Christmas Gift Guide
Just a few toy suggestions….
We get asked a lot for suggestions of toys for Christmas for little ones and we’ve popped together some of our favourite toys that we use regularly during our sessions.
They range from some stocking fillers, to some larger toys and toys for our toddlers and preschoolers. We’ve also tried to pop in some information on how the resources benefit your little one’s development.
We’ve popped in brands and toys that we are really familiar with and are loved by the little ones who came to our in person sessions. There are lots of other manufactures of similar toys, and lots of the toys are available in different textures, please do your research to choose the toy best to suit your needs.
We’ve linked each toy photo to amazon for ease, but please do shop around, to ensure that you are getting the best price and buying from an incredible source, there are lots of amazing small businesses around who would appreciate your support at Christmas. Lots of these are available second hand too. Do some searching around for the best options for your little one.
We hope that you find our list helpful.
Safety first always!
Always keep your baby in eye sight and arms reach at all times. Some of the toys are recommended for independent play with an older child, for younger babies please ensure that they are supervised by an adult at all times.
Smaller toys & books
Bright starts star links are one of our favourite toys for so many reasons! They are amazing for co-ordination, hand function, tracking and visual development
Early learning centre star links, a construction toy that your baby can grow into, but are amazing for developing motor skills and hand-eye co-ordination
O ball is a great toy for tracking, co-ordination and we love popping chiffons and scarves through ours to promote finger isolation and grip.
Nuby lots a loops toy is a teething and rattling toy which is easy to hold and is helpful for hand function too.
The puppet company star finger puppet is one of the most popular toys we use in sessions, one that our little ones can see in focus
Fisher price stacking and roll cups are amazing for two handed play, co-ordination and we love ones that your little one can learn to balance and can be used in messy play
Amazing baby make beautiful black and white books in lots of different textures
My first hand puppets by the puppet company, gorgeous textures and amazing details for visual development
Usbourne books – that’s not my range. There are lots of books in the range we love them because of their repetitive speech patterns and added textures
Munchkin farm bath toys we use them in play and messy play too. They are all different shapes and amazing for fine motor control and co-ordination
Bright starts tummy time mirror, amazing for distracting your little one during tummy time and using it to prop things against!
Melissa and Doug make amazing wooden toys, they have lots of single colour stacking ones
Fisher price butterfly shape sorter is always a popular toy in classes, great for hand function, visual development with the single colour shapes, co-ordination as our little ones start to do motor planning. The shapes are amazing for stamping into play dough!
Galt soft fabric blocks, lots of great images on them for visual development, they have different themes on their sides, are light to hold and touch, amazing for two handed play and are machine washable.
Halilit make lovely music toys, we love this collection as the ocean drum and ring my bell are two of our favourites!
larger toys
Happy hopperz feature in our sessions often, for little ones with full head control we can support them around their core to bounce. Our toddlers developing their dynamic balance love to jump on them. Lots of different designs available
Fisher price jungle playmat we love this playmate as the toys that are attached are of amazing quality and it is so easy to wash. We often use a plainer blanket on the mat to create different textures and aid concentration by reducing the visual stimulation.
Wheely bugz are very popular in sessions, our little ones with head control can be sat on it and rolled gently backwards and forwards. Over time once they have their balance and their feet can touch the ground they can be more independent moving it around. They are fun toys, loved by our little ones but they are small and can be short lived if your baby is tall.
pop up ball pools are amazing to add some balls into, one layer for babies under one so they get lots of information from the floor about their body position. They are great for containing toys and creating texture themed play spaces.
Vtech walkers, push walkers are the only ones we’d recommend for a baby’s motor skills. The vtech ones come with brakes and have detachable activity boards
Le Toy Van Wooden activity gym, we love to use these with our tiny babies, they are collapsible and you can easily change the toys suspending to give your baby different toys to look at
Fisher price me up seat can be a helpful sitting aid for little ones with head control that don’t yet have their balance. It has a higher back, doesn’t fix little ones at their hips and encourages better posture than seats that are harder positioning devices. Folds flat too. There are lots of different colours and designs
Activity tables can be really helpful for our little ones who are starting to practice their balance and are standing. It helps with static and dynamic balance and encourages some side stepping around the activities. Best used with our crawlers who are ready to practice their balance.
Pikler triangles, slides and arches are investment toys that your little one can engage with from being on the move throughout their preschool years. They are adaptable and can be purchased in separate components and altered to help your little one’s gross motor skills, balance and co-ordination. Triclimb and TP toys make beautiful ones
Toys for toddlers and preschoolers
Melissa and Doug wooden blocks amazing for construction play, stacking, motor skills and hand-eye co-ordination too!
Edushape sensory ball, these balls are 18cm big so great for two handed play, catching and rolling. They also float in the bath!
Tales from acorn wood, longer story books are amazing for our toddlers and preschoolers, this lovely series has flaps to lift and thick pages for little hands can manage
Cars and transport toys are great push and pull toys which are great for little hands, co-ordination and learning all about movement. Try and get some different textures in your car collection!
Tea sets or toys for imaginative play are brilliant. Tea sets are great for pouring, holding, strength and having little parties are incredible for communication skills
Happyland do some great toys for small world play. The figures are easy to hold, great for play sessions and messy play. The bus, ship and house were the most popular in our sessions
Duplo is brilliant for little hands their strength and co-ordination and for our little ones imaginative play and problem solving skills. There are lots of different sets depending on your little ones age and stage
Melissa and Doug play food sets are great. They do felt and wooden sets, ones with food that you can ‘cut’ and food that you can construct too. Great for having conversations with your little one
Curved balance boards can be sat on and stood on to help balance, strength and co-ordination. They are lovely to rock on too. They can also be used in play as a slide, bridge, tunnel!
Aquadoodle mats are great for co-ordination, independent play and mark making. Your little one can make a design and once the water has dried it fades so they can continually design and play. They come in lots of different styles and sizes
Toy prams are always one of the most popular toys in playgroups and sessions. Great for transporting, imaginative play and our motor skills. There are lots of different designs depending on your little ones motor skills and their age and stage
Ride on toys are great for motor skills, balance and co-ordination. The hopperz and wheely bug above are popular alongside scuttlebug, balance bike and scooter toys.