Crazy for OOLY

I'll be the first to admit that I might have a bit of an obsession when it comes to buying supplies for work. It's pretty safe to say that my co-workers would agree BUT also totally appreciate when I find new things for all the kids that come to our gym. When it comes to markers, crayons and other writing instruments, I have absolutely no willpower and must try something that looks good. Over the years, I have learned that kids tend to be more motivated to participate in graphomotor (coloring, drawing, writing, etc.) activities when they get to use fun writing tools. Over the past year or so, my collection has become almost exclusively products from my most favorite company, OOLY. Their products are not only super high quality, they are totally unique and fun. I love how so many of them can be used in various ways that make learning fun. Below, I share some of my favorite OOLY products and include ways that they are therapeutic. 

Mumbo Jumbo Chunky Markers-not all parents/therapists believe in giving young children markers to play with but I think it is a perfect first writing instrument, especially if you have a child has decreased grasp strength. One question I get asked a lot is what markers are best for toddlers. These markers are by far my favorite for little hands. This set of 16 washable markers are the perfect size for toddlers. The thick barrel of the marker makes them easy for the kids to hold.

Switch-Eroo Color Changing Markers-this set of markers are one of my favorite and my kids at work love them for how magical they are. These color changing markers have one regular color on one end and a mystery color appears when you use the "magic" tip on the opposite end. These are one of those things that I use to make learning how to write letters and numbers more magical/fun. First I have kids color in big rectangles and then have them practice writing letters/numbers in boxes that I make for them. They are truly delighted as they see the color magically change as they learn how to write at the same time.

Do-Over Erasable Highlighters-as kids get older and academic expectations increase, you may need to help a child with organizing their work. This is especially important for children who may have executive functioning difficulties. One tool I often recommend to help with organizing homework and other things are highlighters. They may be used for a variety of things including highlighting important information in their work or helping to organize their weekly calendar. I love this set of 6 erasable highlighters because if kids make mistakes, they can easily fix that mistake without it being a big deal. They can assign a color to each subject to help them be able to visually keep track of what assignment is due for what class in their planners. Another great use for these highlighters is if you keep a family schedule: assign each family member a color and highlight their activities in that color so when kids are looking at what their plans are for the week, they can quickly look for their color.

Pretty Pop Mechanical Pencil and Eraser Set-I have become obsessed with this new set of mechanical pencils this school year. More importantly, my daughter has tested them out and agrees that they are the best. There are a few things that make these great and not just that they are like eye candy with their bright and fun colors. The extra thick #2 lead makes it hard for kids to break the tip even if they are using an increased amount of pressure (which is commonly seen in kids who have decreased grasp strength). The other awesome thing about this pencil is that the triangular shape naturally encourages kids to use a tripod-like grasp when holding it. In addition to 4 pencils, this set comes with an eraser and extra lead. 

Unmistakables Erasable Crayons-I am a huge fan of any kind of erasable crayon. While I certainly don't encourage kids to be perfect, I do understand how many of them, especially older children, like to be able to fix their mistakes or change things if necessary. You can also encourage creativity and imagination skills when using these crayons by letting the kids color a piece of paper in and then using the eraser to make pictures, write letters or numbers or anything that comes to their mind. 

Left Right Crayons-I found these years ago in a little toy store when on in vacation in New Hampshire and was immediately obsessed. Many of the children I work with, especially the itty bitty ones, don't have a hand preference (which is totally normal up until the age of 5 years old) but I still work on developing a proper grip. These ergonomically designed crayons are easy for little hands to hold and automatically encourage a tripod-like grasp. The set of 10 bright colored crayons are made of eco-friendly polymer, are nontoxic and can be erased.

Mighty Pencil Sharpener-it sounds silly, but I have gone through more pencil sharpeners over the years with many of them being totally junky. I actually encourage the children I work with to sharpen their own pencils when I am working with them because it works on a bunch of skills: bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination, motor planning, organization and focus and attentional skills. This pencil sharpener is just the right size and shape for child-sized hands and has three sharpeners built in for different sized pencils. 

On-the-Go Stationery Kit-one of the things I worked on with my daughter this summer was letter writing. She loves getting mail but needed encouragement to send mail to people. Since she is obsessed with unicorns, I knew that this stationery set would be a huge motivator for her. These stationery sets are fantastic and not only come with stationery and envelopes but also postcards, stickers, a little notepad, a mechanical pencil and a 4-color click pen. In a time when people are so attached to their phones or other electronic devices, it is nice to keep the art of letter writing alive, especially in kids. It's a great way to work on writing and executive functioning skills with older children.

