Occupational therapy toys play a crucial role in aiding children, adults, and the elderly in development. PlanToys offers a range of top-quality toys designed to enhance motor skills, sensory perception, and cognitive abilities. In this blog post, we will explore the best occupational therapy toys from PlanToys that can benefit every person in their growth and learning journey.
These toys help to develop skills (for younger kids) and maintain skills (for older people). PlanToys has a line out called ‘Better Aging‘ toys and I love that so much!
I have always loved toys that everyone can play with whether they are young or old! I remember playing fun board games around the table with my grandparents and they were always so into the games we played!
It was so memorable for us all. Maybe that is why I am so into occupational therapy toys for the whole family. When we buy toys, I want them to be toys we all can play with and learn something from.
This line of toys developed by PlanToys is developed in collaboration with MTEC, NSTDA, and Dr. Sittha Sukkasi from MIT. These innovative playsets and toys are designed with a unique focus on Stimulation and Training of Specific Cognitive Domains, Play Sensation, and Positive Emotion and are a great way to get the family together in a positive and playful environment.
Image: PlanToys
Below, we will discuss these toys with you as well as cover some questions about occupational therapy toys you might be wondering about.
What Are Occupational Therapy Toys?
Occupational therapy toys are toys used by occupational therapists to engage their clients in therapeutic activities targeting specific areas of development.
These toys can help improve fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, sensory processing, balance, and more. Therapists use these toys to work on coordination, motor planning, position changes, sensory input, and other skills necessary for daily activities.
Who Can Benefit From These Toys?
Anyone can benefit from these toys. From the elderly to toddlers, these toys are great for any age to learn and play with. It is so important to keep our minds and body active and engaged at any age.
Did you know that elderly people will make up about 22% of the population by 20250? With age comes the risk of dementia and loss of considerable brain skills, such as coordination, memory, and social awareness.
These conditions not only have negative physical and mental impacts but can also negatively impact one’s friends and family. By playing with these Plan Toys Aging Better line, we can keep our minds and our hands busy in a fun way (hand-eye coordination).
They are also therapeutic toys too! I love playing quietly with toys! Some research has revealed that occupational therapy can help stimulate and train impaired cognitive abilities in the elderly.
Image: Canva Pro
Proper play can create a sense of involvement in playing or playing with challenges, and make the elderly feel positive emotions such as fun, pride, and humor. They also strengthen the mental relationship with the family, because you are playing together, which allows for the elderly in your family to have social interaction and keep their social skills strong.
However, there is still a lack of devices/toys that are designed and developed specifically for the elderly that can do the following:
*Stimulate and train specific brain abilities
*Create playful feelings and positive emotions
*Strengthen mental relationships with family
With the mission for a better world through play and witnessing the impact of aging on society for decades, PlanToys began to research and design playsets in 2020 to help the elderly have a better quality of life. When I found that out it made me SO so happy!
In 2021, PlanToys collaborated with MTEC, and NSTDA to start the Better Aging project line of toys with Dr. Sittha Sukkasi, who has a Ph.D. in design from MIT and extensive experience in product development for older adults.
What Are The 3 Main Areas Of Focus Of These Toys?
There were three main areas of focus that the team designed:
*Stimulation and Training of Specific Cognitive Domains
*Play Sensation (sensory needs)
*Positive Emotion
During the design process of these occupational therapy sensory toys, they applied theories and principles that are cognizant of the needs of the elderly to ensure positive contributions to their brain development.
How Will These Toys Help You?
Through play, their products benefit the following:
*sensory input and stimulation for agitation reduction
*memory and dementia brain degradation
*occupational therapy for cognitive stimulation, training, and rehabilitation
*play sensations (fine motor skills) for little hands and bigger hands
*self, including self-efficacy, competence, and self-determination
*connectedness
Throughout this project, their research and design process created a total of 60 new ideas. They tested, developed, and refined them into 8 products to offer in the Better Aging collection! Check them out, below!
Top Occupational Therapy Toys For The Whole Family
Image: PlanToys
The 8 top best occupational therapy toys from PlanToys:
1. Build A Face
2. Balancing Cactus
3. Math Bingo
4. Storytelling Dice
5. Beaver Tumble
6. Massage Roller
7. Mood Dominos
8. Mandala
All of these toys are not only fun but great for your brain, no matter what age you are.
Build A Face
Image: PlanToys
First, we will talk about Build A Face! This one has to be my favorite one because I love being able to make faces! Do you remember that face puzzle toy back in the day with magnets in it and you could build a mustache, eyebrows, etc? Ya, this is what Build a Face reminds me of. So fun! I would spend hours playing with that toy!
This set contains a variety of facial features that can assemble a range of faces and emotions to either best suit your mood, or trigger memories and creative thinking. This is a soothing activity that can be played solo or with a group to spark conversation and bring a smile to your face!
Image: PlanToys
Build A Face includes 1 two-sided face, 21 facial components, and a cloth bag for storage and is great for any skill level. This toy is great for a child’s development and adult’s development. Great for older children and younger children too.
Balancing Cactus
This is another fun and engaging toy for people of all ages to play with. It’s all about strategy and balance with the PlanToys Balancing Cactus! This particular toy is best for 1- 4 players, so great for a group activities night. This game features 1 base and 18 cactus branches of various sizes and bright colors.
