Top Toys That Promote Physical Development in Toddlers
What is physical development?
Physical development is one of the many developmental domains of the infant and toddler. Physical activities involve using the senses as well as large and small muscles and help achieve relevant developmental milestones. Physical activities also help develop two types of skills: gross motor skills and fine motor skills.
What are gross motor skills?
Gross motor skills involve the movements of the large muscles of the arms, legs, and trunk. Children need gross motor skills to perform routine activities at school and home. Activities like crawling, walking, running, jumping, climbing, etc. require gross motor skills. Most outdoor games help develop these skills.
What are fine motor skills?
Fine motor skills, also called dexterity, involve the coordination of small muscles, usually including coordination with the hands and fingers and eye-to-eye coordination. These skills help in performing activities like tying shoelaces, buttoning a shirt, holding a pen etc.
During the early stages of child development, giving babies the right kind of toys will help them develop their gross motor development as well as their fine motor skills. Toys can be introduced as early as three months. Check out some toys that are easily available and play an important role in the overall physical growth and development of your child.
Toys That Help Develop Gross Motor Skills
1. Tricycle
Tricycle riding uses large muscles and helps to achieve hand and leg coordination. Young children enjoy driving a tricycle and this is one of the toys that you can give to your child. As the child grows, they can switch to a bicycle to fine-tune their skills.
2. Football
Babies show off their kicking skills right from the time they are in the tummy.
When children play with a football they use leg muscles to kick, run and arm muscles to catch the ball. While kicking and running strengthen their larger muscles, catching the ball develops their smaller muscles. Football also helps them develop good hand and eye coordination
3. Hula Hoops
Hula hoops can be used in many ways for play. Kids use their abdominal, arm and leg muscles with hoops. This also increases the flexibility of their muscles and strengthens their large muscles.
4. Beam Balancing
Beam balancing is a great way to develop body balance. It is commonly used to develop gross motor skills in children in preschool. Balancing Act is also a physical therapy for children as it helps them to concentrate, control their muscles and coordinate their hands, legs and eyes to gain control over their body.
5. Trampoline
Trampolines are a fun way for toddlers to get exercise and get out tons of energy. They use their muscles to jump, fall and get up. Using the arms and legs helps to build strength in their muscles and is therefore a great source for developing gross motor skills.
Toys That Help Develop Fine Motor Skills
6. Stacking Block
Stacking blocks or rocks is an excellent indoor game that helps children build fine motor skills. Children use their fingers and hands to pick up rocks and use their hand-eye coordination along with their brains to balance the stack. It helps in strengthening their fine muscles.
7. Wooden Puzzles
Children use their fingertips to pick up the puzzle piece and use their hand-eye coordination skills to place it in the correct slot. This is a great way to develop small muscles and enhance fine motor skills in addition to cognitive skills and brain development.
8. Doodle
Children love to imitate adults and hence they enjoy scribbling. Doodles gives them a wonderful space to write and erase as they want. Children use the doodle pen to scribble by holding it in coordination with their index finger, index finger, and thumb. This again strengthens their small muscles and is a wonderful fine motor activity. Doodling also enlivens children’s creativity and imagination.
9. Permanent Pictures
Pictures are vertical surfaces that come in many forms. Some have abacus beads, some have drawing boards while others have pattern tiles. All of these pictures require kids to stand, which means it helps develop their core muscles. Children use their hands, fingers and hand-eye coordination to solve patterns or do an abacus. While abacus can be used at a later stage, pattern tiles and drawing canvas are a great way to develop the brain.
10. Lego Duplo
Lego Duplo is a perfect toy for toddlers to enhance and build fine motor skills. This makes them use their small muscles to pick up the pieces and connect them with force, therefore strengthening their muscles. Children can play either alone or in a group hence enhancing their social development skills.
There are many toys in the market. Although it may be tempting to pamper your child with every possible toy present on the shelf, it is very important to choose the right one as toys play a vital role in shaping the child’s personality and developing the right skills.