
Written by Aparna Hari
Your baby is 5 months old and getting more active by the day. They seem to have more energy and learn much faster. It is important to give them the right type of toys, to help them develop on multiple levels. So, what are the best toys for 5 month old baby? What can you buy them so that it is engaging and contributes to their overall development too?
Buying toys can be confusing. There is just way too many of them and babies seem to love all of them. Anything colorful and fun to look at will suffice, right? Well, no. Fortunately for us parents, toy manufacturers put in a lot of thought and design toys for various stages. Buying the right ones is very important. Here is what you need to know about buying toys for a 5 month old baby.
In This Article
A 5 month old is awake longer and is more active, requiring more playtime. Give them an hour of independent playtime throughout the day and you can play with them for about 15 to 20 minutes every awake window.
Babies start observing and get curious when they hit the 2 month mark. You can start investing in useful toys once your little bub turns 2 months old.
When you are buying toys for your 5 month old, here are a few factors you need to consider:
The toys must be stimulating – both physically and mentally. It should make your baby want to explore, understand new concepts and think.
It must encourage them to move or play physically. They need physical activity to make their limbs stronger. If their favorite toys move or are out of reach, it will encourage them to move and learn to use their limbs better.
Your baby can lift some weight now. They can push too. Don’t buy toys that are too heavy as they can hurt themselves with them.
The toy’s material has to be firm, soft, and safe for a baby’s hands. Anything with glitter, sparkles, or detachable pieces may look very attractive to your baby but it is not safe for their tender skin.
Some toys you can buy for a 5 month old baby are
As your little one’s gums get ready to sprout teeth, it can be very painful. Teething toys are good options for your baby to bite on.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Soothe Sore Gums | As teeth push through the gums, it can be quite painful and irritating for the baby. Chewing on something hard or firm can help ease this irritation. |
Safe | Teething toys are made specifically for babies with all safety precautions in mind. They are a safe outlet to let the baby bite and chew as much as they want. |
Your baby can recognize songs and tunes, and even move to them, a little. You can have a song for each activity (bath time, bedtime, massage time) if your baby loves music. Studies have shown that exposing your baby to music can help the baby in language development and can master the concepts faster.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Boosts Creativity | Playing with musical toys and instruments can help the baby discover new sounds and patterns. It promotes creativity and helps them express themselves. |
Language Development | Many musical toys come with rhymes and songs. Repetitive hearing of the words can help the brain remember them and pronounce them easily. |
Cognitive Development | Music can penetrate various parts of the brain. It can stimulate neural pathways, improving the child’s critical thinking capabilities. As they hear the same rhythm or words over and over again, the brain forms a pattern and learns faster. |
Babies learn constantly. Toys can be an impactful way to teach many concepts to babies. Finding the right toy for the right age can make a big difference to their overall development.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Cognitive Stimulation | Stimulating and challenging toys can go beyond a baby’s comfort zone, encourage them to explore how things work, and understand what you teach them. |
Learning Concepts | Early introduction to concepts can help children learn and understand them well as they grow up. They can connect the concept to what is happening around them and learn better. |
[Read : Motor & Cognitive Skills Development Of A Baby]
Physically doing an activity helps us remember the concept and result longer. Babies learn a lot and retain the lesson longer when they physically do an activity and learn from it.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Fun Learning | Doing an activity can be a fun way to learn concepts and ideas. A baby can learn how things work and what leads to certain reactions and more. |
Encourages to Explore | Activity toys require the baby to explore and try to do the activity in one way or the other. Your baby will want to try various ways of playing with the toy, which is important for creativity and exploring. |
Calming toys can be very handy when your child is in a new place or with new people. It can reassure them and make them feel safe.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Soothe the Baby | The more active the child gets, the more they can get irritated and agitated. They can feel very tired and not know how to channel their feelings. A calming toy can distract them and help them shift the focus from what is causing the agitation. |
Emotional Anchor | Having something stable can be very reassuring when there is a lot of change around. A baby can feel many emotions at one time and not know what to do with them. Children with special needs will need them more than others as controlling their emotions can be challenging. |
These toys keep the baby entertained in the crib. Some babies sleep all night in the crib and some spend their day naps or short play times in them too. A toy, especially for the crib, can make the place more welcoming.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Keeps Baby Occupied | If you plan on sleep training your child or let them fall asleep on their own, they need something to occupy them as they doze off. A crib toy can entertain them until they fall asleep. |
Helps Understand Connections | When your baby gets to play with the crib toy only in the crib, they associate the crib with the toy. They understand everything cannot be used everywhere and at all times. They understand place and time. Going into the crib and playing with the toy can indicate a soon-to-follow nap. |
Babies love noise at this stage. Noisy rattles can be louder than them and create the perfect distraction. And when the rattle moves from one side to the other, infants learn to visually track, or coordinate their eyes together to watch a moving toy which helps in improving the hand eye coordination in the baby.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Hand-Eye Coordination | At this stage, the baby will try to take the rattle to their mouth. They will learn hitting the rattle on a surface can produce more or a different type of noise. They will try to recreate it, thus improving their coordination skills. |
Improves Motor Skills | Big rattles can be comfortable to hold at this stage. Learning to hold and shake bigger and heavier rattles will help improve both their grip and arm strength. |
[Read : Baby’s Fine Motor Skill Development]
These toys make bath time fun. Bath time need not be a power struggle if bath toys can add some sense of fun to it.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Remove Fear of Bath | Sitting in a big tub of water that shakes their balance can be very scary for babies. Toys can help distract and teach them to not fear a bath or the water. |
Improves Limb Function | Moving the limbs in the water requires more effort and focus. As babies play with their bath toys in the water, their grip gets stronger and gross motor skills also develop. |
[Read : 10 Useful Tips For Overcoming Baby’s Bath Time Fears]
Everybody loves to cuddle and squeeze something soft and plush, and so do babies. These are safe and perfect for babies of all sizes.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Silent Play | Babies need silent play too. They cannot be in noise and light at all times. Soft toys offer lesser stimulation than the usual flashy toys, thus helping a baby play in a silent and calm fashion. |
Feel-Good Hormones | Cuddling and hugging tight can release feel-good hormones which are important for overall development. Babies can feel assured and happy with their favorite plush toy. |
Babies love anything with tags or things hanging from them. They love to tug and play with them.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Sensory and Cognitive Stimulation | Taggies with different textures can help in sensory development. Babies can touch, feel, suck and just play with them anywhere. |
Offer Comfort | Taggies are easy to carry around. You can use it as a comforter for your baby on the move. Having something constant can help make a baby feel secure. |
[Read : Baby’s Sense of Touch Development]
As the name suggests, these toys provide a crinkly feeling and sound when crushed or squeezed. They come with crinkling material inside.
Skill Development | Benefits |
Sensory Development | Crushing and feeling a different texture on the inside will make the baby curious. Their sense of touch and sound will improve with these toys. |
Reduce Stress | The texture and crushing it in their hands can help reduce stress and calm a baby down. Babies can’t regulate their feelings and crinkle toys can be a good medium to help them stay calm or reduce agitation. |
Different toys help the baby in different areas. There is no good or bad toy if your child is learning from it. Picking the right toy for a 5 month old baby is more than just finding the best price.
Read Also: Toys For 6 Month Old Baby – Types, Benefits and What to Buy
Her experience in impactful writing combined with her background in Home Sciences makes Aparna the perfect candidate for content writing in the pregnancy and parenting niche.Read more.
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