Color Pop All In One Notebook-I am one of those parents who likes to have a notebook on me at all times. I prefer to not allow my daughter to use electronic devices outside of the house so it's important to carry a notebook so she can draw, write, etc. instead of relying on a screen to keep her entertained. I adore this all in one notebook because even though it's small, it has a lot in it. In addition to having lined, graph and blank paper pages, it also has an envelope behind the front cover where you can store things (we fill ours with stickers). It's small enough to easily throw in any bag but also big enough for your kids to have plenty of space to create whatever their hearts desire.

Creatibles DIY Window Cling Art Kit-I was so excited when I saw that OOLY had a bunch of new craft kits out this fall. My daughter and I had so much fun playing with this. The set comes with 5 bottles of colored paint (you can also mix them together to create other colors), a black outliner paint, 2 reusable transparent films and a book with 14 traceable designs. This requires time and patience (which I like to help work on executive functioning skills) as you have to do it in two steps and then wait for the paint to dry. First kids use the black paint to trace the outline of pictures (you can also create images of your own). Once they let that dry for a couple of hours, they can use the colored paints to fill in the picture. Kids can work on improving hand-eye coordination, focus, attention and grasp strengthening while creating stickers that will look like stained-glass pictures on your windows. It also helps in building confidence and self-esteem as they display their completed stickers.

These 10 products are just the tip of the iceberg. I didn't even get to include my favorite scented gel pens that we can not NOT have in our house or their amazing erasers that can not only clean up any mistakes but are also good for working on developing fine motor skills and increase hand strength because you can take them apart and put them together  . If you are looking for high-quality, unique and fun products, I highly recommend spending some time on the OOLY website to check out everything. One thing that I love about their website is their gift section where they have put together gift sets for girls, boys and teens. They have bundles of products that will surely be a huge hit for any party, holiday or just because gift. I can speak from experience, every time I have gifted someone anything from OOLY, I have been asked where to get them. If you are looking for something specific for your child, feel free to reach out to me for suggestions. These are just a few of the many, many products I have used. I am always a click away and love hearing from you all.

Book of the Week-We Are All Wonders

One of the most important things I can teach my daughter is the importance of being a kind, empathic and understanding child.  Living in New York City, children are exposed to a variety of people at a very young age.  I'm lucky enough that my daughter doesn't seem to notice people being different.  Or she notices their differences but doesn't think they matter.  The easiest way for children to learn about being kind and empathic is by seeing it from other people in their lives, especially their grown-ups.  However, there are many children who need to help understanding that not everyone looks the same and some are born with issues that make them very different than them.  For example, kids may not be able to speak or walk without a walker or may need a wheelchair in order to get around.  While it is normal for kids to be curious, we have to teach them that staring at a child for too long or asking them too many questions may make the other kids feel sad.

We Are All Wonders. by R.J. Palacio is a picture book based on her book Wonder.  I was so moved by that book when I read it a couple of years ago that I now recommend it to anyone who works with kids and have gifted it to more people than I can recall.  We Are All Wonders features Auggie Pullman, the main character of Wonder.  The main theme of the book is the importance of being kind, empathetic and understanding.  Auggie was born with facial differences and because of that, he is different than other kids his age.  The kids don't invite him to play and call him names because of the way he looks.  What those kids don't understand is that even though he may look different than him, he is very much like them.  He likes to play with the same kinds of toys and do the same kinds of activities.  Auggie is sad that nobody wants to play with him so when he is feeling extra lonely, he puts on his space helmet and he and his dog Daisy escape to Pluto where they play with old friends.  As they are coming back to Earth, Auggie sees just how big it is and how it should be big enough for all kinds of people.  This is something we all need to be reminded of at times and definitely something children need to learn from a very young age. 

Here are some questions you can ask your children and activities you can do to go along with We Are All Wonders.
~one of my favorite quotes from We Are All Wonders is "I can't change the way I look.  People just need to change the way they see."  Using this quote, you can brainstorm with the kids about how they would describe Auggie without focusing on the way he looks.  For older children, you could put everyone's name in a bag and have them pick a name out.  They must then think about something wonderful about that person that has nothing to do with they way they look.  Provide examples such as "you have a really great singing voice" or "you know how to make the coolest MagnaTile structures" or "you are a really great drawer". 

~an important conversation to have while reading this book is about how everyone is different.  We may have things in common with our friends and family, but there are things that make us each unique and extraordinary.  Go around the class and ask each child to think about something that makes them different than their peers.  If they can't come up with something, help them come up with something that you notice makes them unique and special.

