The first months of a baby’s life are crucial for their development, and choosing the right toys for babies and newborns can make a significant difference. Baby and newborn toys are designed to promote healthy and happy growth, going far beyond mere entertainment. They are essential tools for sensory, motor, and cognitive stimulation. Through baby and newborn toys, babies begin to explore the world, developing fine and gross motor coordination, while also learning basic concepts like cause and effect.
Another important advantage of baby and newborn toys is that they create valuable moments of interaction between parents and children, fostering communication and strengthening emotional bonds.
Choosing the most suitable baby and newborn toys should not be done at random. These toys are fundamental to supporting children’s early development and should be considered valuable tools to stimulate the senses and promote cognitive and motor growth. Baby and newborn toys play a crucial role from the very first days of life.
Baby and newborn toys have a direct impact on sensory stimulation and motor development. Providing the baby with different textures, colours, and sounds through baby and newborn toys helps awaken the senses. Newborn toys like colourful mobiles attract visual attention, while soft-sounding rattles introduce auditory perception. Baby and newborn toys that encourage movement, such as activity mats, help develop motor skills, strengthen muscles, and improve hand-eye coordination.
Comfort blankets ("doudous") are among the most popular baby and newborn toys for parents and caregivers. Though simple, they play an important role in babies' emotional and psychological development. These baby and newborn toys are invaluable in preventing anxiety. Let’s explore their main benefits:
The constant presence of a familiar object can help soothe the baby, especially in new environments or unfamiliar situations. This is similar to the effect of "transitional objects" described by psychoanalyst Donald Winnicott, which help babies cope with separation anxiety from their parents.
Particularly useful at bedtime, doudous absorb familiar scents, like those of the parents or the home environment, helping to calm the baby and ease the transition to sleep. This soothing effect can reduce difficulties in falling asleep and promote deeper, more restful sleep.
By providing a constant source of comfort, doudous help babies develop self-soothing skills and cope with feelings of stress or anxiety. This ability to self-regulate emotions is an important step towards developing autonomy.
During the early years, babies go through phases of separation anxiety when the absence of their parents causes great distress. In these moments, the doudou acts as a symbolic link, giving the child a sense of presence, even when the parents are not nearby. This can make separation less traumatic.
In transitional moments, such as starting nursery or moving house, having a familiar object provides comfort and stability, helping the child adjust more easily.
Rattles and teething toys are essential baby and newborn toys during the first months of life. They play a crucial role in sensory and motor development, as well as relieving teething discomfort.
Rattles help babies understand cause-and-effect relationships through the sound created when they are shaken.
By trying to hold and shake the rattle, babies strengthen the muscles in their hands and arms and improve fine motor coordination. Hand-eye coordination is also enhanced as babies observe the relationship between what they see and what their hands are doing.
Designed to be chewed on, teething toys provide relief from the discomfort caused by teething by applying pressure to sore gums.
Additionally, these baby and newborn toys help strengthen the mouth and jaw muscles, preparing babies for solid food. Since they are constantly in contact with the mouth, they should be made from safe, non-toxic materials like silicone and rubber, and be easy to clean.
Activity mats are among the most valuable baby and newborn toys for early development. Designed to provide a variety of visual, auditory, and tactile stimuli, they are baby and newborn toys that most promote cognitive and motor development from the earliest days of life. These baby and newborn toys support development on several levels:
Equipped with colourful toys, mirrors, and sound elements, they offer a rich sensory experience that aids in the development of the baby’s vision, hearing, and touch.
Activity mats encourage babies to explore and move, stimulating the development of both gross and fine motor skills. Whether lifting their head during tummy time or reaching for and grasping different elements, babies strengthen essential muscles.
Components such as removable toys, varied textures, and mirrors contribute to cognitive development by stimulating curiosity and the desire to explore. Interaction with these baby and newborn toys also promotes an understanding of cause and effect and problem-solving skills.
Activity mats are perfect for tummy time, an essential practice for strengthening the neck, shoulder, and back muscles. In this way, babies prepare for key motor milestones such as rolling, sitting, and crawling.
Padded and soft, activity mats provide a safe and comfortable space for babies to practise their first movements and explore freely.
As with other baby and newborn toys, to ensure safety, constant supervision is essential while the baby is on the activity mat. This also allows for greater interaction and encouragement during playtime.
Alternating the baby’s position on the mat is important to introduce new perspectives for exploration and ensure that different muscles are exercised.
The activity mat is an excellent opportunity to spend quality time with the baby, whether by speaking “baby talk,” singing, or playing together.
Adding or swapping out toys regularly is a great strategy to keep the baby interested and provide new challenges.
Choosing the best baby and newborn toys can be a challenging task given the wide variety available on the market. However, it is crucial that the chosen baby and newborn toys stimulate sensory, motor, and cognitive development while also entertaining the baby.
Checklist for selecting appropriate, beneficial, and educational baby and newborn toys:
Always check the recommended age on the toy label. This guidance is based on safety rules and the child’s developmental stage.
Ensure that toys are made from durable and safe materials, without small parts that could come loose and pose a choking hazard.
Similarly, make sure that toys have no sharp edges or rough surfaces that could cause injury.
To be reliable, toys for babies and newborns should come with safety certifications. These certifications confirm that the toy has been tested and approved according to current safety standards.
All toys for babies and newborns come with instructions and warning labels. Read them carefully, as they contain valuable information on how to use the toy safely.
The best options for baby and newborn toys stimulate the senses. Mobiles with bright colours, rattles with different sounds, and activity mats with various textures are excellent choices.
As babies grow, toys should help develop motor coordination. Stacking blocks, push-and-pull toys, and activity mats with interactive elements are ideal for this purpose.
For older babies, choose toys that promote cognitive skills. Shape sorters, simple puzzles, and toys that teach shapes, colours, and numbers help develop reasoning and problem-solving skills.
Now that you know what to look for, find the best baby and newborn toys here.
