Jan 06, 2023

Best Toys For Babies 3-6 Months

After the newborn phase, babies are ready to really start interacting with the world. And we’re going to let you know the best toys for babies 3-6 months old to help them with that journey.

It’s essential to make sure that you are providing toys that are both safe and developmentally appropriate, and also toys that meet the baby's sensory needs.

We’ll be looking at a lot of toys that are very tactile. Particularly for younger babies, their primary way of understanding the world is through touch.

But, other very important things are musical toys to provide sensory stimulation, and toys that promote the development of both fine and gross motor skills.

Best Toys for 3 to 6-Month-Olds

The choices can feel very overwhelming when choosing the best toys for 3 to 6-month-olds. But we’ll break down exactly what babies in this age range require, and what our top toy picks for them are.

That is also why we strive to provide a wide range of choices, such as ideal Christmas gifts for 6-month-old girls with our range of feminist onesies, or baseball baby toys for your sports-obsessed family friend.

Let’s look at the kinds of things you should be considering when shopping for the 3 to 6-month-old in your life, with some specific examples.

Stuffed Animal

There is a reason that stuffed animals are the go-to gift for babies. They are something that a baby can interact with from their earliest moments and something that they will continue to love as they get older.

With babies 3 and 4 months, they need large toys that don’t require very fine motor skills. They're able to grab things but can’t do a lot to actually manipulate them. This makes a stuffed animal a great choice for a Christmas gift for a 4-month-old.

When it comes to stuffed animals, we prioritize the safety of your baby by ensuring that no harsh chemicals are in our products. If you’re looking for the perfect stuffed animal, there is no better choice than something from our collection of elephant baby gifts.

Because young babies love to explore the world with their mouths, the trunk of a stuffed elephant will bring them immense joy. A stuffed elephant can also help teach children about animals as they grow older, making this a great choice for this age range.

Mobiles

Babies slowly start being able to support themselves from around 4 months, but toys that they can play with lying down are important throughout the 3-6 month period.

An absolute classic is a mobile that a baby can look at while lying on their back. This provides great visual stimulation for your baby, and mobiles that move also help with the development of their eye muscles.

When choosing a mobile, make sure to choose one that is both visually and texturally interesting. By 3 months, most babies will be trying to grab things, so soft elements will be great for this.

Mirrors

Another good idea is a mirror. A 3-6-month-old baby won’t be able to recognize that they are looking at themselves until they are much older, but the mirror gives them something interesting to look at.

By 4 months, they are able to see movements more clearly and will enjoy looking at themselves. There are lots of baby-safe options, such as plexiglass mirrors that don’t break.

You also get mirrored toys on wheels, allowing the baby to pull them closer or pull them away, helping with their motor skills. Increase the level of visual stimulation with outfits like our cactus print clothes to up the cute factor even further.

Playmats

Tummy time is a very important part of development for 3-6 month olds. Placing them on their stomach helps them to develop the muscles necessary to lift their heads.

In general, by the time babies are 3 months old, they should be starting to lift their heads up, and these skills will only continue to develop over the months. Tummy time can be done on any soft but firm surface, and surrounding your baby with toys makes it more appealing.

But something that can provide even more developmentally appropriate stimulation for the baby is a play mat specifically designed for tummy time. These can have tactile elements for them to engage with.

You can also get plastic beach mats which could be an ideal beach toy for 6-month-olds. Playmats provide a diverse range of sensations to help babies learn about the world.

Rattle

Another important component of providing developmentally helpful toys is sound. Rattles are a great way to introduce this. But, hard rattles can be slightly dangerous, especially to younger babies.

That’s why we have a collection of crochet baby rattles, which provide all the stimulation of a rattle, but without the risk of the baby hurting themselves with it.

Around 4-5 months, babies commonly start to develop a basic understanding of cause and effect. A rattle is a great way to encourage this understanding.

When they shake it, it makes a sound, and they learn to associate shaking it with the noise. This helps them to understand the impact that they can have on the world around them.

This is one of the most important things to nurture in young babies, as it will help them better understand their role in the world as adults.

Teething Ring

Because your baby is going to put everything into their mouth, it is important to provide toys that are designed specifically for this purpose. While most babies only actually start teething around 6 months, it can still be a good idea to introduce teething toys a little earlier.

When it comes to these, we recommend providing a range of different textures. Not only does this allow for the baby to have different sensory experiences, but it also allows them to try things out and develop preferences from early on.

You could always go for the classic silicone teething ring, but other options include our organic soft cotton toys, and wooden rings or blocks. Make sure that whatever you choose is non-toxic and safe to go in their mouth.

Bumpy textures are usually best for teething toys. This again exposes the baby to a new sensation, but will also help to provide some relief once they do start teething. This makes it a great choice for babies even after 6 months.

Interactive Books

Books are a vital part of any growing baby’s learning journey. The more they are exposed to language, the faster and more easily they will be able to develop that skill.

3-6 month-old babies won’t understand what they are seeing, but numerous studies have shown the importance of reading to children from a very young age. Babies are incredibly visual and can learn a lot from pictures.

You also want to choose books that contain a lot of different textures for the young baby to interact with, especially because they won’t understand stories. One great example of the kind of book that is great for development would be one that looked at different animals and the textures of their skin or fur.

This provides tactile stimulation for the baby, and as they grow older, they will start to recognize some of the animals, from around 18 months. This means that books like these are a great investment beyond the 3-6 month age range.

Ring Stacks

This is a great toy for 5 to 6-month-old babies who are going to be able to engage more with the fine motor skills required to pick up and place the rings. At 6 months, babies still won’t be able to understand the ordering of the rings, but these can still be fun toys.

3-6 months best baby toys

Because 3 to 6 months is a period of such immense growth, both physically and mentally, exposing your baby to a wide variety of toys and sensory experiences. You can choose between so many different textures of rings, and they come in such vivid colors. Don’t worry if your baby doesn’t understand the aim of the game.

But the earlier you introduce this, the earlier they are likely to pick it up. By having this toy available to them, you provide the potential that they might simply put the ring on the rod, even if it is not consciously done. This is one of the reasons that it is one of the best toys for 5 months olds.

Musical Toys

Because of the importance of stimulating all of a baby’s senses, musical toys are a great option for 3 to 6-month-olds. There are a variety of choices, from a simple xylophone to an electronic toy that plays different tunes when you press different buttons.

And it's not a choice that you should necessarily make: both of these are excellent age-appropriate toys for a 6-month-old, but can be enjoyed by younger infants. By 6 months, your baby will have developed more of a sense of cause and effect.

This can be coupled with fine motor skills when it comes to pressing buttons on an electronic toy or playing the xylophone. Babies can learn to start associating specific actions with specific sounds, building on what you introduced with the rattle.

Conclusion

When it comes to choosing the best toys for babies 3-6 months, there is such a wide variety of excellent choices. The most important things to keep in mind are whether the toy is safe for the baby and if it will aid with their development.

When choosing toys for babies in this age range, you want to focus on diverse textures and bright colors. This same logic applies to their clothes, and things like patterned clothes provide them with something interesting to look at when they look down at themselves.

They won’t understand what they are looking at, but they will slowly begin to better understand shapes, and early exposure is not a bad thing. This makes our avocado onesies a wonderful Christmas gift for 5-month-olds. It doesn’t hurt that they will also look unbelievably adorable while they play and learn about the world.

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