Sensory

For many children, including some children with Special Educational Needs. Sensory toys can be a fantastic gift for Christmas. They can provide relaxation and calm and/or stimulate the senses. Here’s some of our favourites for 2019.*

• • Mermaid Sequin Cushion Covers  ‘Magic’ sequin cushions are a lovely sensory experience for so many children. You can brush your hand over the sequins and they move, changing the colour of the cushion! We particularly liked these cushion covers by Jane Crafts, that are great value and come in a range of colours and designs.
    
  • Sensory Fidget Stretchy String Toy (pack of 7)  These would make a lovely stocking filler for children who enjoy fidget toys. Designed to reduce anxiety and stress for all children, including those with ADHD, this pack of seven different coloured stretchy strings are great.

• • Infantino Sensory Sound and Light Activity Ball – different textures, songs and lights, this clever little sensory ball has it all. Fantastic for babies and or some children with special educational needs who may benefit from sensory toys.

• • Silishapes Sensory Circles Set– We love these! Fantastic toy for sensory seeking children who love to be active! They can play games jumping and hopping from each mat, feeling the textures with their feet. Theres even a handful of smaller circles for children to feel with their hands, or even play a game of guessing which one by hiding it in the bag and describing what they can feel. Love it!

• Infinity Mirror Tunnel Lamp by Playlearn – Theres something absolutely mesmerising and calming about these Infinity Mirror Tunnels and this one is great. Would make a good addition to a sensory den or room.

• • Large Light up Flashing Tambourines– For those children that love music and lights, this is brilliant. Works like a ‘real’ tambourine and has different flashing sequences of light.

• Busy Blanket Sensory Sack (Body Sock) Body Socks have become a bit of craze over the last year or so. They claim to have huge benefits for children with sensory needs, with the pressure of the sack helping them to feel calm and relaxed. (Please note they should be used with adult supervision)

Imaginative Play

Many children enjoy submerging themselves in imaginative play. Here are our current favourite imaginative play toys.

• Sylvanian Families It might be a personal bias including Sylvanian Families (having grown up playing with them and now loving seeing little ones enjoying them even now) ..but they are brilliant. Possibly the cutest imaginative play toys created. Children love their adorable features, articulated arms, legs and heads and their sweet little outfits. They are also fabulous for teaching children about family life. My current favourite are the Chocolate Rabbit Family below, with their cute brown tipped ears- but there’s a whole range to choose from.

• Bigjigs Toys Wooden Biscuit Box & Assorted Wooden Biscuits – Pretend Play and Role Play for Children Aren’t these gorgeous! Lovely imaginative play biscuit set for children to pretend to serve Christmas biscuits..not quite as tasty (haha!) but they will last a lot longer!

• Melissa & Doug Joey Magnetic Wooden Dress-Up Pretend Play Set (25+ pcs)

These magnetic wooden dress up sets are very well loved by young kids. Such a simple design that provides hours of fun. Because its magnetic, they make a great travel toy too as its difficult to loose the pieces!

Active Toys

Lets face it kids have lots of energy to burn off and buying a toy to allow them to use all this energy can not only be a present for the kids…but the parents too!  Here are our top recommended active toys for 2019.

• Learning Resources EI-5261 Kidnoculars Extreme-GeoSafari Jr I don’t know about your kids, but I’ve noticed kids REALLY like binoculars…there’s something about them that draws children to them. The only problem is binoculars are usually expensive, delicate…and belong to grown ups! And don’t get me started on the strap that dangerously goes round their necks!! That’s why I was over the moon to discover these kid friendly ‘Kidnoculars’ by Learning Resources UK. They have a safety strap, easy focus, 3x magnification and they are just lovely and chunky, easy to hold…and even have added sound amplification! Lovely present for active children who enjoy adventures.

• Little Tikes Trampoline – This indoor trampoline is wonderful for helping young children burn off their energy! The handle bar provides stability and it has a large area to jump on! Trampolines are brilliant for so many children but with the cold, wet weather outdoor ones are often not used this time of year.

• • Pop Up Play Tunnel by Kid Active– Kids love tunnels and this great value one is brilliant as it folds up nicely, so its not going to take over your house! We also love the holes in the side, that would fit small ‘ball pit’ balls through, for added fun!
    
  • Foam Pogo Jumper– Anyone else just a tiny bit excited that a version of the Pogo Stick is making a comeback?! Have a look at these foam pogo jumpers!! They come in a range of colours!

*Please note we were sent a couple of samples for review, some products we have bought ourselves. This post contains amazon affiliate links, for more details please read are About me section.