Best 44 Toys For 1-Year Olds: Ones They Will Actually Play With
Are you shopping for a one year old and have no idea what to get them, that’s worth the money?
So often people are asking, “What should I get your baby for their first birthday, or for Christmas?” Or maybe you’re wondering what to get your own one year old. It’s hard to think of things to get for babies, because we want to spend our money on something that a baby will actually play with.
I had the same issue before I had kids. What is something worth buying for a one year old? Kids and toys aren’t cheap and you don’t want to get something that will just sit in a toy box and not get any use out of, right?
Well, this gift guide for a one year old will help you pick the perfect gift.
Different developmental skills these toys will help improve
Gross Motor Skills– Big movements that your baby does using their muscles, like crawling, walking, raising their arm.
Fine Motor Skills– Smaller movements that babies learn how to do, like picking up a cheereo, turning pages, eating, putting blocks together.
Cognitive– Skills your baby’s brain uses to think, learn, encourage memory, and learn new information
Language and Communication– The ability to understand others, respond to others, using gestures, facial expressions and words.
Spatial Awareness– Awareness of one’s body and object and the space around them. The knowledge of objects in relations to oneself. Understanding the object and space when there was a change in the position.
Dexterity– Performing tasks using your hands. Example, bucking a buckle, threading a string, putting an object in a hole.
Why toys are important for kids’ learning
Remember to PIN For The Next Time You Need A Toy For A One Year Old
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Think of toy types
When you are buying a toy for a young child, think of what type of toys they will benefit from the most. If you want to get your monies worth and have them grow with the toy, or if you just want them to have fun playing with the toy and not worried about them growing with the toy, consider these toy types.
Everlasting Creative Thinking Toys
These kinds toys are amazing to get a one year old, two year old all the way up to end of elementary school years. These toys your baby will grow with and learn so much from. Creative thinking toys are toys that make them problem solve, use their imagination, be creative, and are guaranteed to keep them busy when you need them to be!
On the spot learning toys
These learning toys are also great. These are the toys that play music, teach letters, light up and make the fun noises. Although these are great and fun for your baby and toddler, they don’t tend to play with them for a long period of time. These kind of toys do most of the work and after awhile they move onto something else. I’m not saying by any means these toys are bad toys, but they don’t simulate thier brain like they other kinds of toys do. My kids LOVE these types of toys, though.
These toys are great in small dosages it seems. These are the types of toys you put away and bring them out every once in awhile, especially when they are in their fussy moods, going on a road trips, or doctor appointments. These toys are great for distractions but are still great for learning too.
So, when you are shopping here are some tips to think about. They are both great and both have significant learning benefits especially when it comes to their senses, such as shape, color, taste, texture, and sound.
These are the best toys to get a one year old
This list of toys are for both girls and boys. We believe girls and boys can play with every toy and any toy, but this particular list is neurtrual gender.
The list isn’t in a particular order but we made this list for the best of both “everlasting creative thinking toys”, and “on the spot learning toys.”