~something I have introduced to my own daughter is the idea of performing random acts of kindness.  A random act of kindness is when someone unexpectedly does something kind for someone that brightens their day.  Brainstorm with your child or the class about different kinds of things that they can do for people in their lives.

~one thing that can be done in either a classroom or home setting is to make a Kindness Jar.  Every time a child is caught doing something kind for someone else, you put some kind of token in that jar.  Once the jar is full, the class earns a party or you and your child can do something special.  I sometimes suggest that parents actually write down what that act of kindness on small pieces of paper so they can read through all the great things that the kids did.  For younger children, it may be easier to have a bowl full of pom poms that they put into a jar and for the grownup to keep a running list of random acts of kindness they observe and then share some of them when the child/class earns their reward
~I have discussed this before, but it is too good not to do again in conjunction with We Are All Wonders.  The Kindness Rocks project is an initiative that spreads kindness through drawing, painting and creating on rocks.  People are encouraged to draw special pictures or write inspirational messages on rocks and then place them throughout their community or take them with them while they are traveling.  The hope is that people will find those rocks and their day will be a bit brighter.  For schools who want to promote social emotional learning, you could have classrooms make their own rocks and place them in different places that can be found. 

Over the next several weeks, I will be sharing my favorite books about teaching kindness, empathy and understanding to children.  I have a whole bunch but am always looking books to add to my library.  If you have any favorites you would like to share, I am always a click away and love hearing from you all!

Book of the Week-The Dot

For the last several weeks at The Meeting House our theme has been not having to be perfect.  We have read several wonderful books about this topic but my favorite has been The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds.  This book, and many others of his, has been part of my personal library for a while since the topic was something that I had to work on with my own daughter: when it comes to creating, there is no wrong way.

My book recommendation this week is not just for the kids I work with but also for the parents, teachers, therapists and caregivers who spend time with those kids.  Sometimes us grownups need to know how to best motivate and inspire the little ones in our lives.  We tend to get wrapped up in what is expected of kids at different stages of life and making sure our kids aren't behind.

In The Dot, we meet a little girl named Vashti who is sitting at her desk in art class looking sadly at her blank piece of paper.  She's feeling stuck...doesn't know what she should be doing with that blank piece of paper and is feeling discouraged by her lack of artistic abilities.   ut is encouraged by her teacher to draw a dot on her paper "and see where it takes you".  She angrily makes a dot on her paper and her teacher has her sign the paper.  The next time she enters the art class, she finds her picture framed and hanging on the wall for all to see.  Seeing this picture makes Vashti's confidence soar and inspires her to take things to the next level.  She starts out small and then goes bigger and bigger.  The story ends with her encouraging a little boy who feels like he isn't an artist just like her teacher did for her.

The Dot has many important lessons to teach children of today.  In my line of work, I have too many children who avoid trying something because they don't feel like they will be good at it.  Or maybe they won't try it because they are worried someone will criticize their work.   It's not isolated to an art project...it can be trying some kind of big body activity or obstacle course, or answering a question a peer is asking because maybe they don't know the "right" answer.  What I have learned over the years as both a therapist and a parent is that you have to gently push these kids because even though they don't think they will be successful, I know they will be.   What I like most about The Dot is how it is Vashti's personal story and not one that compares her to other children.  It really teaches kids of all ages about challenging yourself to be better for yourself and not to satisfy others.

Below,  you will find some questions you can ask your children and activities you can do with your children when you read The Dot.

~be sure to talk about all the different feelings Vashti is feeling throughout the book.  Have them look at her face and tell you how she is feeling at different points of the book

~ask your children what kinds of things might be hard for them and how they feel when they are presented with something new and maybe out of their comfort zone.

~in The Dot, Vashti sits there and does nothing during her art class because she doesn't think she is a good artist.  Have a conversation with your child about what other things Vashti could have done at that time instead of avoiding the task.

~there are SO many fun dot art activities that you can be used when reading this book.  I am currently obsessed with these watercolor pencils and paints by OOLY which are perfect for  making some pretty awesome dots like Vashti.  Have your children experiment with different sizes, colors, patterns, etc..  Talk to them about how each one is different and unique and how they are all perfect in their own way.

~if you have a group of kids, you can make a dot "quilt".  One of my favorite craft activities we have done with the kids at TMH Juniors was to give each kid a handful of squares with circles drawn on them.  We put out different materials and writing instruments for the kids to use to decorate their circles however they want.  At the end, we worked as a group to place all of the dots onto a big piece of cardboard and made a TMH Quilt.  The kids loved the final product and we loved watching them work together to create it.

