How do you encourage and stimulate your 1yr old?

Question

Ok, this sounds like a strange question but my 13month old girl is so quick and bright. She is full of energy, she doesnt stop all day long. But she has looooooooooooooooong been bored with her toys. Stuffed animals havent interested her in maybe 5-6 months, unless its brand new and then its a novelty for a few days. Her touchy-feely books are all tossed aside by her, you know the ones that are crinkly and make noises and have rubber things attached to them and ribbons and all sorts. She even has a fisher price activity table that lights up with sounds and has all sort of things to push and pull and flip and turn and that was interesting for a bit...but now not.

Basically I want to find toys that challenge her and interest her. These days the only thing she likes is walking up and down the house looking at things about the house and inspecting them.

Maybe she needs toys for an older age..18months or 2years....what did you guys do/buy?

Answer 1

teach her sign language if you haven't alredy

Answer 2

Hi. My daughter was the same way. (She is now almost 2 yrs old.)

I think your daughter is past the "baby toys" stage. She needs things that make her think now, not just tactile things and "Action-consequence" toys.

First thing to try is to rotate her toys. Take some away, then bring them back out about a month later. This generates new interest in them.

We had a good activity table, and my daughter also lost interest in it at about 16 mths.

2nd thing to do is make sure she has lots of toys that encourage imaginative play, or more than one use.

Blocks are one example. Balls are good for some kids, though my own daughter lost interest in them quickly.

One that worked wonders for my daughter was buying her a play kitchen at age 13 mths. She has spent so much time from then on right up to the present pretending to cook. Also get some plastic play food, preferably the kind that velcros pieces together. Then "cook" with her, making up stories about what to do next as you go along.

Wooden puzzles are very versatile too. You can ask her where each one goes, or ask her to give you certain ones, or quiz on colours, etc.

Does she have a play phone? Pretending to call people is an endless activity if you suggest she call different people!

Does she go grocery shopping with you? Try getting her a plastic shopping cart. Also give her an old purse of yours, throw in some play money and plastic teething "car keys". Lots of fun pretending to shop, pay, and start the car.

My daughter also enjoyed those stacking cups from Toys R Us a great deal. They can also be snapped together to make different size balls, which is sort of fascinating. It does not cost much either.

At the age of 1 year, my daughter also LOVED playing with a doll - especially attempting to dress and undress her (lots of parental help there!) A doll is VERY different from a stuffed animal, remember.

Your girl is old enough to be entertained by a Little People Farm House, too. Again, it provides more opportunity for imagination and interpretation.

Lastly, remember that you often need to play WITH her in order to help stimulate her. At 13 mths she can't play on her own for longer than a few minutes without getting bored/lonely - that is normal. But with your help, she can understand a whole new world of learning colours, shapes, animal sounds, baby body parts, and more!

Hope this helps!

Answer 3

My 12 month old son is the same. Iv got him lots of musical toys, i bought him a drum from ELC which he loves and i also bought him a xylophone and a triangle he loves them all. I also bough him a football and although he cant walk yet he spends hours just chasing it round the room

http://www.elc.co.uk/toy-41915

This is the drum i have for my son it does different noises and if you roll it on its side it plays a tune

http://www.elc.co.uk/category-535

Answer 4

My son just turned a year old this last thursday...and he's also very quick with things. I have found that the best thing to do is to teach him the names of toys. He loves it when we ask him where a certain toy is...He'll usually look around for a bit until he spots the toy in question and then raise it up triumphently.

Also, find an activity she likes. My son LOVES taking baths so for his birthday we bought him new bath toys that have different sea animals with it. We're not in the process of teaching him the names of those animals.

I do tend to buy my son toys that are for older ages and he loves them, and is quick to learn now they work. Just try all sorts of different things...You'll find something she likes that keeps her entertained for a while. Also, get down on the floor and play with her...she'll stay entertained longer if Mommy's down there playing too.

Answer 5

What I do is take my daughter out all the time. I let her see new things and people. I take her to the park they also have a playground. She s**ts her pants everytime she see's somebody small like her lol. She loves interacting with other children. I try not to waste too much money on toys because after a couple of days she doesn't care about them anymore. I even tried buying the talking books and the got the whole play kitchen and the set for her 1st b-day.

Maybe she needs somebody her age to interact with.