Buying Christmas gifts for children can be one big job. An endless list of wants and needs that as parents, we wade through in a hope that we find the right gift that ticks all the boxes. I’m sure you’ve heard the rhyme: ‘something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read.’ This can be a good guide when it comes to ensuring you can cover all areas, but we all know that kids fill their wish lists with one main thing – toys!
As Speech Pathologists, we are often asked “what toys should I buy for my children for Christmas that will help them communicate?” To help you navigate your shopping list with a bit more confidence, I thought I would share some of my tips on sourcing toys that will spark a few speech pathology favourites – interest, engagement, learning and, of course, fun.
Toys can be a wonderful tool when it comes to stimulating communication skills. They can also help your child develop problem-solving skills, encourage imagination, expose them to large amounts of language as well as keep them engaged while they learn. But they do have to be the right toys (and gifts).
When hitting the shops (online or otherwise), consider my five Christmas gift tips to stimulate communication skills.
Five Christmas Gift Tips to Stimulate Your Child’s Communication Skills
Consider Non-Electronic / Battery Powered Toys
Consider buying toys that do not require batteries to operate. Let’s face it, we often forget to purchase the batteries to go with the toy which makes for a less than engaging gift, plus toys that are not run by electronics (e.g. a shape sorter, play animals) are found to increase conversation between your child and you. They can also build attention and increase your child’s vocabulary more than electronic toys. Recent research found that electronic toys reduce a parent’s verbal and non-verbal communication during play (Radesky & Christakis – 2016). When it comes to increasing your child’s language and communication skills, it is all about the interactions. If a toy requires less communication between child and parent, it is unlikely to offer opportunities for you to model language and communication skills.
Consider Plain Looking Toys (especially for young children)
Consider buying toys that would be considered plain, rather than busy. If you replace “busy” toys (e.g. blocks with a variety of patterns) for “plain” blocks (e.g. each a different colour with no patterns) you may find that you use more specific language to describe, leading your child to learn more vocabulary. For example: “Here’s the blue block” vs “Can you give me “that” block” – because you don’t know exactly how to describe it.
Consider Gifts that Encourage Imaginative Play
Imaginative play has so many benefits for children as it involves the acting out of various stories and tasks. It helps your child with perspective taking, playing out ideas exploring emotions and can help them make sense of their world.
Amazingly, the benefits of imaginative play go beyond the above and can help your child’s cognitive, social, emotional and language development, but can also lower anxiety, improve academic skills, increase emotional regulation, help them express and explore feelings, and work on negotiation, concentration, focus and sharing.
And the best thing about imaginative play, is that you don’t have to spend a fortune! A little play tent (or even a sheet!), dress up clothes, wigs, purses and glasses will stimulate imaginative play. As will a tea set for tea parties, dolls to play parents, animals to make a jungle, toy cars and some packing tape to make a road, a make-up kit or hairdresser accessories, a pirate set, a mud kitchen or toy kitchen have amazing play potential and can occupy your child in new experiences for hours.
Think Experiences Not Just Toys
We have such an awesome big, wild, world to explore, so instead of giving your child just toys for Christmas, think about giving them experiences.
A zoo membership, cooking classes, pool passes, a farm stay, tickets for a live show, tobogganing, Tree Tops adventure passes, camping supplies, surfing lessons, … the list is endless!
Each of these experiences allows you to model and use new vocabulary related to the activities, and can also teach your child resilience, problem solving, social skills and encourages them to try new things. It is also a fantastic way to build connection as a family, and what could be a better gift than that?
Always Give Books
Speech Pathologists love books because you can learn and teach so much from them. Because of their language, imagination and skill building abilities, a Christmas gift idea list would not be complete without them. However, not all books are created equal.
For a great list of books for all ages, CLICK HERE to download the Speech Pathology Australia Shortlist of the 2022 Book of the Year Awards.
When finding the right books to include under the tree, the following books encourage language development and conversation between you and your child:
- Books that focus on your child’s interests
- Books that have lively and colourful pictures (for younger children)
- Books that change significantly from page to page (for younger children)
- Books that are developmentally appropriate
Of course, all books can be great gifts, but when it comes to encouraging language development, you may want to avoid:
- Books that focus on counting, colours or shape naming
- Name the object books
- Alphabet books
- Books with limited pictures (for younger children)
To make the most out of your thoughtful book gift, we encourage parents to take the time to read with your child and consider the following:
- Allow your child to choose the book (from a selected “appropriate” few)
- Allow the child to read the same book over and over again
- Be “flexible” with reading the book back to front, front to back, skipping pages, until the child comes to the page they are interested in
- Focus on talking about the pictures rather than reading every word
For more information on reading with your child, check out these blogs:
How to Use Books to Improve Children’s Language Development
The Magic of Sharing a Story with Your Child
Christmas can be a time of over-stuffed stockings and too much of all kinds of good things (least of all gifts). But we can make the most of the festivities by encouraging moments of connection, learning and fun by being a little thoughtful with the toys and gifts we buy for our children.
Let’s make Christmas magical this year and help our children connect and grow their communication skills.
