Archives for posts with tag: Kids

Toys aren’t merely devices made to keep your busy little bee while you finish folding laundry. True, some do just that, but many toys are created as educational tools to teach your children and help them develop better physical, organizational, emotional and social skills. For example, introducing your child to puzzles early on is not only a great, essential way to ensure he or she get the hang of figuring out fun stuff now, but that they also succeed in the great puzzle that is life.

More benefits of playing with puzzles include the development of great hand-eye coordination, fine and gross motor skills, plus shape recognition and problem solving. Puzzles also help children learn about their place in this world and their surroundings while they also become socially confident creatures.

Puzzles also encourage little ones to set goals and achieve them, which then promotes the emergence of self esteem —and lot of it. And maybe, one day, they’ll also do their own laundry! Til then, let’s do some puzzles.

1. First Puzzle – Treehouse

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Great for building self-esteem, this puzzle is large, which is great for sweet little hands, and it’s foam, which makes it easy for wee fingers to grip. Encouraging hand-eye coordination and visual sensory development, it’s designed to really get into the brain and improve cognition, logic, and reasoning.

2. Sensory Puzzle Blocks

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Nice and vibrantly colored, these puzzle blocks help develop fine and gross motor skills while improving hand-eye coordination. They’re textured, too, so as to provide tactile and visual sensory input. Stack, build, and assemble the foam pieces with friends and family to improve social skills.

3. Tot’s First Chunky Pegs

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Again, here’s a puzzle that’s made to help your child develop motor skills and hand-eye coordination. This 20-piece set is designed for tots 12-months old and up to stack, sort, match, and build away with the chunky pegs and pegboard.

4. Edushape Play Mat

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Now here’s a cool concept: use six-by-six foam alpha-numerical puzzle pieces to get your little darling’s logic, reasoning, and motor skills running AND build a fort! With 36 pieces to play with in total, it’ll be easy for your sweetie to get lost in a little world of numbers, letters, and learning. Creating a whimsical box full of fun, this colorful, soft, easy-to-clean floor mat has endless learning possibilities, not to mention it’s also a great insulator for cold floors. Once assembled, the mat is 72”x72” big and is perfect for designating a specific play area in the home.

5. First Puzzle – Fun Forrest

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This large foam puzzle has 10 pieces that are easy to grip so they work wonderfully with little fingers. While building self-esteem, this puzzle also encourages hand-eye coordination and visual sensory development and improves motor skills, cognition, logic and reasoning. And when joined by friends and family, it can also do wonders for your child’s social skills. Did we mention it features all of your favorite forest creatures?

 

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What will be your kid’s first or next adventure in the wonderful world of puzzles? Leave us a comment or drop by our Facebook page to tell us all about it!

Mornings can be chaotic regardless of the circumstance. Between preparing schoolbags, making breakfast, actually getting through breakfast, packing lunches, walking the dogs, and trying to find your kid’s other shoe so you can leave the house already, morning mayhem is part of everyone’s routine! Being the parent of a special needs child adds an entirely different element of preparation to the day. But with a little planning, mornings could be a more seamless operation.Mother and daughter under blanket - Special Needs Essentials

1. Get Good Sleep

First and foremost, getting a good night’s sleep is paramount in shaping the next morning for success. It’s important to get on a consistent sleep-and-wake schedule, and stick to it. Try making your child’s room as dark as possible to help ensure a full night’s rest. Weighted blankets can help, too.

2. Develop A Ritual

Believe it or not, all children love rituals. But when your family has special needs, the discipline of a routine is essential. Make your mornings an orderly endeavor: do the same things in the same order every day, beginning when the alarm clock first rings. Time Timer clocks can help your child understand this routine better, in a visual way.

3. Promote Your Child’s Independence

Your child’s independence is the key, as it will save you more time for other tasks. Breakfast is an opportunity to help arm your child with more independence, which is achievable by using adapted tools at the table. Breakfast not only gives your kids the strength to face the day, but it also adds a great step to your daily ritual that your child can count on and even look forward to. Try these five products, all designed to promote your child’s independence in the morning.

1. Safety toothbrush

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2. Timer Timer

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3. Recessed lid cup

4. Non-sleep reel

5. Pencil grips (to use with silverware or toothbrush!)