Creative thinking toys for your one year old
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Fisher-Price Baby First Block
This will keep you one year old busy for quiet some time. Great for their eye and hand corrdination, and problem solving, and spatial awareness. They will enjoy this toy for years trust me. Check Price
Pop Up Play Tent
The pop up play tent is a huge hit in my house. My brother-in-law got my boys one for Christmas and they all loved it; my 5 year old, 3 year old, and my 1 year old twins. If you need them to stay busy while you need to get things done, this is what you need. Also, it’s great for building thier muscles and using their imagination. Check Price
Wooden Activity Cube
Every child that I see that plays with this loves wooden acitiviy cubes. I remember loving it when I was little. These are great for one year olds, and developing their minds. Lots to observe and learn with this cool toy. Check Price
I haven’t met a baby that doesn’t like to play with cars and tracks. Playing with this toys helps with imagination, eye-hand coordination. This is also a great way for them to learn to play together and improve their communication. Kids learn repetition and dexterity (performing skills with their hands) through play. Check Price
Playskool Poppin’ Pals Pop-up
My kids love this toy. It’s huge with encouraging their problem-solving skills. Each pop up is different, they either need to turn a key, pull the key, push a button, etc, so it teaches cause and effects. This will keep them busy for a long time. Check Price
Stacking Cups
Stacking cups is such a simple toy, but the kids especially babies love it. This toy will for sure grow with your child. They will love to put them inside each other, stack them, or put stuff inside them and pour it out. So many different things they can do with these cups. Check Price
Wooden Animal Jigsaw Puzzle
You can’t go wrong with puzzles. These are simple puzzles great for a one-year-old. They will learn shapes, colors, animals/insects, patterns and problem-solving. Check Price
Fisher- Price Rock-N-Stack and Baby’s 1st Blocks Bundle
This bundle is perfect for a one year old’s birthday or Christmas gift. These help with learning how the world works, learning their shapes and problem solving. Something about babies put objects inside bowls and other containers they love!Check Price
Classic Xylophone
Music does amazing things to the developing brain. This classic toy any baby will love. It helps with eye-hand corrdination, and fine motor skills. Check Price
Number Train LEGO
It’s never too early to teach your child something even numbers. But this LEGO building set won’t only teach them, they will be able to use their imagination, learn their numbers, train sounds, and colors. Check Price
Push and Ride Racer
The perfect gift to help with them learning to walk, and their balance getting off and on the racer. Great for inside or outside, and the handle on the back lets the parents help with giving them a little push. Check Price
Wooden Shape Truck
My kids love toys with strings, they like dragging things around. They’re so much fun in this toy for your one-year-old, along with lots of learning. Check Price
Pound A Ball Toy
You baby will get so many laughs out of this toy. A fun way for them to learn cause and effects, and get their brain working. Check Price
Wooden Musical Instrument
Yes, it’s a noisy set, but who doesn’t like music? This can be a great toy to play with your child and make some music together. This toy will for sure grow as they grow. Check Price
Wooden Educational Set
This set has it all, music, puzzles, the fun bop toys to learn the cause and effects. This little set will keep them busy and get their brain going, all while having fuCheck Price
Tree Top Activity Center
Your one year will love this table, there’s so much for them to explore and keep them occupied. Perfect for their creativeness, fine motor skills and cognitive development. Check Price
Construction Vehicle Toy Set
All of my babies loved to play with cars and trucks, and learn the different types of trucks even at the age of one. You can play with them and teach them what each construction truck does and the noises they make, babies love imitating vehicles. Check Price
Geometric Color Recognition Wooden
The geometric wooden shapes are a simple toy but they can learn so much with these. It kind of like a puzzle, by needing to figure out how the shapes goes on a stack on top of each other. This toy will encourage eye-hand coordination, and teach them their colors, shapes and counting. Check Price
Color Matching Egg Set
This set is a very unique toy but very clever. If your 1 year old likes to put things together, then they will love thi toys. Each egg has it’s own color and shape and they have to figre out how the pieces go back together, lots of learning here!Check Price
Mega Building Bloks
If you get anything for your one year old, make sure to get them blocks! My kids started playing with blocks since 6 months old. Something about blocks attracts kids and they can sit and build with them for hours -literally. Check Price
Wooden Lacing Watermelon
The lacing watermelon is perfect to take anywhere your baby goes. Fun toy to build your child’s hand muscles and their brain muscles. Amazing for eye-hand coordination, and using their imagination. Check Price
Hape Pound and Tap Bench
