In this article, you will find the top toy recommendations for babies aged 9-12 months, shared by Occupational Therapist Emma Hubbard. The focus is on toys that enhance fine motor, gross motor, and communication skills. Popular toy options include shape sorters, ring stackers, pop-up toys, toys on a string, board books, puzzles, blocks, stacking toys, and trolleys. It’s important to avoid baby play stations and baby walkers for safety and developmental reasons. Remember to consult a doctor for any health concerns as this content is not a substitute for professional medical advice.
When seeking toy recommendations for your 9-12 month old baby, turn to Occupational Therapist Emma Hubbard’s insights. This video guide showcases toys that aid in fine motor skill development, gross motor skill enhancement, and communication skill building. Discover the toys that are essential for this age range, along with the ones to steer clear of for your baby’s optimal safety and growth. Remember, the best approach is to seek professional medical advice from a doctor for any health concerns related to your child.
Shape Sorters
Shape sorters are fantastic toys for 9-12-month-old babies as they help develop fine motor skills. These toys require babies to pick up different shapes and fit them into corresponding slots, promoting hand-eye coordination and dexterity. As babies manipulate the shapes to fit into the sorter, they are enhancing their problem-solving abilities. Shape sorters are engaging and educational toys that can keep your little one entertained while aiding in their cognitive development.
Helps develop fine motor skills
Playing with shape sorters can help strengthen your baby’s hand muscles and improve their grip. As they pick up each shape and try to fit it into the correct slot, they are refining their fine motor skills. This activity can also enhance their spatial awareness and encourage better hand-eye coordination.
Encourages problem-solving abilities
When babies interact with shape sorters, they are presented with a puzzle to solve. Figuring out which shape goes where requires critical thinking and problem-solving skills. By experimenting with different shapes and positions, babies learn to use trial and error to achieve success. This process helps them develop essential problem-solving abilities.
Ring Stackers
Ring stackers are another great toy for 9-12-month-old babies, as they focus on enhancing hand-eye coordination. These toys typically consist of colorful rings that babies can stack on a central pole. As babies engage with ring stackers, they are presented with opportunities to improve their coordination and concentration. Additionally, playing with ring stackers can promote cognitive development by challenging babies to categorize and organize objects based on size and color.
Enhances hand-eye coordination
As babies grasp and stack the rings, they are honing their hand-eye coordination. This skill is essential for tasks like picking up small objects, writing, and using utensils. By repeatedly stacking and unstacking the rings, babies improve their coordination and accuracy, building a solid foundation for future activities.
Promotes cognitive development
Playing with ring stackers can help babies develop cognitive skills such as organization and categorization. By arranging the rings in a specific order or grouping them by color, babies are engaging their brains in critical thinking and problem-solving. This cognitive stimulation is crucial for brain development and can set the stage for future learning and comprehension.
Pop-up Toys
Pop-up toys are excellent for introducing babies to the cause-and-effect concept. These toys typically feature objects that pop up or move when a certain action is taken, such as pressing a button or pulling a lever. By interacting with pop-up toys, babies learn that their actions can produce specific outcomes, laying the groundwork for understanding cause and effect relationships.
Introduces cause and effect concept
Pop-up toys provide babies with a hands-on experience of cause and effect. As they push, pull, or press different parts of the toy, they observe the corresponding reaction. This interactive play teaches babies that their actions have consequences, helping them develop an understanding of cause and effect relationships.
Improves finger dexterity
Manipulating pop-up toys requires babies to use their fingers with precision and control. Whether they need to push a button or turn a dial to activate the toy, babies are improving their finger dexterity and fine motor skills. This type of play can strengthen the muscles in their hands and fingers, preparing them for more complex tasks in the future.
Toys on a String
Toys on a string are great for promoting sensory exploration in 9-12-month-old babies. These toys typically consist of colorful objects or shapes strung together on a cord. Babies can grasp the string and explore the toys by pulling them along, stimulating their senses and encouraging curiosity. Playing with toys on a string can also help babies develop their visual tracking skills and hand-eye coordination.
Promotes sensory exploration
Toys on a string offer babies a variety of textures, colors, and shapes to touch, feel, and explore. By engaging with these toys, babies can stimulate their senses and enhance their sensory perception. The tactile experience of reaching for and manipulating the objects on the string can promote sensory exploration and cognitive development.
Encourages visual tracking skills
As babies interact with toys on a string, they are engaging their visual tracking skills. Following the movement of the toys as they are pulled along the string can help babies improve their ability to visually track objects in motion. This skill is essential for activities like reading, sports, and everyday tasks that require hand-eye coordination and tracking.
Board Books
Board books are essential for stimulating language development in 9-12-month-old babies. These books are designed with sturdy pages that are easy for babies to handle and explore. By reading board books together, parents can introduce babies to new words, sounds, and images, fostering early literacy skills and promoting bonding during storytime.
Stimulates language development
Reading board books to babies exposes them to a variety of words and sounds, helping expand their vocabulary and language skills. Babies benefit from hearing different types of language patterns and tones, which can support their language development. Pointing out pictures in board books and naming objects can also enhance babies’ comprehension and communication abilities.
