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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>What Are Your Must Have Toys?
Miss A 07:25 AM 08-17-2016
I was a lead infant teacher in a center for 2 years, and you would think that I would be able to remember the top ITER-S toy categories for infant and toddler toys. For the life of me, I can not remember what toys we had in our room, or what was the biggest hit with the kiddos. I am looking to slowly add to my toy rotation over the next few months, and am looking for suggestions for children 0-2.

Here is a list of things I want to add or I want to get a new variety of:
Manipulatives
Fill and dump toys
Sorters and organizers
Gross motor toys such as climbers
Blocks
Balls
Reply
Baby Beluga 08:44 AM 08-17-2016
I briefly worked with the toddlers in a center (12 months to 2 years for us) I remember having:

*pegs and boards (lakeshore has a set made for 18 months+ and another set for 3 years+)
*pop beads
*giant star builders (the star points on these would break off easily though)
*plastic chunky cars
*jumbo nuts and bolts
*large foam blocks
*plastic animals
*Melissa and Doug chunky puzzles
*dancing scarves
*kitchen center - it was a small wooden kitchen with plastic pots and pans and large soft plastic food.
Reply
LysesKids 09:09 AM 08-17-2016
Originally Posted by Miss A:
I was a lead infant teacher in a center for 2 years, and you would think that I would be able to remember the top ITER-S toy categories for infant and toddler toys. For the life of me, I can not remember what toys we had in our room, or what was the biggest hit with the kiddos. I am looking to slowly add to my toy rotation over the next few months, and am looking for suggestions for children 0-2.

Here is a list of things I want to add or I want to get a new variety of:
Manipulatives
Fill and dump toys
Sorters and organizers
Gross motor toys such as climbers
Blocks
Balls
I have a lot of wood toys & blocks that are Montessori style
Zany Zoo activity cube (Target); in fact I own a lot of the B toys inc cars & piano mat (yes "B" is a brand)
Play silks - used as a light blanket, for make-believe, picnics etc.
Soft blocks that have different push out triangle/square/round noise makers inside
15 different types of balls (soft fabric & rubber, all sizes);some even rattle inside
Indestructible book set (all of them lol); they've lasted 6 years so far
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MrsSteinel'sHouse 09:31 AM 08-17-2016
stacking rings- even my older girls love the M&D stacking rings... I got rid of the big heavy red ball on the top though because in my world that was an accident waiting to happen.
stacking cups- love these!
Plastic animals
FP Little people
Doll babies
Kitchen/food
Fisher Price "peek a boo" blocks
Reply
Blackcat31 09:55 AM 08-17-2016
More threads on must have toys/equioment

https://www.daycare.com/forum/tags.p...+-+best+choice
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EntropyControlSpecialist 10:24 AM 08-17-2016
The most played with items right now in my 2-5-year-old classroom are:

MagnaTiles (constantly played with)
Cars
Dramatic play (babies, baby clothing, toy food)
Sensory bin
Puzzles

For trays they are:
Peg boards (letters and numbers)
Alphabet matching popsicles
Rhyming/Matching set/Etc. puzzle cards
Geoboards
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AmyKidsCo 10:54 AM 08-17-2016
Ditto MagnaTiles! My children from infant to SA love them!

Soft wool balls for throwing. Pushing toys. Containers for dumping.
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Annalee 11:01 AM 08-17-2016
I love all different levels of puzzles....I love watching the kids problem-solve and move up the ladder on degrees of difficulty.
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sahm1225 11:45 AM 08-17-2016
Originally Posted by Miss A:
I was a lead infant teacher in a center for 2 years, and you would think that I would be able to remember the top ITER-S toy categories for infant and toddler toys. For the life of me, I can not remember what toys we had in our room, or what was the biggest hit with the kiddos. I am looking to slowly add to my toy rotation over the next few months, and am looking for suggestions for children 0-2.

Here is a list of things I want to add or I want to get a new variety of:
Manipulatives
Fill and dump toys
Sorters and organizers
Gross motor toys such as climbers
Blocks
Balls
What are fill and dump toys? I have bins for toys and they love to fill up and dump, but there's actual toys that are made for dumping?
Reply
Chickadee-Tree 12:34 PM 08-17-2016
Originally Posted by sahm1225:
What are fill and dump toys? I have bins for toys and they love to fill up and dump, but there's actual toys that are made for dumping?
We had these in the infant room at my old center

https://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-.../dp/B000NV6BZY

https://www.amazon.com/Melissa-Doug-...BQHQW3XV8GR78Y

I also have a "Fill and Dump" Mega Bloks wagon (it tips, dump-truck style) that my current dcks love
Reply
childcaremom 12:37 PM 08-17-2016
Magna tiles
Sensory table stuff (I usually fill with rice and utensils from the dollar store)
wooden blocks
lego/duplo blocks
playsilks
playkitchen stuff

anything outside
Reply
Unregistered 05:05 PM 08-17-2016
Wooden puzzles
Sensory table
Kitchen/food/dishes

Trucks/cars

Duplo blocks and sets like Duplo zoo or hospital

Grocery cart-they love to fill them up and push them around!
Buckets like Easter or ice cream tubs with handles-they love to fill them up and carry them around!

