Bath Toys

Everybody Sing!

Rubber ducky, you're the one,

You make bath time lots of fun,

Rubber ducky, I'm awfully fond of you;

Woo Woo be doo.

Sesame Street made this little ditty a household song at bath time for toddlers and preschoolers. The truth is, the rubber ducky is still pretty close to the top of the list of favorite bath tub toys. When a new baby arrives, if there is a gift of bath things for the baby, you can be pretty sure a yellow rubber ducky will be part of the gift. Perhaps it's the simplicity, the fact that it floats, it often makes a sound when it is squeezed, it's easy for little hands to hold, and it's just darned cute.

Tiny Babies and Bath Time

When babies are still very tiny, bath time consists of a warm and gentle washing with lots of cooing, and few, if any, toys in the tub. One hand is on the baby while the other hand gently washes. That's about it until the baby is old enough to sit up by himself. Then, the games in the tub can begin as bath toys for infants can be introduced. Young babies love to bang things and you can provide some wonderful bath toys for your infant right from your kitchen. Plastic containers, spoons and scoops that are too big to fit into the baby's mouth, provide fun toys for your baby. Little floating rubber toys can keep baby company in the tub, and of course, there's Rubber Ducky. Any toys your baby loves that can go into the water without ruining them are suitable at this stage of development. Since babies love music, Tub Tunes, made by Alex Toys, makes over 100 Rub A Dub toys that promote learning and creativity in the tub. Your baby can begin to learn music while splashing in the tub.

Toddlers, Two-Year-Olds and Water

By the time your baby is older, crawling around and more stable, the bath tub toy collection will have expanded. There is a huge array of bath toys for children, ranging from six months upward to preschool. Wooden bath tub toys for toddlers include handmade wooden boats from Different Drummer Workshop. They are a natural alternative to plastic, they float, and the boats have a rubber band that propels the paddle boat around the tub. The larger sailboat has a mast and sail, but the mast may be a choking hazard to a tot and it is not suitable for young toddlers.

Bath toys for two-year-old little girls include darling little dolls that are made just for the bathtub. Little Mommy makes a Baby Bath Doll that has a soft body and comes with pretend shampoo and an inflatable turtle ring that had a real working shower. My Little Pony Soaky Dokey doll, has hair that changes color in warm water and comes with a bath time frog, a matching towel and a brush. Little girls love to care for "babies", and do what Mommy does. These bathtub toys provide her with lots of fun.

Older Toddlers and Preschoolers Love to Play

As your daughter gets older, a great bath toy for a preschooler is the Edushape Splashin' Fashion and Flower Mirror Bath Set. This is a set of waterproof paper dolls for the tub. The foam dress-up pieces stick to the tub wall, the tile walls, or they just float in the water. There are two figures, 37 outfits, a flower mirror, and storage bag. Since dress-up is one of the favorite games for preschoolers, this bath toy that is suitable for four-year-olds, is a real winner.

Some of the best bath toys for toddlers are water suitable versions of their favorite toys. Bath building blocks by Aqua Architect Water Building Blocks are a collection of 32 foam blocks that stick together when wet and they come with a platform for your little architect to build upon. There are 14 sponge water animals included in the set.

Let's Take a Math Bath

As your child progresses through the toddler stage and into preschool age, climbing, running, and dashing around on ride-on-toys, bath time can become a learning time in preparation for preschool. Alex Toys offer an excellent range of educational toys for the tub that your child will enjoy and that will offer learning as well as fun. This company has earned numerous awards for their toys, including Parenting Magazine Best Toy of the Year Award and the NAPPA Gold Seal Award.

Teaching math in the bath and creating science projects in the tub are wonderful ways to prepare your child for preschool and kindergarten. There is no shortage of toys available to help you and your child move to the next phase of development.