What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?
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by Scott Truax on 11/17/2008 5:32:14 PM
Greetings to all. I am very pleased to introduce this month's expert who will write about a subject that I know is important to many families at this time of year. Emily Coleman is the mother of Eddie and is assisting us by sharing her expertise on the subject of play and toys.
With the holiday season upon us this topic is on the minds of many families. I invite you to not only read the blog but also to actively participate by adding what has worked for you. I would love to see examples of games that are accessible for children and teens. Ideas for homemade as well as purchased toys would be an excellent addition in these troubled economic times. If you would like us to post a picture of your favorite toy please e-mail it to us at familyconnect@afb.net.
The FamilyConnect web site has a wonderful resource in our Toy Guide as well as articles for families of infants and toddlers such as Choosing Toys and Creating a Play Area for Your Child and Teaching Your Baby to Play with Toys.
By Emily Coleman
Right before a birthday or the holidays, I wander through discount stores wondering what would be the perfect toy for my visually impaired son. Let me tell you, he is one kid that is hard to impress. Most toys keep his attention only long enough for him to throw them out of his way.
So, I keep my eyes open for toys he'd enjoy while I also try to pick the ones that serve a secret purpose. You may wonder how a toy could have a "secret purpose" but some of them do. The ones I look for are fun to play with and also meet educational or therapeutic goals, teach him what real-life objects are, or simply help him play with other kids.
Therapists and teachers love it when you buy a toy to meet one of their goals. When Eddie was an infant, or when he wasn't able to manipulate toys well, I purchased a lot of "cause and effect" toys. You know, you hit a button and it sings, or you shake it and it rattles, etc, etc. He loved those simple toys and quickly grasped the concept of "cause and effect."
Now he is a toddler and although he likes the easy toys, I have higher expectations. So, I buy toys that do multiple things and that also motivate him to activate them. For example, he has a shape sorter that also has beads that rattle when you shake it, and when you drop the shapes in, they make a funny noise. So, there is a motivator for him to fit a shape into the right hole, because the funny noise makes him laugh. He is then having fun, learning shapes, and working on fine motor skills.
Finding educational toys isn't too hard, but finding "real-life" objects that he likes to play with can be tricky. My son loves music and therefore most of his toys have a musical component. I wanted to get him a toy instrument of some kind last Christmas and I looked at the toy keyboards. Like most toys, they have that "dinky" electronic toy sound that drives us crazy. So, instead I looked at real keyboards at the discount store. He is three, so I'm not going to buy him an expensive keyboard from the music shop, but for twenty dollars I could get him a keyboard with a good range of keys, buttons that played different beats, and a tonal quality that wouldn't make me cringe every time he played with it.
Another simple example of a "real-life" object is a book. He gets braille books for every holiday and although he doesn't read yet, he is still learning what books are and that they are important. While shopping, any time I can substitute a "real" object for a toy, I get the real thing.
My final "secret purpose" for a toy is to help my son gain social skills. Basically, he needs to have some of the same toys that all little boys do to interact with peers. One thing most boys like to do is play with cars and trucks. Well, they don't make much noise and my son can't see them zooming across the floor so he could care less about them. Therefore, I seek out vehicles that do more than just "zoom." I've found him a bus that sings when pushed, a dump truck with all the right sounds, and a train that sings and toots its horn. Sure enough, we recently had a sighted child his age over and they pushed those vehicles back and forth across the floor and both kids enjoyed it.
Other good toys that draw kids to my son are balls that make any noise; like jingling, beeps, or funny "dog toy" noises. Again, they'll roll it back and forth and because of the noise, my son can go after it too when it rolls away.
I have one more piece of advice when wrapping those toys this holiday season. Be sure to take them out of the packaging before you wrap them! Isn't it better to have the final result of all that unwrapping be a toy and not a package? It can take me quite a while to get toys out of the packaging these days so I don't want him waiting while I find the essentials to access the toy(i.e. scissors, screwdriver, jackhammer).
Finally, even though these "toy goals" are great to use, it is also fun to buy something just because your child will like it even if that is the only purpose it serves; so don't be afraid to do that either. We'd love to hear from parents with toy suggestions for kids of all ages. Please post your favorite toy and where you can find it or your favorite place to shop. Also, if you made a creative toy for your child, we'd love to know how you did it. I'm always looking for new ideas so please share your great insights with the rest of us.
