Crafting Holiday Gift Guide

One of my favorite things to do in my therapy sessions is to hide the therapeutic aspects of things to my kids. Making therapy fun and engaging leads to increased engagement and less resistance to trying more challenging things. Over the course of my career, I have found that finding highly motivating craft activities can go a long way in getting kids to try things outside of their comfort zone. Being able to work on an activity for several sessions allows for the kids to learn about patience, flexibility and resilience and also makes them even more excited and proud of the final product. Below I share a handful of my favorite crafting, baking and STEAM activity sets. I tried to include gifts for children of a variety of ages so hopefully you will find something. Don't forget that I have so many more ideas that I am always happy to share so if you need specific suggestions for anyone, don't hesitate reaching out and asking. In the meantime, take a look at this years gift ideas and read about all the developmental and therapeutic benefits. 

1. Moulin Roty Baking Set-I've been baking with my now 11 year old since she was old enough to be an active participant and she just loves baking now. Fun fact.....during Covid her aunt in California and she would do weekly baking/cooking dates over Zoom to keep their connection and it was one of the highlights of quarantine. Baking with kids can help create a beautiful connection between kids and their grownups but making sure that you have the right tools is essential. I wish that this baking set was available when my daughter was younger because the tools are just the right size for small hands and helps them be more independent and successful when baking. This gorgeous kit comes with an oven mitt, rolling pin, whisk, spatula, pastry cutter, pie tin, 2 heart-shaped cookie cutters, a muffin pan and a recipe book. They are kid-sized and can be used for actual baking or can be used during pretend play. Baking with kids can work on so many developmental skills such as improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, encourages hand-eye and bilateral coordination while also boosting confidence and self-esteem. 

2. Giant Coloring Posters-Looking for a fun family activity to keep you all busy as the cold weather sets in? Lulu's Cuts and Toys has a great selection of these for you to choose from. I am a bit biased and really love the Brooklyn one but there are several to choose from. Depending on your living situation, you can hang this on a wall and keep up all the time for kids to color in as they please or work on it a little at a time, roll it back up and store in the sturdy box it comes in. Obviously this is a great activity to work on improving graphomotor skills but is also a great way to encourage conversation and language skills. These large pictures are big enough for a whole family to work on at the same time. 

3. Tiny Baking Kit-what's cuter than mini baked goods??? A perfect gift for some of your older, more Tik-Tok savvy kids! One of my sisters gifted this to my daughter a few years ago and she spent countless hours playing with it. This set comes with 17 miniature sized baking tools and a recipe book with 20 recipes using all baking supplies you already have at home.  Mini chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes, pizzas and so much more will delight your children while working on developing fine motor and manipulation skills, improve hand-eye coordination and work on improving executive functioning skills while following the recipes such as focus, attention, organization and planning skills. 

4. Flour Shop Rainbow Explosion Cake Kit-Flour Shop is a cake store in SoHo in Manhattan and was all everyone was talking about when it first opened years ago. If you have a serious baker on your shopping list this year, this would be a really fun gift for them. The kit comes with all the ingredients you need to make this 6-layer rainbow kit (you will need cake pans): 1 pouch of vanilla cake mix, 6 rainbow colored gels, 1 pouch of cream cheese frosting mix, 1 pouch of rainbow explosion mix (sprinkles), 1 pouch rainbow polka dots (sprinkles). This is an awesome gift for an older child who loves to bake and works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, following directions, organization, planning and task completion. 

5. Play-Dough Baking Kit-I am SO SO obsessed with this adorable "baking" kit for the little ones in your life. I am planning on ordering a handful of these for some of the kids on my shopping list this year and only hope that I am invited over to play with it! This kit comes with four silicone baking cups, candles, cookie cutters, a rolling pin, and pom poms, buttons, beads and jewels to decorate their cupcakes. It also comes with 3 containers of homemade/non-toxic cinnamon, strawberry and sugar cookie sprinkle play dough. First and foremost, these kits (be sure to check out all of the products from Young + Wild and Friedman because there are so many great ones to choose from) encourage creativity, imagination and play skills for little ones. They also work on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, improve visual motor and visual perceptual skills and are great for sensory exploration. 

6. Orb Factory Sticky Mosaics-I can't tell you how much my kids love doing these Sticky Mosaics and they have made my gift guide year after year. Simple one of the best fine motor crafting activities out there and the kids have no idea how many therapeutic goals they are working on when using them. For younger children, the stickers are larger and different shapes and colors which are easier for their fingers to manipulate. For older children, the stickers are slightly smaller and kids have to match the correct color to numbers. In addition to working on fine motor skills, kids can work on shape, color and number recognition, improves hand eye coordination and improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills. Attach to an easel to work on increasing upper extremity strength. Kids are so proud of the final product and love showing them off. 
***Be sure to check out your local toy and book stores for these kits. I am always seeing them and grab them whenever I do!

7. Razzle Dazzle DIY Gem Kit-I discovered these awesome sets right before the lockdown and they ended up being a great thing for my virtual sessions for some of my kids. Very much like the sticky mosaic sets above, kids match colored gems to the correct letters to create a sparkly picture of various animals. The kit comes with a template, gems, a glue pen and a frame to protect your picture when completed. This is an amazing and fun way for kids to work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination and works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. 

8. Kid Made Modern Arts & Craft Library-this is one of my favorite arts and crafts collections and love that it is appropriate for children of all ages and developmental levels. This collection comes with over 1000 pieces of art supplies including peg dolls, wooden loose pieces, pipe cleaners, beads, pom-poms, googly eyes and SO much more and come in a sturdy case with a handle so it can be taken on the go. While they give you suggestions on what you can make with the different materials, it is truly and invitation for kids to use their imagination and be creative using a variety of materials. This open-ended craft library allows children to think outside the box and figure out all the different ways they can explore and use materials to create which helps with improving confidence and self-esteem. 

