2019 Holiday Gift Guide-Stocking Stuffers/The Small Stuff

This is one of my most of all my holiday gift guides to put together. I think there are a lot of people who need to pick up little gifts during the holidays and there are so many to choose from. The problem with a lot of the little gifts out there are that they can be used once which can be really frustrating. In this list, I have tried to put together a variety of toys, crafts and activities that can either be used again and again or when created, can be used for a long period of time. Many of them are great for keeping kids entertained when on-the-go or out and about. All of them were hand-picked because I know that they will help the children on your gift-giving list develop a variety of skills. More importantly, they were chosen because I know that kids enjoy playing with them without knowing that they are actually "working". Below, you will find over 20 of my favorite stocking stuffer/small gifts.

Plus Plus Tubes-these manipulative toys are just awesome and make a great stocking stuffer or small gift for those on your list this year. There are several themed tubes to choose from depending on what your child's interests may be and they are all great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improving hand-eye and bilateral coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on a variety of executive functioning skills. Kids can follow the step-by-step directions and create whatever they suggest or can use their imagination and make their own creation. I love how you can throw these into your bag for on-the-go entertainment.





Scratch and Scribble Kits-another great product from my favorite OOLY that would not only make a great stocking stuffer, but also great for keeping kids entertained while on-the-go. Each of these kits (there are a bunch of different ones to choose from and come in two different sizes) comes with 4 illustrated cards and a variety of blank cards that kids can make whatever designs they feel like creating and a special wooden tool. These are great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and graphomotor skills, improves hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages creativity and imagination skills.

Gunner and Lux DIY Holiday Ornament Necklace Kit-a perfect little gift for your fashionistas. This adorable DIY Necklace Kit from Gunner and Lux comes with the wooden ornament, beads, tassel, a marker (but you can use any of your favorite markers to complete the ornament) and rope. Kids color their ornament in any way they want, add beads and the tassel and then tie the rope to the desired length. This is a great activity for working on developing fine motor, manipulation and graphomotor skills, improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages creativity while working on developing executive functioning skills.

Squiggle Wiggle Pen-this is something I have loved and used in my therapy sessions for as long as I can remember. The Squiggle Wiggle Writer is a battery operated vibrating pen that allows children to turn straight lines into loops, circles, curves and a variety of other things depending on the amount of pressure you use while drawing. It comes with 5 different color refills that you can switch in and out as you please. While this is a fun writing instrument, it is a great therapeutic tool as the vibrating helps with focus and attention. It is also great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills and encourages creativity and imagination.





Mad Mattr Quantum Pods-this is one of my 9 year old daughters favorite things in the whole world. I should mention I am kinda obsessed with Mad Mattr as well. From the makers of Kinetic Sand, Mad Mattr is a non-toxic, oderless dough that flows and never dries out. Made out of a polymer-dough mix, this sensory material can be used to help kids with tactile defensiveness, increase grasp strength and manipulation skills and encourages creativity and imagination. Use it with cookie cutters and other tools (I like to use some of my tools from playdough sets) to encourage bilateral coordination skills. For parents who worry about sensory materials making a mess, this is your thing. This is a super clean sensory material that doesn't stain hands or your furniture.

Build-A-Bot Unicorn Robot Toy-I can't speak for anyone else's kids but my daughter is a big fan of all of the small interactive animal toys out there. We have had more Little Live Pets, and even at almost 10 years old doesn't want to part with them, then I can count. As the mother of a huge unicorn fan, I wish this S.T.E.M. kit had been around when she was younger. Kids can build their very own Unicorn robot. Each kit comes with over 20 pieces and stickers for your kid to build their very own pet unicorn that you an interact with. Great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves bilateral and hand-eye coordination and works on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning, organization and task completion.



Shrinky Dinks DIY Pins Project Pack-I am a long time fan of all things Shrinky Dinks. I love that things from my own childhood are still a thing now and that I can enjoy them with my own daughter. This set comes with some images images of cute animals, food and other things that you can trace onto two types of Shrinky Dinks sheets but you can also trace your favorite book characters or images you like. Cut out the design, color it in and follow the bake and shrink directions provided. Once it is cooled off, you can add a glitter sticker to the back to give it a shiny metallic look, glue on the tie-tack and put it on your favorite jacket, your back pack or anything else you think could use a little extra bling! Great for working on improving fine motor and graphomotor skills, encourages creativity and imagination and works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and task completion.

NeeDoh Bubble Glob Groovy Glob Ball-I am pretty much obsessed with any and all sensory/squishy balls. One of the most popular things at my gym is this giant container of sensory balls and tools  and many of them are from the NEEDOH line. Thanks to my monthly subscription to Sensory TheraPlay Box, I have learned about a lot of great sensory tools including the extensive collection of squishy balls from Schylling. Color changing, Snowball, Gumball, Cool Cats.....there are so many to choose from and they are all pretty fabulous. Other than the overwhelmingly good feeling of squeezing them, squishy balls are great for reducing stress and anxiety in children while working on increasing grasp strength and manipulation skills.