~for younger children who aren't as comfortable with using writing instruments, have them make their own dot pictures using different kinds of objects as stamps.  For example, cut a potato or an apple in half and have them dip it into paint.  You can use also use bottle caps, empty toilet paper or paper towel rolls or anything that has some kind of roundish shape.

~for older children who need encouragement to try new things, have them keep a daily dot journal.  Encourage them to make their mark on each page and write about what it is.  As the year goes on, they will see how their creativity and imagination have grown.

The Dot is a great book for all times of the year, but especially great to pull out before your child is about to start something new.  I know many teachers who begin a new school year off by reading this book and doing a variety of craft projects.  If you have any other books that focus on this topic or activities that you have done in conjunction with this book, I would love to hear from you.  I am only a click away and love hearing from all of you!

The Small Stuff-2017 Holiday Gift Edition

This is one of my favorite parts of my holiday guide year after year.  I love finding little treasures that will not only entertain kids but will work on improving a variety of developmental skills.  Personally, I find shopping for stocking stuffers more fun than anything because my daughter spends more time picking out her Santa gifts.  The things that she opens in her stocking are usually 100% a surprise and more often than not, the things she is most interested in since they are totally novel.

I am constantly on the lookout for little toys and gifts when exploring my neighborhood stores.  There are a lot of holiday gifts that can't be found at my local stores but I do my best to support y local small businesses when I can.  Many of the items listed below can be found at the following New York City/Brooklyn based stores:  Lion In The Sun, Pink Olive, Little Things, Norman & Jules, Lulu's Cut and Toys, Stationery and Toy World on the UWS, Mary Arnold Toys and West Side Kids.

Below, I share some of my favorite little gifts...little treasures that will bring joy to your children.  I tried to include things that I thought parents would enjoy playing with with their kids as well.  There is a whole lot of old school toys mixed in with some of the current fads.  The one thing they all have in common is that they will help develop essential skills without your kids really knowing it.


Moulin Roty Town and Country Transfers-I love when I find something that brings me back to my own childhood and this is definitely one of those things that sends me back in time. The Town and Country Transfers comes with over 30 pictures that you can put into the provided scene or put on your own blank canvas (they will show up on either black or white paper).  This is a great and affordable craft that will not only encourage creativity and imagination, it also works on improving fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and focus, attention, planning and organizational skills.

Slime Suckers-these were one of my greatest finds of the year.  Kids can work on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills while grossing out family and friends.  They simply squeeze the sucker and put into the slime and release the sucker and watch the slime disappear.  To get the slime out, they squeeze it again.


Zoo Sticks-these are always a favorite for kids.  They can use the chopsticks to eat or to pick up small objects.  I always have a few pairs with me at home and at work.  There are all kinds of different ones to choose from including farm animals, sea creatures and vehicles.  Kids can work on improving grasp strength, manipulation skills and visual motor/perceptual skills while using them.

Aaron's Thinking Putty- you can never go wrong with Aaron's Thinking Putty.  There are a ton of different ones to choose from.  I love their holiday themed options:  the Mini Holiday Collection and the Gelt Trio come in small tins making it great for throwing into a bag to entertain your kids when you are on the run.  Kids love when I hide little objects in the putty.  Great for working on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills.


Sidewalk Chalk Spray-chalk is always a great gift for kids of all ages.  Living in Brooklyn, you see some amazing chalk art on the sidewalks.  Some of my favorite times with my own daughter are warm spring and summer nights out on our sidewalk drawing with chalk.  This set of chalk spray comes with 4 colors; add some water, shake and let your kids start creating.  You can pair this gift with these chalk stencils.  This is not only great for encouraging imagination and creativity but also works on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, hand-eye coordination and visual motor and perceptual activities.
**while we like to keep our sidewalk art up for as long as Mother Nature allows, some don't.  The Sidewalk Chalk Spray easily rinses away with a hose or a rain shower.  

Rainbow Twirler-sometimes, the simplest of toys can bring more joy than those that cost a lot.  This simple toy will keep kids entertained for hours and costs almost nothing.   Kids spin the toy and create all kinds of rainbow shapes.  It's a great way to work on improving hand-eye coordination, motor planning and organizational skills.


Memory Maze-I couldn't love this hand-held Simon Says game more!  Just like the original Simon Says, kids have to to follow the light pattern.  If you get all the way to 15 steps, you win.  This is great for working on improving hand-eye coordination, memory skills and executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and memory.  Kids (and their grownups) of all ages will love this and most likely become obsessed with this game.

