Holiday Gift Ideas for Kids, Approved by Our Pediatric Therapists!

Look­ing for gift ideas for the kid­dos in your life? We went to Anne Zinn, speech lan­guage pathol­o­gist, and Erin Adams, occu­pa­tion­al ther­a­pist, with the QMG Pedi­atric Ther­a­py team for some ideas. From toys that encour­age fine and gross motor skills to activ­i­ties pro­mot­ing sen­so­ry explo­ration, our ther­a­pists have hand­picked items that not only enter­tain but also con­tribute to your child’s wellbeing.

Music

• Drum set
• Musi­cal Instru­ment Set
• Kids Piano
• Ukulele

Get Cre­ative
Get busy cre­at­ing art with dif­fer­ent medi­ums: paint, chalk, crayons, and putty!

• Stand­ing Easel
• Art Sup­plies
• Dot Mark­ers
• Play Doh
• Melis­sa and Doug tri­an­gle shaped crayons
• Stack­ing cups/​buckets

Fine Motor Skills

• Ele­menosqueeze Blocks
• Mega Blocks
• Kinet­ic Sand
• Magna-tiles
• Fid­get Cube
• Pop-It
• Learn­ing Resources hedgehog
• Melis­sa and Doug wood­en sound puzzles
• Stack­ing Spin­ner Rings
• Fis­ch­er Price pig­gy bank
• Play-Doh

Play Ball

• Pro Ball Sports Set: Bas­ket­ball, Soc­cer, and Football
• Lit­tle Tikes Bas­ket­ball Hoop
• Kidoozie Bowl­ing Set
• Ball Pop­pers

Edu­ca­tion with a Spin

• Learn­ing Resources Fruit and Veg­etable Col­or Sorting
• Learn­ing Resources Count­ing Cookies
• Color/​Number Bug Catcher
• Learn­ing Resources Sort­ing Crayons
• Robot Alpha­bet Letters
• Likee Alpha­bet Set
• Learn­ing Resources Let­ter Construction
• Gamenote Dou­ble Sided Mag­net­ic Let­ter Board
• Imag­i­na­tion Magnets
• Geo­mak­ers
• Learn­ing Resources Count­ing Sur­prise Party

Help Out Around the House

• Melis­sa & Doug: Dust, Sweep, Mop!
• Toy Dyson Vacuum
• Lit­tle Tikes Gas and Go Lawn Mower
• Gar­den­ing Set
• Kid­Kraft Play Kitchen

Active Play/​Gross Motor

• Plas­maCar
• Radio Fly­er Tricycle
• Bal­ance bike
• Scoot­er
• Indoor play sets
• Out­door play sets

Secret Hide­away
Cre­at­ing forts and cozy nooks are an essen­tial part of childhood!

• Melis­sa & Doug Deluxe Jum­bo Bricks
• 3 in 1 Tent, Tun­nel and Playhouse
• Con­struct a Fort
• Yogi­bo Bean Bag Chairs

Use Your Imagination

• Cos­tumes
• Build your own town — So many great sets with train tracks, ani­mals, and struc­tures to allow chil­dren to use their imag­i­na­tion and cre­ate new worlds each time they play!
• Gear Con­struc­tion Sets
• Dinosaurs or ani­mal figurines
• Lit­tle Peo­ple Barn
• Lit­tle Peo­ple House
• Pota­to Head
• Pop the Pig
• Legos
• Crit­ter Clinic
• Learn­ing Resources Hide and Go Moo

Books

• All Bet­ter Books by Usborne
• Poke A Dot books by Melis­sa and Doug
• There was an Old Lady who Swal­lowed a …books by Lucille Colandro

Sen­so­ry Play

• Swings (indoor or outdoor)
• Mini tram­po­line
• Tun­nel
• Wob­ble cushion
• Squigz suc­tion cups
• Squigz spin­ners
• Floam
• Kinet­ic Sand
• Water Beads
• Ride on Boun­cy Donkey
• Ther­a­py Ball

Infant Feed­ing

• Baby Food Dis­pens­ing spoon
• Baby Spoons First Stage 6+
• EZPZ Tiny Cup
• EZPZ Straw Cup

Games

• Learn­ing resources noo­dle knockout
• Yeti in My Spaghetti
• Spot it!
• Sneaky Snacky Squir­rel Game
• Pop the Pig
• Pan­cake Pileup
• Feed the Woozle

Web­sites

• lakeshore​learn​ing​.com
• mind​ware​.ori​en​tal​trad​ing​.com
• ark​ther​a​peu​tic​.com
• fat​brain​toys​.com
• melis​saand​doug​.com
• kiwico​.com
• learn​ingre​sources​.com