Best Musical Toys
Help your little one get their groove on with these fun musical toys.
By Amylia Ryan
Have you noticed your baby’s eyes light up when you turn on music? Does your toddler like to rock out when they hear their favorite song? It’s no coincidence.
Most babies and toddlers love listening to music, and for good reason. Hearing is one of the first senses to fully develop, and, just like us, little ones love listening to songs, rhythms and beats.
As early as when they’re still in the womb, babies can reap the benefits of listening to music. Music can help your kiddo with everything from creativity and language development to memory and emotional intelligence. Music can help soothe a crying baby or lift the mood of a cranky toddler. Some studies even suggest music should be part of therapy for premature babies because it can aid in development and weight gain.
How Musical Toys Can Help Deaf Babies
If your little one is Deaf or hard of hearing, music can be just as beneficial to their development. Deaf babies are often able to sense rhythm, and may be able to sense certain tones of sound. Babyhearing.org—run by Audiologists, Speech-Language Pathologists and other professionals at the Boys Town National Research Hospital in Nebraska—has lots of suggestions for how you can help Deaf children learn from music.
Our best advice: look for toys that allow baby to manually produce sounds themselves (by shaking objects or banging on them) rather than toys with electronic, button-triggered sound output. Toys with manually produced sounds allow baby to have a more full experience of feeling the rhythm or vibration by making the sounds on their own.
How to Do Music Time with Your Baby
There are lots of ways to enjoy music with your little one. Something as simple as incorporating music into your baby’s bedtime routine or spending a few minutes each day rocking out (literally and figuratively) to your favorite tunes can help with soothing and comforting. And as you reach the toddler years, music can become a much more interactive experience. Toddlers love learning through musical play by singing, dancing, exploring rhythms and making their own music.
When it comes to the best musical toys for your baby and toddler, we’ve rounded up our favorites that will make it easy for you to incorporate music into your everyday routine. So have fun and rock on!
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Amylia Ryan
Associate Editor
Amylia Ryan is the Associate Editor at Babylist, specializing in the topics of health, wellness and lifestyle products. Combining a decade of experience in writing and editing with a deep passion for helping people, her number one goal in her work is to ensure new parents feel supported and understood. She herself is a parent to two young children, who are more than willing to help product test endless toys, books, clothes, toiletries and more.
