Reviews Parenting
Written by Alyson Aladro; edited by Lisa Sabatini
Updated
2021-01-07T22:28:31Z
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- Toys that offer sensory stimulation are important for all kids, not just those who struggle with sensory processing or integration.
- Finding what sensory toys work for your child will provide the most success during their play.
- We spoke to an occupational therapist who recommended toys for kids with varying sensory needs, for their five developing senses, and more.
- Speak with your pediatrician if you think your child needs diagnostic help with a potential sensory processing disorder or developmental delays.
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The sensory system allows people to regulate themselves. When children and adults are exposed to stimuli like lights or noises, the experience can trigger sensory reactions, which may be expressed by avoiding the stimuli with fervor or seeking more.
These feelings of being overwhelmed or understimulated often cause children to act out. That's why sensory toys are particularly useful for calming an out-of-whack sensory system and helping kids process the feelings in their bodies and minds. To come up with the sensory toys recommendations below, I spoke with Elizabeth Mormando, a licensed occupational therapist in Staten Island, New York.
"Sensory toys can be really great to give a child a healthy, productive, and educational way to organize and process the world around them," she said. She explained that there is a big overlap in toys for sensory-seeking or avoidant kids, simply because the spectrum of needs is so dense.
The items on this list are quite flexible — anyone can use them — and Mormando had some delightful recommendations for adapting many of them to your child's specific needs, including blindness, hearing loss, limb differences, or physical disabilities.
These are some of our favorite sensory toys for kids, as recommended by an occupational therapist:
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Toys for touching and teething
A tactile experience is the most common sensation offered by a sensory toy. These types of toys allow a child to focus on something that gives their body time and space to slow down.
In contrast, giving your child something like a video to watch may overstimulate them even more and exacerbate the problem. Even a brief moment of quieting their mind and body can go a long way.
Water beads that change and grow
Li'l Gen Water Beads, available at Amazon, $11.99
Water beads encourage a lot of exploration through sensory play. Kids can feel how the beads change when different pressure is applied and how the beads feel on their hands. The beads also change in texture and size the longer they are soaked in water, providing plenty of opportunities for changes in stimulation to keep a child interested.
This product is not recommended for children under 3 due to its potential choking hazard, and children over 3 who still have a tendency to put things in their mouth should be watched very carefully.
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Common household items that double as sensory toys
J&D Ceramic Medium Round Brush, available at Bed Bath & Beyond, $9.88
Farberware Classic 4-Piece Nylon Kitchen Tool Set, available at Bed Bath & Beyond, $13.99*
Kaptron Tool Spoons and Collapsible Measuring Cups, available at Amazon, $10.78
When a child needs to engage with something new, common household items in varying shapes, sizes, and textures are convenient options. Consider play or real kitchen items that can fit inside each other, like measuring cups.
Mormando explained that, although these items may not be specifically sensory-geared, children who don't have sensory processing issues still gain exposure and learning through play.
Have a child that leans more sensory-avoidant? Mormando recommends putting the items in the bathtub with them. A hairbrush, spoon, or cup will float around, allowing the child to get used to its proximity and engage from a distance without becoming overwhelmed.
*Farberware Tool Set is out of stock
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A twist on coloring
Crayola Mess Free Touch Lights, available at Amazon, Target, and Michael's, from $24.99
Crayola Washable Window Markers, available at Walmart, Amazon, and Michael's, from $6.79
Coloring is a tactile experience, and adding variations in drawing tools or surfaces can go a long way. For a mess-free experience, the Touch Lights tablet lets kids drag and slide their fingers across a gel-filled layer to see how the material moves and lights up.
Window markers, which are also great for the bathtub, are a personal favorite in our home because of the novelty of coloring somewhere unusual. Drawing vertically can also help kids grow from holding a writing utensil with their whole hand to utilizing the more developed pincer grasp.
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A board for keeping little hands busy
Busy Board, available at Etsy, $15.99*
The Original Busy Board, available at Amazon, $23.99
Busy boards are great for distracting toddlers while traveling, and they serve an important purpose for kids who are seeking sensory stimulation. Because kids can use their hands and minds in different ways on a busy board — tying, looping, and snapping, for example — they hone fine motor skills while scratching that sensory itch.
*Busy Board is out of stock
Mainstream fidget toys
Figrol LED Light Fidget Spinner, available at Amazon, $10.99
Bunmo Stretchy Strings, available at Amazon, $6.99
Impresa Stress Relief Balls (3-pack), available at Amazon, $12.99
A lot of gear for people with sensory processing disorders has entered the mainstream over the years. Fidget spinners — primarily for children with autism spectrum disorder — gained popularity in the last few years. Sensory sticks are a more recent phenomenon. Stress balls have been a mainstay on office desks for decades. Aside from their popularity, these items share the characteristics of being small, unobtrusive, and easy to carry.
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A teether for oral stimulation
Infantino Vibrating Teethers, available at Walmart, $13.30
On their own, teething rings can provide sensory stimulation. The bases are usually uniquely textured to provide relief for infants' gum soreness, but they can be just as effective for satisfying a craving for oral stimulation. That said, some children might get even more satisfaction from biting on something that they can moderate the sensations of — deciding if and when it vibrates.
Squishy toys for fine and gross motor skills
Edushape sensory ball set, available at Targetand Walmart, from $45.86
Because they come in basic sizes with varying but simple textures, sensory balls are particularly good for children from birth to 3 years old. They can help infants and toddlers develop their grasp, and when kids are ready to move beyond holding, they can roll or throw them with assistance. The bumps and ridges also provide a variety of oral sensations that may give them just the right amount of input to move forward with their next task.