Kid Made Modern On-The-Go Drawing Kit-if you don't know about Kid Made Modern On-The-Go kits, you are missing out on some pretty awesome stuff. When my daughter was little, I was always carrying around a bag of random things to keep her entertained when we were out and about. I wish that these little kits had been available to us because we would have gotten so much use out of them. The first kit I will share is the Drawing Kit. This kit comes with a 32-page sketch book with drawing prompts, 12 mini colored pencils and a pencil sharpener which can be stored in the fabric carrying case. This on-the-go drawing set is great for developing fine motor and graphomotor skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills, helps with improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and organizational skills while encouraging creativity and imagination.



Kid Made Modern On-The-Go Jewelry Making Kit-another one of my favorite on-the-go gifts. I actually got a handful of these last summer and brought them to the beach for my daughter and her friends when they needed some down time. Great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination, works on improving focus, attention and organizational skills while also encouraging creativity. Each kit comes with over 100 multicolored acrylic beads and 2 colors of cording which can be stored in the fabric carrying case.



DIY Charms Accessories Kit-this is another great on-the-go crafting kit that works on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills, encourages creativity and can help with letter recognition. This craft set comes with 50 assorted plastic letter beads, charms and multi-colored jewels and string to make bracelets, necklaces, keychains and other accessories.





32 Ways to Dress Wild Animals Book-as the mother of a budding fashion designer and an animal lover, I was so excited to find these at Norman and Jules a couple of years ago. This adorable book is another awesome on-the-go activity book that works on developing fine motor and graphomotor skills, encourages creativity and imagination, works on visual motor and visual perceptual skills and helps develop executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and planning skills. This little activity book comes with 32 perforated and removable black and white illustrations with upper bodies and feet/shoes and allows your little artist to draw the perfect outfit for each animal. Can be used with your favorite writing instrument but I highly recommend the ooly Yummy Yummy Scented Gel Glitter Pens  or ooly Sketch and Color Colored Pencil Set.



Kiko + Wakka Game-love this little game that and totally takes me back to my own childhood with our little water games similar to this. The point of the game is simple: there are a bunch of little hoops floating in the water and by pushing the two buttons, you try and get them onto the the spikes. This little hand-held game which you can pick up from Norman and Jules in Park Slope is great for working on improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills, increases grasp strength and manipulation skills and works on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and improves frustration tolerance.

Wikkidoodle Fun-these are another item that has made my gift guide year after year. I recently got a fresh new set of Wikki Stix and introduced them to one of my kids who has been really struggling with learning how to write letters. It was so much fun to watch him twist and turn the Wikki-Stix into letters and shapes and I could see his confidence increasing with this simple multi-sensory approach to learning. The Wikkidoodle Fun kit is another great on-the-go gift to keep kids entertained while in the car, on a plane or at a restaurant. It comes with 36 Wikki Stix and a 32 page doodle pad. The doodle pad doesn't require any crayons or markers, just the Wikki Stix and your child's hands. Kids work on developing fine motor and grasping skills, improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination while twisting, turning and bending the Wikki Stix into the shapes they see on the pad. I love how it also encourages creativity and imagination by giving them a prompt with a line or a squiggle and has them turn it into something else.



Disney Princess Magic Clip Dolls-these are easily one of the most asked for toy at my gym and would make your princess loving kid so happy. These little dolls can be purchased individually (I picked up most of mine at Lulu's Cuts and Toys in Park Slope) or in an 8 pack for a larger gift. These tiny little dolls work on developing so many skills such as improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, develops hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and works on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. I have been using them with my kids in my social skills group and paired them up with Magna-Tiles, having them build a castle with the Magna-Tiles and then watch them play.

Scribble Scrubbie Pets Beauty Salon and Vet Sets-I picked these up on a whim last week at Stationery and Toy World on the UWS of Manhattan and these are now a new favorite of mine. More importantly, the kids absolutely love them. These adorable sets from Crayola work on developing fine motor and graphomotor skills, helps to improve bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination and visual motor skills while encouraging creativity and imagination skills. Using the special scrubbie markers, kids can color their pets any way they want. When they are done, they can use the little spray bottle to wet the animals down and then scrub them clean with the brush provided. When used in my social skills group, we worked on cooperative play by having them color them together and help each other with cleaning and drying off their pet.



Tiger Tribe Coloring Sets-I have picked up a few of these sets from one of my local stores, Annie's Blue Ribbon General Store in Park Slope, and they have been really wonderful for keeping my daughter entertained in the car and in restaurants. There are a ton of different themes to choose from so you are sure to find one perfect for your kid. Each set comes with a book of 36 coloring pages, 2 handy storage drawers, 3 sheets of stickers 3 double sided markers. I really like the included markers because they are a good size and encourage a tripod grasp. Not only great for keeping kids entertained but also works on developing fine motor and graphomotor skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages creativity and imagination skills.



Bag of Magic Tricks-looking for something a little off the beaten path for one of the kiddos this year? I love this Bag of Magic Tricks that I have seen at Annie's Blue Ribbon General Store in Park Slope. The set includes over 15 tricks packaged in a fabric bag making it easy to take on the go to entertain people over the holidays. It also includes a 20-page magician booklet so your child can master the magic. This is great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves bilateral coordination and is awesome for working on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, sequencing, following directions, planning and organizational skills. While your kids are mastering these magic tricks, they are building confidence and self-esteem at the same time.

