Toy Round Up

It's been a while since I shared some of the toys Gideon has been playing with.  He is over 2 years old now and he has been developing in so many areas!

1. Melissa & Doug Reusable Stickers - Gideon has been working very hard on his vision and memory skills and these reusable stickers have been great for this.  I've used these on white boards and on the fridge.  I pick out 4 - 8 animals and set them up in two rows.  I have him point to the animals while I name them.  Once he knows where everything is, I'll ask him to find a certain animal.  If it's no longer a challenge, I might mix the animals up or introduce a new one.  This is great practice for both his eyes (a sheep is much different looking than a crocodile) and his memory skills.  He has even started finding animals without me naming them first.      

2. Ever Earth Ramp Racer - This little toy has kept Gideon far more occupied than I expected.  The little cars are easy for his hands to manipulate and they make a really fun "click clack click clack" when they fall onto the next level of the ramp.  Design wise, there is one little flaw... the cars can fit sideways on the ramp.  If the wheels aren't pointed the right way, the car will just sit there.  This will result in Gideon becoming very sad!  I've tried to make it into an opportunity for him to sign the word "help".  I've also tired to turn it into a problem solving activity... but he just seems to get frustrated.  The nice thing about the design is that there is a stopper at the bottom on the ramp and the cars don't go flying across the room.  The cars are predictable and it's easy for Gideon to find them.  

    

3. Washable Crayola Crayons - Gideon has found his inner artist.  He LOVES to draw... ON EVERYTHING ; the floor, under chairs, his toys. (Which I try and discourage but he gets so into his pictures that they seem to spread everywhere) These washable crayons are great.  He seems to want to fill in all the white space :)

4. Melody the Musical Turtle by Leap Frog-  This thoughtful gift has been a huge hit with Gideon.  The buttons light up and there is all kinds of music.  

There are three settings: 

• 1. Press the buttons that light up to play a song.  The buttons are lit up in sequence, and you have to guess which song you are playing. 
• 2.Find the colours/numbers.  You have to find the colour or number on the turtle.  If you wait, the answer will light up for you to press.
• 3. Memory Game- You have to remember the sequence of buttons you have pressed.

5. Drums and xylophone - Gideon loves banging things to hear what they sound like.  We were given a small drum and a xylophone for Christmas (sorry no pictures) and he loves them.

To end it off, here is a special treat.  Gideon is not the only artist in the family, Alexander painted this amazing picture of a porcupine.  (He drew the picture and I labeled it)  Hope you enjoy!