OLH/SL School Nurse - 🎁 Dec-Safe Toys

Safe Toys and Gifts

According to the American Public Health Association, when it comes to toys and gifts, it is critical to remember to consider the safety and age range of the toys.

Prevent Blindness America has declared December as Safe Toys and Gifts Awareness Month. The group encourages everyone to consider if the toys they wish to give suits the age and individual skills and abilities of the individual child who will receive it, especially for infants and children under age three.

This holiday season (and beyond), please consider the following guidelines for choosing safe toys for all ages:

Inspect all toys before purchasing. Avoid those that shoot or include parts that fly off. The toy should have no sharp edges or points and should be sturdy enough to withstand impact without breaking, being crushed, or being pulled apart easily.

When purchasing toys for children with special needs try to: Choose toys that may appeal to different senses such as sound, movement, and texture; consider interactive toys to allow the child to play with others; and think about the size of the toy and the position a child would need to be in to play with it.

Be diligent about inspecting toys your child has received. Check them for age, skill level, and developmental appropriateness before allowing them to be played with.

Look for labels that assure you the toys have passed a safety inspection – “ATSM” means the toy has met the American Society for Testing and Materials standards.

Gifts of sports equipment should always be accompanied by protective gear (give a helmet with the skateboard)

Keep kids safe from lead in toys by: Educating yourself about lead exposure from toys, symptoms of lead poisoning, and what kinds of toys have been recalled; being aware that old toys may be more likely to contain lead in the paint; having your children wash their hands frequently and calling your doctor if you suspect your child has been exposed to lead. Consult the last two websites listed below for more information.

Do NOT give toys with small parts (including magnets and “button” batteries which can cause serious injury or death if ingested) to young children as they tend to put things in their mouths, increasing the risk of choking. If the piece can fit inside a toilet paper roll, it is not appropriate for kids under age three.

Do NOT give toys with ropes and cords or heating elements.

Do NOT give crayons and markers unless they are labeled “nontoxic”.

Safety Tips from Everhart Eye Associates

The awareness of Safe Toys and Celebration is centered on:

1) Choosing toys and age-appropriate gifts for children

• No toys with sharp objects or edges.

• Avoid darts, pellet guns and other firearms as gifts, especially to children.

• Remember to avoid toys that can be choking hazards especially for children under the age of three. Remember the rule: If it can fit through an empty toilet paper roll, then avoid it for young children.

• Avoid hard candy for young children.

• Remember to avoid toys with strings longer than 12 inches for children less than three years old as it can be a strangulation hazard.

• Avoid slingshots or other projectile type of types.

• Avoid toys with magnets for young children.

• Give children under 10 only toys with batteries and compartments that can only be opened by an adult (such as a screw sealed battery chamber) and don’t let them play with batteries. Plug-in toys should be only for older children.

• Buy durable toys that will not break or shatter into pieces or release toxic substances.

• Observe video game age-ratings. They are there for a reason.

• Read all warning labels carefully on toys and decorations.

• Remember to supervise your children at all times

2) Remember safety gear for sports like helmets, googles when gifting for sports related activities and re-visit our sports safety tips.

3) Keep decorations safe by being careful when decorating trees, hanging glass ornaments higher up where children cannot reach them, using only safe electrical lights that do not have damaged wiring and candle/fire safety. Avoid fire hazards (open flames, heaters).

4) Remembering our rules about fireworks safety from July

5) Opening champagne bottle pointed away from the face, eyes and other people, covering the cork with a towel and turning it slowly with a slight upward motion. Also make sure your champagne is chilled to at least 45°F for safety reasons.

6) Remember food allergies and other allergies when gifting items.

7) Remember to drive safely, have a designated driver if you are drinking, wear your seat belt and restrain children in age and weight appropriate car seats or booster seats

Age Appropriate Toy Ideas from NAEYC

In addition to being safe, good toys for young children need to match their stages of development and emerging abilities. Many safe and appropriate play materials are free items typically found at home. Cardboard boxes, plastic bowls and lids, collections of plastic bottle caps, and other “treasures” can be used in more than one way by children of different ages. As you read the following lists of suggested toys for children of different ages, keep in mind that each child develops at an individual pace. Items on one list—as long as they are safe—can be good choices for children who are younger and older than the suggested age range.

Toys for young infants—birth through 6 months

Babies like to look at people—following them with their eyes. Typically, they prefer faces and bright colors. Babies can reach, be fascinated with what their hands and feet can do, lift their heads, turn their heads toward sounds, put things in their mouths, and much more!

Good toys for young infants:

Things they can reach for, hold, suck on, shake, make noise with—rattles, large rings, squeeze toys, teething toys, soft dolls, textured balls, and vinyl and board books

Things to listen to—books with nursery rhymes and poems, and recordings of lullabies and simple songs

Things to look at—pictures of faces hung so baby can see them and unbreakable mirrors

Toys for older infants—7 to 12 months

Older babies are movers—typically they go from rolling over and sitting, to scooting, bouncing, creeping, pulling themselves up, and standing. They understand their own names and other common words, can identify body parts, find hidden objects, and put things in and out of containers.

