A Speech Therapist’s Top 5 Toy Picks This Holiday Season

Thinking of a fun and educational gift can be a challenge. Here are a few of our favourite toys that help promote speech and language development (all toys are available at amazon.ca).

5. Pig Goes Pop

Appropriate for ages 4 years and older

Ways to play with the Pig Goes Pop set

Each hamburger has a number on the bottom of the bun
Have your child pick a hamburger and complete the same number of targets as the number on the bottom of the burger (for example, if your hamburger is 4, have your child say 4 articulation words before taking his or her turn feeding the pig)

4. Playmobil Bathroom Set

Appropriate for ages 4 years and older

Benefits of Playmobil’s Bathroom Set, and ideas for play

Identify objects that belong in that room (i.e. bath tub)
Demonstrate how each object is used and discuss its function (i.e. hair brush)
Have the child tell you how to complete a task of daily living (i.e. how to brushing your teeth)
Remove one object from the room and see if the child can identify what is missing

3. Melissa & Doug Cookie Set

Appropriate for ages 3 – 5 years

Benefits of Melissa & Doug’s Cookie Set, and ideas for play

Sort and identify cookies into groups
Identify later developing concepts like same/different, smooth/bumpy
Pretend play (i.e. take an order, make the cookie, serve the cookie)
Retell the steps they followed to make the cookies (cut cookies, place on pan, decorate cookies, cook cookies, serve cookies, eat, cookies)

2. Melissa & Doug Nesting and Sorting Garages with Cars

Appropriate for ages 2 years +

Benefits of Melissa and Doug’s Nesting and Sorting Garages with Cars

Match and stack garages and cars
Identify basic concepts such as size (big, bigger, biggest)
Later developing concepts like first, middle, last
Create a play scene centred around the garages (ask wh-questions such as who, what, where, and create obstacles to create more language opportunities)

1. Melissa & Doug Hungry Pelican

Appropriate for ages 9 months +

Benefits of Melissa and Doug’s Hungry Pelican for speech and language development

Imitation of gross motor movements (shaking, squeezing and passing the object from one hand to another)
Identify and name the sea creatures
Develop vocabulary such as body parts (on the pelican)
Develop early concepts such as in/out, open/close, above/under