Mini Bop-It-who doesn't love Bop-It?  This is one of those games that I loved as a kid and so happy that it's still around.  This mini version of the game will be sure to keep your kids entertained while also working on improving hand-eye coordination, sequencing, focus, attention, motor planning and organizational skills.  If you have a child who has difficulty with following directions or may have auditory processing delays, this is a great toy for them.


Squiggle Wiggle Writer Pen-kids will love to write and draw with this vibrating pen.  As they write and draw, the vibrating pens turns their words and pictures into squiggly ones.  Each pen comes with 4 different colored inks that you can swap out.  Fun way to encourage kids to draw and write.

Super Duper Scented Gel Pens-I've spent a lot of time looking for the perfect gel pens and I have found them in this set by OOLY.  This set contains 24 mini gel pens in a durable case.  There are 12 glitter, 6 neon and 6 pastel pens and each has its own scent which is always fun for kids.  These are the brightest and most vibrant gel pens I have found.  The smaller size of the pen helps to encourage a proper grasp when holding it.  Kids will want to practice writing, draw or color if they have these pens!

Wikki Stix-I first discovered Wikki Stix when at a restaurant with kids years ago.  Instead of the usual crayons and activity menu, this place gave out little packs of Wikki Stix to entertain the kids.  At first I was confused and wondered how it would possibly keep them quiet for an entire meal, but then I was fighting with the kids to play with them and I quickly understood.  For those of you not in the know, Wikki Stix are basically different colored wax covered yarn that can be bent into different shapes.  They can be used for play and for learning.  Kids can practice making different shapes, letters or numbers by bending the Wikki Stix.  For younger kids, you can have them put the Wikki Stix on printed out shapes, letters or numbers and for younger kids you can provide them with a blank piece of paper and have them create them without a visual cue.  They are incredibly durable and can't be ripped or torn (you can cut them into smaller pieces if you need to).  Wikki Stix are great for working on improving fine motor skills, such as improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, encourages bilateral coordination skills.

Build Bonanza Lego Tape-I know for a fact that I'm not alone in having a kid who is obsessed with Legos.  While she loves building sets, she is also happy making her own creations.  We are now in love with our rolls of Lego compatible tape that can make any surface a place to create with Legos and other kinds of building blocks.  It's flexible, bendable and can be put on curved and corner surfaces.  It can be cut to whatever shape you want....I like the idea of writing your kids name with them.  Great for working on increasing grasp strength and manipulation skills, improves visual motor and perceptual skills, hand-eye coordination and encourages creativity and imagination.

Hogwild Poppers-finding the right toy to work on hand strengthening can be tricky because kids who are weak are very good at avoiding those kinds of activities.  When it comes to doing it at home, it really has to be motivating and seem like a toy and not a therapy activity.  The Hog Wild Popper toys are perfect for this and definitely are more fun than work.  My unicorn obsessed daughter has been gifted more of these than I can count and loves them.  There are TONS of poppers to choose from ranging from animals to team mascots and all are just under $10.  The balls are foam so there is little risk for them hurting someone else or breaking anything in your house.
In addition to hand strengthening, they are great for working on improving bilateral coordination, hand eye coordination, motor planning and focus and attentional skills.  You can also combine working on improving visual and gross motor skills by setting up a target that kids aim towards and then having them wheelbarrow walk, run or do some kind of animal crawl to retrieve the ball.

Touch and Feel Forest Friends Puzzles -finding interlocking puzzles for younger kids can be challenging but this set by Mudpuppy is a great one. It comes with 4 3-piece interlocking puzzles and each one has a different textured piece that encourages sensory exploration.  The puzzles are made from durable materials that are perfect for those rough toddlers!  These are great for improving hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and improves problem solving, focus, attention and organizational skills.

Puzzle Trio Stories-I love these mini puzzles from one of my favorite toy companies, Djeco.  This set contains 8 3-piece puzzles that when put together tell a story.  They are great for working on improving visual motor and perceptual skills, hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination and focus, attention, motor planning and organizational skills. If you have a child who has speech and language delays, they are a fun way to work on sequencing and storytelling skills.  You can make these more portable by throwing them in a ziploc bag.

Plus-Plus Tubes-one of my favorite open-ended manipulative toys out there.  They have a large selection of tubes which come with about 70 pieces and instructions for something you can make.  The tubes are great for throwing in a bag and taking on the go to keep your kids entertained while at a restaurant, in waiting rooms, etc..  I especially love their holiday themed tubes available right now like snowflakes, an elf and a Christmas Tree!  They are great for improving fine motor skills such as grasp strength and manipulation skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages creativity and imagination.

