Using Toys to Support Infant-Toddler

Learning and Development

Gabriel Guyton

Colorful scarves fill the air in a mixed-age, Vicky understands where Maggie is
inclusive infant and toddler classroom. Most of developmentally and also knows Maggie
the young children dance and move, swaying enjoys filling and dumping. The teacher stuffs
their bodies and hands while waving their scarves inside an empty tissue box, leaving a
scarves. Maggie is 2 ½ years old, but her play small piece poking out. Maggie excitedly pulls
skills are more typical of a younger child. scarves from the box and laughs; a new game
Instead of dancing with others, she sits alone, is born. By being aware of Maggie’s
happily mouthing a few scarves. Her teacher, developmental skills and interests, Vicky has
Vicky, wants to help Maggie expand her play. used a simple toy to facilitate the toddler’s
cognitive development through play.

C
hoosing toys and activities that are suitable for infants and toddlers can challenge
even the most experienced teacher. By being mindful of the basic principles of child
development and the role of play, teachers can intentionally select toys to meet young
children’s unique needs and interests, supporting learning. It is also important to be aware of
the essential role of teacher-child interactions. When teachers engage with children as they
play, teachers help children make sense of their experiences and
promote children’s further exploration (Johnson & Johnson 2006). By being mindful of
the basic principles
of child
development and the
Gabriel Guyton, MA, MSEd, is a Understanding
special education teacher for role of play, teachers
children ages 5 and under at Bank development and toys can intentionally
Street Family Center in New York select toys to meet
City. In addition to a master’s Play is the mechanism by young children’s
degree in psychology or counseling which children learn - how they unique needs and
and an Infant, toddler, and Family
experience their world, practice interests, supporting
Specialist certificate, she has more
than 10 years of experience
new skills, and internalize new learning.
working with children, including two ideas - and is therefore the
years supervisory experience and essential “work of children” (Paley 2004). Through this
five years as an early intervention continuous and expanding process, early skills give rise to new
specialist. Gabriel has taught ones and new experiences are integrated with previous ones.
infants to 3-year-olds in Thailand. Through play, children learn about the world and engage in
activities that encourage their cognitive, emotional,

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and social development (Elkind 2007). For Homemade toys and readily
example, when a child bangs on a drum, she
available materials
learns she can create a sound. Through play,
she learns the important concept of cause and
effect. Many advertisements lead consumers to
think that toys are better if they are expensive,
Teachers can build on children’s play by store-bought items. In reality, the best toys are
providing engaging toys. Effective toys are safe those selected based on their appropriateness
and suited to the child’s age, abilities, and for the child’s age, development, and interests.
interests. When a child expresses an interest Engaging toys are often homemade or readily
in animals, for example, a teacher can build on available items such as fabric, bottles,
this by adding animal toys to block play. Block cardboard boxes, yarn, cooking pans,
play provides a foundation for learning about pinecones - the options are practically
problem solving and basic math and science limitless. This is especially important to keep in
concepts. mind for economically challenged communities
or just plain busy people. Even for people with
Child development occurs across several the time and resources, making toys can be a
domains, including language, fine motor, gross more personal way to build relationships
motor, social-emotional, and cognitive between teachers and children. Using photos of
development. When choosing materials and family members to make stick puppets, for
planning learning activities for children, example, is a wonderful way to bring the child’s
teachers can consider how the toys and home into the classroom.
experiences will support development within
and across domains. Certain toys promote When choosing materials for toys, it is
behaviors that encourage development within important to consider the children’s
certain domains. For example, teachers can communities and cultures. Teachers can bring
nurture the cognitive skill of object into the classroom elements of different
permanence by hiding a toy under a scarf and languages, dress, and music. When choosing
playing the classic peek-a-boo game. or making books, for example, some can reflect
the cultures and languages of the children.
A child’s cognitive development involves Similarly, dolls, dress-up clothes, and pretend
thinking skills - the ability to process food should represent children’s families and
information to understand how the world communities.
works. Toys and play naturally provide
opportunities for practicing different thinking A little creativity combined with basic
skills, such as imitation, cause and effect, materials can stimulate play and facilitate a
problem solving, and symbolic thinking. When young child’s development across all domains
a teacher models drumming on pots and pans, (including cognitive). For example, teachers can
a child imitates and quickly learns to make a use cardboard boxes, plastic dishes, pie tins,
noise of his own. Offering this opportunity to and sock puppets. In the following section, all
play allows the child to practice imitation, to of the suggested toys and materials can be
experience cause and effect, and to have fun handmade using easily acquired or inexpensive
discovering how the world works. materials.

