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Your baby will really love interactive toys – as he is beginning to understand cause and effect, he’ll really enjoy toys that make things happen. Pressing buttons, making lights flash and music play will be favourites and he’ll love to play with them over and over (and over!) again. There’s no such thing as too much of a good thing at this age!
Best toys for your 9-12 month old baby
Interactive toys.
Your baby can now make things happen, which is very exciting for him. Toys that respond to your baby’s actions will be popular.
RECOMMENDED: musical toys
Physical co-ordination toys.
Now that your baby is on the move, introduce toys that encourage him to use his body.
RECOMMENDED: Push and pull toys, stacking toys, dump trucks
Language development toys.
You can encourage his growing vocabulary by introducing toys and games that will help in the development of speech and language skills. Baby books are good (stick to
cloth books at this age) because after reading to him, he can take a turn at ‘reading’ to you by mimic your speech patterns.
RECOMMENDED GAMES: Make-believe, nursery rhymes with actions, songs, books.
Role Playing Toys
Your baby has been watching you since the moment he could focus his eyes, so it’s no wonder that at this age he’ll start to enjoy games that involve role-playing. Not only does role-playing encourage imaginative play, it also allows him to discover how things work in his world.
RECOMMENDED: Telephone, vacuum cleaner, shopping cart or basket, or find lots more pretend play toys.
This article was written by Ella Walsh for Kidspot – Australia’s parenting resource for newborns and baby. Sources include SA Government’s Parenting and Child Health and Karitane.