Firstly, what is baby sensory play & why is it important?
Sensory play is anything that stimulates the 5 senses; sight, smell, taste, sound & touch. From around 4 months old when a baby can start to make a fist, and reach out and grab, using sensory play can really help their development of fine & gross motor skills, speech & language development & also problem solving. Here are our top 5 favourite sensory toys for babies:
1. Wee Gallery Soft Baby Block - You don’t need to wait until baby is able to reach out & grab to start sensory play. A cube like this is perfect for laying next to baby for them to look at & explore with their eyes. Squeeze the cube & let baby hear the crinkly sounds.
2. Tender Leaf Toys Wooden Visual Sensory Tray - A firm favourite in our house. This toy features 4 wooden toys on a tray which can be used for multiple uses - shape sorting, colour & shape recognition, problem solving, as well as for their main use of sensory play! Look though each piece to discover a different view of the world!
3. Wee Gallery Organic Sensory Ball - A lovely tactile toy featuring monochrome patterns & grab-able segments to stimulate babies senses. It can be used as baby’s first ball, a puzzle for baby to explore, or hang over baby for them to kick & play.
4. Liewood Sofie Activity Playmat - Perfect for tummy time or to bring along to play dates. The playmat features different sounds & textures for baby to explore, while strengthening their sensory development.
5. Konges Slojd fabric baby book - for use at home or in the pram or car. This beautifully designed book is bursting with different textures to explore on every page, including mirrors, hidden creatures, ribbons & crinkly paper.