Homemade toys for infants safety wise?

Question

Learning toys made from felt materials

such as how to tie a shoe,zip,button,snap,hook ect.

Answer 1

you dont say how old the child is but if you are trying to get a child younger than 18 mo to 24 mo to do these things you may be asking too much of the child....most children do not gain the amount of small motor skills to do these tasks until that age....

there are lots of toys you can make to help your child to be ready for these tasks....try using things like velcro, or velcro buttons...magnetic snaps/hooks.....and for button hole tasks try pulling a felt button or tab thru the hole ...

but the very best infant/toddler toy i ever made was a personalized book/photo album...i used a combination of photos, pictures from magazines and ads along with miniature flash cards and labels...

page one ...photo of baby at birth or shortly after ...along with label that says "my name is..... i was born on........."

page two(or more)....this is my family....mom....dad.....brother....sist... labeled with their names and using actual photos (hopefully some of them also show the baby)

page three-four.......lots of pictures of babies cut from magazines, newspapers, and advertisments....again labeled "Babies, Babies....."

pages four-five or six ....pictures of food, toys more babies....can be labeled generically or individuallly

page six.....or more....."I have lots of moods..." happy, sad, playful, sleeping....using photos and including labels....and then pictures of the child with caregivers, friends pets...

next page ....animals ...pictures(zoo)..and from books, magazines, ads,,

next page ....."I like to be with my brother and sister".....again photos with brothers and sisters

next page...."I am learning my colors".....small flashcard types created with colors and labeled

next ...."my mom and dad like to play with me too"...more pictures and can include other family members ....aunts/uncles, grandma/grandpa and include a variety of activities with my daughters there were pictures of mom at the  fair and dad at the park

next ..."I like to play inside and outside"....more pictures of fun in the house at daycare....at the park, the zoo,

next page...some pics from magazines etc....and then a statement with a picture...."At the end of the day my thumb and my.......(stuffed toy, blanket, etc) help me to go to sleep....photo with baby in bed asleep or almost there...

I made this for my daughter when she was about one yr old and she even took it this past fall to college with her and when we have moved it is one ot the first things she used to look for when we were settling in our new home...it was made in a photo album from the dollar store with a cute picture on the front and it has gone to school with her when she was student of the month and was one of the things on the reception table when we held her high school graduation party last may....

there are lots and lots of toys you can make for your children of almost any age and may not even cost you more than the time you make them and your child/children will almost always love them best...

Answer 2

There's no reason that homemade toys to teach these basic "dressing up" skills couldn't be constructed safely.

Just make sure that small parts (such as buttons) cannot be detached from the toys; or use harmless analogues (felt buttons) or non-hazardous alternatives (e.g. big, unbreakable buttons).