Green Options » fine motor skills

Whiffy Bean Bags Herbal Scented Fun

Jennifer Lance — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 14:07:00 +0000

Whiffy Bean Bags are homemade, natural toys filled with aromatic herbs. Over 50 different herbs and essential oils are used in various combinations for Whiffy Bean Bags, and you can request your own combination too! We sampled the dried lavender and chamomile bag, as well as the calming blend of herbs. Both combinations smell wonderful to me, but my daughter felt they were a little strong.

Bean bags are great fun for young children and are perfect for learning to catch. We practiced throwing our Whiffy Bean Bags high into the air and catching them as they fell. We practiced repeating the words “up” and “down” for my son, who is a late talker, as we played with our Whiffy Bean Bags.

Whiffy Bean Bags cost $4.50, and you can custom choose your fabric and herbal blends. The fabrics we sampled were made of some synthetic fibers; however, I think you could request natural blends for your custom herbal bean bag. Whiffy Bean Bags also makes a variety of other products, such as key chains and a See It filled with scented beads that helps children’s manual dexterity.

Woodkins: Better Than Paper Dolls

Jennifer Lance — Sat, 26 May 2007 13:35:00 +0000

For my daughter’s second birthday, a friend gave her a Woodkinsplay set. These wooden die cut dolls are designed for children four to seven years old; however, my daughter has enjoyed hers at a younger age and still plays with it today. Woodkinsoffers a great alternative to paper dolls, which are difficult for little hands to manipulate and are not durable. By lifting the wooden cover, children change the clothes, faces, etc. on the doll. Little swatches of cloth are placed below the cover, and when it is closed, the doll is dressed in a new outfit. You can layer the cloth swatches and easily add to the collection with scraps of cloth from home. This “sandwich” design is perfect for little hands developing fine motor skills.

There are over 73 Woodkinsproducts, so you will certainly find one to suit your child’s imagination. Woodkinshas won many awards, and this collection of wooden collection of wooden “dressable” dolls provides children with endless opportunities for imaginative play. According to the product description, “With a closet full of colorful fabrics and interchangeable magnetic faces, kids can let their imaginations run wild—creating new looks, new moods and new stories for their dolls every time they play!”

Easy Make Snake Large Wooden Beads Develop Fine Motor Skills

Jennifer Lance — Fri, 18 May 2007 15:56:00 +0000

We have received our replacement toy for the recalled puzzle Sounds On the Go. The Easy Make Snakewas the only natural, wooden toy option for a replacement. At first, I was concerned this toy would be too simple for my children, as it is rated for children 18 months and older, which means the parts do not pose a choking hazard. When our Easy Make Snakearrived yesterday, both of my children were enthralled. My 2.5 year old son, especially, spent one continuous hour playing with it before dinner time. He even insisted on taking some of the wooden parts to bed. Lacing large beads is excellent for fine motor development and eye coordination, in fact, most states list it as a benchmark for fine motor preK standards. The Easy Make Snakeprovides a strong wooden needle attached to the string, which allows children to repeatedly build the body of the snake. Once the snake is built, children can pull it around making the /s/ sound of a snake, which is a later developmental sound that many children have articulation difficulties because of their tongue placement. The Easy Make Snakeis an affordable, natural, wooden toy at about $13.00, and it is made in Thailand.