Toys for babies by age, 0–12 months: what supports each stage

This isn't a list of products to buy. It's a guide to the kinds of toys that match what babies are working on at each stage in the first year, based on the Canadian Paediatric Society's parent resources, plus the toy safety guidance from Health Canada that actually matters at this age.

The age bands are rough. As the Canadian Paediatric Society puts it, all children are different and develop skills at different times — it's normal to be ahead in some areas and behind in others. For babies born early, milestones are based on corrected age. If you have concerns about your baby's development, talk to your doctor.

First, the most useful toy in the house

It's you. Your face, your voice, and the back-and-forth of responding to your baby's sounds and expressions are what babies engage with most, and none of it needs batteries. The Canadian Paediatric Society also says screen use isn't recommended for children under 2, with the exception of video chatting with caring adults — so calls with grandparents count as play.

Birth to 3 months: looking, listening, starting to reach

In these early months, babies are developing hand-eye coordination, and reaching for, touching and learning to hold things is valuable stimulation. Around 3 months, many babies are smiling when you smile, and on their own.

Toy types that suit this stage (from the Canadian Paediatric Society's suggestions):

• An unbreakable baby mirror.
• Soft rattles that attach to wrists or ankles.
• Brightly coloured pieces of cloth with different textures.
• Light cloths or transparent scarves for peek-a-boo.
• Pictures, books or soft toys with faces.

That's genuinely enough. A newborn doesn't need an activity centre, and most of what's sold as a 'newborn toy' is really for the adults.

3 to 6 months: hands, grasping and cause and effect

Babies at this stage are developing both fine and gross motor skills, and they are fascinated with their own hands. Grabbing, shaking and bringing things to the mouth are the main activities.

• Sturdy rattles and large objects that are easy to grasp, such as doughnut shapes.
• Textured fabric pieces and crinkly soft toys.
• A play arch or play gym with hanging toys to bat at.
• Toys that make sounds — shakers, chimes, rattles. The Canadian Paediatric Society's caution: avoid electronic toys that are too loud for sensitive ears.
• Scarves for peek-a-boo, still.

6 to 12 months: dropping, banging, emptying and filling

In the second half of the year, anything within reach is a potential toy. Babies want to know how things work and what happens when things are dropped, rolled, shaken, banged or thrown. The Canadian Paediatric Society lists sitting on their own and copying speech sounds among the skills around 8 months, and walking while holding an adult's hand and saying 'mama' or 'dada' around 12 to 14 months.

• Nesting cups and sturdy blocks, including large building blocks.
• Unbreakable containers to fill and empty — kitchen containers count.
• Board books.
• Soft balls that are too large to fit in the mouth.
• Shape sorters and simple vehicles to push.
• Percussion instruments: drums, shakers, anything that rewards banging.
• Bath toys.

Open-ended toys stretch furthest. Stacking cups get mouthed first, nested later, and are often still in use in the sandbox years on. Rotating a few toys in and out of a basket keeps them interesting for longer than buying more.

Toy safety: what Health Canada says

Choking and small parts

• Any toy likely to be used by a child under three should be large, with no small parts that can come off in reasonable, foreseeable use.
• Check that rattles and teethers have handles and parts large enough that they can't get stuck in a baby's throat, and that squeakers or reeds in squeeze toys can't be removed.
• Read and follow age labels. Toys meant for older children can have small parts that make them unsafe for babies — worth remembering if there's an older sibling in the house.
• Keep inflated and uninflated latex balloons, and broken balloon pieces, out of reach.
• A handy home check from Caring for Kids: if something fits through a paper towel roll, it's too small for a baby to play with.

Strangulation

• Never put a necklace, teething necklace, string, ribbon or chain around the neck of a child under three.
• Remove crib mobiles and toy bars as soon as your baby begins to push up on hands and knees.

Button batteries and magnets

• A swallowed button battery can lodge in a child's throat, and Health Canada says serious burns can happen in as little as 2 hours. If you think a child has swallowed one, seek emergency medical care immediately — don't wait for symptoms.
• Prefer toys with screw-closed battery compartments, and check that compartments stay secure.
• Swallowing small, powerful magnets can cause severe internal injuries, especially if more than one is swallowed. Get urgent medical care even if the child seems fine. Discard toys with loose magnets or magnetic pieces small enough to swallow.

Everyday checks

• Repair or throw away broken toys, and check often for loose parts, broken pieces or sharp edges.
• Don't give children access to airtight storage bins, trunks or boxes they could climb into.
• Check second-hand toys against the Government of Canada recalls database.
• Keep activity centres away from stairs, windows, heaters, fireplaces and anything they could pull down.
• Soft toys are for play, not bed. Health Canada's safe sleep guidance says to keep stuffed toys out of the sleep space.
• Baby walkers are banned in Canada. Push-along toys a baby holds while standing are a different thing.

Putting toys on a registry

Ask for a few toys per stage rather than a pile for the newborn months, and lean on board books — they're cheap, last for years, and guests love choosing them. Our guide to which toys are worth registering for covers what tends to get used and what doesn't.