Play is one of the most natural ways for children to learn, connect and communicate. In speech therapy, toys create meaningful opportunities for children to practise new words, take turns, make choices, follow directions and share their ideas – all while doing something they enjoy.
The good news is that therapy toys don’t need to be expensive or complicated. Many simple, familiar toys can be used in dozens of different ways and adapted to suit your child’s interests and stage of development.
Here are some of our personal favourites.
Baby Dolls
One toy, hundreds of play ideas!
Baby dolls are wonderful for encouraging pretend play and introducing language connected to familiar routines. Your child might feed the baby, give them a bath, change their clothes or put them to bed.
During play, you can model:
- Action words such as eat, drink, wash, sleep and cry
- Body-part and clothing words
- Simple phrases such as “Baby is hungry” or “Put the shoes on”
- Everyday sequences such as bath time or getting ready for bed
- Feelings such as happy, sad, tired or scared
Try following your child’s lead and talking about what they’re already doing. If your child says, “Baby sleep,” you might expand this to, “Yes, the baby is sleeping!”
Train Sets
Train sets are a classic for a reason. They let children lead the play, solve problems and build their own stories.
They’re also great for practising:
- Position words such as under, over, through, next to and behind
- Describing words such as fast, slow, long and little
- Turn-taking language such as “My turn” and “Your turn”
- Making requests, such as “I want the blue train”
- Following directions, such as “Put the train under the bridge”
- Imaginative storytelling about where the train is going
You don’t need to ask your child lots of questions. Instead, try commenting on the play: “The train is going up… now it’s going down!”
Dollhouses
Dollhouses are one of our favourite toys for recreating everyday scenarios. Children can act out familiar experiences such as waking up, eating dinner, going to school or getting ready for bed.
Dollhouse play can support:
- Vocabulary for rooms, furniture and household objects
- Sentence development
- Understanding and using pronouns such as “he,” “she,” and “they”
- Sequencing everyday routines
- Social language and problem-solving
- Understanding emotions and different perspectives
Try modelling short sentences that match your child’s current communication level – “She is cooking,” “Dad is upstairs” or “They are eating dinner.”
Spinning Light Toys
Sometimes, a small and exciting toy is exactly the motivation a child needs. Spinning light toys create repeated opportunities for children to request, comment and interact.
Before turning the toy on again, pause and give your child a chance to communicate. They might use a word, sound, gesture, sign, picture or communication device.
You could model words and phrases such as:
- “Go!”
- “More”
- “Again”
- “Turn it on”
- “It’s spinning!”
- “My turn”
The goal isn’t to make your child say a particular word before they can access the toy. Instead, model useful language, notice all forms of communication, and keep the interaction fun.
Bubbles
Bubbles are simple, affordable and incredibly versatile. Because they’re naturally exciting and easy to repeat, they’re perfect for building shared attention and communication.
Bubble play may create opportunities to practise:
- Requesting more
- Action words such as “blow,” “pop,” “catch,” and “fall”
- Describing bubbles as big, little, fast or high
- Taking turns
- Counting
- Following simple directions
- Making comments such as “It popped!”
Try blowing a few bubbles, then pausing expectantly. Notice how your child responds – this might be through eye contact, reaching, pointing, vocalising, signing or using words.
You Don’t Need to Direct Every Moment of Play
It’s tempting to turn play into a series of questions – “What is this?” or “What colour is that?” But children often learn more language when adults simply join their play and model words naturally.
Try to:
- Follow your child’s interests
- Sit at their level
- Copy their actions
- Comment more, question less
- Use short, clear phrases
- Repeat important words
- Pause to give them time to respond
- Add one or two words to what they say
The Best Toy Is the One Your Child Enjoys
There’s no single toy every child needs for their communication development. The most useful toys are the ones that capture your child’s interest and can be played with in more than one way.
Even everyday objects, household routines and toy-free games can create meaningful communication opportunities. What matters most is the interaction between you and your child.
If you have concerns about your child’s speech, language, play or communication development, our speech pathologists can help identify their strengths and provide personalised strategies to support them. Contact our team to learn more about speech pathology assessment and therapy.