9. Dress Me Threading Game-loving this "sewing" kit for kids by Haba. Kids work on improving hand eye coordination, bilateral coordination and fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills while dressing these wooden dolls. Each set comes with 1 double-sided scene card, 36 clothing tiles, a sturdy stringing cord and 3 double-sided pattern cards. Kids can make their own outfits or follow the pattern cards (which is great for improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills and working on executive functioning skills such as focus, organization and task completion). 

10. Hat Not Hate Quick Knit Loom-for younger children who are eager to learn how to knit but don't quite have the patience or coordination for knitting needles this is a great starting point. I began knitting during a sad time in my life and it's been nothing but a source of calm and comfort ever since. Post-Covid I am seeing that there are a lot of kids who need something to help them deal with some anxiety and I personally think busy hands help with that. I love this knitting loom from Faber Castell and Lion Brand Yarns that comes with all the materials needed to create two hats. My favorite thing about it is that they have also partnered with the Hat Not Hate Anti-Bullying Awareness organization to encourage children to knit a hat for themselves and then donate to the organization during Anti-Bullying month (October). This particular kit comes with all the materials needed to create two hats including 4 balls of yarn, a reusable loom, a loom hook, a tassel and pom-pom maker and two #HATNOTHATE leather tags to attach to the completed hats. The instructions are clear and easy to follow meaning kids will have success which will lead to increased confidence and self-esteem. Additionally, kids will work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills and executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. 

11. Knitters of Tomorrow Beginner Kit-do you have someone in your life who would like to learn how to knit but not sure where to start? This beginners kit is one of the best that I have seen when searching for friends. It comes with 2 balls of yarn, a set of light-weight knitting needles, a plastic sewing needle for completing your projects and a beginner's guide pattern book with lessons broken into reasonable and appropriate lessons. There are also suggested links to online video tutorials to guide the children as they learn how to knit a hat and scarf. Knitting, once mastered, is such a wonderful skill for children. It's not only an amazing fine motor, visual motor and visual perceptual activity, it's great for working on improving executive functioning skills such focus, attention, organization and frustration tolerance. Most importantly, when a child masters knitting, they have increased confidence and self-esteem. 

12. Kid-Friendly Succulent Kit-I'm loving all the great DIY gardening kits made for younger children and am completely obsessed with this succulent kit! Gardening is a great hands-on activity that not only encourages sensory exploration, but works on improving fine motor, grasping, hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination and visual motor and visual perceptual skills. These kid-friendly kits come with a succulent (easy for kids to take care of), a ceramic animal pot, mini gardening tools, stickers for decorating and a bag of soil. In addition to all the therapeutic benefits, kids learn about responsibility by watering the plant. 

13. Classic Friendship Bracelet Making Kit-it's so fun when an activity from my own childhood comes back so when I saw these friendship bracelet kits from Purl Soho, I immediately bought them for the tweens/teens in my life. Each kit (you choose your color-wave) comes with enough materials for 9-18 bracelets depending on the width of the bracelets you make. Each set comes with a safety pin and 5 spools of Chinese Knotting Cord in a really nice storage box with a step-by-step friendship bracelet pattern book. Great for working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination and works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and task completion. 

14. Arcade Claw Game-for your STEAM loving kids, this is a pretty awesome gift. The Arcade Claw Game from Klutz Maker lab will get your kids excited for learning and creating. Kids follow the child-friendly, illustrated instructions to build their very own arcade claw game from a variety of materials (chipboard parts, acetate windows, cotton string, dowels, tall and short pulleys, carriage, claw and plastic snaps) . Once built, kids can fill the claw machine with 3 prize capsules and try and use the claw to grab them. This toy encourages the development of fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, spatial reasoning, hand-eye coordination and works on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, following directions, planning and organizational skills. 

15. S.T.E.A.M. School Deluxe Studio Science-another STEAM gift but more appropriate for younger kids, this kit contains 10 amazing arts and crafts projects that has some kind of fun science, math and engineering concepts built in. Each activity comes with a fully illustrated card to make it easy for them to follow along for task completion. Some of the activities included are building with conductive light-up dough, playing with gears, making paper gliders. Kids will learn so much about engineering, electricity and so much more while working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, work on improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills and improve executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. 

16. The Kindness Mission Box-I felt like it was important to complete this list with this awesome activity box. There is never a time to not try and teach our children about the importance of kindness and how they can spread it themselves. This activity kit includes a series of "secret missions" for kids to complete that teach kids about caring for themselves, their friends, family, community and environment. Children go through all 4 "training missions" by making clay friendship pots, a wooden birdhouse and origami creations before they move onto a deco of over 50 kindness missions to complete throughout the year. In addition to all the crafting materials and the cards, the kit also includes a self-care checklist which helps create healthy habits in children. Kids have no idea that while they are engaged in these activities, they are also working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve visual motor and perceptual skills and are engaged in constant social emotional learning. 

Once again, I have tried to link some of my favorite local toy stores whenever I could as I have always found it very important to support our local businesses but even more so now. Many of the items listed above are ones that I have seen in most toy stores I have visited all over the place. And since are all hearing about shipping nightmares and problems with supply chain, why not take out some of the stress and support your local stores where you don't have to worry about toys arriving on time. If you are shopping for family members who are not local, find out their local toy stores and see if you can shop from there. If you are in the NYC area, be sure to check out the following stores: Lulu's Cuts and Toys, Little Things Toy Store, Norman and Jules, Annie's Blue Ribbon General Store, West Side Kids, Stationary and Toy World, Mary Arnold Toys, Kidding Around Toys and Boomerang Toys. 