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A table for endless sensory play
ECR4Kids Sand and Water Adjustable Activity Play Table, available at Amazon and Target, from $89.99
Kinetic Sand Sandisfying Set with Tools, available at Target, Walmart, and Amazon, from $14.97
SlimySand, available at Amazon, $7.99
Sensory tables provide a healthy dose of tactile stimulation and allow children to be in charge of what they play with and moderate how they do it. My kids like the classics — water and sand — but there are many creative toys and recipes to spice things up, like rainbow-colored rice.
You can bury small toys or give your child tools to pour and fill. The more opportunities to explore, the better. A fun twist, courtesy of Mormando: If you don't have a table, fill plastic bins with sensory items for a child to put their feet in.
Toys for hearing and seeing
My biggest takeaway from Mormando about any sensory toy is that altering, changing, and growing different experiences for a child's unique sensory needs is essential. For example, kids who have limitations in how they hear or see can still get full sensory satisfaction from toys with sounds or colors that are connected to vibrations, textures, and other sensations, like feeling the weight of the beads in a rain stick rush from one end to the other.
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A drum that goes ‘round and ‘round
Montessori Spinning Drum, $50, at Etsy
This Montessori-inspired spinning drum provides sensory input that doesn't overload a child. First, kids engage in tactile stimulation by spinning it fast or slow. Add in the visual element of watching the colors spin and the auditory satisfaction that comes from its soothing whirring tones, and the sensory trifecta is complete. Mormando said this sensory toy is especially good for babies given its gentle and multifaceted stimulation.
A lamp they can stare at
Lava the Original, available at Amazon, Target, and Walmart, from $14.87
Gently distracting without being overwhelming, lava lamps are great because all of the action takes place safely inside the vessel, leaving a child to simply give up and watch. The goo inside is slow, ever-changing, quiet, and soothing.
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A toy with buttons that feel and sound fun
Sassy Do-Re-Mi Textured Tunes Sensory Toy, available at Buy Buy Baby and Amazon, $9.99
For blind children who could benefit from sensory integration, Mormando recommended sound-based toys that kids can control. Much like a teether that vibrates for oral stimulation, sounds that are activated through buttons can coordinate sensations (in this case, sound and touch), which will help kids self-regulate.
A stick that holds the sounds of nature
Arte Indigena Cactus Rain Stick, available at Amazon, $12.05
Rotating or swirling this stick gently activates the beads to trickle around inside. The gentle tones that emanate, along with a child's ability to moderate the volume, are as soothingly distracting as the sound of falling rain.
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Musical brands for wrists and more
Poplay Band Wrist Bells, available at Amazon, $10.99
These bells on a wristband stand out as loads of fun for kids of all abilities, including those with limb differences. They can be looped through a buttonhole, attached to a hat, or wrapped around a wrist or ankle. As kids shimmy and shake, the sounds of the bells get stronger or gentler depending on their movements.
Toys for balance and deep touch
Vestibular and proprioceptive, or balance and deep touch, sensory experiences are most applicable to kids who like to crash and bang. Objects they can fully engage with help them organize their body in space. Sometimes that requires big soft things to jump on, like a cushion, or maybe it means challenging them mentally while they work hard physically, like on an obstacle course.
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A stuffable cushion for their stuffies
Posh Stuffable Kids Stuffed Animal Storage Bean Bag Chair Cover, available at Amazon, $21.45
One of my kids' favorite activities is to pile all the couch cushions on the floor and jump on them, repeatedly and with vigor. I do not share their enthusiasm for this activity, but I appreciate the occasional need to slam their body into stuff. So I got creative. Enter the stuffable chair cover. Not only do we now have a designated cushion for jumping, but we also have a place to store our stuffed animals and blankets.
A big swing for big needs
Iddings kid's hanging pod hammock, available at Wayfair, $54.99
Big swings are great for kids seeking a whole-body sensory experience. As an infant, my now-5-year-old loved her hanging swing and the stability it provided while she worked out her growing muscles. Mormando said this can be a particularly good item for young friends who are in wheelchairs and/or may not have the core strength to hold their bodies up for other deep touch activities in this list.
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A toy to spin the sillies out
Little Tikes Fun Zone Dual Twister, available at Target and Walmart*, from $39.99
A little sit-and-spin activity time helps a child meet their vestibular and proprioceptive stimulation needs. They'll need to stay anchored to the seat and engage their upper body strength to send themselves spinning in concise circles. This version allows one or two kids to spin at a time, for double the fun.
*out of stock at Walmart
Make an obstacle course
Organic cotton play tunnel, available at Lovevery, $50
TickiT silishapes sensory circles, available at Amazon, $54.50
Space permitting, an obstacle course can provide benefits to caregivers and children alike. Adults can sit back while children explore, and kids get an opportunity for a wholly stimulating sensory experience, including jumping, leaping, turning, and crawling. Provide a variety of toys for using their whole body: a tunnel for crawling and wiggling and disks or stepping stones for balancing and rearranging, which also work problem-solving skills.
Alyson Aladro is a freelance contributor to Insider Picks. She recently earned her doctoral degree in Cognitive, Social, and Developmental Psychology at the New School for Social Research and specializes in early childhood development from infancy through preschool. After bouncing around different neighborhoods across New York City, Alyson and her family—her husband, two young children, and their beagle—recently found their forever home in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. They enjoy visiting the local park and riding the ferry whenever possible. You can find more of Alyson's parenting hacks and child development musings on Instagram @alysonemily_phd. Learn more about how our team of experts tests and reviews products at Insider here.
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