Melting Snowman-this simple little gift will bring hours of entertainment to your children while also working on increasing grasp strength and manipulation skills, improves bilateral coordination and visual motor and perceptual skills while also working on learning about body parts and improves body awareness. This melting snowman kit comes filled with reusable melting putty, hat, scarf, eyes, nose and arms for your kids to make their own snowman over and over again. It is so much fun to watch their delight each and every time the snowman goes from standing tall to being a puddle.





Creatibles D.I.Y. Eraser Kit-another one of my favorites from my OOLY is not only great for working on developing a variety of skills, but also a very useful end product for school age kids. My daughter is constantly on the search for erasers and I have to believe (or at least hope) that she's not alone. This easy make and bake eraser kit helps children use their imagination to make their own erasers. Creatibles comes with 12 pliable clay colors that can be mixed together to make any color they want. Kids can use their hands or tools and their imagination to make their very own erasers. Once they are made, they get thrown in the oven to cook and then they can be used to assist with homework! This kit is great for working on increasing fine motor skills, grasp strength and manipulation skills, improves bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination and visual motor skills and encourages creativity.

Lee Sticker Puzzles-I discovered these awesome sticker puzzles years ago at another one of my local toy stores, Little Things in Park Slope, and have always had a handful of them in my work closet since. These are one of my most recommended on-the-go/travel activities when people ask. There are many different books to choose from and each one comes with 8 puzzles. I love that they start simple with books that have fewer and larger pieces and go up to more challenging puzzles with smaller pieces and higher numbers. This simple book of puzzles works on so many skills including developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, works on number recognition and matching skills, works on improving visual motor, visual perceptual and visual tracking skills and helps with developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and organizational skills.




I had so much fun putting this part of my gift guide together. One of the things I thought about when putting it together was how I could support my local small businesses. While I do more shopping online than I am proud to admit, I also do my best to support my local New York City small businesses. I love my local toy stores and encourage you all to support your local toy stores when possible.

If you have any other amazing small gifts/stocking stuffer that the kids in your life have loved, please send them along. If you need some specific recommendations for the kids on your gift-giving list this year, send them along. I am only a click away and love hearing and learning from you all.

2019 Holiday Gift Guide-Social Emotional Toys

One of the most important shifts I have witnessed in my career as on occupational therapist is the increased focus and attention put into social emotional development in children as young as preschool. While always an important issue, there has been a lot of research done in the last few years that show that teaching social emotional intelligence at an early age help children become more successful as they get older. With this increased attention to social emotional learning, there has also been an uprise in the products available to young children that help facilitate a better understanding of feelings, emotions, empathy and self-awareness.
In this portion of my 2019 Holiday Gift Guide, I share some of the amazing products out there that can help children learn about feelings and emotions, learn about empathy and kindness while working on improving fine motor and manipulation skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and can build confidence and self-esteem. 



Build a Robot Emotional Developmental Toy-teaching kids about emotions can be difficult, especially in the moment when they are feeling big feelings. This educational robot toy not only works on helping children learn about emotions but helps with developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills. This robot comes with one body and four interchangeable heads with different emotions. Great to use with young children when talking about their feelings. I love how each of the heads is a different shape and offers a variety of tactile experiences.




Emojinks Emoji Card Games-I have been a big Spot It fan for years and years and now that I run a social skills group, I tend to try and find games that have some kind of social emotional learning component. So try and imagine how happy Emojinks makes me! Very similar to Spot It, Emojinks is a game of speed where you try and be the first to find the matching Emoji. The nice thing about this game is that there are two different levels, beginner and advanced, so you can use it will all members of your family. Another great thing, the game is compact and easy to take on-the-go for non-screen-time entertainment. Emojinks is perfect to help your children learn about feelings and emotions while also working on developing focus, attention, visual motor skills, visual perceptual skills and visual tracking skills, improves fine motor and manipulation skills and works on social skills such as being a good winner/loser, taking turns and being flexible.

Make A Face-I first learned about this social emotional toy from my friends at Norman and Jules in Park Slope and fell in love with it immediately. Make A Face is a beautiful wooden toy that helps children create hundreds of expressions. Kids can use this 9-piece set to not only work on learning about emotions, feelings and expressions but also work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills. This toy shows kids how a simple change in the eye or mouth positioning can change the way someone sees them and makes them think about what they are feeling. While this toy was originally created for free play, Moon Picnic has realized that they could do more with it and have created a set of free downloadable flash cards that can add to the importance of playing with this toy.




eeBoo Pretend Play Stickers-pretend play is critical for the development of a variety of social skills. Through cooperative pretend play, children learn how to take turns, share responsibility, creatively problem-solve, be flexible with friends and can encourage creativity and imagination skills. I discovered the eeBoo Pretend Play Stickers last year and thought how awesome it was that these reusable stickers could be used with cardboard boxes (and we know how many of these we accumulate over the holiday season) and instantly transform them into a kitchen, spaceship or a car. Each set comes with four giant sheets of reusable stickers that will turn a plain cardboard box into a prop for kids to spend hours playing with. Not only are these great for developing social skills, they are great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills and improve visual motor and visual perceptual skills. 

Penny For Your Thoughts Games-this is an amazing game that includes 80 hand-illustrated cards that were designed to increase connection between kids and adults, encourage more positive ways to communicate feelings and teach social and emotional skills that lead to success at home, school and various environments with friends. Using the cards, kids identify how they are feeling, other people who may be involved and learn to problem solve on how to get through some really challenging situations and deal with big feelings. 

