The toddler is a child from one to three years old. The toddler is a young child that started to walk and continues to work on advancing all skills. Toddlers continue to learn to move, play, and explore their surroundings, objects, and people. Toddlers progress with intellectual, social, and emotional changes.

Through my two-decades working as a pediatric occupational therapist, I have had the opportunity to try out a great multitude of toys. I have thoroughly assessed the toy benefits based on age, appeal, safety, and durability. Furthermore, I have examined if a child can play with the toy in multiple ways, if the toy appeals to several senses, promotes problem solving, and boosts imagination. Most importantly, does the toy include ways for children to use their hands and fingers to help build the small muscles and coordination?

Below is a list of 10 educational toys for toddlers.

1) Fat Brain Toys Dimpl Baby Toy is a brilliant simple sensory fun for little fingers. Babies cannot resist poking, pushing, and popping colorful silicone bubbles. It provides an excellent workout for little fingers and a delightful sensory adventure. It is motivating cause-and-effect learning that captures the attention of young children. Safe and easy on the go.

2) VTech Learn and Spin Aquarium is a playful spinning top that lights up and plays cheerful sea music when a child presses down the water plunger. Repeating press and spinning fun helps kids practice their hand-eye coordination skills and learn cause-and-effect. There are several spin top toys; however, I think this is one has the most entertainment to offer for toddlers.

3) Baby Stacking Cups Toy is an 8-piece rainbow stackable nesting set. It encourages fine motor skills, sorting, learning colors, and count. Kids enjoy nesting, stacking, knocking, and building creative designs. Play in the bathtub, on the beach, or playground. Each cup has an animal character on the bottom, feel, recognize and name animals, or stamp on playdough. Simple, classic, and versatile.

4) Fat Brain Toys pipSquigz are three uniquely designed little suckers. Striking colors, stimulating textures, and fun rattle sounds. Squigz feature suction cups that attach, stick together, or pop apart. Easy and fun to grasp, fantastic for hand strengthening, engaging to the ears and eyes. Innovative, durable, safe, and entertaining.

5) Playskool Busy Ball Popper Toy is an exciting cause and effect toy. The balls pop in the air by pressing the button, roll down the ramps and tubes, and go popping again. It encourages visual tracing, ball manipulation, and button pressing: pleasurable sound effects, five colorful balls, fun air blowing sensation- joyful sensory experience.

6) Playskool Poppin’ Pals Pop-up Activity Toy is a great hands-on toy. Slide the levers, push the button, turn the key, and flip the key: little fingers press, twist, turn, slide, and shut lids. Friendly animals pop up to corresponding actions. Toddlers love this classic pop-up toy.

7) Playkidz Super Durable Pound a Ball is a fun hammering ball play for toddlers. Pounding colorful balls with a squeaky hammer promotes arm movement, hand-eye coordination, and finger grasping—attractive colors, well made, and stimulating.

8) Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Smart Stages Piggy Bank is an engaging educational toy. It offers songs, sounds, and phrases. It encourages following directions, naming colors, and learning to count. Placing coins in, taking them out, pressing piggy’s snout, and opening piggy’s storage provides fine motor work out for little hands and fingers. Vibrant colors, easy to clean, and a lot of fun! All early childhood educators have a pink piggy bank in their classroom.

9) Pacific Play Tents Kids Peek-A-Boo, Multicolor Mesh Crawl Tunnel. Our children do not have sufficient time crawling nowadays. Crawling through the tunnel is an excellent way to support upper extremity strength and create strong wrists and hands. Crawling is a fun and easy way to encourage motor planning and whole-body strength and coordination. I like this mesh tunnel, as some children might be apprehensive about visibility. A crawling tunnel is a-must for a strong upper body.

10) Playskool Explore ‘N Grow Busy Gears is hands-on gear manipulation for toddlers. The gears are colorful, round, and interconnect. Kids use hands to grasp, insert, remove, spin, twist, turn, stack, and move gears. It encourages visual-spatial skills, problem-solving, and confidence. Lights up and plays music; however, it is also entertaining without the enhanced effects.

Based on my personal and professional experience, I found these engaging, exciting, and motivating to most of the toddlers. Additional and crucial educational toys that should be included in a toddler toy collection is building and creating with blocks. Please read my 10 Reasons Block Play Skills are Essential for Children to learn more.

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