Super Sonic Gyro Disc-I was so excited when I came across this toy in a little bookstore while on vacation this summer.  I remember playing with something similar to the gyro disc as a child and thought it would be a perfect addition to my occupational therapy tool box and a great toy for parents to have at home.
This simple and inexpensive toy (I picked mine up for under $5)  is great for working on improving bilateral coordination skills, increasing upper extremity strength, motor planning and organizational skills.  Kids are motivated by the spinning noise and how the LED lights light up once they get it going.  This can be tricky for the kids to get started so I sometimes offer hand-over-hand assistance until they feel like they have the hang of it.  For older kids, I add a challenge by having them do this activity while balancing on a balance board or a bosu ball.
Clip-On Doodle Pro-a great gift to keep your little ones entertained while on the go.  The Clip-On Doodle Pro is a magnetic drawing board that you can throw into a bag, attach to your child's backpack or keep in the car.  Encourages creativity and imagination while also working on improving visual motor and perceptual skills.

Sticker Puzzles-these make a great gift for kids of all ages.  These sticker puzzles by Lee Publications come in a variety of sizes and feature some of your children's favorite characters from movies and television shows.  They simply find the matching number on the grid; as they add the stickers, a picture comes to life.  Great for working on improving hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and works on increasing grasping and manipulation skills.
Mini Coloring Rolls-do you have a kid who loves to color?  Mudpuppy's Mini Coloring Rolls are perfect for them then.  They will enjoy 3 feet of coloring (there are a bunch of different ones to choose from based on your kid's interests) at home or on the go.  Each set comes with a box that you can use as storage and keeping the picture from getting torn or wrinkled when not being colored.  It also includes a few crayons but I always make sure to have a little baggie of gel pens or markers in my bag for my daughter.  This is a fun way to keep your kids entertained but will also work on improving visual motor and perceptual skills, hand-eye coordination, focus, attention and organizational skills.

Mini Pocket Pal Journals-in addition to always having markers or gel pens with me, I ALWAYS have some kind of notebook or drawing pad for my daughter to draw in when we are out and about (especially when we are going out to eat). She loves to draw, have us throw spelling words at her or to just write her own stories while we are sitting at the table.  For under $10 you can give your kid the gift of imagination and creativity.  For under $10, your kid can get a set of 8 books with some of their favorite creatures on the cover.  These are great for keeping your kids engaged during down time, encourage creativity and imagination, work on improving graphomotor skills and executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and task management.

These are just a handful of my favorite small gifts. I would love to hear from you all and hear about your favorite small gifts/stocking stuffers.  I am always a click away and am always happy to hear from my readers with their suggestions.

Gifts For the Little Ones!

I love finding gifts for the little kids in my life that they can grow with...things that will serve different purposes at different points in their lives.  In this portion of my 2017 Holiday Gift Guide, I share some of my favorite toys, games and products that are suitable for children 4 years and younger.  Many of the suggestions are ones that provide children with the opportunity to expand their imagination and creativity skills.  They provide them with opportunities for open-ended play.  Open-ended play materials are those that don't have a pre-determined way of playing with them.  This encourages creativity, problem solving, making choices and increases imagination in children.  Providing younger children with these open-ended play opportunities will make your children develop critical thinking and make them more independent as they get older.  Below, I share some of my favorite toys to gift and to recommend for the younger children in your life.

Ditto Mirrored Building Blocks-one of the best investments one can make for a baby/toddler is a great set of building blocks.  This is something that kids will play with at all ages and work on different developmental skills across ages.  The Ditto Blocks are not your typical building block; these blocks have mirrors built into them.  You can shine bright lights in your tower, create patterns with objects reflected inside or find their faces reflected in them.  The Ditto block are not only beautiful to look at, they are good for encouraging kids to be creative and use their imagination.  They are also great for working on bilateral coordination, improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills, improving spatial awareness and hand-eye coordination.

Squigz and Pipsquigz-one of my favorite manipulative toys for younger kids.  These colorful toys are basically suction cups that stick together.  Simply apply pressure and they either stick together or can stick on different surfaces like a mirror or a tabletop.  They are waterproof and can be used in the bathtub or shower; since they are no-porous, the won't get moldy and can be cleaned easier.  They are flexible manipulative toys that can be used to build and create a variety of structures.  One of my favorite things about Squigz is the super fun popping noise they make when you pull them apart!  Squigz are great for working on improving fine motor skills such as improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, encourages bilateral coordination skills and can improve hand-eye coordination.  If used on a mirror or window, you can work on increasing upper extremity strength.  This open-ended manipulative toys are perfect for encouraging creativity and imagination skills.

