Parents often wonder what toys are best for their babies.
Can my newborn even see them yet? Do they have to be red, white, and black? Should they play music and flash lots of colorful lights? The best way to answer questions about baby toys is to help you first understand play itself.
After all, play is often said to be "work" of children, which by definition makes their toys the fundamental tools of their trade.
That said, playing for babies is really the same thing as learning.
What makes a toy truly educational is not how much it costs or its color coordination, but its ability to entertain and encourage your baby to explore, engage, and interact.
It's a principle that's well worth taking to heart now (not to mention remembering over the next several years when you are faced with countless toy temptations).
Safety First According to the Consumer product Safety Commission (CPSC), bigger is better when it comes to safety and baby toys.
While bigger toys are just as enjoyable, they don't present the choking hazard that small toys or toy parts pose to babies and children all the way up to age 3.
There are specific products, or "testers," on the market that can help you determine which toys and other little object that may be strewn around your house stand to be choking hazards.
For a free and convenient gauge, you can also grab a toilet paper roll.
Anything small enough to fit through one of these testers or a toilet paper roll is simply too small for your baby to play with because it could all too easily make its way into her mouth and potentially cause choking or block the airway.
Black and White and Red All Over Young babies are known to see bright colors and high contrast best.
That's why the manufacturers of baby toys often include lots of black and white (for contrast), mixed with a splash or two of bright red color in many of their "educational" toys for babies.
While this makes good sense, and we've seen everything from mobiles, play yards, balls, and toys to bed sets and floor mats in this cute and popular baby motif, in reality you really don't need to limit your baby's color palette for the purposes of meaningful play.
Books as Toys Whoever invented board books was brilliant.
By making books durable, colorful, and designed to stand up under the scrutiny of inquiring mouth, board books clearly fit the bill as ideal baby toys that are both readily available and relatively inexpensive.