Holiday Gift Guide: An SLP’s Favorite Books & Toys
About this time of year parents start asking me for recommendations for toys for Christmas. Does this happen to you? They want developmental toy and book recommendations that will build speech and language skills. I wanted to have a list to send them. Therefore, I’ve put together my favorites- check out the complete collection HERE and my favorite stocking stuffers HERE. I love pairing a book with a companion toy – I love the thoughtfulness of a themed gift!
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This gift guide is geared mostly for preschool and elementary ages. I’ve highlighted some of my favorite toys that encourage various developmental (hand-eye coordination, problem-solving, etc.) and language skills plus a high-quality complementary picture book.
They are arranged by themes – space, food/baking, pirates, active play, animals, and more! 10 themes plus a bonus stocking stuffer list as well!
Over 70 suggestions HERE on Amazon. Or, click below to see the books and toys individually. This post contains affiliate links. If you click through my referral link, at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase. Thank you for supporting Sweet Southern Speech.
PIRATES
book: The Pirates Next Door toy: Melissa and Doug 48 piece wooden Pirate Puzzle
book: Pete The Cat and the Treasure Map toy: Fisher Price Pirate Ship
book: How I Became A Pirate toy: Pirate Action Figures Bucket
FOOD/BAKING:
book: Pete’s Big Lunch toy: Sandwich Making Set
book: Jake Bakes A Cake toy: Bake and Decorate Cupcake Set
book: Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs toy: Yeti In My Spaghetti
book: Pete’s Perfect Pizza Party toy: Wooden Pizza Set
book: Pancakes For Breakfast toy: Pancake Pile-Up!
book: I Scream For Ice Cream toy: Scoop and Stack Ice Cream Play Set
STEM:
book: Ada Twist, Scientist toy: Microscope
book: Rosie Revere, Engineer toy: Tin Can Robot
book: The Way Things Work toy: Snap Circuits
ANIMALS:
book: Tacky The Penguin toy: Don’t Break The Ice
book: Scaredy Squirrel toy: The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game
book: We are in a book toy: Pop The Pig
book: Chewy Louie toy: Shelby’s Snack Shack Game
book: Big Shark, Little Shark toy: Shark Bite
book: How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight toy: Dino Transporter Carrier Truck
SPACE:
book: Little Kids First Book of Space toy: Space Puzzle
book: Roaring Rockets toy: Rocket Ship Play Tent
book: There’s No Place Like Space toy: LEGO Mars Research Shuttle
ROLE-PLAYING:
book: The Berenstain Bears Go To The Doctor toy: Pretend Play Doctor Kit
book: Biscuit Visits The Doctor toy: Dalmation Vet Kit
book: The Donut Chef toy: Play Kitchen
You can download the gift guide below and send it along to your families for them to get some ideas for the holidays as well! A brief description of each book and toy is included as well as targeted ages. The book and toy photos are in color, so printing may not be ideal. Emailing the PDF after you download it is recommended, that way the direct links are clickable to make it easier for reading about each one in more detail and purchasing.
TRANSPORTATION:
book: Cars and Trucks and Things That Go toy: Matchbox gift set
book: If I built A Car toy: Take Apart Car
book: Amazing Airplanes toy: airplane
FARM:
book: Big Red Barn toy: toy barn
book: Otis toy: John Deere Animal Sounds Hayride
book: Mrs. Wishy Washy’s Farm toy: See ‘n Say Farmer Says
ACTIVE PLAY:
book: Salt In His Shoes toy: easy score basketball
book: Pete The Cat Play Ball toy: Spikeball
book: Randy Riley’s Really Big Hit toy: Triple Hit Baseball
CHRISTMAS:
book: Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree toy: felt Christmas tree set
book: Christmas In The Manger toy: Little People A Christmas Story
book: The 12 Sleighs of Christmas toy: LEGO Christmas train
STOCKING STUFFERS:
I hope you love these suggestions and the gift guide! Comment below if you have anything to add to the list! What are your favorite book and toy pairings?
If you are looking for how I select books, check out my blog post on selecting the best books to use in speech therapy.
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