Parents of children with autism are well aware of the importance of providing developmentally appropriate toys to their children that promote healthy sensory development.
There are lots of great resources on the web that cover which toys are best for children with autism and what specific aspects of healthy sensory motor development they can help (see our post How Does Sensory Play Help Child Development).
However, we thought it might be valuable to talk about where you can actually find the right toys and how much research or work it might take to get the right toys into the hands of your children.
Let’s get into it, shall we?
Brick and Mortar Toy Stores
Target & Walmart- Target and Walmart have decent selections of sensory toys and fidgets that you can pick up when you are out and about.
Many of these toys are sorted and labeled for ease and convenience as well. This makes it easier for you to find what you are looking for!
If you were to pick between the two, we would choose Walmart! Their selection is more specific and intentional.
Online Stores
Amazon- We live in the world of the online shopping revolution! It’s no surprise that Amazon has a solid selection of toys for autistic children.
Amazon offers pretty much every toy and sensory tool you can imagine.
What’s more is that they have the toys separated out by age group (i.e. toddlers, ages 5 to 7, etc.) This certainly makes it easier to find exactly what you might be looking for.
Amazon has price margins that you can filter by as well, so if you are on a budget, Amazon may be a good choice for your sensory toy needs.
Specialized Online Stores
www.nationalautismresources.com is a platform that offers sensory toys and tools (and more) for children with autism.
They specifically cater to this population, so if you want to make sure that the toys you are buying for your children are appropriate and specialized, this would be a good bet.
They also offer calming tools, classroom tools, and other resources as well.
DeveloPLAY
The DeveloPLAY box is truly unique and crafted specifically for the healthy sensory development of children with autism AND ALSO for the convenience and peace-of-mind for parents of children with autism.
DeveloPLAY delivers a NEW box of handpicked sensory toys and tools each month, right to your door.
Each toy is chosen by an occupational therapist and each box is unique and guaranteed to bring fun, smiles, and the promotion of healthy sensory child development.
The benefit of a monthly DeveloPLAY subscription is that the toys are already picked out and you can be sure that they are chosen intentionally for specific developmental purposes for your child. The boxes come right to your door each month, so there’s no need for you to do research or make lists.
No more trips to the store or browsing through online big box services to get the right list of toys.
Click below to learn more about DeveloPLAY!
Happy shopping!