5 Inexpensive Toys for Toddlers Every Parent Should Have
- ingahspeech
- Jul 29, 2024
- 2 min read
Every parent wants the best for their growing child. But does the best mean you have to put such a huge dent in your wallet? Absolutely not! As children age and grow, they also age out of toys, and likely once mastered, become a little bored, just like we do when we’ve mastered a game online. So why should you stress over getting the latest new toy for your child when there are simple, inexpensive options that will help your child to develop their skills? Skip the toys that need batteries and cost a fortune.
Many of these will seem obvious, and you may already have them ready to go!
1. Bubbles
Cheap and simple but provide lots of entertainment as well as language and motor skill opportunities. With each turn, your child can request ‘more’ or ‘more bubbles’ and then ‘pop’! Skip the bubble machine, just go pick up a small bottle. It’s a speech therapist’s secret weapon. And if you’re worried about the mess, check out Fubbles. A child can hold the small bottle, flip it over, and it won’t spill out!
2. Mr./Ms. Potatohead This toy covers a lot of bases and you can likely find one for under $10. Not only will your child develop fine motor skills, but they will learn how to identify and name body parts, and you can even throw in some following directions such as “Put on the hat and then the nose!”
3. Blocks Stack them ‘up, up, up’ and then knock them ‘down’! If your child is working on colors, you can provide instruction to sort them and stack by color. These are a versatile toy and can be incorporated into many different activities. 4. Play Dough Many parents are hesitant to try this as it might cause a mess. This is an activity that you can share with your toddler to reduce any dough getting stuck to your furniture. Not only does it allow your toddler to explore new textures, but you can work on following directions and using language. ‘Roll the play dough!’ or ‘Cut the play dough!’ You don’t need to purchase a lot of accessories. Take a trip to the dollar store to pick up some plastic toy utensils like a knife, fork, and spoon and some cookie cutters and you’ll have all you need for a fun activity. 5. A Ball It’s pretty simple, right? How does a ball lead to language? Well, what do you do when you talk? You take turns, back and forth. The same with playing with a ball. Roll the ball to your child, name the action. Maybe you try bouncing it to each other while saying ‘bounce’. You can set up each turn with ‘ready, set…go!’ This simple activity is expanding your child’s attention, developing that back and forth required for all communication, and it’s a great bonding exercise for you and your child. And of course, easy on your bank account.
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