As the holiday season approaches, parents of children with developmental disabilities and delays may find themselves contemplating the perfect gifts that not only bring joy but also support their child’s growth and development. To shed light on this topic, we sat down with Chandler Findley, M.S., CCC-SLP, a dedicated speech-language pathologist, for some expert insights.
Question: Chandler, what are some key considerations parents should ponder when selecting holiday gifts for children with developmental disabilities and delays?
Chandler: “Yeah, so we want to think about some toys that are very low-tech that don’t have a lot of music, so things that will keep them interacting with you and want to engage with you while they’re playing with that toy. Some things like books, really simple books that don’t have music. Whenever you’re touching the pictures, whenever that’s the case, kids will be really focused on the actual toy, and we want them to really engage with us so they can learn, watch what we’re doing, imitate what we’re doing, and interact with us.”
View this post on Instagram
Question: Can you show me examples of toys that would be good to get children for the holidays?
Chandler: “Yeah, so some activities that would be good would be some puzzles like this. This does have sound, but the on and off switches on the back, so parents can control that. If you do want to turn it on to engage your child, you could create an opportunity for them to communicate that with you, ‘on,’ ‘turn it on’ and then ‘take out these pieces and match them’ and it will make little sounds. Play-Doh is always a really good one. Kids often need help opening these, but also they get to work on some sensory work, some fine motor skills. Also communication with Play-Doh creativity.
These little barns are great because they come out, there are some different sizes there and you can match the different animals, putting them in and out of the barn. You can engage in some pretend play, making the animals sleep and wake up. You can target some position concepts like on top, inside out. So toys like this blocks are always really good, lots of creative opportunities with those. And then of course, books, books like this that have pictures that you can point out of real items are really great for kids under three because they look most like the items they’re using in their household and just everyday activities.”
Question: Aside from this, are there any other items around the house parents can use to help their child’s development?
Chandler: “So laundry baskets are great for that. Things like blankets are really good. You can put the kid in there and swing with them. You could also pull them around the house too. Blankets are good for pretending with little, like toy animals, you know, night, night putting them to sleep, getting that pretend play piece in there. So activities like that along with just, you know, general daily routines, finding opportunities for kids to communicate with their parents whenever they’re asking for something they want, like maybe food or washing their hands before turning on the water. You know, creating that opportunity for parents, uh, to model words for their kids.”
This holiday season, let’s not only focus on the joy of giving but also on providing children with developmental disabilities the tools they need to learn, grow, and thrive. By incorporating thoughtful and purposeful gifts, we can create meaningful opportunities for connection, communication, and development for every child.