A pedi OT's gift guide to help prep those little hands for big skills in kindergarten!
Sections
6
0-6 Month Play
6-18 Month Play
18-24 Month Play
2-3 Year Olds
3-4 Year Olds
4-5 Year Olds
0-6 Month Play
This mat has everything a baby needs! Sensory play + contrasting colors to catch baby's attention.
Lovevery Play Gym | Baby Activity Mat
Endless fun for baby and great toy for learning to reach + aim hands at a target!
Spinning Drum Montessori Infant Toy
Sensory books, a mobile, a mirror, and contrasting cards to engage baby during tummy time!
Lovery Looker Play Kit |
Great for oral motor exploration!
Teether Toys for Babies | Nuby US
Develop those early visual skills for your baby with these high-contrast books!
Books for early visual skills
Engaging books that teach babies about different body parts and routines!
Books to practice body parts, see a bath routine, and say hello
Mess-free visual + tactile sensory exploration for your baby!
Montessori Tummy Time Water Mat
6-18 Month Play
Nesting cups, peekaboo puzzle, and sensory balls.
Lovevery Inspector Play Kit
Babies will love making marks on paper anytime they try! Great for grasp development and first strokes when drawing.
Crayola My First Egg Crayons
Perfect for playing in sitting on the floor, pulling to stand, and first steps!
Tiny Land® Wooden Activity Walker
Babies learn colors, practice finger isolation, and hand strength!
Fat Brain Toys Original Dimpl
Great for stacking and grasping skills!
Uncle Goose: Wooden Block Toys
Excellet toys for grasp development and visual-motor skills!
Lovevery Babbler Play Kit |
Tunnels are wonderful for open-ended play, crawling, and social games!
Lovevery Play Tunnel |
Parents + babies will love learning those first baby signs with these helpful books!
Books for peek-a-boo, rhyming, and learning baby signs
Excellent first books to teach toddlers about emotions + exploring new foods!
Books for teaching emotions + new foods
Engage your toddler in fun uh-oh moments, first words, and early counting skills with these great books!
Books for first words, fun uh-ohs, and early math skills
Excellent early problem-solving toy!
Fat Brain Toys InnyBin Shape Learning Toy
Great toy for finger isolation, hand strength, color + shape recognition!
Dimpl Duo - Best Baby Toys & Gifts for Babies
Classic toy that teaches toddlers cause + effect in a very fun way!
Fat Brain Toys SpinAgain Stacking Toy
Excellent toy that can be played with so many ways! Animals, nesting blocks, building a tower, animal homes, and the list goes on!
Toddler Farm Animal Sorting & Stacking Toys
Excellent for babies just learning to crawl- helps strengthen and encourage movement!
Climb and Crawl Playset
This toy is amazing for developing hand strength through play as toddlers pull animals out and push them back in! Endless pretend play schemes created with this fun toy!
Forest Friends Treehouse
18-24 Month Play
Great for learning rhythm and social play! Will be used for years to come.
Montessori Wooden Music Set
Wonderful open-ended toy for peek-a-boo, dress-up, and imaginative play that will last for years!
Children's Playsilks |
Animal matching, tweezer play, simple puzzle skills and fasteners - so many great fine motor activities in this kit!
Lovevery Companion Play Kit |
Great for learning shapes and matching.
Shape Sorter Toys
Excellent for pushing/pulling skills and matching!
Melissa & Doug Pop Blocs Farm Animals
Pretend play and social play for years with this doctor kit
Kidzlane Doctor Kit for Kids
Excellent resources to help toddlers learn routines + build independence - I use these with my own kiddos!
Toddler Routines Mini Kit
A great book to teach littles about safe hands.
'Hitting Hurts' Board Book
Classic car ramp provides endless fun!
Joyreal Montessori Wooden Car Ramp Race Set
Baby dolls provide hours of open-ended pretend play!
11in Soft Body Boy Baby Doll w/ Pacifier
Doll strollers are great for expanding toddlers’ pretend play schemes.
The Buddy Stroller | Wooden Toy Stroller & Walker
Excellent sensory bin - works for ALL types of water, sand, dough, paint + more sensory play! Can use as one large bin or place the sections in to add a variety of sensory play at once. Lid can also be used on it's own!
