Happy Holidays! We are so grateful to our wonderful clients. All of us at Miracle Farm Speech Therapy consider ourselves blessed to work with you and to have such a rewarding job. We wish you peace this holiday season and hope that you all get a chance to enjoy time with your family. Please find below a list of suggested toys, games, and gift items that we have personally recommended to Santa! We hope you like them!!
Games:
–Obstacles– This is a great new game by Eeboo. It sparks creativity and problem solving. You have to come up with creative ways to use your “tools” to get around the various “obstacles” and make it home.
-Bumparena– This amazing game by Cranium Games is a great way to work on strategy and planning. It involves building somewhat of a pinball machine, adding bumpers on each turn. There is a lot of movement and fine motor involved which keeps kids engaged.
–Super Duper Inc. has a couple of great games available. “Go for the Dough” is one that I highly recommend. Another is called Word Joggers and it looks at many aspects of language (multiple meanings, opposites, categories, describing).
-Pop the Pig- This is a game that incorporates many basic concepts with proprioceptive input and movement. I have had my game for years and it has held up all this time!
–I Spy- Dig In– This is basically the 3-D version of ‘I Spy’ and so fun!
-Quizoo (by Blue Orange Games) is another great one to work on concepts of order, superlatives, and other skills related to number line, comparatives, right to left, etc. Kids love this card game that compares all kinds of animals.
-Buzz Blast– A great group game that works on all facets of language and articulation in a fast paced pass-it game. Kids love it and it would make a great gift for any teacher (2nd grade and up)
-Monopoly Jr. and Twister-Sometimes the old classics are just the best. These two timeless classics are just great games!
Active Toys:
-Nugget Comfort Furniture- This part furniture, part toy is a great gift for those kids who are always building forts!
– Mesh and Marble Fidget– These are great little fidget toys that are being used in schools to help with attention and focus.
–Door Pong-This is like a ping pong game that you hang in your doorway. This toy was invented by a young boy who wanted to create a game of ping pong that his younger brother with autism could play. This game is in stock at Baby-Go-Round in Hampton Falls, NH
–Sensory Poppers- This is a great infant/toddler game that incorporates texture and finger movements by ‘dimpl duo’. This toy is also available at Baby Go Round!
–Indoor Snowballs– great way to bring active play indoors. Have your child toss them in a bucket or try to throw them through a hoop to work on aim, coordination, and concentration.
-Magnetic Dart Set-I have some clients who put a list of their speech words next to the dart board and say a word each time they throw a dart!
Books and Apps:
–Check out the beautiful story of “Stick and Stone” by Beth Ferry and Tom Lichtenheld.
-Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson
-I love the entire “Bug Book” series by David Carter. Your children will love them, too!
-Usborne books has some great books and the “Busy Santa Book” is so fun for the holidays!
Pretend Play:
The Playmobile Advent Calendar- this is the greatest advent calendar that allows you to collect a thematic group of Playmobile as you enjoy opening a new box from Dec. 1st-Dec. 25th!
Kids love to open a purse. Why not get them their own. A children’s purse (or get one from a second hand store- even better!) with a variety of gadgets inside makes a great gift. Fill it with a pretend phone, hairbrush, makeup brushes, old keys, some jewelry, and pretend money. The ideas are endless!!
Cash Register, play food (we love Melissa and Doug), grocery bag, apron, and hat-these items will create an amazing grocery store and hours of fun exchanging words and using skills such as counting, describing, and categorizing.
Pretend Play- Melissa and Doug now have a great smoothie and coffee shop set that are great for play at all ages.
Play Mobile Wild West Set- Nobody seems to play Wild West anymore!! This Play Mobile set it the greatest. It comes complete with a cactus, rattlesnake, and bag of money! It would be a great gift along with one of my favorite Western stories; Bubba the Cowboy Prince!
Insta Snow continues to be one of my favorite items for winter. Mix up some pretend indoor snow and gather your little people or figurines! They can have their own winter wonderland!
For Babies:
-Sweetooth baby teether (teether that smells and is shaped like an ice cream) Made with all safe materials. Check it out at www..babysweettooth.com
-Chewelry Necklace- Baby Go Round in Hampton Falls has a beautiful selection of this jewelry that mom’s can wear and babies can chew!!
-Baby Mirror
-Massaging teether by Nurtureland
– Oli and Carol make a series of safe mouthing toys that are beautiful.
-The Baby Banana is a tiny baby safe, soft, and flexible toothbrush!
We all wish you health and happiness in 2019 and remember this quote from Buddy the Elf:
“I just like to smile; smiling’s my favorite.”