I was shopping for a pull along toy and found this @Target.It’s from the brand called SmallFoot toys.It comes with a tractor , trailer, 3 wooden animals, milk can and haystack. The three animals include cow, home and a pig. It’s so colorful and is also painted with non-toxic water based paint. Non-toxic painted toys are something you should look for while buying wooden toys for your little ones.
Another important thing I look for when shopping for toys is that, I mostly check to see what areas of development does the toy help my child with.We want the toys to be open ended so that the child can play with in a few different ways plus get maximum benefits in terms of development.Having said that, it should also be fun and cheerful.
What are pull along toys?
Pull along toys are nothing but toys with moving parts like tires and a narrow string so that your child can pull the toy along. They can also have small toys that come with it. Some pull along toys make different sounds/noises as they get pulled along. There are both plastic and wooden pull along toys in the market.
How are pull along toys helpful for your child?
- They improve hand- eye coordination
You can observe that a child makes several attempts to grasp the string from the toy before it is able to get hold of the string. As they keep doing along with patience their hand eye coordination will improve. Within no time they will easily grab the string and move on to the next challenge.
It also helps with overall coordination as they try to pull and walk along with it.
2. Helps develop the fine motor skills
As they pull along the tractor, grasping the string involves their finger muscles. In this particular pull along toy, the young children try to pull the farmer, transfer the animals onto the trailer further helps foster their fine motor skills development.
3. Fosters Independent play
I see my one year old taking out the animals and putting them back on the trailer while babbling and making noises each time. She stays occupied for a good amount of time. I can see that she has some thoughts/scene in her mind that she is trying to carry out in her play.
4. Improves vocabulary
As you play with your child, it gives you an opportunity to teach them the names of the animals and the sounds they make. You could also sing the Old Mc’donald had a farm rhyme with them as you play.You can also teach them some simple instructions to follow like, “Let’s move”, “Stop the tractor”, etc. By doing these you are helping your child improve their vocabulary.
5. Teaches your child about cause and effect
Some toys help your child learn things and skills that they need in there everyday life among which the cause and effect thinking skill is one of most important ones. As the child pulls the toy with great force the pull along toy tips over. They learn that when they apply more force results may not be desirable. Similarly, as they run with the toy the toy moves faster.These are simple things yet so important for a child’s development.
What’s the best age for pull along toys ?
Ages 1 year and up. Every child develops in different ways. Younger toddlers may not be interested in pulling the toy as they walk but they definitely become more interested around 2-3 years of age.
I hope this post was helpful! Does your child like pull along toys?