DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES
TOYS AND PLAYTHINGS TO STIMULATE A CHILD’S SENSES
Play is more important than toys. Almost anything—pots, flowers, sandals, fruit,
keys, an old horseshoe—can be used as a toy, if it is used in play.
Toys—or ‘playthings’—offer stimulation for a child, both when she plays by herself
and when she plays with others. Many simple things in the home
can be used as toys, or can be turned into them.
Hanging toys for baby to admire,
touch, and handle can be made
of many things.
thread
spools
slices of
plastic
bottle
top half
of plastic
bottle
metal
bottle caps
stiff
wire
pieces of
bright
colored
paper or
tinfoil
Caring for babies
provides a learning
experience that
combines work and
play for the child
who is gentle.
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CAUTION: Take care that toys are clean and safe for the child.
Here are a few examples of interesting toys. Use your imagination and the resources
of your family to make toys.
Toys for seeing
Toys for touching
soft clothes or blanket
baby animals
corn on the cob
finger paints
inner tubes for
swimming, bathing
nuts and bolts
toes and fingers
seed pods
mushy food
cloth doll
gourds
sand
clay
string
chain
pulley
gears
rocks
beads
fruits
mud
flowers
dough
mirrors
colors
colored paper or tinfoil
daily family activity
puppets old
magazines with pictures
crystal glass pieces (rainbow maker)
flashlight (touch)
Toys for balance
swings
hammocks
seesaws
rocking horses
finger
puppets
For children who have
trouble controlling
their movements, and
often drop or lose
their toys, it may help
to tie the toys with
string, as shown here.
Toys to taste or smell
foods
flowers
fruits
animals
spices
perfumes
Toys for hearing
rattles
guitar
flutes
drum
bells
bracelets on
baby’s wrist
and ankles
that tinkle
when baby
moves
marimba or
xylophone
wind chimes
whistles
pet birds
animal sounds
seashells or
other echo toys
talking
laughing
singing
a pan as
a drum
tin can telephone
string or wire, stretched tight
disabled village children