Silly Street-this game began as a Kickstarter project a few years ago and I was really excited about. Silly Street helps children with developing social and communication skills, encourages creativity and builds confidence and resilience all through play! As an occupational therapist, I love how they have also incorporated ways to work on developing fine motor and grasping skills and improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills. I also love that this is a multi-sensory game that gets kids up and moving and encourages them to get their sillies out while building confidence, creativity, empathy, flexibility and resilience.





Lion In My Way-in this cooperative game by eeBoo, players work together to help the lion who is on a journey overcome hazards and barriers. By using a variety of objects, kids have to decide which one would be best to help the lion stay on his way. There are a tremendous amount of benefits from exposing children to cooperative games. First of all, by elimination the competition, the pressure of having to be the winner is taken away. These kinds of games also encourage kids to problem-solve together, accept ideas from others and be flexible in their thinking. Lastly, this game is great for encouraging communication skills with peers.


The Calm Mind Kit-I have been a fan of Rose and Rex for years and years so when I heard they were developing their very own product that worked on mindfulness and meditation, I was completely sold. This amazingly thought out kit was designed for children as young as 3 years old and can be used by grownups as well. The kit teaches techniques that can help people who are feeling anxious, have difficulty staying still and a variety of other common emotional struggles. This kit was thoughtfully created by childhood development and wellness experts to provide children with a variety of tools for emotional development and well-being that will help them learn now to focus, self-regulate and most importantly, build confidence and self-esteem. This well-crafted kit contains three handcrafted toys and a deck of beautifully illustrated Calm Mind Activity Cards that teach people how to use the tools provided. As an occupational therapist, I love how this kit helps children get into the right state of mind to work on more stressful or challenging activities by providing them with the tools. 


Feelings and Emotions Peg Doll Set-I love when a simple toy can help children develop a deeper understanding of their own emotions. This beautiful set of feeling peg dolls are perfect for pretend play while also helping children gain a better understanding of feelings and emotions. Included with the set are 5 birch discs with the feelings sad, calm, angry, happy and worried etched on them so kids can work on being able to match and discuss these emotions. These can be perfectly matched with the Hope Learning Toys The Friend Ship which is another beautiful homemade product that was developed to help children learn about their feelings. 






The Unworry Book-unfortunately, there are too many children who have a hard time talking about their feelings and anxieties. Having an outlet to express these feelings can be incredibly helpful for children (and their parents). The Unworry Book is filled with amazing activities for your anxious child. One of the most important things to do is allow children to express these feelings. This illustrated, write-in book is an unworry toolkit, for distracting you from any anxieties, calming you down, and providing a place to sort through your worries and thoughts. It includes a variety of activities, from things to write, color and design, to calm-down tactics and relaxation exercises.

Lets Talk! Conversation Starters-sometimes getting kids to talk about or express their feelings can be really difficult. I can't tell you how many times I have heard parents complain that they can't get their kids to talk to them about things that have to do with how they are feeling. This conversation starter kit from Lakeshore Learning is designed for children starting at age 5 but could easily be adapted for younger children. The box contains 50 open-ended questions that help parents and children talk about their feelings, ideas and so much more. Also great for working on conversation skills.

Guess It. Get It. Gumballs-this fun and engaging from Peaceable Kingdom teaches young children learn about feelings, develops empathy and encourages cooperation. Kids take turns spinning the spinner and then use the gumball-grabbing mirror to choose a matching color gumball. Look in the mirror and make the face that you think you might have grabbed. If you guess correctly, add the gumball to the scoreboard. If not, put it back in the gumball machine and try and remember what it is. In order for everyone to win, the players work together to collect a rainbow of gumballs before finding the stink face card. In addition to the social emotional learning that takes place, kids will also work on improving memory skills and improves visual motor skills. 

Putting together this gift guide was a particularly meaningful one for me. I run a social skills group for young children so I know how important having fun and motivating tools have helped them. All of these suggestions are ones that can easily be used in groups or at home. If you have any specific questions or are looking for something else, please reach out to me. I am only a click away and love hearing from you all. I would also love to hear from any of you if you have any wonderful tools that can be used to deepen children's social emotional intelligence. 

2019 Holiday Gift Guide-Crafty Kids!

I think one of the things that I love most about being a pediatric occupational therapist is that I get to play and craft throughout my work day. I love having a job that I get to find products that are not only fun but ones that work on achieving occupational therapy related goals. Crafting with kids can be a fun and effective way of working on developing fine motor skills, increases dexterity, improves hand-eye coordination, boosts self-esteem, encourages self-expression, helps in developing social skills, encourages imagination and creativity, enhances decision making skills and works on developing flexibility.

Discovering new arts and craft activities and projects fills me with such satisfaction. Watching kids play with them and show off their completed projects is another awesome thing to witness. Completed art projects help children feel more confident and encourages them to try more challenging activities down the line.

Below, I have shared some of my favorite craft kits. You'll see that there are a variety of sets intended for children of all ages.