Tobbly Wobbly-this is another favorite of the kids I work with.  Using reusable stickers and different

kinds of Squigz pieces, children can create a fun friend.  Tobbly Wobbly is an egg shaped structure that is weighted on the bottom making it easier for little ones to place the pieces on without it moving around too much.  One of my favorite things about Tobbly Wobbly is that it has built-in storage so you don't have to worry about losing pieces.  Once your child has finished making their very own Tobbly Wobbly, they can take the pieces off and put it all inside.  This toy is great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills, bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and spatial awareness.  I have used this to help children gain better body awareness by encouraging them to put pieces where they would be on their own body which can be quite challenging for many of the kids I work.  For the most part, I encourage kids to be creative and have fun when building their Tobbly Wobbly character.

Magic Painting World Coloring Sets-years ago, I had found these reusable coloring pages by Aquadoodle and I loved them, especially for my younger kids who weren't quite ready for coloring and holding/manipulating coloring instruments.  I was in one of my favorite little stores in Park Slope, Annie's Blue Ribbon General Store, when I discovered the Magic Painting coloring sets by Tiger Tribe.  Using a paintbrush that you fill with water, kids can "color in" some magical scenes.  Each set contains 4 coloring boards and a paintbrush for the kids to use to make the pictures come to life.  On the back of each picture there are things for the kids to find hidden in each picture. Great for working on improving fine motor and grasping skills, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and can improve focus and attention.   This is an awesome thing for traveling or to keep in your bag for keeping kids occupied while in waiting rooms.

Peg Friends Stacking Farm/Peg Friends Around the Town-pegboards seem to be the staple of all toddler toy collections and are definitely a part of any therapeutic gym/preschool classroom.  They are great for developing fine motor and grasping skills, manipulation skills, hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination and motor planning and organizational skills.  Kids can also work on color recognition and sorting and matching colors when using them.  When I saw these pegboard sets by Learning Resources, I became obsessed!  These easy-to-hold pegs are double-sided characters/animals that kids push together and pull apart.  Once they are put together, kids find the place on the pegboard where they belong (for example, the pig goes in the mud, the doctor goes in the hospital, etc.).  You can even encourage your kids to be as silly as they want to and have them mix and match the animals/people.  In addition to working on the aforementioned skills, kids can improve their language, creativity and expand their imagination.

Grippies Builders-another great open-ended building toy especially designed for little hands.  This 30-piece set comes with brightly colored magnetic pieces that kids can play with to build and create.  What I like about these is that each piece is covered with a soft plastic with different textures for kids to explore.  This building toy is great for working on improving bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills, spatial awareness and grasping and manipulation skills.  Since there is no right way to play with these, they are great for encouraging a child to be creative and use their imagination at a very young age.

Props In A Bag/Props In A Box-pretend play is a critical part of a
toddler's development.  Through pretend play children gain a better understanding of social emotional roles in life.  Pretend play also helps develop cooperative play skills with siblings/peers, improves imagination and creativity, improves problem solving and can work on improving fine motor skills.  The Props in a Bag and Props in a Box sets are a great gift for your little ones and come with all that you need to help your children's imaginations soar.  The Props in a Box sets (The Dino & The Pirate, The Princess & the Chef, The Fisherman & the Astronaut and The Doctor & the Farmer)comes with a variety of props and costumes for 2 characters, a large backdrop and allows you to download the Props in a Box Movie Maker App that allows your child to add special effects to movies that you can create with them.  The Props in a Bag sets (The Builder, The Camper, The Magician and The Superhero) comes with props and costumes for one, a backdrop and access to the Props in a Box Movie Maker App.

Car Pretend Play Stickers/Kitchen Pretend Play Stickers-one of the things we all get lots of during the holiday season are cardboard boxes.  As a toddler...and still to some point today...my daughter loved building things with the cardboard boxes.  She and my husband would spend hours building and playing in these structures.  When I saw these Pretend Play Stickers by Eeboo I knew they had to make my gift guide this year.  Each set of the stickers comes with four giant sheets of reusable stickers to make a kitchen or car out of a cardboard box.  Kids will work on improving their creative and imagination skills while having fun!  At the same time, kids can work on improving fine motor and grasping skills, bilateral coordination (as they take the stickers off the sheets) and visual motor and visual perceptual skills.

