A sensory toy can be any toy that stimulates any one of our senses (touch, sight, smell, sound, hearing, movement, and pressure). Using sensory toys with babies can be a great way to encourage play, exploration, and interaction.
To learn more about the theory behind sensory toys and sensory play, check out my blog post on Everything You Need to Know About Sensory Toys.
Also, before we talk about sensory toys for babies, it is important to mention that babies don’t need that many toys in general. Playing and interacting with you is the best sensory play you can provide. While exposing babies to sensory toys is nice, it’s best to not overdo it so as not to overstimulate them.
And yes, that is a thing!
There are many toys made for babies that are overly busy, confusing, and just a lot for a baby to focus on. This can lead to the opposite of what we are trying to accomplish, which is focused interactive play and learning.
So choosing toys with gentle/neutral colors and with one clear function is usually a good rule for buying toys for babies. The trick is to make sure that the child is playing more than the toy.
Here ere are a few sensory toys that would be great to introduce to your baby…
1) Sooth ‘n Snuggle Otter is adorable. He is also designed to engage a baby’s sense of sight, touch, and hearing. He can be customized to play music, rhythmic sounds, and more.
2) Ditty Bird books are interactive musical books. Each page has a button that plays a unique song. These books are great for teaching cause and effect since a button has to be pushed to start the song and then again to stop it. I love that this set also comes with baby wooden maracas. Super fun way to engage the auditory sense!
3) Pat and Play Water Mat provides a fun tactile experience for babies. It’s also great to use during tummy time.
4) One Two Squeeze Blocks are a set of 10 soft blocks with textures. They are a great for stacking, squeezing, and even chewing.
5) This touch & feel board book comes with soft and “rough” textures for a baby to explore. The little tail in the back is also adorable!
6) Rockers are great for allowing a baby to experience the sense of movement. Gentle movement and vibration can be calming for a baby. Supervision required.
7) Suction Kupz are a great tactile toy for babies. The Kupz are made out of a soft squishy silicone material that is bendable and squeezable. They also have suctions at the bottom which attach to one another and other flat surfaces. This toy can be used to engage a baby in lots of creative ways.
8) Flappy the Elephant is an adorable toy that sings “Do your ears hang low” as he flaps his ears to the music. He also plays “peek a boo.” Flappy the Elephant is an excellent toy to stimulate a baby’s visual and auditory sense.
9) This Cactus teething toy is great for providing sensory input to the mouth with all of its ridges and curves. It can also be used as a baby toothbrush!
10) This Baby newspaper is a super unique toy that has been a favorite of mine for quite some time. It makes a fun crinkling sound as it is squeezed and manipulated, and then automatically returns back to its original form once released.
11) This Touch & Feel wooden inset puzzles comes with four animals with fuzzy bellies for children to feel. The pieces can also stand on their own which is great for encouraging fine motor control and imaginative play.
12) This is a soft activity book designed for tummy time. It includes crinkling pages, a baby mirror, and a teething toy. Soft books are great for tactile exploration and mirrors are great for visual stimulation.