Inspire My Play Sensory Bin with Lid
2-3 Year Olds
Magical working sink for water play anywhere!
Lovevery Helper Play Kit |
Vertical drawing and painting help develop arm and wrist strength.
Drawing Easel for Kids
Open-ended building for years to come!
MAGNA-TILES®
Kiddos build hand strength by squeezing and squirting and they can help clean too!
Let's Play House! Spray, Squirt & Squeegee Play Set
Let your kiddo help out in the kitchen! Toddlers love this stool, and it keeps them safely contained during cooking.
Foldable Kitchen Helper® Stool for Toddlers
Perfect indoor climber for toddlers!
Climber Pikler Triangle Set by Piccalio
Your littles will LOVE joining you in the kitchen - make it easy + fun!
Toddler Food Prep Mini Kit
Fun first board game for preschoolers!
Orchard Cooperative Board Game
3-4 Year Olds
The letters are made from the best material for sensory learners - squishy, firm, washable for endless fun!
Letter + Number Puzzles
Preschoolers learn to dress for the weather and read books about big feelings!
Lovevery Observer Play Kit |
Kiddos learn to wait, toss, and jump during this social game!
Fat Brain Toys Musical Jump 'n Toss
Years of fun and pretend play with this play kitchen!
Play Kitchen
Kids will love playing with this toy food in their play kitchen!
Pretend Play Food and Accessories
Sensory play gets an upgrade with this excellent sand + water table!
Water and Sand Sensory Table
Get your littles involved in cooking with these kid-safe tools!
Montessori Toddlers Cooking Set
Awesome indoor jungle gym to develop those climbing skills in preschoolers!
Indoor Wooden Playground | Magnolia Playset
Short on space but still need a great way to get your kiddos energy out in those cold winter months? This foldable gymnastics bar is an excellent way for kiddos to hang, flip, build strength, and get ALL that sensory input they need! It folds up supe...
Safly Fun Gymnastics Bar For Kids
Hands-down the best books on emotions!
Books for toddlers to learn naming emotions and working through them
Excellent book for littles starting preschool AND for the start of each school year!
'Felix Goes to Preschool' Book
Excellent + sturdy stepping stones for balance and gross motor play!
Stepping Stones
Fun board game for preschoolers and their whole family!
ThinkFun Zingo Bingo Preschool Game
Perfect dollhouse for pretend play- I love how open it is for little hands to move dolls and furniture around!
Hape All Seasons Dollhouse
Great, bendable dolls for dollhouse!
Dollhouse Dolls | Little Friends Bendable Dolls
This balance bike is excellent for preschoolers- both my kids were riding bikes by age 4 with these!
woom ORIGINAL 1 Kids Balance Bike | Toddler Starter Bikes
Working sink with running water bring this play kitchen to a whole new level for multisensory pretend play!
The Real Life Play Kitchen
4-5 Year Olds
Squeezing scoopers = sneaky scissor prep. Stronger hands, better control, happier cutting later on. Play-based learning for the win! 🙌💛
Handy Scoopers™ Scissor Skills
Hands-down the BEST visual schedule out there for preschoolers + K kiddos to understand their weekly routine!
Lovevery Examiner Play Kit
Make reading fun from the start! Perfect for pre-k kiddos learning letter sounds + rhyming words through fun games!
The Reading Skill Set | Reading Programs for Kids
Little ones can practice hand skills rolling play-doh and learn letter formation by building each letter!
Roll–A–Dough Letters®
Excellent toys for early literacy skills!
Lovevery Persister Play Kit |
Excellent indoor jungle gym for advanced gross motor skills as kiddos get older - and it folds!
Foldable 8-in-1 Indoor Jungle Gym |
A great set of books on EVERY emotion - so parents + kiddos can work through them together!
Emotion Book Set
Kiddos start understanding time with this fun toy!
Shape Sorting Clock
Number recognition + early math skills make this game perfect for entering K kiddos!
Think Fun Zingo 1-2-3
Help your kiddos learn the seasons + months of the year with this interactive calendar!
Wooden Wheel Calendar with Months
Great for creative art projects in the kiddos' art area!
Kaplan Wooden Tape Dispenser with 8 Colorful Rolls
