I found this little guy at Ollie's but he is still available on Amazon. It's called Star Wars The Child Animatronic Edition. He moves his head and talks and blinks his eyes with a touch to his head. I found these Droidables at Walmart. They could easily be secured to a wheelchair tray and they make droid noises no matter what way their bobble heads are moved. You could also glue or tie a string to the knob on top if your child does better with pulling than reaching out.
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The stores are adding extra shelves in anticipation of the holidays so I have been exploring the shelves for toys that seem like they have potential to be good for Adapted Play. While I have not tried these outside the box (I like my thrift store budget), I have tried them in the store and looked up unboxing videos to see how they work. I wanted to share the ideas so Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles and Santa could get ideas for toys that can actually be played with. These toys all have sound effects that are easy to produce. The Little People Barbie Corvette talks and makes sounds when the button in the driver's seat is pressed. Glue one of the people into the seat and its always easy to activate. There is a whole line of Paw Patrol Mighty Movie vehicles with a clear plastic clip in the driver's seat. When the pups are snapped in (could be glued), they become a button that can be pushed to make the sounds. The Little People Choo Choo Zoo train has been a thrift store staple for me because it has a lot of easy play potential. It is currently in the stores. There are songs and sounds when toys are dropped in the back, when the back is pressed down and when the train is pushed just a little bit. All of these toys react to voices (or communication devices). Moji responds to voice commands as well as some touch points on his body. Charmander doesn't discriminate what you say but will react to a voice and has some other touch points. Groove N Grow Groot has a leaf shaped button on his foot that makes him grow (this could be easily made bigger). He dances when the child plays music and says "I am Groot" when the child talks to him. Yellies are sound activated toys that move around faster with louder sounds. I have tried the spider and it stayed on the wheelchair tray that had a built up edge. The frogs and lizards seem to move faster when I watched videos so they may be hard for the child to visually follow. Barbie Chelsea's carnival has a Ferris wheel that could be attached to a board to allow easy turning. The dolls seem to be secured fairly well so they won't be accidentally knocked out. The Chelsea doll in the wheelchair looks like she would be easy to push around in pretend play. The last picture is just one example of dinosaurs that have some easy action. Look for dinosaurs with sounds that play from pushing the tail or head. Double sided Gorilla Tape is very effective for attaching the dinosaurs to surfaces. Look through other "Great Finds" blog posts for more gift ideas.
These books by Leap Frog and V-Tech read sentences, make sounds, play music and label pictures with the lightest touch. Each page has different pictures and words or sounds. Even the children who can't target a certain picture (because of their vision or the position of the book) can enjoy the different sounds each time they move their hand a little. Turning the pages could be made easier by taping pieces of popsicle sticks or file folders to the tabs. Unless your child can hold a pencil I would stick with the books without the pen or stylus. This is just a sampling of what I have seen. V-Tech has a Paw Patrol book as well.
Update: The V-Tech Bluey book and other books with the colored light up buttons do not have touch sensitive pages. Pretend play can be even more fun when favorite characters from television and movies are part of it. There are bath finger puppets that feature all kinds of characters, from Paw Patrol and Princesses to Mickey Mouse, Bubble Guppies and Spongebob SquarePants. Bath finger puppets stand up by themselves unlike regular finger puppets. They are squishy so they will fit in a tight fist for children who have trouble opening their hands. The puppets can be placed on a finger or thumb to help children who can't keep their hands closed. They also can fit on top of other toys like the ladder of the firetruck above to rescue a friend from a burning building. They squeeze nicely into the holes of an Oball car.
The Melissa and Doug Puzzles that are labeled "See and Hear" sound puzzles play a song or make a sound when the puzzle piece is removed. When I first bought one of the Sing Along Nursery Rhyme puzzles I was disappointed because I was hoping my little friend would be rewarded for putting the pieces in by hearing her favorite nursery rhymes. I definitely wasn't seeing the possibilities for so many other children. Adding beads or spools to the pegs makes the pieces easy to pull or knock out. Turn the puzzle around to reach the top of the puzzle. Put the puzzle on a slant board and just a little bump of the hand knocks the piece out and plays the song or sound. So far there are three puzzles that play music. The Wheels on the Bus above sings a different verse depending on the piece pulled out such as the wipers on the bus go swish swish swish. There are two Sing Along Nursery Rhyme puzzles with familiar nursery rhymes. There are two sound effect puzzles, Around the Fire Station and around the House. For the first puzzle I adapted I used beads that were in our therapy room and glued them in place. Then I found wooden spools at Hobby Lobby (you can find them on Amazon) that fit snuggly over the pegs on the puzzle. No glue needed. The size I got was 3/16" X 7/8" with 1/4" hole. I think the hole size is the most important. I used acrylic craft paint I already had at home to paint a different color for each piece. Be careful when looking for new puzzles. I got fooled by a description on Amazon for some animal and vehicle sound puzzles that said they made sounds when the pieces were removed. From now on I will "ask a question" before I buy a sound puzzle. Kids love CoComelon! These V-Tech CoComelon Go! Go! Smart Wheels vehicles are right sized for small hands. When a hand lands on the characters head they talk and sing songs. More noises and music happen when the vehicle is pushed, especially onto a "smart spot" on the track. Track could be attached to a play board on the wheelchair tray to keep the vehicle within reach. In addition to J J's Tractor (pictured here), there is Nina's Fire Truck, J J's Recycling Truck and Cody's Bus. There are other Go! Go! Smart Wheels with characters including Disney characters. I found this at the thrift store, sitting right at eye level waiting for me to discover it. Fortunately, you can still buy it online. The keys are flat and touch sensitive. Dragging a hand across will make different fart notes. You can play a one octave tune in fart noises if you are so inspired. The sound mode button also gives you options for burps and vomit sounds. Of course, what makes it the most fun for your child is your exaggerated "EWWW!! That's so GROSS".
This little guy has so much play potential. It lights up and changes color according to its mood. It reacts with different sounds and emotions to easy petting touch on its head or a rough touch which may make it angry. It makes happy munching sounds when a finger or knuckle is in its mouth. It changes colors and lights up in beat to music playing. Best of all it doesn't fall off a wheelchair tray because the feet have great suction cups.
This steering wheel from Battat has been around for a couple of years now and has a lot of possibilities for easy play. It has a base that can be easily attached to a play board or tray and then the angle of the steering wheel is adjustable. The horn is large and easy to activate with a fisted or open hand. The gear shifter is a good grasping size and makes different sounds when it is moved up or down. When the wheel is turned to one side or the other the turn signal lights up and makes a clicking sound. The stop and go and radio buttons are a little smaller but could easily be made bigger by gluing a big button or poker chip on top. Make sure you pick a fun destination where your child will drive you.
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I am an occupational therapist with over 30 years of pediatric experience. I currently work predominantly with children who have cerebral palsy and other neuromotor difficulties. I love to help children who have the most challenging bodies participate in their world, especially through play. I scour local thrift stores to find toys that provide a lot of fun without a lot of hand skills or can be easily (and cheaply) modified for that purpose. Archives
December 2023
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