Razzle Dazzle DIY Gem Art Kits-these are a new addition from Ooly and they are an awesome gift for older kids on your list this year. My 9 1/2 year old daughter and her friend spent so much time working on these during a playdate and they look awesome. There are 4 different sets to choose from (Llama, Unicorn, Fox and Lion) and come with all the supplies, including a picture frame to put it in once it is completed, you need. Kids use glue and a little pen to place the different size and colored gems onto the correct letter. This activity is great for working on SO many skills such as improving fine motor and grasping skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills, visual tracking, visual attention, bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination and executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, frustration tolerance and organizational skills.




Scratch and Scribble Art Kits- t-another fun little arts and crafts kit from from Ooly that work on developing fine motor, graphomotor skills and visual motor and perceptual skills. There are 8 different sets to choose from (dinosaurs, unicorns and dogs are just a few of them) based on your child's interests. Each set comes with 6 scratch and scribble sheets, 4 with designs already on them and 2 blank ones for them to come up with their own designs. These are also great for on-the-go entertainment as they are small and lightweight enough to throw in a bag.

Klutz Make Your Own Puffy Stickers-this is another big hit with my daughter and some of my older clients at work. It's funny how happy a sticker can make even older kids. This set comes with all of the materials to make 60 puffy stickers. There are many designs for them to color in but also comes with some that are already colored in. Using a special tool and following the easy to understand directions, kids will make their own stickers. Great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, encourages graphomotor skills when you color the sticker in and great for executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organization.






Kid Made Modern Arts and Crafts Library-while some children really benefit from structured art projects with a definite beginning and end to it, others do much better with more open-ended and creative kind of activities. This amazing collection of art materials comes in a sturdy carrying case and features all kinds of materials (including glue and scissors)  that encourage creativity in children age 7 and up. Some of the fun materials you will find in the box are feathers, felt pieces, buttons, pom poms, beads, googly eyes and SO much more. This kit encourages children to use their imagination and be creative while also encouraging the development of fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and improves executive functioning skills such as organization, planning a project and completing it.

My First Arts and Crafts Library-I love that Kid Made Modern realized that younger children would benefit from different kinds of materials and created another arts and crafts library that is better suited for 4-6 year olds. Just like the original Arts and Crafts Library, this kit offers children the opportunity to use a variety of art materials that encourages creativity. The pieces in this kit are a bit larger and easier for smaller hands to manipulate. Kids will use straws, stickers, buttons, pipe cleaners, beads and so many other materials to create. This kit encourages young artists to use their imagination while developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills.

Orb Factory Sticky Mosaics-these make my gift guide every year and for good reason, they are awesome! There are a variety of sets for both toddlers and big kids with themes ranging from unicorns and rainbows to dinosaurs and sports. Sticky Mosaics are great for working on a ton of developmental skills such as color and number recognition, improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and works on a variety of visual skills such as visual tracking, visual attention, hand-eye coordination and visual motor skills. Kids gain confidence and self-esteem as they match the coordinating colored stickers with the number on the picture. When they are done, they have a piece of art they can display at home. Be sure to check out your local toy stores as they tend to have a large selection of these kits.

Klutz Clay Charms-Klutz has made making these cute little charms for a charm bracelet easy by providing simple step-by-step directions. Kids get to work on improving fine motor and manipulation skills, increase grasp strength, work on following visual directions and improve focus, attention, planning and organizational skills when making their charms. Each kit comes with a clay shaping tool, special glaze, 9 bright clay colors, the supplies needed to turn each clay creation into a charm bracelet, a charm bracelet, a display stand and a detailed instruction book.

Unicorn Smile Kit-my daughter never got into the whole slime thing (which I have always been grateful for), but I know it continues to be a big thing with a lot of kids. I love that this kit comes with everything you need, including a sturdy storage box, to make tons of different slime. The kit includes glue, unicorn beads, ink, different kinds of textured materials to put in the slime, slime containers, scents and so much more. It also comes with different slime recipes for your kids to try out. Making slime is great for working on improving fine motor and manipulation skills and works on executive functioning skills such as planning and organizing, task completion, following directions and focus and attention. The great thing about slime is that it can be used to help build grasp strength when they are playing with it.

Aaron's Thinking Putty Mixed By Me Thinking Putty Kit-like
slime, I find putty to be another big hit amongst kids of all ages and I couldn't be more excited about this kit from Crazy Aaron's. Kids can create their very own color changing Thinking Putty in this newest addition to their line of Mixed by Me kits. Each kit comes with 5 tins of clear putty, three Chiller concentrates, three Thriller effect putties and a mat that has all the directions to make a heat sensitive Thinking Putty. The cool thing about this kit is that it comes with a variety of recipes for different ages. This kit is great for working on increasing grasp strength, improves fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, motor planning, task completion and organizational skills.



Trading Card Kit-I discovered these DIY when my daughter became obsessed with making her own Pokeman cards. While she was making those, I thought about what a great activity it would be to have kids make their own trading cards during sessions. This awesome kit from Kid Made Modern comes with 36 blank trading cards, 12 gel pens, 3 foil bags (for those kids who love to open blind packs, this will be a huge hit) and a sticker sheet. There are so many fun things you can do that encourage creativity while working on developing fine motor, graphomotor and visual motor skills with this kit. Here are some ways to use these cards:
*have kids create a trading card with a picture of themselves on one side and all their important information on the other side
*have kids make their own superhero cards. Draw pictures of their superheroes on one side and then have them fill in important information about them on the other side
*if they have trading cards that they love to collect, have them make their own. Baseball cards, Pokeman Cards, etc. Encourage them to think about things that they love and make their own unique trading cards.

