My favorite toys for 10-18 month old children can all be found around the home - or those of grandparents, aunties and uncles, and neighbors.
Knowing how ro use objects from around the house for many different activities means that your child has access to the rich variety of games and activities
Some objects may need a bit of modification, so I also have a few tools in another box: A cutting knife and cutting mat. A good pair of scissors. Brightly colored duct or book binding tape. Self adhesive magnetic tape.
Plastic bottles
Collect plastic bottles of all shapes and sizes.
Smaller bottles make good rattles
I usually have some some very big bottles as well.
Big bottles encourage a two handed grip
Plastic jars of different sizes
Use them for pack-in and tip out games, opening and closing activities, hiding the hand.
One of my favorite games is pulling a scarf out of the jar. .
Jars are good for encouraging two handed grasp and lift. Partly fill the jar with water to make it heavier to pick up.
A collection of tubs
My best game with tubs is taking off all the lids and encouraging the toddler to match the lids to the tubs.
Tubs can also be put one inside the other.
Tubs can also be stacked.
A collection metal lids
A collection of pegs
At this age toddlers cannot attach a peg to another object. But they can pull attached pegs off and enjoy doing this. They start to learn to squeeze a spring peg to open it.
Pegs can be pulled off a box or beanbag.
Boxes of all sizes and shape
Egg boxes
The sort of egg boxes that have a lid that can be open and closed can be used for many games.
Hide toys inside them to encourage opening the lid. You can use them to store small balls.
Use them as containers
Ice cream or yogurt tubs
These are one of my favorite toys. I use them to make posting boxes. They are great for building very tall towers. Use them for tipping out games.
Ice cream tubs make the very best very tall towers
A collection of small balls
Make sure the balls are not too small and cannot be put into the child's mouth.
Several tumblers or tubs of the same size
Toddlers enjoy taking them apart and fitting them together again. This is easy because they are all the same size.
Hiding a hand in a tumbler is another favorite game.
A small collection of scarves and cloth bags
These are used for peek-a-boo games, wrapping dolls, hiding toys. They can be stuffed into containers or pulled through tubes. Bags are good for hiding toys.
Lots of cardboard boxes of all sizes and shapes
