The 4 Best Types of Toys for Newborns & Infants
If you have a newborn at home or are looking for a baby shower gift, Katie has put together some helpful guidelines for choosing toys.
An infant's toys should:
An infant's toys should:
- Develop the senses
- Be simple and purposeful in design
- Encourage natural interaction such as visual tracking, grasping or listening
For the first 6 months, these are the 4 ideal types of toys:
1. High-Contrast Visuals
High-contrast colours and patterns (i.e. black and white) are an essential quality of newborn toys.
The visual sense continues to develop after birth and high-contrast colours are easier for a newborn to distinguish.
Since newborns can see these bold images and patterns more clearly, they naturally find them more engaging, helping to develop their focus and concentration.
Tip: As a newborn's vision develops, they can focus best within a range of 20-30cm. To engage their attention, ensure objects and toys are placed within this close proximity.
Munari Mobile
Tummy Time Accordion Cards
Savannah Black & White Book
2. Wooden Grasping Toys
Simple objects like a wooden ring or interlocking discs fit perfectly in tiny hands, allowing newborns to explore their sense of touch and begin strengthening their grasp.
From a Montessori perspective, wood is ideal because it is a natural material that provides the right weight, texture and warmth, offering an authentic and engaging sensory experience.
Interlocking Discs
Sarah’s Silks Baby Teethers
Skwish - Colorpop
3. Gentle Rattles
A gentle rattle provides a natural introduction to sound without overwhelming the newborn. Rattles help develop auditory discrimination, encourage a baby to track movement through sound and introduce cause and effect as they begin to discover that their actions create a response.
Small Wooden Rattle
Cube with Bell
Grimm’s Klipp Klapp
4. Mirrors
Mirrors captivate a newborn's attention with their reflections, promoting visual development, focus, and cognitive growth. They also encourage movement, using a mirror during tummy time motivates babies to lift their heads and strengthen their muscles.
You can install a shatterproof mirror in your child’s play space or buy toys that include a mirror, like:
Wimmer Seek & Peek Book
Koala Tummy Time Book
Wimmer Seek & Explore Mat
You Don't Always Need Toys...
It is common for parents to think newborns are bored or require constant stimulation.
But newborns are always learning through their senses and absorbing the world around them. They don't need toys or materials to do this.
Even in the moments when they’re lying on the floor, staring up at the ceiling, seemingly doing nothing, they may be looking at or listening to something.
In these moments, it’s okay to sit back and observe as your child discovers something new about the world.
It is also perfectly normal for newborns to show little interest in toys, because their focus is on their surroundings.
Toys can be wonderful for enrichment but don’t stress about having all the perfect ones for your newborn.
A few simple toys are great but most of their time will be spent learning about the world through their interactions with you, their environment, and the people around them.
