What are appropriate toys for an 18-month-old?

These days your toddler is a bundle of energy, keen to explore the world around her. She’ll do this by grabbing, prodding, squeezing, pushing and throwing pretty much anything she can get her hands on. Whether she’s walking, crawling or bum shuffling, she’ll be able to reach more objects that pique her curiosity. As well as being more mobile, your child’s hand-eye coordination is improving too, enabling her to grasp and hold a wider range of objects. These developing physical skills will help her to understand cause and effect, for example, “What happens if I drop this ball?” or “What happens if I pull this lever?” Playtime is a very important part of your toddler’s development. Choosing the right kind of toys for her to experiment with and enjoy is the perfect way to help her develop her newly acquired skills and abilities. Here’s our pick of the top toys she’ll love at this stage:

Push or pull-along toys: If your toddler is learning to walk, heavily weighted push-along toys are a great way of giving her something solid to lean on as she grows in confidence. If she’s already tottering about quite happily, then a pull-along toy could develop this newly acquired skill further, as she’ll have to look behind her as she moves forward. Anything that flaps, bobs up and down or squeaks is bound to be a winner. Find out more about how your toddler’s pushing and pulling skills develop.

Ride-on toys: Learning to use a sit-on toy through push or pedal power will build your toddler’s muscle strength and improve her balance and coordination. Many of these ride-on toys come with a handle so you can push when your child gets tired. Most can adapt to grow with your little one, too.

Activity toys: These type of multi-sensory toys come in all shapes and sizes from simple cubes to larger activity centres and tables. Combining colours, shapes, noises and textures, they provide hours of fun and help to stimulate your toddler’s understanding of cause and effect.

Sorting and nesting toys: Toddlers love to sort and stack. Picking up items and putting them in place helps to develop your little one’s hand-eye coordination. Building a tower of blocks and then knocking it down again will give your toddler hours of fun, and you’ll notice she won’t tire of the repetition. Get her to start with larger shapes, progressing to smaller pieces as she develops a more controlled grasp. Sorting and nesting toys are also a great way of developing early problem-solving skills.

Climbing frame: Almost as soon as your toddler learns to walk, she may also want to climb - which can be nerve-racking for you! Investing in a small, sturdy climbing frame can give her a safe place to climb, hide and slide, as well as practising her emerging motor skills without risking her safety. It’s a good idea to choose something that can be used indoors or out.

Balls: Any ball that’s easy to grasp is a winner for this age group. Start off with simply rolling the ball back and forth to your toddler along the floor. Once she’s got the hang of this, graduate to gently throwing the ball. Choose under-inflated beach balls, tennis balls or cloth balls, and stay away from foam balls that she may be tempted to put in her mouth and chew. This is the perfect age to introduce your child to “catch”. Start slowly - and watch as she gradually begins to get the back-and-forth rhythm. Not only will it help her physical development, she’ll love this fun interaction with you, too.

Washable crayons: Let the scribbling begin! Set your budding artist up with big sheets of strong paper taped to the table to avoid any mishaps. Hand her a couple of thick, chunky crayons or washable pens in primary colours and watch her make her mark. Drawing with a crayon involves fine motor skills such as grasping and holding as well as encouraging your toddler’s creative side.

Role play toys and dressing up: Your toddler will love to copy what you do and imitate the world around her. Whether she’s a fix-it kid or an aspiring chef, she’ll get hours of play out of tool benches or kitchens scaled to her size. A dressing-up box filled with pirate, wizard or princess outfits is also a great way to encourage her developing imagination.

Picture books: At this age your little one will enjoy picture books with interactive flaps, buttons and textures to explore. Point to the pictures and name the colours and objects to help introduce your child to sounds, words and language. Encourage your toddler’s love of reading by asking her to pick out her favourite for storytime, too. If you’re looking for inspiration, our recommended reads for babies and toddlers is a great place to start.

Looking ahead? Check out our top toys for 18 months to 24 months.

At this age your little one will have a mind of her own, using her imagination to enjoy all sorts of pretend play. She’ll love to mimic you, constantly trying to do things for herself but still turning to you for help when she needs it. This is also the age where her vocabulary starts to take off, as she is talking more and picking up new words at a rapid rate. Learning is definitely hands-on, so choose toys and games to play that she can physically interact with. Toys with pop-ups, nesting and sorting toys, trucks with doors that open, play kitchens with knobs and doors will all hit the spot. Keep it unstructured and just let her imaginative play run wild. Here’s our round-up of the best toys to keep your toddler happy and engaged:

Pretend play: Your child will continue to love toys that mimic your daily routines. From a plastic tea set or phone, to a toolkit or kitchen, all will help to encourage her developing imagination and help her learn about the world. It’s also a great way of doing activities together. When you sweep, she can join in and sweep too.

Large and small blocks: Working with blocks helps your toddler improve her handling skills by grabbing, stacking, and sorting. Large bricks can be built into toddler-size forts and hiding spaces. Small wooden ones can be used to build towers or anything else that takes her fancy. The scope is endless and allows your little one to be as creative as she likes.

Toy instruments: Most toddlers love music, especially when they’re the ones making all the noise! Giving your child something to shake, rattle or roll will not only be a source of great fun but will also encourage her self expression. Instruments don’t have to be expensive or complicated to make music. You can even make your own. Dried rice or lentils sealed in a plastic carton makes a great shaker. Play with her and see if she can copy you, changing from quiet and slow rhythms to fast and loud. This will help to develop her sense of rhythm as well as her concentration skills. Puzzles: As your little one’s thumbs and fingers get stronger, she’ll be able to cope with simple puzzles. Puzzles are a great way to enhance her problem-solving skills, practise hand-eye coordination and develop shape recognition. The satisfaction of putting something in the right place and getting the perfect fit will boost her self-esteem and sense of achievement. When buying puzzles for toddlers, keep it simple. Puzzles with just a few pieces, made of wood, are best for this stage.

CDs and downloads: As well as reading aloud her favourite stories, playing CDs and downloads to your toddler will also help to develop her speech and language. Your toddler will love the novelty of listening to a familiar story in a different voice. Hearing her favourite tale played in the car will happily keep her amused on a boring journey. Musical CDs and downloads are also a big hit. Not only can she sing along to her favourite nursery rhymes but you’ll probably notice her instinctively swaying and bobbing to the music, creating her own unique dance moves!

Train sets: Train sets are a great way for your toddler to use her growing dexterity. By piecing together track and linking coaches, she will be learning fine motor skills to help her manipulate the smaller objects. By physically zooming her train around the house, your little one will also be building on her gross motor skills too.

Balls: Still a source of great delight for your toddler, learning to throw and catch is an important skill, developing her hand-eye coordination. By now she may well be able to throw a ball underarm. She will love throwing the ball for you to return it to her even if she can’t catch it properly yet. If she’s steady on her feet, she may also be ready to kick a ball to you. Introduce this action to her slowly and get her to copy you.

Artistic play: Creative, artistic play is a great way to encourage your toddler to use her imagination and express herself. By encouraging her to doodle, you’re helping your toddler build a foundation for writing as she gets older. By now she’s probably starting to spend longer on each drawing, covering more of the paper with her designs.

Make sure you clear a space for her to get busy. Tape a large sheet of paper to the table for her to work on. Give her the freedom to experiment with colour and texture by introducing her to different washable crayons, chalks, pens and paints, a couple at a time, so as not to overwhelm her. When your budding artist has finished her picture, hang it up on the wall to acknowledge her achievement.

Before you buy, make sure you read our tips on toy safety. Planning ahead? Check out our top toys for 24 months to 30 months.