Again, if you are looking for specific crafting or baking ideas for your kids or kids on your shopping list, please do not hesitate reaching out to me for suggestions. I have so many more thoughts on great gifts for the important toddlers in your life. I am only an email away at otmeghan@gmail.com and love to hear from and help in any way I can. 

Baby and Toddler Holiday Gift Guide 2021

I haven't done a toddler specific guide before but I felt like it was really important this year. When you think about it, toddlers are entering a whole new world and even if they were born before Covid they don't remember life before it. One of the things I am seeing a lot with my younger kids is a lot of sensory seeking behaviors so I am including some gift ideas to help with that. The other thing I am noticing is that this particular group of kids hasn't really known anyone outside of their circle of people without masks so I am also including a handful of toys and games that will work on feelings, emotions and being able to read facial expressions. And each and every one of these toys will also help with the development of fine motor and grasping skills as well as improve visual motor and visual perceptual skills. 

1. The Hope Learning Tray-sensory play is so important for little hands and overall development. I've always been so jealous of those who don't live in the city who can set up elaborate sensory play set-ups for their children but that is not always possible for people. That's where this sensory tray comes into play. This beautifully designed and very sturdy sensory tray is perfect for all children and can be used in a million different ways. My 11-year old uses hers for jewelry making and I use it at the office for all kinds of sensory play such as water beads, kinetic sand, play dough and so much more. Pictured here is the limited edition Winter Sensory Kit which comes fully stocked with homemade play dough, snowmen peg dolls, stampers and SO much more. 

2.  Learn A-Lot-Avocados -I am a sucker for any toys that have a built in a social-emotional component so when I saw these I fell in love. Kids can work on developing fine motor skills, increase grasp strength and manipulation skills in addition to color matching while also learning about feelings and emotions. In this set of 4 avocados that are perfectly sized for toddler hands, kids work on bilateral coordination and manipulation skills by pulling them apart. Once they are open, kids can work on matching the colors inside. Each avocado has a spinning pit inside with two emoji-style faces that change which is great for working on labeling and talking about a variety of feelings and emotions. Another added bonus, this comes with a storage case which makes clean-up a breeze. 

3. Wobbel Board-this is what I call an investment toy because it has a big price tag but will last for years and years. I have always had a balance board in my office and when Covid, lockdown and remote therapy began, I needed to give families ideas of what they could get to not only assist during therapy sessions, but to offer a safe movement option for kids during their remote school day. The Wobbel Board is something that will last forever and can be used to provide sensory input to help with improving focus and attention, works on improving overall body strength, balance and coordination skills. Be sure to check out the WobbelCards that are free and in a bunch of languages. 

4. Plus Plus Big Picture Puzzles-I am a huge fan of the original Plus-Plus blocks and was really happy when they created these larger blocks for little hands. This set of blocks can be used as an open-ended building toy or you can use the 60 different color Plus Plus blocks and complete the puzzles on the cards. Each card has two sides with the same picture but one has lines for the kids to match the blocks up to and the other side is free-form. Great for working on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, bilateral coordination, hand-eye coordination and visual motor and perceptual skills. 

5. Fine Motor Peacock Pals-Learning Resources has so many great toys for early learning and these peacocks are definitely one of my favorites.Young children work on building hand strength and manipulation skills while pulling out and replacing the peacock's feathers. Kids can work on matching the correct color feathers to each bird or mix and match. One of my favorite features of this toy is how the feathers are all different textures so children can work on sensory and tactile exploration while also encouraging bilateral coordination and visual motor and visual perceptual skills. 

6. Peekaboo Lock Boxes-this is one of my all-time favorite purchases from Norman and Jules and my kids love it as well. This is a shape sorter on steroids because it so much more than just matching shapes. It works on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, works on learning colors and shapes and encourages problem solving and motor organizational skills. This six box set comes with a tray which kids have to match the colored boxes to. Additionally, each large and durable box has a different kind of fastener which kids have to problem solve how to open and close. I love watching the kids figure out different ways to play with the boxes once they put the shapes in. One of their favorite things to do is build a big rainbow tower with them which is great for working on increasing overall body strength and coordination. 

7. Silly Sortin' Monster Puzzle-another fun game that will help your little ones develop fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills in addition to developing hand-eye coordination and visual motor and perceptual skills. This comes with four colorful shapes for sorting, a spinning roller with three funny facial expressions (great for working on identifying feelings and emotions for these little ones who have spent most of their life seeing people in masks) and feet that move up and down when they grab them. This toy is great for working on tactile and sensory exploration

8. Sesame Street MagnaTiles-Magna-Tiles are easily one of the biggest hits at my gym and always make my holiday gift guides. The benefits of these open-ended building blocks are endless but include encouraging imagination and creativity, problem solving and organizational skills. Additionally, they are great for developing fine motor and grasping skills, improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination. When I discovered these Sesame Street Ones (which are compatible with all other of our other MagnaTiles) I had to get some of them. There are many to choose from but the Cookie Monster set is a favorite of mine. Kids can help build a giant cookie for Cookie Monster using the tiles. One of my favorite features of this set is that kids can work on learning and matching the shapes that are on the cookies. 

9. Pop-Up Toy-simple but very satisfying wooden toy for little hands that works on matching and cause and effect. Children can also work on developing hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination and grasping skills when playing with this toy. They quickly discover that if the push down hard enough on each of the peg people once they are in their spot that they will pop out of the box. While so many think kids are much more motivated by the toys that light up and have all kinds of sounds, I find that those kinds of toys become overstimulating for children fairly quickly and that they seem to hold their attention and focus for these simple toys for much longer.  