This toy looks so much fun. They will learn cause and effects with they hit the ball and the ball hits the xylophone. They will have a blast with this toy. Check Price
Lacing Beads
Lacing beads seems so basic, but for them it really does help with their muscle memory, exercising their brains, eyes and hands.Check Price
Cube Sorter
This is a fun simple toy, kind of like a 3D puzzle for them to play and learn with. Check Price
Geometric Stacking
Another geometric stacking toy that will really make them think and try to see how it works. They will need to use some problem solving skills to figure out how the pieces fit on the pegs. Check Price
Wooden Rocking Horse
Every child needs a wooden rocking horse in their childhood. It’s not exactly a “learning” toy but it will definitley get their imagination going. Check Price
One the spot learning toys for 1-year olds
Learning Mushroom Garden
A fun toy that lights up, plays music and they can learn their numbers. It may seem too soon to teach your one year old their numbers, but their brains are sponges, the earlier and more repatition will make it easier for them to grasp as they get older. Check Price
Sit to Stand Learning Walker
All four of my kids used this and loved it. It’s durable since it lasted over 5 years and counting. They all enjoyed this and played and interacted with it a lot. This is what my first son used to learn how to walk. Check Price
Push and Pop Bulldozer
A super fun toys that any one year old would love. Good to help with their balance as they try to learn to walk, and they can even play with it as they sit on the floor. This teaches phrases, numbers, colors, and music. Check Price
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Drop and Go Dump Truck
A fun dump truck that plays music and dumps balls out as they put them in, also teaches numbers and music. A fun toy to learn cause and effects. Check Price
Learning Friends 100 Word Book
A great interactive book for them to get engaged with the book and learn to love reading. I fun way to get them to learn how a book works and turn the pages and see and hear everything the book does. Check Price
Learn and Spin Aquarium
This toy they will learn about the under the sea creaters, number, colors and music. They will love to see the ocean spinning and light up. Check Price
Gas ‘N Go Mower
Playing pretend is great for kid’s imagination, and this toys will do just that plus help them walk. This will keep the busy for quite some time. Check Price
Color Flashlight
This is a fun toy, really good to keep your baby distracted with the light color changes and the fun music. My twins love this toy, even my 3 year old too. Check Price
Piano Play Mat
This reminds me of the movie BIG, I would have loved this as a baby (I’m sure). Your baby can crawl all over, and once she knows how to walk she can dance on it and have a little dance party.Check Price
Wooden Magic Touch Drums
Teach your baby to love and apprciate music with these fun touch drums with different drumming sounds. Check Price
Musical Crawl And Go Snail
This toy looks incredibly fun, with all the fun designs and colors, it will guarantee to keep you little one busy. They can take pieces apart and put them back on. It also has the stacking rings which one-year-olds love. Great to keep them moving and build their motor skills. Check Price
Pull Along Whistling Duck
Another fun looking toy that will keep your baby occupied. This one too has an attachment that they can take off and play with separately and see how they toy works as they put it back together. Check Price
Glow and Discover Light Bar
A fun toy your one-year-old will love. It is an interactive toy that plays music, teaches animals and colors. You can switch the language to French, Spanish, or English so your baby can hear the content in different languages. Check Price
Musical Airplane
This airplane is full of fun learning activities melodies, alphabet, numbers, and shapes. This can help with their sensory development, memory and eye-hand coordination. Check Price
Klickity Baby Toy
These fun and unique toys will keep your baby busy with all the sensory stimulation this toy provides. This strengthens their fine motor skills, coordination skills, and teaches cause and effects. Check Price
Curiosity Activity Table
This table has it all, so many fun interactive activities to keep your baby busy and exploring. This table can be used on the floor by taking the legs off for when your baby can’t quite stand yet, then you can attach the legs to help them gain balance and build their leg muscles. This table is one of a kind and so much fun! Check Price
Alphabet Train
My kids love this train, my 6-year-old still loves it, mainly riding on it. But It teaches things like letters and numbers, causes and effects when they put the blocks in the train and comes out into the caboose. It’s a great toy to help them learn to walk and learn how to balance to sit on the train and ride it. Check Price
Drop and Go Train
This train it just a fun toy, that keeps them moving and entertained. It does teach cause and effect, but mainly just for play, which is the best way babies learn. Check Price
We hope this helped you make a decision on what toy to get a one year old, whether it’s their first birthday, Christmas, Easter or just because. These toys are guaranteed for your one year old to learn with, play with and love.
No need to worry about wasting your money on pointless toys that they will never play with.