Rainbow Weaving Kit-Kid Made Modern has done it yet again with this fun weaving kit for kids 5 and up. As a child, I remember learning about weaving by making pot holders with those stretchy cotton bands and those plastic looms. I was introduced to this kit when shopping at Stoopher and Boots on the UWS last spring and they were a huge hit with my kids at work. Each kit comes with enough materials to make 4 projects. The frames have double sided tape on the edges so there is no glue necessary. Kids can choose their colors or you can encourage them to make a pattern for an added challenge. This is a great activity to work on improving fine motor and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination and works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, task completion, planning and organization.

Classic Friendship Bracelet Kit-this is another awesome craft kit for some of the older kids. I feel like the older I get, the more nostalgic I get about things from my childhood coming back. I have vivid memories of my collection of embroidery thread and all of the friendship bracelets I made. It makes me so happy that kids today still get enjoyment out of this activity. Not only is it amazing that we have physical ways to show how important friendship is, it is such a great activity to work on developing fine motor and manipulation skills, improves bilateral and hand-eye coordination and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, task completion, planning and organization. This kit from Purl Soho includes 5 spools of Chinese Knotting Cord, a safety pin and the pattern to make 9-18 friendship bracelets and comes in 6 different color schemes.

Olli Ella Playpa Coloring Rolls (Forest Coloring Roll, Fairytale Coloring Roll)-these came highly recommended to me by the owner of one of my favorite Park Slope toy stores, Norman and Jules and she has never steered me wrong. I've always been a fan of large coloring posters as they are great for kids to work on together and to be used as a bit of a long term group project. Kids can work on developing visual motor and visual perceptual skills, work on grasping skills and develop hand eye coordination and improve focus, attention and organizational skills. I love that you can hang these on the wall with the coordinating paper roller and then you add the benefit of being able to work on increasing upper extremity strength.






DIY Monster Kit-another great craft kit for children 8 and older. Using just a few simple materials, kids can create their very own monster. If you have kids who are interested in sewing and creating, this is a great gift for them. The kit includes a small cushion, two yes, a felt ball, an embroidery hook, needle and strands of acrylic and wool in a variety of colors. Kids work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve planning, organization and task completion, work on bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination. Additionally, this is a great craft kit for encouraging creativity and imagination and when they finish their monster, giving them increased confidence and self-esteem.

Tots Art Start-this is such a great starter art kit by Alex Jr. for toddlers who are still acquiring fine motor skills and working on the ability to focus and complete tasks presented to them. This kit comes with all the materials needed for 6 activities...shaped paper for decorating, shredded paper for adding to collages, doilies, colored tissue papers, triangle-shaped crayons (great for encouraging a proper grasp), stickers and two frames around peel and stick center areas. This art kit is great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills in toddlers, works on building focus, attention and task completion and encourages creativity and imagination using a variety of different materials and offers sensory exploration in toddlers which is essential for the development of a variety of skills.



Putting this list together was a lot of fun. Personally, I love doing crafts with my own daughter and was so happy to find some new craft kits that even she at 9 1/2 years enjoyed doing. So many kids prefer to spend time in front of some kind of screen but if you find the right art and craft project, you may be able to tear them away for a little while.

If you are looking for some other kinds of ideas when it comes to arts and crafts, don't hesitate reaching out to me. If you have some favorite craft kits that have been a huge hit with your children, I would love to hear about them. I am only a click away and love hearing from you all.

2019 Holiday Gift Guide-Game's On!

No matter how technologically advanced we get, there will always be a reason to have board games in your home. In my family, Rummikub and Boggle hold a special place during family game nights. To this day, countless hours are spent playing one of these games when a sister is in town to visit and the enjoyment I get from playing these games is hard to describe. In addition to the nice 1:1 time spend with my sister, I love how my brain is working and I feel 

There are a tremendous number of benefits of playing board games besides entertaining people. Here are just a few of the many benefits of board games:

1. Improving memory formation and cognitive skills- did you know that the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of the brain are responsible for complex though and memory development? 

2. Stress Reducer-according to online research and surveys, there is a number of people who play games to unwind, relax and relieve stress. 

3. Encourage child development-board games help children develop their logic and reasoning skills, improve critical thinking and boost spatial reasoning. Increased focus and concentration are also linked to playing games. 

4. Improves developmental skills-playing board games help children develop a variety of fine motor and manipulation skills. Additionally, they can work on improving coordination, dexterity and grasp strength.

Below, I share a handful of games that I use at home and work, recommend to parents and think are just awesome. I have tried to share games that can be played as a family because I think it's so important to schedule time together because everyone has such busy and hectic lives. 



Mr. Mouth-I found this classic game a few weeks ago at Barnes and Noble and it has quickly become a favorite of so many of my kids. The goal of the game is pretty straight forward: the first player to feel all their flies to Mr. Mouth wins. 
Great for working on executive functioning skills such as focus and attention, improves hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on developing fine motor and manipulation skills and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, self-regulation, organization and self-monitoring.  