10. Monkey Around Game-Peaceable Kingdom has been my go-to for early childhood games for years. First of all, they are typically super easy to learn how to play and are incredibly well made which is great for those sometimes little and destructive hands! What I love about Monkey Around is it is a movement game which I think is really important at this age. Sitting down and playing a game can be challenging for 2 and 3 year olds but add movement and you'll find they will be super successful. In this non-competitive game, kids work together to place all the bananas on the tree. The directions are very simple: take a card, do the action pictured (some are solo and some are done together) and place the banana on the tree. Playing Monkey Around works on the following developmental skills: improves gross motor skills such as motor planning, balancing and coordination skills, works on identifying body parts and works on developing social emotional skills such as turn taking, working together and being a good sport. 

11. Stampies-these interchangeable stamps are great for little hands and can be used in a variety of ways. I plan on using them at work with play dough and stamp pads but they would be great for baking as well. Each set comes with a wooden stamper perfectly sized for toddler hands and 15 food-grade silicone animal stamps. In addition to learning about all kinds of animals, kids work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, increase grasp strength, work on visual motor and perceptual skills and improve bilateral coordination skills. Use this with your favorite play dough or make it even more therapeutic by making your own play dough. 

12. Zingo Matching Game-this is another one of those super simple games that packs a powerful developmental punch. The game is a child-friendly version of Bingo where kids will increase their vocabulary while working on developing visual motor and visual perceptual skills, matching skills and improving hand-eye coordination. The kids love when it's their turn and they can slide the Zinger tile holder (which is great for developing fine motor and manipulation skills) to reveal two tiles and then the race for the players to grab tiles that match pictures on their board. Playing games with kids at home, and playing fairly, is crucial for developing healthy peer relationships. I always encourage parents to play fairly when at home so kids learn how to be both a good winner and a good loser when they are playing with friends. 

13. Easel-this is another one of those investment pieces but one that will last forever. My daughter got an easel for her first birthday and used it for years and years. I encourage getting one that has multiple options such as a magnetic dry erase board, chalkboard and one that has a rod on top to hold a roll of painting paper. Working on an upright surface such as an easel is really great for development and helps with increasing upper extremity strength and encourages appropriate grasp on writing instruments.

14. Ooly Art Supplies-Ooly is my go-to art supplies company. If you were to come to my office you would see that I have tried just about everything of theirs. I believe that good and well-made art supplies are important in encouraging creativity and interest in drawing, coloring, etc. with little kids. One of my favorite gifts to give young children is a collection of art supplies. Below, I will list a handful of my favorite Ooly products perfect for those little hands:

a. Mighty Mega Markers-these brightly colored markers are a perfect height and width for little hands. I find young kids, especially those with decreased grasp strength, are much more successful when using markers because it doesn't require as much work on their end. Because these markers are thicker than most, they encourage children to use a more appropriate grasp on the marker. 

b. Brilliant Bee Crayons-I always encourage parents/educators/caregivers to use smaller, triangular crayons with young kids in order to encourage a proper grasp on crayons. If you find that your kids are still using more of a fisted grip when holding these crayons, make a game out of it and break the crayons into smaller pieces. The smaller the crayon, the more likely it is they will use a tripod-like grasp. 

c. Chunkies Paint Stix-these are great for kids who have decreased grasp strength as they don't require a lot of pressure to make marks on paper. These brightly colored stix are easy to hold, dry easily and are far less messy than traditional paints. 

15. Suction Cup Animal Toys-I have shared Squigz suction cup toys every year on my gift guide and while I still love them and gift them to so many people, I have become obsessed with these creature toys. This 36-piece set of animals comes in an adorable and convenient egg-shaped storage container. These cute little suckers can stick to each other and a variety of surfaces including windows, mirrors, bath tub walls, high chairs and so much more. Kids work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve hand-eye coordination and improve play and imagination skills. 

16. Lalaboom Snap Beads-pop beads or snap beads (whatever you call them) have been a staple in my closet for years and years but I got rid of my traditional pop-beads when I discovered these. This set of snap beads not only works on bilateral coordination by pushing together and pulling apart the large beads, each bead is two pieces that kids can twist and turn to mix and match with other beads which is awesome for the development of fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills. Each part of the beads offers a different tactile experience which is awesome for little hands and they are BPA-free so if you have a teething kiddo, you don't have to worry about them putting them in their mouths. 

17. Inny Bin-I truly love this baby toy and wish I had had it at the ready for when my daughter was little. Leave it to Fat Brain Toys to come up with a simple but brilliant toy that encourages sensory exploration, object manipulation and problem solving for your babies. The Inny Bin comes with 6 shapes with varying textures which they have to pull out and push back into the bright colored elastic bands. What's really nice about this toy is that you can use whatever objects you want and that you know will motivate your curious little ones. I have put Frozen figurines, trains and cars and other character toys in it and it's always worked like a charm! 

18. Busy Poppin' Pals Pop Up Toy-cause and effect toys are timeless and should be part of every babies toy choices. Introduce this toy to babies while they are in tummy-time and do hand-over-hand assistance for the five buttons. Babies and toddlers learn about problem solving, cause and effect and grasping and manipulation skills as the figure out how each animal comes out of their boxes. I love that this toy is still around and have witnessed the joy it continues to bring kids after all of these years! I remember having the Sesame Street one as a child and am really happy that simple cause and effect toys are still being made. 

19. Jaq-Jaq Bird Reusable and Erasable Paper and Markers-over the last couple of years, I have begun to be more conscious of how much paper I use during my sessions and have been trying to alternate ways to have kids practice drawing and writing. I have been so happy with this reusable/erasable and feel better that I am not throwing away tons of paper every day. The set comes with 10 pieces of double sided sheets of paper that you can use chalk markers, gel crayons, traditional chalk or the Jaq Jaq Wishy Washy Markers. These clean easily with a wet paper towel or a baby wipe. The paper is lightweight and durable so it's perfect for on-the-go entertainment to keep kids busy while waiting for an appointment, out to dinner or while traveling. 

