Age Appropriate Toys
So you want to purchase an age appropriate toy for a child, but you aren’t sure what to buy? There are several factors that you have to consider when deciding what’s best. The easiest way to remember these factors is to always be SAFE.
S - Supervision
Children need to be supervised, especially young children. Regardless of age, you never know what can happen if you leave your child alone. Because you can’t be in two places at once, here are some tips for keeping you child safe if you have to leave the room for a quick minute:
- Do a scan of the room before bringing children in. If you see anything that could pose a problem, remove it, hide it, or block it off. Make sure the room is safe enough for your child to be in.
- Provide age appropriate toys for the child, and let them pick which ones they want to use. If you have to dig for one of the child’s favourites, they may be able to get into trouble while you’re trying to find it.
- Inspect the toys before use. Make sure to check them regularly to prevent injury.
- If you have more than one child, they will want to share toys. Make sure that the older child knows what toys the younger child is not allowed to play with. If your oldest has an action figure made of hard plastics that could potentially harm your youngest, make sure your oldest knows not to have that toy anywhere near baby.
- Teach your children do’s and don’ts with their toys. Although the superman action figure may have an awesome cape, don’t throw him at your baby brother to show him how well superman can fly.
A - Age Appropriate
As children get older, their dexterity gets better. This means that they are able to play with smaller pieces without difficultly. When babies are young, they have little dexterity and therefore learn the large majority of textures and materials with their mouth. This is one of the reasons why babies put EVERYTHING in their mouths.
- You can avoid this by looking at the packaging of the toy. Many companies put the recommended age appropriate category for the toy right on the label. This is a great frame of reference for whether this toy is age appropriate.
- Also consider what developmental stage the child is in. The older they get, the more they learn, and different toys teach them different things.
F - Free of Hazards
Children are developing their dexterity from the time they are born until approximately age 12. Because of this, they often have difficulty with complicated toys with many small pieces. A good rule of thumb is to consider how well the child pours a glass of water. If they can pour the water without spilling any, they have fairly good dexterity. If not, some of the high-tech toys on the market would be too hard to use for them.
E - Equipment
Make sure to provide all the equipment a child needs to play with a toy safely. If a child is going to be learning to ride a bike, provide all the extras that a child needs. Examples: a helmet, pads, a bell (which is actually a legal requirement in most provinces/states). All of the extras keep your child safe and less likely to get seriously injured.
If these tips haven’t helped at all, here’s some sample gift ideas:
Infants
- Soft toys (ie. Dolls, stuffed animals – without plastic noses & eyes, etc)
- Bath toys
- Noisemakers (rattles, squeaky toys)
- Cloth books
Toddlers (Aged 1-3)
- Balls
- Blocks
- Books
- Stackable toys
Elementary School (Age5-9)
- Books
- Simple sports equipment (soccer ball, skipping rope)
- Craft supplies
Middle School (Aged 9-13)
- Board games
- Computers
- Sports equipment & gear
Whatever toy you choose, make sure that it's age appropriate for the child, and that it's something he or she would actually enjoy.