome Doodles sketchbook not only has room for plenty of sketching, it will display it too!...
Le Toy Van Star Beauty Bag
$40.00The Star Beauty Bag is a set of fabric beauty bag complete with wooden accessories. Inside the cosmetics bag, you'll find an assortment of wooden accessories including a vintage perfume bottle...
Guidecraft Starter Triangle Fractions
$30.00Developing minds increase their understanding of numbers and one-to-one correspondence sorting the tactile fraction shapes of Starter Triangle Fractions. Colorful rubberwood shapes are in the quarter, third, half and whole...
Hape Stay Put Rattle Set
$16.00Babies will be enchanted by the Stay-put Rattle Set’s differing sounds, bright colors, and aquatic animals. Moreover, with their handy suction cups, playtime is possible anywhere, anytime! Age: 0+ Months...
Steiff Steiff Unica Unicorn Plush Toy 14 inches
$48.00Steiff Unica Unicorn is a fantasy animal that makes fun a reality for all ages! The newly redesigned version of this favorite animal is handmade from superior-quality white plush fabric....
Grapat Stick Gnomes Set
$46.00These sticks can be gnomes, goblins, fantastic creatures, trees, animals, or anything else the child imagines because the open-ended toys give children the chance to become what is necessary according...
Laurence King Publishing Stickyscapes at the Museum Sticker Book
$10.99Take a sticky trip to the museum! Stickyscapes at the Museum includes an 8-page sticker booklet, brimming with over 100 stickers; and a huge, double-sided fold-out panoramic scene for you...
Laurence King Publishing Stickyscapes London Sticker Book
$14.95Sticker, learn, and play! Create your own real and imaginary London with over 100 stickers that will bring this panoramic play scene to life.One side represents actual, present-day London, while...
Laurence King Publishing Stickyscapes Paris Sticker Book
$14.95Sticker, learn, and play! Create your own real and imaginary Paris with over 100 stickers that will bring this panoramic play scene to life.One side represents actual, present-day Paris, while...
Laurence King Publishing Stickyscapes Superheroes Sticker Book
$10.99Try out your superpowers with this superhero sticker book! This astonishing double-sided panoramic play scene folds out to a length of four feet and contains a superheroes' cityscape on one...
Sunnylife Sunnylife Luxe Pool Ring Shell
$40.00The makeover your pool has been waiting for. Make the sunny season one to remember with Sunnylife's Insta-famous floats. If you like summer then put a ring on it with...
Sunnylife Sunnylife Mini Lucite 4 in a Row Neon
$110.00The range of luxurious and limited edition Lucite games in the new gleaming Neon colorway is inspired by the warm sunshine beaming through the sky on a hot summer's day....
Sunnylife Sunnylife Mini Lucite Backgammon Neon
$130.00The range of luxurious and limited edition Lucite games in the new gleaming Neon colorway is inspired by the warm sunshine beaming through the sky on a hot summer's day. ...
Sunnylife Sunnylife Mini Lucite Chess & Checker...
$160.00A range of luxurious and limited edition Lucite games in the new gleaming Neon colorway are inspired by the warm sunshine beaming through the sky on a hot summer's day....
Glueckskaefer Sunset Stacking Puzzle Purple
$62.00A stacking and building puzzle in the beautiful tones of the sunset! Build and play with the blocks, and then you can reassemble them as a delightful sunset!Handcrafted in Europe...
Janod Sweet Cocoon Shapes and Colors Wooden...
$34.00Your child will learn shapes and colors through 2 levels of play with this adorable wooden dog. The objective is to turn the wheels to align identical shapes or those...
Janod Sweet Cocoon Xylo Roller 2 in 1 Toy
$54.00Young musicians will love this wooden xylophone! 2 in 1 toy, it is also a pull-out toy they can take everywhere from their first steps. Thanks to a rubber part,...
Le Toy Van Sweet Dreams Doll Pram
$120.00The wooden doll pram stroller has been designed in a classic traditional & aesthetic style with pretty, delicate detailing. Featuring soft pastel pink, cream and fresh white colours with heart...
Bling2o Swim Goggles Raptor Blue Grey
$24.00These swim goggles are unique, fun and perfect for those days out in the water. Product Details: Adjustable strap Antifog polycarbonate lenses with UV protection Silicone. Latex-free. Ages 3...
Guidecraft Tactile Search and Match
$56.00Curious toddlers flip sensory puzzle pieces over to feel and identify them from their bumpy ridges, smooth surfaces, soft plush and more with Tactile Search and Match. Nine different textures...
Hape Tap Along Tambourine Musical Toy
$16.00Let the good times shake, rattle and roll! Tap your hand on the wooden play surface or rattle in one hand to make a sound like rain with the multi-colored...
Hape Tasty Protein Wooden Toy Set
$22.00Protein is important for building muscles. Practice preparing foods like beef, chicken, fish and bacon with this realistic kitchen playset. Includes play knife and lemon wedge.
Chronicle Books The Atlas of Amazing Birds Book
$19.95From colossal condors to polychromatic peacocks, The Atlas of Amazing Birds celebrates winged creatures through joyful watercolors and well-researched, humorously told tales of their habits and habitats. Some birds migrate thousands of...
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.