Morphy-this is one of my favorite games for the older kids on my caseload. The goal of the game is to collect the most number of discs by finding a disc with an attribute that is different. The game comes with 60 discs that have a color, pattern and a center circle hole that varies in size. Start with a green disc with stripes and a large center circle and you can move it to an orange disc with stripes and a large center circle or to a green disc with dots and a large center circle. Morphy is a fast-paced game that works on improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills, visual discrimination, visual tracking, pattern recognition, sequencing and improves executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and self-monitoring. 






Colorforms Silly Faces Game-this is a game recommendation for younger children (age 3 and up) who are learning about colors, shapes and parts of the face. It doesn't require any reading which is perfect for the little members of your family. Silly Faces can be played with 2-6 players as they compete to build their silly face first. Kids spin the spinner and choose a Colorforms piece that goes with the category and stick it on their silly face card. There are some unexpected moments in the game which works on being flexible and resilient: if you land on the swap space, they must switch their card with another player who may move ahead in the game. Also, there is an un-stick space where you lose one of your face pieces and to replace it with another one. In addition to learning about shapes, colors and parts of the face, kids can work on developing fine motor and grasping skills, improve hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills all while encouraging kids to have fun, be silly and think outside of the box. 



Boom Blast Stix-I was introduced to this game by one of my occupational therapy colleagues a few Christmas' ago on a Facebook post and I immediately bought it. Warning...this is not a game for those who are easily startled! The point of the game is to clip the triangle-shaped pieces together and carefully stack them on top of each other (the container you store the pieces in doubles as a game board) without making them become undone and causing all of the other pieces to explode. This simple game works on so many occupational therapy skills such as improving fine motor and manipulation skills, increases grasp strength, encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and self-regulation. 





Head to Head Scramble Pop-one of my go-to favorite games from when I began practicing has been Perfection. I have to be honest with you all that I still get startled every time the timer runs out and the pieces pop out. One of the things I have always wanted to change about Perfection is that it could be more than a one person game. So when I saw that Fat Brain Toys had a two-person version of this shape matching game, I was hooked! Think fast, move fast and scramble like mad to match all the shapes into the board first and before time runs out. Whoever gets all of their pieces into the board first wins the game. This game is ideal for working on improving hand-eye coordination, visual motor, visual perceptual and visual tracking skills, works on matching and identifying shapes and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, motor organizational skills and self-regulation.




Dirty Pig Card Game-I am a big fan of card games because they are portable and easy to take with you when you are on the go...like keeping kids entertained while at a restaurant or in a waiting room. This is an easy-to-lear game with the goal being to be the first player to dirty all your pigs. Each player begins with 3-5 clean pigs in front of them and three cards in their hands. Each turn a card is played. By playing a "Dirty Your Pig" card, one pig can be send into the mud. One of the pig cards is flipped over to show a dirty pig on the back. Rain cards clean all the pigs, even your own. Barn cards are used to protect your pigs from the rain and the lightening cards destroy the barns but lightening rod cards protect barns from lightening cards. Farmer cards are used to dirty someone else's pigs....he likes a clean pig! Pigs in a barn that are protected with a barn door are safe from the farmer. A pig in a barn, with a door and a lightening rod is completely protected! Great game to work on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, working memory and organizational skills. 




Greedy Granny-this is a recommendation from my 11-year old niece who says . This non-battery operated game is a simple but hilarious game that will keep players engaged. The goal of the game is to swipe as many treats from Granny's tray without waking her up. Kids take turns taking a piece of food from the tray and then press the button all while hoping Granny won't wake up. The game is intended for kids as young as 4, but as my niece proves, fun enough to keep your older kids entertained as well. Great for working on social skills such as taking turns, being a good sport when winning and losing and can improve fine motor and manipulation skills. You can add a little challenge by having kids use tongs or kid's chopsticks to remove the treat from Granny's tray. 





What's In Ned's Head-this game has been around for ages and one of my all-time favorites to work on developing tactile recognition skills. Place the 16 silly objects in Ned's head, give it a good shake and then pass out a card face down to each player. All turn their cards over at the same time to see what object they have to find and quickly race to be the first person to find the correct object. In addition to the cards for the objects that come with the game, it includes 12 blank cards so you can add your own objects which is awesome because it keeps the game interesting and novel each time. In addition to working on tactile recognition skills, What's In Ned's Head can work on improving grasping and manipulation skills and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organizational skills, improves frustration tolerance and works on self-regulation skills. 



Roller Coaster Challenge-this logic game is a huge hit with my older kids and great for working on developing executive functioning skills. Kids can build up to 40 different roller coasters ranging from beginner to super challenging. Kids pick a card and set up the posts and tracks according to each challenge. They then collect the remaining pieces (listed at the bottom of the card) and have to figure out where they all go in order to complete the roller coaster. Once the roller coaster is put together, they can test it out by running the car along the track. In addition to working on focus, attention, organizational skills, this game works on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves visual-spatial skills, logic, creativity, problem solving and critical thinking. One of the greatest things I see when kids successfully create the roller coaster is that their confidence and self-esteem seam to soar and it encourages them to try the more difficult challenges. I also like to make this game a social opportunity for kids to work together and collaborate on the actual building of the roller coaster. 