Dolls and blankets & baby bottles & purses!

Board books

I have a rocking moose from Ikea they love. I have other rocking toys they love!

And the most loved for toddlers that toy that looks like a giant gum ball machine. Kids put balls in the top and there two different levers to push and the balls room down.

I also have a Melissa and Doug toy where they push wooden balls into this wooden box and they roll down a zig zag ramp. Any variation of ball /ramp toy. There's different ones out there!
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DaveA 06:56 AM 08-18-2016
I would add stuffed animals of different sizes and a classroom pet to the list.
Reply
Miss A 09:36 AM 08-18-2016
Originally Posted by DaveA:
I would add stuffed animals of different sizes and a classroom pet to the list.
We are a country daycare, so our "classroom pet" come in the form of a bottle calf, 12 red laying hens, 5 pigs, a dog, and 7 cats
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Josiegirl 09:44 AM 08-18-2016
Originally Posted by Miss A:
We are a country daycare, so our "classroom pet" come in the form of a bottle calf, 12 red laying hens, 5 pigs, a dog, and 7 cats
Wow who needs toys when you've got all those!! Seriously!! That would have been all my entertainment when I was a kid.

Pps have shared great ideas. Anything sensory minded(balls, soft blocks all with different textures etc.) soft babies and feeding dishes/spoons/bottles, strollers. Musical instruments, magnetic letters/animals/pictures of themselves laminated for refrigerator time. And books galore. My youngest dcks are 3 right now and it seems like they spent 90% of free play with dollhouses and people/animals.
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DaveA 10:36 AM 08-18-2016
Originally Posted by Miss A:
We are a country daycare, so our "classroom pet" come in the form of a bottle calf, 12 red laying hens, 5 pigs, a dog, and 7 cats


I have a hamster in the classroom. No real room for a calf, DW's allergic to cats, and her and DD both would shoot me if I brought home a feeder pig. So I'll stick to 3 ducks, 7 chickens (3 more weeks till they transition outside FT), a 1 psychotic old Pekinese. I've joked we must never let DD see a pic of one of the mini appaloosa horses. They're about the same size as a large dog. She'd never let us hear the end of it if she knew they existed.
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MotherNature 08:59 PM 08-19-2016
For a big splurge that will go from your age group to 11+, get the Symphony in B from B(Battat). It's dropped to 35 now, but it is the coolest musical toy, plus teaches them sections, lke woodwinds, strings, etc.
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Josiegirl 04:43 AM 08-20-2016
Originally Posted by MotherNature:
For a big splurge that will go from your age group to 11+, get the Symphony in B from B(Battat). It's dropped to 35 now, but it is the coolest musical toy, plus teaches them sections, lke woodwinds, strings, etc.
That does look cool! My kids would LOVE something like that!
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Josiegirl 04:44 AM 08-20-2016
Originally Posted by DaveA:


I have a hamster in the classroom. No real room for a calf, DW's allergic to cats, and her and DD both would shoot me if I brought home a feeder pig. So I'll stick to 3 ducks, 7 chickens (3 more weeks till they transition outside FT), a 1 psychotic old Pekinese. I've joked we must never let DD see a pic of one of the mini appaloosa horses. They're about the same size as a large dog. She'd never let us hear the end of it if she knew they existed.
*I* want a mini horse!!!
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Pestle 05:59 AM 08-20-2016
What gets the most use:

-A water transfer activity: Dollar store tray, turkey baster, and two small bowls.

-A homemade color matching activity, similar to this one: http://media10.dropshots.com/photos/...206/162730.jpg

-Scarves from the thrift store--$1 apiece. Not as pretty or as uniform as the playsilks, but more bang for my buck.

-Melissa & Doug alphabet nesting blocks.

-Green Toys Build-a-Bouquet

-Safari Ltd. life cycle models. I have the frog (big hit!) and chicken so far.

-Play Toys cone sorting. http://www.oompa.com/collections/pla...s-cone-sorting

-A simple ball drop track (Earlyears Roll 'n' Swirl).
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Josiegirl 03:09 PM 08-20-2016
That Oompa site is pretty awesome! I'll take one of each please?
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Pestle 04:52 PM 08-20-2016
Originally Posted by Josiegirl:
That Oompa site is pretty awesome! I'll take one of each please?
I know, right?! I just saw they carry this game, which we also have--it's very popular with the 2-year-olds.
http://www.oompa.com/collections/woo...-first-orchard
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Josiegirl 05:43 PM 08-20-2016
Originally Posted by Pestle:
I know, right?! I just saw they carry this game, which we also have--it's very popular with the 2-year-olds.
http://www.oompa.com/collections/woo...-first-orchard
I like that too! And it's nice that 2 yos can play it because the pieces are big enough. I really like the balance boards too.
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Tags:sensory table, toys, toys - best choice, toys - most played with, toys - must have
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