Your baby may have been lucky to have been given lots of very cool presents to celebrate their birth. These often range from cute clothing (hopefully covering a range of sizes), to toys and books. These gifts are often chosen from the classics, but there’s bound to be a single uncle who dreams up a wild and wacky alternative!

You may be scratching your head wondering what toys are suitable for your baby and when to introduce them, so here’s a rundown of the basics:
• 0 to 6 months – brightly coloured durable toys that can be chewed, sucked and tugged, making sure they have no detachable parts or clothing. Soft toys, rattles and mobiles (hung well out of reach) are good options.
• 6 months to 1 year – toys that are strong and easily cleaned with no detachable parts are ideal. Try push and pull toys, floating bath toys, wooden blocks and large soft balls.
• 1-2 years – toys that develop coordination are great. For example, slides, sit and ride toys, wheelbarrows, hand puppets, sorting games, musical instruments, large blocks and big coloured pens and pencils (just make sure you supervise to avoid changes in your wall colour!).
• 3 to 5 years – fine motor and basic numeracy skills are coming to the fore, along with imaginative play. Dress ups, train sets, dolls houses, animal toys along with coloured pens and pencils, blocks (Duplo or Lego), glitter and paints are all good options. Singing nursery rhymes can help with numbers from one to ten and counting backwards and forwards. Also basic games like match the pairs, snap, dominoes, snakes and ladders are fun and relatively cheap and you can make your own.

The points to remember are 'SSSS'...
• Size – the smaller the child the bigger the toy! Check the safety standard marking indicating whether a toy is suitable for children less than 36 months or 3 years of age. If it can fit into a camera film canister (remember those?) it’s too small for children younger than 3 years old.
• Surface – check any paint is lead free, that fillings can’t come out easily and the surface is smooth.
• Strings – ensure there are no strings or ties long enough to cut off circulation or cause strangulation.
• Supervision – stay with your child and make sure they’re supervised to minimise the risk of accidents.

For details on toy safety check out www.consumeraffairs.govt.nz/productsafety/consumerinfo/toys.html If you’re interested in a variety of toys but don’t have the budget or the space your local toy library is a fantastic resource – find your local at toylibrary.co.nz

Books can be enjoyed at any age. For babies, the closeness of being cuddled and listening to the sound of your voice is a soothing experience. Reading to children before bedtime can be made an essential part of your wind-down routine to sleep. Although you will no doubt build up a number of story books at home, try to make regular trips to the library. It's a great outing! Children of all ages love to choose books - some will be a great hit and others a dud, but it doesn't matter as you can pop back and get a new selection next week
• Make it fun – use different voices and facial expressions. Change the tempo and make your voice soft or loud at the appropriate point (think of the giant in Jack and the Beanstalk or when Scarface Claw appears in Hairy Maclary).
• Let your child choose the book to read, even if it is for the twentieth time. Children gain confidence and comfort from knowing a book inside out.
• Sit with them so they can see the pictures and read slowly so they can make sense of what is happening. They can turn the pages too. As they get older they may also enjoy reciting the words of their favourite book with you as you read.
• Ask your child to point to objects. As they get older, into the preschool years, spotting and counting books are lots of fun.
• Lots of libraries (and the Children's Bookshop in Kilbirnie in Wellington) have a Story Time for children, which introduces you both to different authors, book styles and is great socially. While you’re there get some new books for your child and as they get older, let them choose – you’ll be surprised what they pick up!

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