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 that can be
Thinking about Safety Many toys are addressed with
open-ended— the toys. Keep in
When selecting toys, it is critical to consider appropriate for mind that a lot of
the numerous safety issues specific to different toys are open-
children at
developmental stages. Choking and falling are two ended—
concerns for infants and toddlers. Children love to different ages and
appropriate for
move, and young children learning to control their developmental children at
bodies often fall or bump into things. Toys and other levels. different ages and
classroom materials should not have sharp edges or
projections. Infants and toddlers often explore their developmental
world by putting things in their mouths. Small levels. Children can use these toys in many
buttons or pieces that come off easily are choking different ways, and they will hopefully
hazards and should be avoided. W atch out for spark your imagination to make other fun,
chipping paint, and select toys that are not toxic. educational toys for infant and toddler
Be on the lookout for materials treated with classrooms.
potentially harmful substances, such as arsenic
(used to treat some wood products), lead paint, and
chemicals such as bisphenol A (BPA) and
Fabric
phthalates. Children’s brains and bodies are smaller
than adults’ and are developing fast, making them Scarves and pieces of cloth of
especially vulnerable to toxic substances, even in different colors and textures can come
small amounts. Look for labels on toys and from old clothes, sheets, or fabric scraps
materials (such as “nontoxic” or “BPA-free”), and provided by families, collected by teachers,
check online resources such as or donated by a store in the community.
www.gogreenratingscale.org.
Teachers can use fabric with children of all
ages. A scarf can be a costume in dramatic
Choosing and using toys to play, an item to throw and catch, or
something to put in a box and pull out
support cognitive development
again.

Teachers should be intentional Example. Kaori, age 8 months, plays with

about the toys they offer to children, her teacher, Devora, who hides a doll
regardless of whether they are homemade under a scarf and calls out “Dolly, where
or store-bought. For example, many are you?” Devora checks with Kaori, then
toddlers enjoy using modelling materials lifts the scarf and says, “there you are,
and props such as playdough. Offer it to Dolly—peek-a-boo!” Kaori laughs, excited
children with some specific developmental at the “return” of her doll.
goals in mind. Provide matching plastic
cookie cutters, allowing children to make Cognitive connection. Kaori is becoming
shapes and experience the ideas of “same” aware of object permanence—the
and “different” shapes as they explore. knowledge that an object is there even
when it cannot be seen (Cole, Cole, &
The following examples illustrate Lightfoot 2005). This is an essential step in
toys that are easy to find or make, as well an infant’s cognitive development because
as specific areas of cognitive development

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understanding object permanence leads to put the small block on top of the big block
an understanding of her world and an and it did not fall.”
awareness that will allow her to learn,
imitate, and explore. Through exploration Cognitive connection. Fatima is gaining an
of the environment and peek-a-boo and understanding of spatial relationships— the
other games that involve hiding objects, a ability to understand dimensions and
teacher can support children’s emerging shapes and how they work together. She is
awareness of the environment around learning how to balance and fit pieces to
them (Brazelton & Sparrow 2006). build towers. As she expands this play
through experience, she might build more
Blocks complex structures, such as bridges and
enclosures (MacDonald 2001).
Blocks are great toys for children of
all ages. Blocks made of wood are one Puzzles
option, but teachers can also offer
shoeboxes, cereal boxes, plastic bowls, A muffin pan accompanied by a
cups, and paper bags filled with crumpled variety of small objects can be an excellent
newspaper and taped shut. These simple first puzzle for infants and toddlers. Offer
blocks are best for children 2 years and items that fit easily inside or, to make it
under, while wooden unit blocks are good more complicated, just barely fit. A muffin
for ages 2 and up (MacDonald 2001). pan puzzle allows children to feel a sense
Children can explore, move, and hold of success since all the cups are the same
blocks before beginning to stack them size. To make puzzles that offer greater
vertically or line them up horizontally to challenges, cut out circles or squares of
form simple structures or complex designs. different sizes in the top of a shoebox. Offer
They can select blocks of the same size or objects such as large recycled plastic jar
in uniformly descending sizes. tops, toy cars, or clothespins that just fit
inside the cutouts.
Example. Fatima, age 22 months, takes
blocks made from cardboard boxes from an Teachers can build on children’s
assorted pile in the block area. She stacks developing cognitive skills by creating
one on top of the other while playing at a simple picture puzzles. To make puzzles,
tabletop. As she places a fourth block on draw a picture, print a photograph, or cut
top of her tower, it falls down. Fatima’s out a picture from a magazine. Glue the
teacher Maria says, “Look, the block is picture to a piece of cardboard or paper
beside your foot.” Fatima stops and looks plate so that the puzzle is easier to
to the side of her body and picks up the manipulate, and cut into pieces that a
block. Fatima then picks up a large block child can reassemble.
and places it on a small block. The large
block falls over. Maria says “Oh! The big Example. Raj, age 12 months, sits
block fell off the small block.” Fatima then surrounded by objects of different sizes
puts the small block on top of the big and shapes, including a plastic cup, a toy
block. Maria excitedly responds, “Look, you boat, and jar lids. His teacher places a

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 Toys and Activities to Nurture Children’s Cognitive Development

