Play Time
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...
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 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 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...
Maileg Winter Mouse W/ Ski Set, Big Sister -...
$46.00A mouse ready for hours of fun on the slopes during the cold wintertime. Each playset contains a warmly dressed mouse with a pair of ski and poles. Look at...
Maileg Winter Mum Mouse with Ski Doll
$40.00A 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...
Gibbs Smith Wizard of Oz
$11.99BabyLit® is a fashionable way to introduce your toddler to the world of classic literature. With clever, simple text by Jennifer Adams, paired with stylish design and illustrations by Sugar’s...
Jellycat Wonda Wombat
$55.00Wonda Wombat runs a spotless operation as the proud owner of Wonda’s Windows. She’s made a name for herself as the most fastidious window cleaner this side of the outback....
Bajo Wood Eco Car Blue
$26.00This eco car is perfect for playtime and it provides a comfortable grip for little hands! Made In: Poland Product Size: 9 x 5 x 6 cm Age: 1.5 years...
Bajo Wood Eco Limo Yellow
$26.00This eco limousine is perfect for playtime and it provides a comfortable grip for little hands! Made In: Poland Product Size: 9 x 5 x 6 cm Age: 1.5 years...
Janod Wood Essentials Fractions
$22.00An early learning toy that is ideal for becoming familiar with fractions, a simple mathematical concept, while having fun. Once the child places 1, 2, 3 or 4 pieces on...
Bajo Wooden Action Figure T-Rex
$62.00It's the T-Rex! A powerful, two-legged creature. The former inhabitants of the planet remind us of the animals that are currently endangered, thanks to which we become sensitive to them...
Moulin Roty Wooden Alphabet Puzzle
$28.00The Wooden Alphabet Puzzle is a simple yet effective learning tool. Your little one will have fun with the letters of the alphabet while developing his problem-solving and fine motor...
Holztiger Wooden Animal Green Dragon
$40.00Green dragon is a great toy animal for entertaining your little one, perfect for endless hours of imaginative play! Made of hardwood Colored with water-based acrylic paint Dimensions: 19 x...
Bajo Wooden Animals
$66.00 – $68.00Panda bears, Polar bears, Rhinoceros and Gorillas! All three are endangered and are in need of love from your child. These adorable wooden critters are light weight and easy to play...
Plantoys Wooden Balance Board
$90.00Discover various ways of balance by yourself! This toy comes with a curved plywood board and rope that can help children learn to balance by standing up, sitting down, and...
Bajo Wooden Breakdown 8 Set
$80.00This adorable yellow tow truck is perfect for children that love playing with cars and want to imitate the physics of a real tow truck! Cars can be towed away...
Bajo Wooden Breakdown Lorry
$32.00This adorable Lorry is one of a kind and comes with three parts; a sweet little blue car, the cute Lorry, and a blockade/ramp. This toy is great fun for...
Bajo Wooden Brooklyn School Bus
$36.00The Bajo Brooklyn School Bus is a simple replica of the local yellow school bus, just the perfect way to get the little ones excited for school! The size of the car...
Plantoys Wooden Bulldozer
$108.00Clear the way at the building site! This Bulldozer has a special handle so that children can direct it left or right. They can move, haul, lift, and pull. Bulldozer Details:...
Lubulona Wooden Bus with Figures Plum
$16.00Ready to get on the bus and go for a ride around town? The Lubu buses offer space for one driver and two passengers and come with three wooden figures....
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.