20. Multicultural Alphabet Peg Dolls-SOOOO obsessed with this peg doll set and just might have to add it to my work collection! I have a set of rainbow peg dolls at work and it's one of the most asked for toys to play with. While many still believe in teaching the alphabet to young ones the traditional way like flashcards, I believe that kids learn better through play and exploration. So when I stumbled on these peg dolls, I knew that they were going on this year's list. The set includes 26 peg dolls with uppercase letters on one side and lowercase on the others and comes in 6 different skin tones. Another investment piece that your children will go back to for years and. years. Be sure to check out all of the beautiful products from this Etsy store owner, Twenty-two Turtledoves. In addition to working on learning and identifying upper and lowercase letters, playing with peg dolls encourages creativity and imagination skills. 

I have tried to link some of my favorite local toy stores whenever I could as I have always found it very important to support our local businesses but even more so now. Many of the items listed above are ones that I have seen in most toy stores I have visited all over the place. And since are all hearing about shipping nightmares and problems with supply chain, why not take out some of the stress and support your local stores where you don't have to worry about toys arriving on time. If you are shopping for family members who are not local, find out their local toy stores and see if you can shop from there. If you are in the NYC area, be sure to check out the following stores: Lulu's Cuts and Toys, Little Things Toy Store, Norman and Jules, Annie's Blue Ribbon General Store, West Side Kids, Stationary and Toy World, Mary Arnold Toys, Kidding Around Toys and Boomerang Toys. 

If you are looking for specific ideas for your kids or kids on your shopping list, please do not hesitate reaching out to me for suggestions. I have so many more thoughts on great gifts for the important toddlers in your life. I am only an email away at otmeghan@gmail.com and love to hear from and help in any way I can. 

2020 Holiday Gift Guide-Game Time!

Winter always means more indoor times and with concerns about another wave of Covid-19 cases as we enter the holiday season, I anticipate people will be spending a lot more time indoors as a family. There are only so many television shows one can binge and I get the sense that people are looking for ways to connect that don’t involve a screen given amount of time people are spending with remote learning and work. Now seems like an ideal time to re-evaluate your game closet and make sure you have some games that will keep the whole family entertained. Below, I share a handful of this year’s favorites. I am excited to have some amazing game suggestions from my colleague, speech therapist Jacki Barredo, that are geared towards older kids and have a speech and language twist to them. I have also tried to add a handful of board games that encourage movement as I think it's so important that no matter what happens with the pandemic, we keep kids active because it is proven that children learn better and are more emotionally balanced when their bodies are given the opportunity to get up and move. 

Wriggleworms-I am a complete sucker for any game that has some kind of grabber to pick up pieces so when I saw this game I was sold. For the little ones on your gift list this year, this is a simple game packed with fun ways to work on developing a variety of skills. The game comes with 20 stretchy worms in 4 colors and 2 different lengths and 20 cards (10 with numbers, 8 critical thinking and 2 size outlines). Kids spin a spinner and they either collect a worm of the same color or the number of worms that they land on. The goal of the game is to be the player to collect the larger number of worms. My favorite part is that they have to use the provided tongs to remove the worms from the game board which is a wonderful way to work on increasing grasp strength and improve manipulation skills. In addition to working on fine motor skills, children learn about colors and size, can practice working on sorting skills, counting and be introduced to early math skills. 

Share And Sparkle Game-The Rainbow Fish is a popular children’s book that teaches children about the importance of being kind, sharing and what it means to be a good friend. In this cooperative, educational game, children must work together to collect all of the Rainbow Fish’s sparkly scales so he can swim in the waves before they reach the shore. Cooperative games are a great way for children or families to learn that there is more to playing a game than winning or losing. In addition to working on improving play skills, children can work on developing fine motor and grasping skills, hand-eye coordination and visual perceptual skills. 

The Color Monster Game-based on one of my favorite children’s books about learning how to identify and understand feelings, The Color Monster game seems to be a much needed resources for young children during these crazy times. Children (and their grownups!) are feeling lot of big feelings and sometimes that can be very confusing. In this collaborative game, children work take turns rolling the dice to move the monster around the board to try and fill up the jars by matching the emotion tokens to the correct colored jar. In order to pick up an emotion coin, children have to share a memory or experience they had with whichever feeling they pick up (Happiness, Sadness, Anger, Fear or Calm). The game is finished when all the correct emotion tokens are in the correct jar. 

Don't Break The Ice-a classic children's game perfect for preschoolers, Don't Break the Ice is a two to four player game where the object is to keep Phillip the Penguin on top of the ice as long as you can while you tap out pieces of ice. Using a little mallet, kids tap out ice pieces but it requires thought and patience to choose a piece that won't make the whole board break. This game is perfect for the little ones in your life who are just starting to learn about turn taking. It also works on developing hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination and can improve grasping and manipulation skills. 

Pancake Pileup-this game is a huge hit both at my sensory gym and with my kids at The Meeting House. What I love about Pancake Pileup is that you can play it in so many ways depending on your child's goals. This game has been a good one to play on my remote sessions to add a gross motor component. It is traditionally a relay-style game where kids pick a card and then try and be the first to stack their pancakes in the correct order; pancakes are on one end of the room and the plate is on the other. If you have several kids you can do a relay race where one kid picks up the first pancake, hands off the spatula to the next kid and continue until the card is complete. Pancake Pileup is great for working on improving visual perceptual skills, hand-eye coordination, sequencing and executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and regulation skills. Additionally, you can improve gross motor skills by giving the kids physical challenges such as jumping, walking backwards, etc. 

