As we approach the holidays, well-meaning family and friends will likely ask for gift suggestions for our son with special needs. This can be a tough question, but if you don’t make a specific request, your older child may receive yet another picture book or other inappropriate gift. Every year, we approach gift giving for our son by asking two essential questions: What are his current interests? How can his interests be met in a meaningful, accessible and age appropriate way?
Several excellent, online resources provide reviews of play products. Experts at the National Lekotek Center evaluate toys and rate them for appropriateness for children with physical, sensory, communicative and/or cognitive disabilities. These ratings are available on the AblePlay web site, where there is a description of the toy as well as a list of the skills the item promotes, benefits and play ideas. Parents can purchase toys directly from the manufacturer or add them to a handy wish list to make it easy for others to purchase the products you recommend for your child.
Another great resource from the National Lekotek Center is the Toys“R”Us Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids. This free, family-friendly guide features specially selected toys that promote the development of children with physical and cognitive disabilities in the areas of auditory processing, language, visual, fine motor, thinking and social skills. Each toy has one or more symbols that indicate the specific skill so parents can easily identify items best suited for their child's needs. This year’s guide is available online, and of course, all the toys can be purchased at Toys R Us saving the extra shipping costs.
Should your child need specially modified toys, Enabling Devices and Dragonfly Toys are two great sources for switch-adapted and universal access toys and games. Happy shopping!
Read:
Top Ten Tips for Buying Toys http://www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3601775
Gift Ideas for Students with Severe Disabilities at http://teachingall.blogspot.com/2009/04/giving-gift-that-keeps-on-giving.html, or hear the podcast at http://attipscast.wordpress.com/2009/04/28/attipscast-episode-32-gift-ideas-for-students-with-severe-disabilities/.
AblePlay http://www.ableplay.org/
Adaptive Toys Guide www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/At/Adaptive-toys.html
Dragonfly Toys http://www.dragonflytoys.com/
Enabling Devices http://www.enablingdevices.com/
Infinitec’s Section on Play www.infinitec.org/play/shopping/toys.htm
Toys R Us Differently-Abled Toy Guide www.toysrus.com/differentlyabled
Here's a new source for reasonably priced switch-adapted toys, http://www.adaptiveplay.org/.
ReplyDeleteEnabling Devices just posted their 2009 Holiday Buying Guide online. You can download it free at www.enablingdevices.com. Here you'll find many switch-adapted toys and devices.
ReplyDelete