Toys, toys and more toys

[BlackBarbies]

I’m wondering who can help me!

DD just turned 2 in May. She recently had an assessment and the Specialist believes that she has Autism. She currently doesn’t speak but really enjoys toys that light up, have speech and make different noises.

She struggles to sit down and concentrate when reading a book as she’s always on the move. I’d love for her to have a toy (or different toys) that teach her colours, numbers and potentially words. I’m really trying to get her to watch less screen time and focus on more toys/activities instead.

Can anyone recommend any toys that their DC enjoys regardless of whether they’re Autistic or not? I also have a 14 month old with a genetic disorder and he loves anything his sister loves😂 so that’s a bonus. I’d appreciate any links or names of toys, thank you!

Vtech toys - lots of different ones with different focuses. My DD liked the Learning tree - it has colours and letters, numbers only up to 3 though. The voice is a little grating to me, but never bothered any of my children.

What about a yoto player?
DD has had hers since her second birthday and she wasn't necessarily interested in the audio books to begin with but did like the radio function and the daily podcast, they do music cards, sounds (like animal sounds, campfire sounds etc) stories and learning ones (first 100 words is a fab one for that age)
Now she's almost 4 it's part of her bedtime routine and she listens to a story card before bed and uses it during the day when she just wants to chill out

As I type, my 2 y/o is bringing me individual stacking cups, staring at me expectantly until I tell him its colour, then taking it away and returning with a different cup. He's been doing this for an hour and I just want to drink my coffee.

So yeah, stacking cups are definitely a big hit with toddlers of all ages.

If you’re trying to encourage speech you want toys that don’t have sound/lights etc as they discourage talking and do the thinking for children so they don’t do it themselves.

So you want things like building blocks, stacking toys, car ramps, mr potato head etc

I agree with this, and would also recommend shape sorters and Playdoh.

Thanks for the suggestions!

As much as I’d like to encourage her speech, there’s also a lot of things that she won’t play with. Such as building blocks, play dough, car ramps etc. They don’t interest her at all.

I personally don’t think toys that light up/make do the thinking for children but maybe that’s just my child! She has a Vtech toy that says, ‘press the numbers when they light up.’ Each time a number lights up, the toy says that the number is and DD presses it each time! That’s the most I’ve seen her interact with a toy tbf😂

I’ll have a look around at different toys and see what’s on the market

How about a Rainbow Music Tree and Permeability Cubes? Tor's Story is a lovely online toy store and have some great options 😊 www.torsstory.com