Pop The Pig-this is not one of my favorite games but it is one that makes the kids at work SO happy and actually works on a variety of developmental skills so felt like it had to be included this year. While we play it at the gym with just one kid and match it with some kind of gross motor activity (obstacle coarse, climbing up the incline mat to collect the burgers, etc.) it is actually intended to be a multi-player game (a fan favorite with my kids at The Meeting House Juniors). Players take turns rolling the die, finding a burger of the same color, turning it over to see the number, feed the pig and then push down on his head the correct number of times. With each pump, his belly will grow bigger and bigger until he pops! Even though the point of the game is to not be the one to make his belly pop, the kids want to be the one to make it happen! Pop The Pig works on number and color recognition, counting skills, works on improving upper extremity strength, grasping and manipulation skills and encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and self-regulation. 

Yeti Forgetti-one of my favorite games a couple years ago was another Yeti game, Yeti In My Spaghetti, so when this game arrived in my monthly Sensory TheraPlay Box (I will talk about this amazing subscription box in a later gift guide)  a couple of months ago, I was super excited. This newest game from PlayMonster is another hit with my kiddos at work. One of my favorite things is that it is small and doesn't take up a lot of space which is great for on-the-go entertainment. Kids hide the yetis and snow crab under the igloos and move them around so nobody knows which is which. They then draw a card and what they say-guess where a certain yeti is, peek inside the igloo, reveal a location or mix them up again. Try and remember where the yetis are to collect cards but do all you can do not find the snow crab or else you will lose all the cards you have collected. The player who collects the most cards is the winner. This is a great game for working on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, sustained attention, working memory, flexibility and self/emotional regulation. 




Emojinks-I have been a big Spot It fan for years and years and now that I run a social skills group, I tend to try and find games that have some kind of social emotional learning component. So try and imagine how happy Emojinks makes me! Very similar to Spot It, Emojinks is a game of speed where you try and be the first to find the matching Emoji. The nice thing about this game is that there are two different levels, beginner and advanced, so you can use it will all members of your family. Another great thing, the game is compact and easy to take on-the-go for non-screen-time entertainment. Emojinks is perfect to help your children learn about feelings and emotions while also working on developing focus, attention, visual motor skills, visual perceptual skills and visual tracking skills, improves fine motor and manipulation skills and works on social skills such as being a good winner/loser, taking turns and being flexible.

Friends and Neighbors: The Helping Game-Peaceable Kingdom has a variety of beautifully made games and are known for their cooperative games (meaning you need to work together and not strive for being the winner). Friends and Neighbors works on developing a better understanding of emotions and feelings in young children (recommended for children starting at 3 years of age) and encourages empathy. Kids will learn to read emotions and problem solve how to help a variety of people in different situations. Teaching our kids how to not only understand their own feelings and emotions but also recognize how others might feel is a truly important life lesson. In addition to being able to better understand feelings and emotions, Friends and Neighbors works on improving fine motor and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and encourages social emotional development. 

Heads Talk Tails Walk Card Game-this silly game of sounds and movement was recommended by NYC speech therapist, Jacki Barredo. Players try to match hidden head tiles to the correct body tiles. If they can't make a match, they have to try walk and talk like the mismatched tiles. Great for kids 3 and up and works on developing critical skills such as visual perception skills, reasoning skills, bilateral coordination and while encouraging gross motor development. 






Cauldron Quest-another fabulous recommendation from Jacki Barredo. This cooperative game is geared towards older children. The object of the game is to get the three correct ingredients into the cauldron before all six of the paths are blocked. The evil wizard has cast a spell to destroy the kingdom and you have the power to create a potion to break the spell but the kids must work together. The quest is to find the three correct ingredients hidden under the potion bottles and move them up the paths and into the cauldron before the wizards blocks all of the paths. I love cooperative games because kids must work together to achieve a common goal and not compete against each other. Some other social-emotional skills that can be worked on are making decisions together and being open to other people's ideas and recommendations. Also great for working on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, working memory and problem solving. 

Thumbs Up-I just recently pulled this game out of my closet and so excited to be using it again at work. Thumbs Up is a fast-paced game where kids try to be the first to stack colored rings in the right sequence on their thumb. The game comes with colored rings and challenge cards. Each card has 4-7 pictures with numbers and colors and all the players race to be the first to stack the rings in the correct order. Whoever is the first to stack their rings collects the card; the player with the most cards at the end is the winner. This is a great game for on-the-go play because it can be thrown right into a bag. Thumbs Up is great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills, finger isolation, improves hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages focus, attention, motor planning and organizational skills. 





Googly Eyes-this is another recommendation from my niece, Lila and one that I know is a favorite of so many people. This family game is one that involves drawing while wearing zany, vision-altering google eye glasses. Your team tries to guess what you are drawing which results in some hysterics from all players. There are three different sets of lenses for the glasses ranging from a mild to pretty crazy alteration in your vision. Googly Eyes is great for working on improving graphomotor skills and encourages focus and attentional skills. 




I tried to cover a variety of different games on this post for kids of all ages and ones that could be good for families to play together. In a day and age where kids are spending more and more time in front of some kind of electronic device, I love that there are so many game options out there that can keep kids entertained while also working on developing a variety of skills. If you would like any other recommendations for games to work on specific skills, I have plenty more out there to share with you. I would also love to hear from any of you if you have games that are a huge hit with your kids or at work. I am only a click away and love hearing from all of you.