Push and pull along toys are excellent tools for promoting physical development, balance, and coordination in babies and toddlers.
6 Top Reasons on How Push and Pull Along Toys advance child development:
- Gross Motor Skills: push and pull along toys requires the use of large muscle groups and helps develop gross motor skills. Babies and toddlers strengthen their arms, legs, and core muscles as they engage in these activities.
- Balance and Stability: Pushing or pulling a toy requires maintaining balance and stability. Toys such as baby walkers challenge children to distribute their weight evenly and develop a sense of body control.
- Walking and Coordination: Pushing or pulling a toy such as a baby walker encourages toddlers to practice and refine their walking skills. It helps them develop coordination between their legs and arms, improving their ability to move smoothly and steadily.
- Hand-Eye Coordination: Push and pull along toys often involve manipulative actions, such as holding onto the handle of a baby walker or grasping a rope of a pull along toy. These actions help enhance hand-eye coordination as babies and toddlers learn to control their movements while focusing on the toy's position and their own actions.
- Cognitive Development: Push and pull along toys can also contribute to cognitive development. Children learn about cause and effect as they realize that their actions make the toy move.
- Spatial Awareness: Pushing a baby walker or pulling a toy requires an understanding of spatial relationships. Children learn to gauge distances, judge the size of objects, and adapt their movements accordingly, enhancing their spatial awareness and perception.
For older kids I have a really interesting video podcast with James Wood who brings Gross Motor Skills and Language Acquisition into one unusual combination. Learn English Through Boxing.