There are currently 25 comments
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by mberk on 11/21/2008 1:07:20 PM
Emily,
This is one of the most balanced pieces I've read about toys for young children with visual impairments. I especially liked the part where you talked about toys and your expectations. I see lots of kids stuck at the cause/effect level because the electronic toys are so pleasing for so little effort that kids lose the impetus to do more. And, I agree with you wholeheartedly that some toys are just for fun and do not need to serve and educational purpose.
Thanks again.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by edwardgeorge on 11/23/2008 4:08:58 PM
In response to this article I was sent a great website to search for toys. It is within Toys R Us and is called a toy guide for "Differently Abled Kids". The link is: www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3261680
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by Jaclyn Packer, AFB Information Center on 11/26/2008 5:28:16 PM
You can find some wonderful toys for children who are blind or visually impaired at AFB's Toy Guide on the Family Connect web site at:
www.familyconnect.org/parentsitehome.asp?SectionID=83
The guide indicates whether the toy is considered especially good for children who are blind (B) and children who have low vision (LV).
AFB has been collaborating with the Toy Industry Foundation for over a decade creating this guide. All of the toys are tested by dozens of children with vision loss, and we choose the ones that seem to be most popular. Toy tests are a lot of fun for the children and especially for the "big kids" (AFB staff)!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by Judith Lesner on 12/6/2008 12:34:58 PM
Emily,
I loved your post but think that the last paragraph the best advice. When my son was about 4, a visitor to our house commented on the neat toy he was playing with. He replied, "It is very good for my fine motor skills." The visitor thought it was cute - I was horrified. All heard was that my child thought everything was aimed at "fixing" him. I wanted to cry. I was afraid that we were over therapizing him and denying him a regular child's fun and play. He is now 25 and a grown-up. One of my few regrets about his upbringing is that we did not play more and do therapy less.
Judith
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by edwardgeorge on 12/8/2008 8:58:32 AM
Thanks, Judith. Early on, a couple of Eddie's therapists told me to be a Mom first and fit therapy in when I could. I've really taken that to heart because simply playing with him and his siblings has meant so much more than running him through his "exercises." Although, I would love for Eddie to even acknowledge what "fine motor skills" are like your son did at such an early age!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by Wayne E on 12/12/2008 4:16:53 PM
Our son is almost 3 and he loves "Alphabet Town" by V-Tech. It has a wide variety of lights, sounds, voices, and activities. Many of his pre-school classmates have the same toy. Depending on your child's developmental level, you can also add Braille code to the buttons.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by abobnar [http://www.wonderbaby.org] on 12/12/2008 5:07:40 PM
This is a great post. I've also found that it is really important to take all of my son's toys out of the packages before wrapping. And nothing's better or easier to open than a festive gift bag with crinkly tissue or mylar paper for packaging.
I've posted a list of some of my son's favorite toys on my site: http://www.wonderbaby.org/articles/toys-christmas.html
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by pmvalvo on 12/12/2008 7:29:52 PM
My daughter is 5 months old, so we haven't had to buy much yet. Her favorite toy is the Fisher-Price Peek-a-boo piano. We put it at her feet and she loves to kick it - she smiles and laughs and it holds her attention for quite a while.