Good toys for older infants:

Things to play pretend with—baby dolls, puppets, plastic and wood vehicles with wheels, and water toys

Things to drop and take out—plastic bowls, large beads, balls, and nesting toys

Things to build with—large soft blocks and wooden cubes

Things to use their large muscles with—large balls, push and pull toys, and low, soft things to crawl over

Toys for 1-year-olds

One-year-olds are on the go! Typically they can walk steadily and even climb stairs. They enjoy stories, say their first words, and can play next to other children (but not yet with!). They like to experiment—but need adults to keep them safe.

Good toys for 1-year-olds:

Board books with simple illustrations or photographs of real objects

Recordings with songs, rhymes, simple stories, and pictures

Things to create with—wide non-toxic, washable markers, crayons, and large paper

Things to pretend with—toy phones, dolls and doll beds, baby carriages and strollers, dress-up accessories (scarves, purses), puppets, stuffed toys, plastic animals, and plastic and wood “realistic” vehicles

Things to build with—cardboard and wood blocks (can be smaller than those used by infants—2 to 4 inches)

Things for using their large and small muscles—puzzles, large pegboards, toys with parts that do things (dials, switches, knobs, lids), and large and small balls

Toys for 2-year-olds (toddlers)

Toddlers are rapidly learning language and have some sense of danger. Nevertheless they do a lot of physical “testing”: jumping from heights, climbing, hanging by their arms, rolling, and rough-and-tumble play. They have good control of their hands and fingers and like to do things with small objects.

Good toys for 2-year-olds:

Things for solving problems—wood puzzles (with 4 to 12 pieces), blocks that snap together, objects to sort (by size, shape, color, smell), and things with hooks,

buttons, buckles, and snaps

Things for pretending and building—blocks, smaller (and sturdy) transportation toys, construction sets, child-sized furniture (kitchen sets, chairs, play food), dress-up clothes, dolls with accessories, puppets, and sand and water play toys

Things to create with—large non-toxic, washable crayons and markers, large paintbrushes and fingerpaint, large paper for drawing and painting, colored construction paper, toddler-sized scissors with blunt tips, chalkboard and large chalk, and rhythm instruments

Picture books with more details than books for younger children

CD and DVD players with a variety of music (of course, phonograph players and cassette recorders work too!)

Things for using their large and small muscles—large and small balls for kicking and throwing, ride-on equipment (but probably not tricycles until children are 3), tunnels, low climbers with soft material underneath, and pounding and hammering toys

Toys for 3- to 6-year-olds (preschoolers and kindergarteners)

Preschoolers and kindergartners have longer attention spans than toddlers. Typically they talk a lot and ask a lot of questions. They like to experiment with things and with their still-emerging physical skills. They like to play with friends—and don’t like to lose! They can take turns—and sharing one toy by two or more children is often possible for older preschoolers and kindergarteners.

Good toys for 3- to 6-year-olds:

Things for solving problems—puzzles (with 12 to 20+ pieces), blocks that snap together, collections and other smaller objects to sort by length, width, height, shape, color, smell, quantity, and other features—collections of plastic bottle caps, plastic bowls and lids, keys, shells, counting bears, small colored blocks

Things for pretending and building—many blocks for building complex structures, transportation toys, construction sets, child-sized furniture (“apartment” sets, play food), dress-up clothes, dolls with accessories, puppets and simple puppet theaters, and sand and water play toys

Things to create with—large and small crayons and markers, large and small paintbrushes and fingerpaint, large and small paper for drawing and painting, colored construction paper, preschooler-sized scissors, chalkboard and large and small chalk, modeling clay and playdough, modeling tools, paste, paper and cloth scraps for collage, and instruments—rhythm instruments and keyboards, xylophones, maracas, and tambourines

Picture books with even more words and more detailed pictures than toddler books

CD and DVD players with a variety of music (of course, phonograph players and cassette recorders work too!)

Things for using their large and small muscles—large and small balls for kicking and throwing/catching, ride-on equipment including tricycles, tunnels, taller climbers with soft material underneath, wagons and wheelbarrows, plastic bats and balls, plastic bowling pins, targets and things to throw at them, and a workbench with a vise, hammer, nails, and saw

If a child has access to a computer: programs that are interactive (the child can do something) and that children can understand (the software uses graphics and spoken instruction, not just print), children can control the software’s pace and path, and children have opportunities to explore a variety of concepts on several levels.

Safety and children's toys

Safe toys for young children are well-made (with no sharp parts or splinters and do not pinch); painted with nontoxic, lead-free paint; shatter-proof; and easily cleaned.

Electric toys should be "UL Approved." Be sure to check the label, which should indicate that the toy has been approved by the Underwriters Laboratories. In addition, when choosing toys for children under age 3, make sure there are no small parts or pieces that could become lodged in a child’s throat and cause suffocation.

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