First Orchard-one of the things I am hearing from many of my families is their concerns about their very young children missing out on critical opportunities to socialize and learn early academic skills. I am here to reassure parents of young children that there are so many other ways to support your children during this crazy time and the most important way is through play. If your toddler isn't going to school, collaborative games like First Orchard are great for teaching them about working together, color recognition and early counting skills. Together, children (and their grownups if necessary) work together to pick the fruits from the trees before the raven reaches the end of the path. First Orchard is similar to Hi Ho Cherry O but I am always a big fan of toys/products made from wood for sustainability. In addition to working on the aforementioned skills, First Orchard encourages fine motor and manipulations skill and hand-eye coordination.

Little Red Riding Hood Game-this is a great game to work on problem solving and logical reasoning with preschoolers and young school-age children. The point of the game is to get Little Red Riding Hood to grandma’s house by creating the correct path. There are 48-challenge cards and each one starts with a guide to how to place the pieces (Little Red Riding Hood, grandma’s house, trees and the wolf) on the board and fill in the path using the correct pieces. While they say this is a 1-player game, I think it would be a great game for kids to work on together in order to solve the challenge. In addition to cognitive skills, this game works on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves visual-spatial and perceptual skills and increases executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and organizational skills.

Mr. Mouth-I love when games from my childhood make a comeback and even more happy when said games end up being favorites for the kids that I work with. Mr. Mouth is great for older preschoolers and school-age kids to work on improving hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and a great game for working on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, regulation and organizational skills. Be the first to get all of your bugs into the mouth. Sounds easy but you have to time it just right which can be tricky. For my younger kids who might be getting frustrated, I often let them practice by keeping the mouth open for the first round so they can get used to the game in order to build up their frustration tolerance. 

Kerplunk Sloths-the original Kerplunk (marbles) and Tumblin' Monkeys are two of my favorite games and also longtime favorites at work. When I went searching for the link to those games, I stumbled upon this newer version and obsessed is an understatement. Instead of marbles or monkeys, you have to collect the cutest little plastic sloths you've ever seen! Kids take turns rolling the die and removing the matching color stick. The rules actually say that the person with the least number of sloths at the end is the winner but I often let the child(ren) playing decide if they want to aim to get the most or the least number in order to determine a winner. Kerplunk Sloths works on so many developmental skills including improving fine motor and manipulation skills, improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills, encourages executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. Younger children may need some assistance for set-up but in general, this game is appropriate for pre-school through school-age children. 

Spottington-for those of you who don't know about Eeboo, I highly recommend you get to know them. In addition to beautiful puzzles, pretend play toys and craft supplies, they have some of the most well-made, durable and creative games. I received Spottington in my monthly Sensory TheraPlay box last month and it's been a great game for my school age kids. One of my favorite things about this visual perceptual and visual scanning game is the fact that it comes with 7 double-sided interchangeable game boards so the game is never the same. The rules of the game are quite simple, which is another bonus, which makes it more fun for everyone. People take turns flipping over one of the 250 picture cards and everyone playing races to be the first one to find it. Once you find it, you place your token on it and call out "Spottington". The objects are various sizes and there be others that look similar so it really takes a lot of concentration. This game is great for working on visual motor, visual scanning and visual discrimination skills and improves executive functioning skills such as focus and attention. 

The Floor is Lava-with the recent success of the Netflix show, The Floor is Lava, this has become a game kids have gotten really into. I love this game, especially as we are looking at the possibility of a second round of lockdowns and shelter in place action, because it offers movement opportunities for our kids who are spending so much time on a screen. In this family game players must imagine that the floor is molten hot lava while spinning the color wheel to jump to the right foam pieces. The game comes with 25 different colored "safety stones" and 27 challenge cards. This gross motor game works on jumping, leaping, balance, coordination and motor planning. For younger kids, this could be a really fun way to learn about colors. 

Turtle Steps-another gross motor game that can be played indoors or outdoors. Kids who have gross motor delays often want to avoid movement at all costs possible so being able to do it through game can be a game changer for them. Turtle Steps works on balance, coordination and concentration and is appropriate for children 3 years and older. The game includes 3 large and 3 medium-sized turtle shell stepping stones, 24 activity cards with turtle facts and alternative ways to play the game. Through obstacle courses and challenges, kids can work on jumping, coordination and increasing body strength. Play by the rules it comes with or create your own game using the turtle shells. For those of you worried about space, the shells easily stack as to not take up too much space. Gross motor development and movement is important for building confidence, self-esteem and helps with children learning. During these crazy times where so many kids are doing remote school, it's so important that we provide as many opportunities for movement that we can. 

Boochie-another movement game that the whole family can enjoy indoors or outdoors. The first part of the game is to toss out the Boochie target and then try to land your ball and as close as possible. Kids will love that they get to keep score on the special wrist tracker that the game comes with that will throw out different throwing challenges each round. Kids may have to toss between their legs, behind their back, with their eyes closed and so much more. In addition to getting kids up and moving while they may be stuck inside this winter, it works on improving a variety of gross motor skills such as hand-eye coordination, balance, endurance, throwing skills and so much more. 

Sushi Go-one of my clients recommended this game to me and I am obsessed with it now. I actually just picked up my second game to play at home with my husband and daughter! This pick and pass card game is fast-paced and requires strategy and good planning. Each player gets 10 cards and is trying to score the most points by collecting and making a variety of sushi rolls. Sounds easy, but it gets tricky because you keep passing your cards between players who might end up taking the card that you need. This is great for older children who are working on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention and organization. It's also a great way to sneak in some additional math practice for your kids! 

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza-this game recommendation comes from speech therapist extraordinaire, Jacki Barredo. I’m a huge fan of card games because they are easy to store and can easily be taken on the go to keep your kids entertained and this definitely fits that requirement. Pass out all of the cards to all the players and take turns flipping your cards over while saying taco, cat, goat, cheese, pizza (in that order). When the card and the word match, players race to slap the cards and the winner takes the pile. Be sure to keep your eyes open for three special action cards. This is definitely for older children on your gift list and great for working on sequencing, organization, focus, attention and really great for working on regulatory skills. 

