Toys My Toddler Actually Plays With

Top Toys that Our Toddlers Actually Play With

When the transition between infant to toddler happens, the difference in toys that actually work for toddler play is in stark contrast with those infant toys. 

When my baby turned one, most of her 9 month toys (mostly montessori style rattles) quickly became uninteresting. I received most of the baby toys from my local buy nothing, but once she became a toddler, the nicer toys were few and far between. 

There are some specific toys that my toddler plays with continuously. Here’s some tried and true ideas for those actually fun toys for toddlers.

Sensory Spectacle

First up, let’s talk about the MVPs – Sensory Toys! Think squishy, crinkly, and dazzlingly colorful wonders that awaken the senses. From textured fabric books to squishy balls with different surfaces, sensory toys are the rockstars of playtime, engaging your little one’s touch, sight, and hearing in the most delightful ways.

1. These Infantino Sensory Balls  are textured, different sizes and colored. My baby loves playing with these dispersed in her ball pit for a quick DIY sensory activity or in a bucket of water. This kit comes with balls, blocks and animals – which let her distinguish between shapes. She plays with these almost religiously and chews on them just as much. 
2. These Edushape Sensory Balls are all similarly shaped but are much larger than the Infantino Sensory Balls and let toddlers have a blast kicking around balls of different colors. The balls have been known to have a positive impact on playtime and development. 
3. These BUNMO Super Sensory Stretchy Strings were amazing additions to my toddlers toy rotation. Each string is a different color and texture and she loves to pull on these. We’ve attached them to the wall with tape and she enjoys pulling them off. 
4. The Fanboxk Non-Slip Plastic Balance Stepping Stones have kept our kids entertained for hours. They can stack the stepping stones on top of each other, skip to songs that start and stop (hint – the floor is lava!) These stones are amazing for developing coordination and balance. You don’t need a huge space for these either, they’re easily stackable. We suggest these for toddlers older than 2 years old, one year olds may fall off of these easily. 
5. These Learning Resources Sensory Scoops are great for DIY sensory bins. There are four separate scoops, letting toddlers rotate and sift, funnel, twist and pour, and scoop. Use these for water, sand and rice sensory bins with ease. 

Montessori Magic

Time to sprinkle a bit of Montessori magic into the play mix! Montessori toys are all about hands-on exploration and learning through play. Think wooden blocks, nesting cups, and shape sorters that not only entertain but also encourage fine motor skills, problem-solving, and independence. It’s like a mini Montessori classroom in your living room!

1. Large Toy: The Tiny Land Jungle Gym (ages 2+) is incredibly versatile. Toddlers can climb all over the play gym, pick their preferred configuration while parents are super happy with the ease of storage. The triangle climber is easily foldable and the jungle gym can fit inside a corner of the playroom with ease.  
2. This Race Track Toy  lets my toddler play on repeat. The ramp race track comes with four different colored cars and a cute ramp track. I prefer this race track to others because there is a bumper “parking lot” which stops the cars from sliding off the ramp into the wilderness of my toddler’s playroom. 
3. My toddler uses this MINGKIDS Colorful Cub Sorter Toy daily. She loves to grab the tiny shapes out of the sorter and put them back in. She also loves lugging the small box frame around!
4. Every toddler needs a Montessori Busy Board. We keep this one in the car for travel and it fits nicely in our backpacks for plane travel. Our toddler loves to play with the keys, power buttons and the circuit on this. It’s a great STEM toy!
5. This kit actually comes with a bunch of Montessori toys! The Montessori Toys Set includes a pull string teether, stacking blocks (similar to the Infantino Sensory Balls above), a stacking ring and a sorter (like the MINGKIDS Colorful Cub Sorter Toy ). It is only slightly more expensive than purchasing a single toy – so this is a bargain set of Montessori toys!