Chris Peace asked:
Physical development in toddlers is vital for their growth. This kind of development can only be received through physical activities like climbing, crawling, running etc. Activities like climbing come naturally to a toddler and you will find that your child quite enjoys this activity. Unfortunately regular toddler toys do not cater to these activities and therefore the next best thing would be playing in the park or even better setting up large toddler toy that facilitate climbing in your backyard.
Benefits of climbing toddler toys
Climbing is excellent exercise for your child. Besides the fact that it helps physical development, it is rewarding, exciting and a fantastic way for your child to utilise his energy. Besides the fact that your child is active while playing on climbing toys, these toys also help develop the child’s social skills. For example, your child will learn how to negotiate, judge, turn etc. Climbing toddler toys also encourage pretend play.
Types of climbing toddler toys
Climbing toddler toys are large and are ideal for a backyard. As time has past these toys have also evolved and no longer look like the toys you and I probably remember from our childhood days. Today these toddler toys come with various interesting options and are safe and extremely durable. For a preschool toddler simple climbing toys are recommended as they might not be able to negotiate climbing toddler toys that have activities like swings and slides attached to them. Most climbing toddler toys also come with and option of expanding, thereby you can add on to the toy as the child gets older.
Play tunnels as toddler toys
Play tunnels are another very interesting toddler toy and your child is guaranteed to love it. These play tunnels are inexpensive and can be folded and stored, but they do require a lot of space once opened out. Play tunnels make for excellent pretend play tools. Once your toddler gets used to this new toys of his, you will find him using it as a secret hiding place, a play house and maybe even a time tunnel. Your toddler will also love playing chase in this tunnel.
Benefits of play tunnels as toddler toys
Play tunnels may seem like large toys to have around the house, but its benefits are even larger. On the physical development side, play tunnels play a large roll in developing your child’s muscles of the abdomen and the chest. This happens due to the large amount of crawling and negotiating that your child has to do to navigate through the tunnel. Play tunnels also help in developing your child’s social and mental skills. You will find that your child is applying his mental skills and is being creative and imaginative trying to figure out what he or she could use the tunnel for. You will also discover that your toddler will find a play tunnel is the most fun when share with other kids. This will develop his social skills as he will learn how to share his toddler toys, play fair, accommodate other etc.