Image: PlanToys
The player who can build and balance the cactus without making it topple is the winner. This game aids in the development of eye-hand coordination, fine motor skills, visual motor skills, and concentration.
Math Bingo
I can’t say that math is a favorite subject for me, never has been, but with the Math Bingo game it might start being kind of fun to play around with math. This toy is great for young kids and old kids (like me!) to sit and play together. I mean, I do enjoy playing Bingo, so I might just adore this math toy game too!
PlanToys Math Bingo is not your ordinary bingo game. This version is both fun and intellectually stimulating. Strengthen your mathematical skills by solving the equations on the playing cards to unveil what number is being called.
Image: PlanToys
The first player to get four in a row calls out “BINGO!” This game is guaranteed to become an instant favorite amongst friends and family. Math Bingo includes 2 trays, 32 color pegs, 32 coins, 64 playing cards, and a cloth bag for storage. This game is great for visual scanning (finding numbers) and is great for problem-solving skills and fine motor skill development.
Storytelling Dice
PlanToys Storytelling Dice is a fun and stimulating game for the whole family! Players take turns rolling the dice and are instructed to act out narratives that correspond to the images on each die. This game strengthens multi-tasking, visual perceptual skills, concentration skills, and in-hand manipulation by encouraging players to recall memories from the past after shaking the dice.
Image: PlanToys
It also sharpens communication skills through the joys of storytelling. Combine the dice with blocks that depict images of objects and nature to enhance the story. This helps people with cognitive development and would make a perfect gift for anyone! The Storytelling Dice are small items and include 9 action tiles, 6 story add-on blocks, and a cloth bag for storage.
Beaver Tumble
Sharpen strategic thinking skills and hand-eye coordination with the PlanToys Beaver Tumble! Using the included wooden stick, each player takes a turn pushing out a log while preventing the beaver from taking a tumble. The players who are successful in removing timber from the beaver nest without having the beaver tumble win the game! Yay!
Image: PlanToys
Tumbling games are some of the best toys because it is exciting when they come tumbling down. And since you get so excited playing this game, you will move your entire body! This fun beaver tumble game is also good for getting into some fine motor activities. The Beaver Tumble can be played individually or in groups and is so much fun!
Massage Roller
Relax your body and mind with the PlanToys Massage Roller. This uniquely shaped massage vehicle can help relieve muscle aches and stimulate blood circulation. Caring for the body through massage can help enhance memory and motivate decision-making while reducing stress.
Image: PlanToys
Add this Massage Roller to your daily self-care routine! Its compact design is also perfect for travel. This would make for great physical therapy toys and gross motor skill development.
Mood Dominos
The PlanToys Mood Dominos is a game that helps you strengthen relationships with loved ones through storytelling. Players are instructed to match tiles based on facial expressions. After a tile is placed, the player proceeds to share a story that corresponds to the emotion on the tile.
Image: PlanToys
This toy is great for visual perception and fine motor development as well as helping with cognitive skills. The Mood Dominos includes 28 wooden tiles with 7 different emotions and a cloth bag for storage and travel.
Mandala
Relax and meditate with PlanToys Mandala. Begin by arranging the pieces from the center and gradually expanding the radius. Players can choose whether to create designs and patterns independently or follow the instructions provided.
Image: PlanToys
This activity can help improve concentration, decision-making, visual perception, and hand-eye coordination as well as develop new skills and motor planning, too. Young children as well as older folks love this toy. The mandala includes 60 pieces in a variety of shapes and sizes, 1 circular cloth sheet, and a cloth bag for storage.
About PlanToys
If you haven’t heard of PlanToys before, I will tell you a little bit about them! Back in 1981, seven university graduates came together with a shared mission of infusing the world with positivity. Vitool Viraponsavan, one of the strongest voices of the group, went on to establish PlanToys and has been inspiring children and families worldwide ever since.
Today, PlanToys has branched out to Asia, America, Europe, and Australia – bringing optimism, creativity, and a passion for sustainability to communities all over. The fusion of these three things is also known as their “Sustainable Way,” which further includes their use of sustainable materials, manufacturing methods, and mindset. PlanToys intentionally considers every single step of production to minimize environmental impact.
All of PlanToys are manufactured from natural rubber wood from rubber trees that no longer produce latex. So, three years before removing those trees, farmers stop adding fertilizer to the soil to save costs and ensure that all wood is free from toxins.
At PlanToys, sustainability and child development are their top priorities. By focusing on child safety and age milestones during design and production, their wooden toys enhance both physical and cognitive development.
Where Can I Buy These Occupational Therapy Toys?
You can check out and purchase the wonderful Occupational Therapy Toys For The Whole Family to Enjoy by going to their website!
PlanToys offers a diverse range of occupational therapy toys. These toys are designed to improve fine motor skills, coordination, and sensory processing. Investing in PlanToys occupational therapy toys is a wise choice for promoting healthy growth and learning for all.
Win
Let’s have a giveaway! Yay! Everyone loves a fun giveaway, right? One lucky person is going to win the PlanToys Build A Face toy!
Rules
The contest is open to US residents aged 18+. The giveaway will end on March 25, 2024, at 11:59 PM MT. I am not responsible for lost or stolen mail. By entering this giveaway you permit me to share your email and name with the sponsor. You will never get spam mail.
Anne Perry says
I love their wooden toys!
Kim says
Yes! Me too!