Play Time
Chronicle Books Who Am I?
$14.99Simple riddles, bold images, and fun, interactive pull-tabs help make the classic guessing game loads of fun. Who likes to hop on lily pads? Who likes to eat honey from beehives? Pull the...
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...
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 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 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...
Tender Leaf Toys Wicker Shopping Basket
$50.00Go shopping just like mom and dad! A gorgeous handcrafted wicker basket containing a bar of chocolate, a bottle of lemonade, a continental salami, some cheese, a baguette in a...
Penguin Wild Animals Book
$7.99From a grinning crocodile to an elegant flamingo, from a perky meerkat to an endearing hippo, there are many wild creatures to discover in this captivating book. Adapted from designer...
Tender Leaf Toys Wild Pines Train Set
$126.00This 30 piece track allows for creative layouts and endless storytelling. Accessories that move include an engine and 3 carriages holding 27 small logs of various colors. A logging truck...
LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething Ring Set Ginger Honey
$12.00LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething Ring Set Ginger Honey is lightweight and easy to grab and hold for soothing teething relief. Free of BPA, PVC, phthalates, lead, and cadmium. LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething...
LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething Ring Set Pastel
$12.00LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething Ring Set Pastel is lightweight and easy to grab and hold for soothing teething relief. Free of BPA, PVC, phthalates, lead, and cadmium. LouLou Lollipop Wild Teething Ring...
Maileg Wildlife Guide Mouse Doll
$44.00Wildlife Guide Mouse is ready for a hiking trip. The guide is dressed for walking and brings a sleeping bag and a magnifying glass to explore nature. This style is...
Londji Wildlife Memory Game
$20.00Perfect for Nature Lovers- Wildlife Memory Game comes with 32 beautifully illustrated cards all packaged in a heavy mat board box with elastic closure for tidy keeping. High-quality, matboard cards...
Moulin Roty Wilfred Magician Cape Costume
$39.99The Wilfred Magician Cape is the perfect costume piece for little illusionists, wizard apprentices, and spell-casters in training. Featuring a rich midnight blue fabric sprinkled with shimmering silver stars, this cape...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Clip and Discover Shapes
$28.00Help little ones recognize shapes and entertain them while they're on the go. In true Wimmer-Ferguson fashion, each shape has simpler black-and-white graphics on one side and more complex color...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Double Feature Mirror
$50.00One side features a mirror for self discovery, while the other side has high-contrast black & white graphics that help baby with visual & multi-sensory development. This toy has ribbon...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Learning Cube
$28.00This 6-sides of this soft cube feature ribbons, crinkle paper, bungee elephant trunk, rattle, squeaker, textured teething ring, peek a boo flaps and baby safe mirror. The Learning Cube teaches...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Mind Shapes
$28.00These vibrant shapes encourage babies to look, touch, and listen. Each easy-to-carry shape has a noisemaker and a medley of research-correct graphics and textures. Mind-shapes have won the hearts of...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Nursery Novel Soft Book
$22.00The soft nursery novel features classic development prints, crinkle paper flaps, a mirror, and ribbon ties to close or attach to various play areas. Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Nursery Novel Features:...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Spiral Tiger
$26.00Tiger spiral features three dangling attachments to encourage grasping, self-discovery, and cause and effect learning. Attachments include rattles, teethers, and a baby-safe mirror. High contrast patterns and colors support the...
Manhattan Toy Wimmer Ferguson Stim Mobile To Go
$16.00The beloved infant stim-mobile is now available on the go! We've turned the award-winning infant stim-mobile into a compact, easy-to-attach stroller mobile. This mobile features six reversible cards that contain...
Manhattan Toy Winkel Bee Rattle and Teether Toy
$18.00The Zoo Winkels Butterfly features the same colorful, chewable, bendable loops as the original, which make it easy for infants to grasp and explore. The appeal of the Winkel teething...
Manhattan Toy Winkel Colorpop
$18.00The classic Winkel now features a sweet little animal face! An adorable lion face has been placed inside the classic Winkel loop structure for added engagement. The Zoo-Winkel is the...
Maileg Winter Big Brother Mouse with Ski Doll
$38.00A mouse ready for hours of fun on the slopes during the cold wintertime. Each playset contains a warmly dressed mouse with a pair of skis and poles. A funny...
Maileg Winter Big Sister Mouse with Ski Doll
$38.00A mouse ready for hours of fun on the slopes during the cold wintertime. Each playset contains a warmly dressed mouse with a pair of skis and poles. A funny...
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.