http://www.amazon.com/Fisher-Price-Miracles-Milestones-Peek-a-Boo-Piano/dp/B000B5A5EK
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by nanakru5509 on 12/14/2008 2:09:41 PM
I have been trying to shop for our 4 year old VI granddaughter for Christmas and I am finding it very hard and depressing. We have so many musical toys which she loves and the braille books.She loves to play dress up and I put silk scarfs and "ballerina skirts" on her, She thinks she's a princess. She loves finger paint too. Last year we got her a tricycle with a handle so we can steer i.I ordered it on line from toys r us. I can relate to Judith because i feel I'm always trying to teach her and not just playing enough.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by Lakshmi on 12/14/2008 11:28:52 PM
Dear Emily,
My son has RP, he is now 25 and studying his MPhil in English Literature. Toys are important, but reading aloud stories is very important. I used to read out to my son right from when he started understanding. I love reading and I didn't want him to miss out that fun. I must have read hundreds of books for him, enjoying every minute and relived those stories and my childhood again.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by edwardgeorge on 12/16/2008 4:14:29 PM
Thanks for sharing the importance of reading to visually impaired kids. I have read to Eddie his whole life and even though he doesn't understand, he still searches for the braille and loves the closeness of snuggling up for some special one-on-one time.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by fields7667 on 11/19/2009 1:40:49 PM
I know I hate shopping for my 3 year old daughter who has cortical visual impairment and loves books. I saw where leap frog now has a Leap Pad Jr for little ones. It looks really interesting and didn't know if anyone had seen or tried it yet. We tried the Doug and Melissa puzzles with the big handles and animal sounds and these didn't go over too bad. I'm sure everyone is aware of Seedlings but they have wonderful Braille books.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by edwardgeorge on 11/19/2009 2:41:26 PM
I love the leap frog products because they are so interactive and rarely require sight to fully enjoy. Also, I am a fan of the Seedlings books. For those of you not familiar with them, you can sign your child up on their website to receive a free Braille book every year.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by soccermom on 12/28/2009 7:34:11 PM
Our daughter loves music,too. We live in Philadelphia and she attends music therapy at Kardon Institute. Her therapist suggestedthe website musiciansfriend.com.We got some great beaded maracas for Christmas!!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by soccermom on 12/28/2009 7:34:17 PM
Our daughter loves music,too. We live in Philadelphia and she attends music therapy at Kardon Institute. Her therapist suggestedthe website musiciansfriend.com.We got some great beaded maracas for Christmas!!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by soccermom on 12/28/2009 7:34:19 PM
Our daughter loves music,too. We live in Philadelphia and she attends music therapy at Kardon Institute. Her therapist suggestedthe website musiciansfriend.com.We got some great beaded maracas for Christmas!!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by edwardgeorge on 12/28/2009 8:25:11 PM
I've always been interested in music therapy. Thanks for the tip! I will definitely look into the website for my son.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by nsolsaa on 3/10/2010 12:04:07 AM
One of my 9yo daughter's favorite toys is the Bop-It. She loves it and is very good. It is fun to watch her.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by DoraB on 10/11/2010 1:30:40 PM
Wow, thanks to everyone for the very helpful replies. I also believe that music therapy is extremely helpful, and builds a lot of strong concentration skills, which are the golden rule of effective learning!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by johnson80 on 12/31/2010 9:58:42 AM
With the holiday season upon us this topic is on the minds of many families. I invite you to not only read the blog but also to actively participate by adding what has worked for you.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by johnson80 on 12/31/2010 11:53:11 AM
FamilyConnect has a number of resources for parents of children and teenagers who are blind or visually impaired. The site is really relevant for the visually impaired.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by paramaniac on 4/29/2011 8:40:34 AM
I know as a mom of a visually impaired 4 y/o that I have lots of toys. I usually walk around the toys store...close my eyes and play with the toy. That is how I "see" what she will like. How about starting a section where parents can trade toys or give them to someone who had a VI child? I know I would be more then willing to give some of my daughters toys to soemone with a child with a VI.
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by windib on 10/31/2011 3:54:51 AM
My child is 11 yrs. old with cordical impairment, auditory impairment, and is mentally at two to threes old, no fine motor skills, and has a somewhat low attention span. Sooooo hard to find things to make her more independent from me, her mother. Whoever might have worked with a child like this who has found some things or has a child similar who has found some things.....PLEASE give me some suggestions. She relies on me TOTALLY to entertain her which makes me have to use a caregiver more than I would like to just to be able to do things I need to do. She LOVES the keyboard but she STILL wants me to be there with her when she plays with it. Sidebar.......if you have any suggestions to where I can get her more independent, would love to hear that too!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by windib on 10/31/2011 3:57:39 AM
Please e-mail me personally if you have any suggestions for my previous post. windi.verner@gmail.com!
Re: What Toy to Buy for My Visually Impaired Kid?Posted by ic4urkids on 11/17/2011 5:13:24 PM
Windib.... please email me, I think that I can definitely be of some help
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