Hearing Things-another recommendation from my speech therapist colleague, Jacki Barredo, geared towards older children (10 and older). After the online viral "whisper challenge" sensation, Hasbro created this game. One player puts on a pair of speech-cancelling electronic headphones and the other player is required to say the random phrases on the card. The player only earns the card if they correctly figure out what the other one was saying.

Buildzi-one of my absolute favorite games, and has been for years, is the dice game Tenzi. It’s been a favorite for my kids and has been on my gift guide for years. As I have spent the last few months trying to freshen up my game selection, I stumbled on Buildzi and had to test it out immediately. It has quickly become a favorite of my kids, particularly my older children. One of the things that I love about this companies games is that they all have more than one way to play it making it less likely your child will become bored with it. When playing Tower Buildzi, kids have to look at a card and replicate the tower on the card; this can be done individually or against a friend to see who can build it the fastest without it falling down. When playing Block Card Buildzi, each player gets 8 cards with different shapes and they have to build a sturdy tower using the random shapes.
Buildzi is amazing for working on developing a variety of visual skills such as visual motor, visual perceptual, visual discrimination and visual tracking skills. It also works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization and improving frustration tolerance. If you have a child who has difficulty with teamwork, this is a great game, particularly the Block Card version, to work together with a sibling or a peer to strategize the best way to build a tower. 

Rummy Tile Board Game-Rummikub is a favorite game amongst many of my family and friends. Whenever my sister comes to visit (remember when one could freely travel???), we spend hours playing it. While I have the original version, I thought this version would be more appealing to kids. Rummy Tile Board is a great game for older children who need to work on developing or improving their executive functioning skills. Kids have to take turns placing numbered tiles in runs (4, 5, 6 and so on) or in groups (same numbers, different colors). The first person to use all of their tiles wins. This fast-paced game works on sequencing, pattern recognition, focus, attention and organizational skills. Like many of the more complicated games I introduce my kids to, I always play the first few rounds together so I can make sure they truly understand the rules and answer any questions they might have. I find that this builds their confidence and motivates them to try something that may be tricky for them. 

Morphy-another 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 that is different by one quality. 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. 

I had so much fun putting this game gift guide together. As I have already said, parents are looking for as many opportunities to get their kids off of a screen and what's better than getting the family together to play games. I worked really hard to find games that grown-ups would enjoy playing and not just feel obligated to. There are so many great games out there but it can be really hard to sift through them all. One of the things that I was mindful about with this list is that a variety of skills could be worked on when playing them. 

I highly recommend going to your local toy-stores and see what they have; they are often a wealth of information and know what is most popular. Some of my favorite local toy-stores that have an amazing selection here in the New York City area are Lulu's Cuts and Toys in Park Slope, Little Things Toy Store in Park Slope, Stationery and Toy Store on the Upper West Side, Mary Arnold Toys on the Upper East Side and Fun Stuff Toys on Long Island. While it's always been important to shop local and small businesses, they are really relying on it this holiday season. 

There are so many more games out there and if you are looking for something specific for your child or someone you are looking to buy for this year, I'd be happy to help you find the perfect game. I am only a click away and love hearing from you all. Also, if you have any game suggestions, please send them my way! I am always looking for new games for work and home. 

Cooking With Kids

One of the most challenging things at this point is filling up our days. Especially for those of us who live in the city with lack of outdoor space, keeping our kids busy and limiting the amount of time watching television or on some kind of screen becomes incredibly stressful. So many of the parents on my caseload are looking for easy, fun and non-screen time activities for children so this week I am going to talk about baking with kids. As soon as my daughter was old enough, I started including her in baking with me. It started with her simply just watching me at work as I baked and her involvement increased as she got older. Today, at 10 years old, she loves to bake. Actually, to make up for the fact that she wasn't going to be with her cousin for Easter, my sister and I had our girls pick out a recipe and the FaceTimed the entire time. It was adorable and made them feel connected on a day that they just love to be together.

Baking with children is not only a great way to connect with your children but has so many developmental benefits built right into it. At this crazy time, I think the most helpful thing I can do for parents is provide them with activities that don't seem like therapy or work. While I know baking isn't for everyone, I am going to outline the benefits and provide a bunch of baking activities that you can do with your children.

There are so many benefits of cooking with children including:

*improves fine motor and manipulation skills. Measuring ingredients, rolling out dough, using cookie cutters and decorating your baked goods will lead to improved fine motor and manipulation skills. 

*improves visual skills such as improved hand-eye coordination, visual motor skills and visual tracking. 

*encourages language development. Use this time to not only label ingredients, but talk about the ingredients. Have them describe how they feel. For example, put out a little plate with some of the ingredients and have them feel them and talk about the textures. Are they soft? Are they rough? 

*encourages executive functioning skills. Baking with children is a great way to naturally work on things such as improving attention, focus, organization, sequencing and working memory. For some kids, it might be helpful to print out pictures of the steps and have them put them in order before actually starting baking. 

*for older children, baking can be a really motivating way to work on math skills. For younger children, you can introduce the concepts of more and less while measuring out ingredients. For example, put the measuring cups out with the ingredients in them and ask what you will use more of. My 10 year old is working on fractions right now and when she begins to get really frustrated, I bring out our measure cups as a visual.
*boosts confidence and self-esteem. It really is so much fun to see kids light up as they see their completed baked good come out of the oven. Even more exciting is when they get peoples reactions when they eat them.

I am going to share some cooking activities that you can do with your children. It's important to find activities that will encourage independence for children while also working cooperatively with their siblings or parents. If you are cooking with more than one child, set clear expectations and responsibilities from the get-go to limit arguing during the actual activity. Below you will find several baking and cooking activities. Some requiring cooking, others might not. There are not just food cooking ideas, but also sensory materials like play dough or colored rice and noodles.

