An important part of parenting toddlers is ensuring that they have the right playthings. Toys for toddlers can be extremely cute to look at but turn out to be quite dangerous for a toddler. It is important to know how to choose the best toddler toys for your child and create a play area that is fun, enjoyable and safe. Here are some ideas on choosing the right kind of toys for your toddler.
Photo courtesy of Crystal Sanchez
Toddler Toys Must Meet Safety Standards
The importance of this first point cannot be stressed enough. Parenting toddlers means having to ensure their safety all the time, especially at play because they might be left unattended at that time. Therefore, do buy toys that meet all safety standards and have passed all the required testing. A quick checklist includes:
- No sharp edges or easily breakable parts.
- No small parts that may be swallowed or stuck in the nose. If a toy or part of a toy can fit inside the toilet paper tube, it is too small and is a potential choking hazard.
- No strings longer than 7 inches.
- Definitely no lead in the colors used.
According to WebMD, parents should not purchase electric toys for children under the age of 8 and should look for labels that give the safety recommendations and use eachwith the re toy accordingly.
Choose Toys for Toddlers that are Educational Yet Fun
Since toddlers spend a fair amount of time playing, it is a good idea to buy toys that are not just fun and interesting to play with but also educational and interactive. So, try and pick at least one or two toys that teach them rhymes, shapes, colors, textures or animal sounds. Most toy stores have a range of educational toddler toys. Even Amazon has some really good educational toys for toddlers.
Toys Should Be Able to Handle Rough Toddler Play
Let’s face it. Toddlers play rough. Even my daughter enjoys banging her stuffed, singing Barney on the high chair table while waiting for her lunch. So, it is not a boy-girl thing. The best thing a parent can do is buy toys that can withstand a reasonable amount of rough play. Parental discretion is important. So, if your toddler is especially fond of rough play, choose wooden toddler toys or plush ones instead of the more delicate ones made from plastic; while if your toddler happily plays gently with toys, you can go ahead and buy the more fragile toddler toys without fear of them breaking.
Photo by Donnie Ray Jones
Choose Age-Appropriate Toddler Toys
Buying age-appropriate toys for your toddler will ensure that playtime will be more enjoyable. Here again, it is important to exercise your own discretion as a parent. If you feel your toddler is more advanced and good at grasping concepts quickly, it will be a good idea to buy toys that are for a higher age group. The important thing is for a toddler to be able to play and actually enjoy the toy rather than getting frustrated by not knowing what to do with it.
Choosing toys for toddlers can actually be quite easy and fun once you know what you want from a toy. So, go ahead and use these tips and ideas to pick that perfect toddler toy and give your child a plaything to play and learn with. In addition, once you have started collecting toys, you may want to start organizing them, so do read How to Organize Toy Storage for useful tips and ideas.