Fosters bonding during storytime
Sharing board books with babies creates special bonding moments between parents and their little ones. Snuggling up together to read a book not only provides a chance for learning but also strengthens the parent-child relationship. The interactive nature of reading board books, where parents engage babies by pointing, talking, and listening, can enhance the bond between parent and baby.
Puzzles
Puzzles are excellent toys for enhancing problem-solving skills in 9-12-month-old babies. Simple puzzles with large, easy-to-grasp pieces can engage babies in critical thinking and spatial reasoning. By attempting to fit puzzle pieces together, babies can build their problem-solving abilities and develop a better understanding of shapes, sizes, and spatial relationships.
Enhances problem-solving skills
Solving puzzles requires babies to analyze shapes, sizes, and patterns to fit the pieces together correctly. This process encourages problem-solving skills as babies figure out the right combination of pieces to complete the puzzle. Through trial and error, babies can learn persistence, patience, and critical thinking while working on puzzles.
Encourages independent play
Playing with puzzles can also promote independent play in babies. As they engage with the puzzle pieces and try to solve the puzzle on their own, babies develop a sense of autonomy and confidence. This independent playtime allows babies to explore, experiment, and problem-solve at their own pace, fostering self-reliance and concentration.
Blocks
Blocks are versatile toys that promote creativity, imagination, and hand strength in 9-12-month-old babies. These toys come in various shapes, sizes, and colors, allowing babies to stack, build, and knock down structures. Playing with blocks can stimulate babies’ creativity, encourage imaginative play, and help develop their hand muscles through gripping and stacking activities.
Promotes creativity and imagination
Blocks offer babies endless possibilities for building unique structures and creations. By experimenting with different block arrangements, babies can unleash their creativity and explore spatial relationships. Building and stacking with blocks encourages imaginative play and allows babies to express themselves through hands-on activities.
Develops hand strength
Manipulating blocks requires babies to use their hands and fingers to grip, stack, and maneuver the pieces. This physical activity can help strengthen the muscles in their hands and improve their hand strength. By handling blocks of different shapes and sizes, babies engage in fine motor movements that contribute to hand-eye coordination and dexterity.
Stacking Toys
Stacking toys are beneficial for improving hand-eye coordination and enhancing spatial awareness in 9-12-month-old babies. These toys typically consist of blocks, rings, or shapes that babies can stack on top of each other. By stacking and unstacking the pieces, babies practice precise movements and develop a better understanding of depth, height, and balance.
Improves hand-eye coordination
Stacking toys require babies to use their hands and eyes in coordination to stack the pieces accurately. As they grasp and place each piece on top of another, babies enhance their hand-eye coordination and precision. This skill is essential for tasks like reaching, grabbing, and pointing, laying a foundation for future activities that require accuracy and dexterity.
Enhances spatial awareness
Playing with stacking toys can help babies develop spatial awareness and understanding of object relationships. By arranging the pieces in various configurations, babies learn about concepts like balance, symmetry, and structure. Engaging with stacking toys challenges babies to visualize and manipulate objects in three-dimensional space, improving their spatial perception and problem-solving abilities.
Trolleys
Trolleys are excellent toys that aid in gross motor skills development and encourage babies to walk and push objects. These toys typically come in the form of wheeled carts or wagons that babies can push around and practice walking with. By engaging with trolleys, babies can strengthen their leg muscles, improve their balance, and develop coordination skills.
Aids in gross motor skills development
Pushing trolleys requires babies to use their leg muscles and coordination to move the cart forward. This physical activity helps strengthen their gross motor skills, including balance, coordination, and strength. By walking alongside or behind the trolley, babies engage in active play that supports their physical development and mobility.
Encourages walking and pushing
Trolleys provide babies with opportunities to practice walking and pushing objects in a controlled environment. As babies hold onto the trolley handle and guide it around, they improve their balance and control while moving. This pushing activity can motivate babies to take steps, support their walking progress, and encourage them to explore their surroundings actively.
Avoid Baby Play Stations and Walkers
While there are many beneficial toys for 9-12-month-old babies, it’s essential to be cautious about certain options that may pose risks. Baby play stations and walkers are two types of toys that experts recommend avoiding due to safety concerns and potential developmental delays. These toys can restrict movement, limit natural motor development, and increase the risk of accidents for babies in this age group.
Risk of delayed development
Baby play stations and walkers can hinder babies’ natural motor development by providing support and confinement that may prevent them from exploring and moving freely. Babies who spend extended periods in play stations or walkers may miss out on essential opportunities to crawl, cruise, and practice independent movement, leading to potential delays in gross motor skills development.
Safety concerns outlined by experts
Experts caution against the prolonged use of baby play stations and walkers due to potential safety risks. Babies in play stations may be at risk of tipping over, falling, or getting trapped, especially if left unattended. Walkers can pose hazards such as falling down stairs, reaching dangerous objects, or moving too fast for babies to control. To minimize the risk of accidents and support healthy development, it’s advisable to avoid these toys and choose alternatives that encourage safe, natural movement and exploration.