Look, Touch and Listen

From the labor and delivery room you may hear the weak cries of a newborn. Cries that excite and light up the world of the new parent(s). From this moment on your child begins his/her journey into the world of learning and growing. Although all of your child's senses hearing, seeing, tasting, smelling and touching stimulate their learning and developmental growth, seeing, touching and listening are three senses that manufacturers of educational toys focus upon.

Although research has determined that newborns have limited focus, they do have the ability to see colors, though black and white seems to be the most predominate. With this in mind, it is no surprise that educational toy manufacturers design toys with bright colors.

Due to the nerve ending under the skin, touch is one of the first sense that a baby develops. As your baby grows, touch becomes an important sense that furthers their development. Touch stimulates neuromuscular development, nerve cell insulation, movement coordination and perception such as soft or rough. Educational toys that are designed to stimulate a babies sense of touch will have various textures for your baby to touch and explore.

Although at birth a baby cannot define sounds, his/her hearing is nonetheless fairly developed at birth. In fact a babies sense of hearing is more keen than an adults. Educational toys that play music, have soft tones or chimes play an important role in the hearing development of a child. A child responds quickly, once they hear musical notes or melodies by trying to reach in the direction of the sounds. Musical toys are also a great way to help in the development of your child.

In short, when searching for educational toys for your baby, look for these features; bright colors to see, various textures to touch and an array of sounds to hear. All of these are a great way to start your baby on the path to success.