Ooly Mumbo Jumbo Markers-I am not one of those people who believes that you should wait to let kids experiment with writing instruments.  One of my daughter's greatest gifts for her first Christmas was an easel.  We had it for years and years and it got more use than just about any toy.  At that time, it was more difficult to find markers for her small hands.  When I discovered the Mumbo Jumbo markers, I was super excited and wished they had been around when Quinn was little.  I've been using them with all of my little friends at the gym and recommending them to anyone who will listen to me.  This set of 16 markers are short and have a thicker barrel making it easier for little hands to hold.  Because of that thicker barrel, it helps to encourage an appropriate grasp when using them.

Monkey Around-finding board games that are good for your little ones can be challenging.  Peaceable Kingdom has a bunch of great family games and I love this one for toddlers because it gets them up and moving.  Monkey Around has 40 different cards that have all players do movements together.  Some of the movements kids are asked to do are giving high fives, balancing on one foot and marching.  This is a great game to work on improving gross motor skills, motor planning, coordination and organizational skills.  It also builds confidence and self-esteem as your little ones master the various challenges on the cards.

Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game-this game by Educational Insights was one of my daughter's first board games and she never tired of it.  It is also a favorite of many of the kids I work with and the kids who attend The Meeting House.  The point of the game is to feed your hungry forest friends acorns; the first player to fill their log with all the colored acorns is the winner.  One of my favorite parts of the game is that kids pick up the acorns using chopsticks so they can work on improving fine motor skills while learning about colors.  Kids can also work on improving hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills, focus and attention and strategic thinking.  Sneaky Snacky Squirrel is a perfect family game that helps teach your young kids about turn-taking and other social skills related to game playing.

Doodle-Pro Slim Magnetic Drawing Board-this is a great toy to introduce kids to drawing and pre-writing.  This drawing board is great because it is slim and lightweight making it easy to take on the go.  It comes with a stylus attached so you don't have to worry about your child losing it.  There are also 4 different shape stamps that can add details to your child's drawing.  I love that kids can draw over and over again without wasting any paper.  In addition to working on graphomotor skills, it is also great for working on improving grasping skills, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and encourages bilateral coordination and crossing  midline. 

Poke-A-Dot Books-I love these interactive books but more importantly, the kids love them more!  This is a fun way to teach kids how to count.  Each page has little raised buttons that go along with the story (for example, the 10 little monkeys have a button to pop on their belly).  These books are really durable and can handle the wear and tear of a rough toddler.  There are a bunch to choose from and can introduce your children to colors, shapes, animals and the letters of the alphabet. 
Great for working on fine motor skills and increasing strength in those tiny muscles in the hand, improves hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and focus and attention. They are also great for improving language skills and focus and attention. 

Touch and Feel Forest Friends Puzzles -finding interlocking puzzles for younger kids can be challenging but this set by Mudpuppy is a great one. It comes with 4 3-piece interlocking puzzles and each one has a different textured piece that encourages sensory exploration.  The puzzles are made from durable materials that are perfect for those rough toddlers!  These are great for improving hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination, visual motor and perceptual skills and improves problem solving, focus, attention and organizational skills.

Snap 'N Learn Learning Cows-Learning Resources is my go-to place for any math manipulative toys.  We have a bunch of different ones at my gym and the kids love them all, especially the Snap 'N Learn Number Turtles.  I am a particular fan of this cow set for the little ones.  It comes with 10 cows (20 pieces all together) with a number on one side and dots on the other side.  Kids have to match not only the numbers, but the colors.  This is a great activity to work on improving grasp and upper extremity strength, bilateral coordination, visual spatial, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and hand-eye coordination. 

Wimzle-this is a great cause and effect toy for your babies.  It is BPA free so you don't have to worry about them using it as a teether!  This sensory/tactile toy introduces young children to a variety of textures and sensations.  Babies can pull, twist and squeeze the different spheres which is great for encouraging the development of grasping and manipulation skills.  Each sphere of the Wimzle has a different texture for them to explore.  In addition to being great for the aforementioned skills, it also works on developing hand-eye coordination, motor planning and bilateral coordination. 


These are just a few of the things I love for younger children.  Each of them help children develop crucial skills they will need as they get older and the academic and social expectations increase.  I've tried to make recommendations that parents will enjoy playing with as much as their children do.  And the things that are a little pricier than you want to spend are things that will last forever and be part of your child's collection for years to come.  Does your child have a favorite toy, game or building blocks set that you would recommend to me or my readers?  I love hearing from you all and am only a click away.