Food

Play and Freeze Ice Cream Ball Ice Cream Maker-this was actually recommended to me by one of my occupational therapist colleagues and couldn't love it more. With kids not getting as much physical activity as they are used to, I love that you can combine some gross motor work while making ice cream. Kids can make make ice-cream in about 30 minutes using just a few ingredients by rolling the ball back and forth to each other. Check out this link from L.L. Bean with a bunch of different recipes you can try using this ice cream maker.

English Muffin/Bagel Pizzas-I remember making these as a child with my parents and sisters. This is a great activity because it doesn't require a lot of ingredients and most are things you can easily get even during a pandemic! You will need english muffins or bagels, sauce, shredded mozzarella and any toppings you might want to add. To add some depth to this activity, give your child a pad of paper with a list of everyone’s names on it and write the kinds of pizza available and have him check off what everyone wants. Another fun thing to do is use ingredients to make silly faces. For example, use a pepper to make a mouth or olives or pepperoni to make eyes. 

Rainbow Fruit Kabobs-a variety of cut up fruits in different colors and wooden skewers. Talk about the colors and what order the colors are in a rainbow and have them put the fruit on the wooden skewers in the correct order. This is a great baking activity to do with younger children who you might not feel comfortable with them using mixers and other baking equipment. There are a lot of kid-safe baking tools that you can give your kids to use so the can cut the fruit up. I love this activity because it's a great way to work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills while also working on hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills. Best part is that the end result is a healthy treat for you and your kids to enjoy. 

Rice Krispie Treats-I have always found that making rice krispie treats is another kid friendly baking activity where you can adapt the activity based on your child's age. For younger kids, you can melt the butter and marshmallows and just have them add the cereal and stir but for older and more responsible kids, have them do that (in the microwave or stovetop). You can make this more of a hands-on/sensory experience by having him roll them into balls instead of putting them in a baking pan. You can also change things up by using different kinds of cereal to add color or have them use cookie cutters to make different shapes once they are cooled down. 

M&M Energy Bites-this is another simple non-baking activity that kids can be really involved in. Mix together 1 cup rolled outs, 1/2 cup of peanut butter, 1/2 cup M&Ms, 1/3 cup of honey and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Stirring the ingredients with is a great way to work on increasing upper extremity strength and encourages bilateral coordination skills. Use an ice cream scoop or large spoon to grab a spoonful, place in hand and roll into a ball. 

Chocolate Chip Cookies-you can make them from scratch or use slice and bake ones. No matter which method you use, making chocolate chip cookies are a delicious way to work on fine motor skills. If you make fresh, let your kids add all the ingredients (break the eggs into a bowl for him) and stir as much as he can. When I was baking with my daughter when she was younger, I would put all of the ingredients in bowls and then would tell her which one to add. If you use the slice-and-bake cookies, give your kid a safe knife and help them cut the dough into chunks and then allow them to roll them into balls before placing on the cookie sheet. 

Sensory Materials

Homemade PlayDoh-play doh is another sensory material that kids LOVE. I love this recipe from Mothercould and love that it can last up to 6 months if stored in a good container. There are so many benefits of playing with play dough such as increasing grasp strength, improves grasping and manipulation skills and encourages hand-eye coordination and bilateral coordination skills. Roll play dough into long snakes and practice making shapes, letters or numbers. Use a rolling pin and roll play dough flat and use your favorite cookie cutters.

Dye Rice/Noodles-another great sensory experience and kids can be part of the whole experiences of making it. Kids will love watching the plain rice or pasta go from plain to brightly colored sensory materials.  For each color, you need 1 cup of white rice/baby pasta, 1 tablespoon vinegar and desired amount of food coloring. Have kids help you by pouring the rice and vinegar into little Tupperwares and squeezing a few drops of food coloring. Close the lid and then have them shake the Tupperwares until the rice/noodles are all covered. If you make some of each color, you can pour them into a much bigger Tupperware and hide little characters or animals in it and and have him dig through using their hands or spoons or scoopers to rescue them. Another fun activity is to dye penne or rigatoni noodles and have kids make necklaces out of them. 

Homemade Flubber/Thick Slime-so many of the kids I work with love sensory exploration and there are so many great recipes out there. Flubber/thick slime is a very popular sensory material at my gym and doesn't require a lot of ingredients. You’ll need 1 cup of Elmer’s White Glue, 1/2 cup room temperature water, 1/2 cup liquid starch and glitter or food coloring (optional). Click here for directions. Once made, you can hide little objects in them like beads to work on increasing grasp strength and improving grasping and manipulation skills. 

Salt Clay-this is another simple activity that can be done with kids of all ages and uses only 3 ingredients: salt, flour and water. If you want, you can add a few drops of food coloring to the dough. One of the things I like about using salt clay is that you can adapt how you use it making things either more simple or more challenging depending on the age of your child. Kids can use cookie cutters to make creations or they can use their imagination and make whatever they want to create. Once they are done making their creation, they can use markers or paint to decorate them if you didn't add color earlier. 

One of the things I think is really important is to not expect perfection when cooking/baking with kids. This should be a fun experience and making mistakes is to be expected when engaged in this kind of activity with children. The other thing to try and let go of is to not get worked up if a mess is made. Unless someone is going to get hurt, don't worry about ingredients on the counters, floors or even on themselves. Wait until the activity is complete and hand out cleaning up responsibilities to each person who participated. Remember, the most important thing is to have fun because even though this is a crazy time, there are so many opportunities to make fabulous memories with your children. 

Have you been baking/cooking with your kids during this crazy time? What are your favorite recipes for baking, cooking or sensory materials? I would love to hear from you and am always a click away. I'm sure I am not the only one who would be interested in hearing about other recipes to keep kids busy these days.