Toy Age Activity Cognitive

(months) Connections

Mobile 0-6 Moving objects attract a young child’s attention and -Cause and effect
stimulate interaction. Attach safe objects (such as pictures -Sound and texture
or large pinecones) to a string and hang the mobile so that discoveries
a child can watch it move and also reach out and pull or bat
-Hand-eye
items. The child can be lying on her back or sitting and
reaching forward. coordination

Bottle with 6-9 Infants need toys that illustrate cause and effect. Fill a clear -Cause and effect
floating plastic baby bottle or soda bottle with water and add shells, -Intentionality
objects rocks, floating glitter, or any object that captures a child’s
interest. Make sure the top is attached securely, especially
in a mixed-age room, preferably glued with all-purpose
nontoxic glue. Children can shake the bottle to hear and
see items move inside and roll it, which encourages
crawlers to chase after it.

Knock- 9-12 Any “surprise” item that can be uncovered provides -Object permanence
knock opportunities for children to discover and name. On a large -Cause and effect
piece of paper, draw or glue pictures. For each, cut out -Naming
rectangles from different color paper that is large enough to
hide the pictures. Attach these by gluing or taping down
one long side so that they can be “opened” like doors. Have
children knock on the doors and open them to reveal the
hidden items.
Books 12-18 Early books are an excellent (and fun!) way for children to -Early literacy
discover and name objects, and learn that pictures -Language and
represent real things. Thin paper books can be difficult for vocabulary
very young children to manipulate. They also tear easily.
-Prediction
Glue pictures of animals, everyday objects, or drawings
onto pieces of thick cardboard, and bind the pages with -Wh questions (who,
glue or yarn. For a more interactive experience, glue picture what, when, where,
on fabric or papers of different textures. why)

I Spy 18-24 Almost anything that is open on two ends can become a -Classification
telescope child’s telescope. Use paper towel tubes, empty cracker -Recognition
boxes, or just roll a few sheets of paper and tape them -Language and
together. Children can look through the telescope for things
vocabulary
around the room or yard. Offer variations by asking children
to look for specific items, colors, or categories. For -Joint attention
example, “Do you see anything green? Do you see -Perspective taking
animals?”

Puppets 24-36 Children can use puppets to tell stories and act out ideas. -Imagination
Make hand puppets from a variety of materials (such as -Abstract thinking
paper, socks, cloth, and so on) or make a handheld puppet -Language
by gluing a picture to a stick. Decoration brings a puppet to
-Sequencing
life. For example, draw a face with markers, glue on
pictures from a magazine, or adorn puppets with string or
yarn.

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muffin pan in front of him. Raj picks up and imitates his teacher, shaking the
objects and puts them in and out of the bottle. Each time he moves the bottle, it
cup shapes in the pan, rotating pieces to makes more sound, encouraging him to
make them fit. He concentrates with each keep up the motion.
new object and claps his hands in delight
with each success. Cognitive connection. Mario is interested in
activities that demonstrate cause and
Cognitive connection. As he manipulates effect. Activities such as simple musical
objects to make them fit into the muffin instruments offer children a chance to
pan, Raj is thinking and problem solving. figure out how objects work and to connect
As children are exposed to these types of their own actions with outcomes. This can
activities, they learn to develop solutions, lead to a greater sense of self-awareness
which boosts their confidence in their and increased control over their
ability to solve problems. Without the environments.
frustration of precise puzzle pieces, early
versions allow infants and toddlers to Summary
explore different sizes and shapes, and
gain understanding of size dimensions and
Infants and toddlers engage in
concepts of in and out. As children get
certain types of play, depending on their
older, teachers can introduce simple
stage of development. Teachers can
puzzles with a few pieces.
maximize opportunities to build new skills
by being mindful of where
Rattles children are developmentally,
As the underlying what their interests are, and what
Infants love making noise. reasons for
skills they, as educators, want
Teachers can use a clean plastic selecting specific
toys and children to explore. When teachers
container, small enough for a are aware of how specific cognitive
activities become
child to hold in one hand, to clearer, a world skills can be practiced through
quickly make a wonderful noise- of limitless play, they can choose toys and
making toy. Fill the container with possibilities for activities intentionally. As the
objects too large to be a choking invented toys
underlying reasons for selecting
hazard, such as shells or large opens up.
specific toys and activities become
bells. Make sure there is enough clearer, a world of limitless possibilities for
space for the objects to move freely inside. invented toys opens up.
Seal the top with a lid using heavy tape.
As the primary vehicle for early
Example. Mario, age 8 months, sits on the childhood education, toys are an essential
floor holding a small plastic water bottle classroom ingredient. Teachers can easily
partly filled with broken pieces of crayon. make toys from inexpensive materials
Music plays and Rosemary leans toward found in most communities. Readily
Mario, moving his hands up and down, available materials, when used
singing, “Shake your maracas . . . shake, appropriately, can stimulate play and
shake, shake your maracas.” Mario smiles development across all domains. While

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