Toys suitable for children with autism

Autism is a serious disorder of neurobiological origin that is part of what we know as Autism Spectrum Disorders or ASD. They are children with large deficits in the affective, social, cognitive, communicational and linguistic spheres. But like any child they enjoy playing with all kinds of toys and

But like any child they enjoy playing with all kinds of toys and materials that we propose to them although the type of game they develop may be different from other children with normal development.

What toys to buy autistic children

We know that toys are ideal tools to stimulate the affected areas of these children provided that we provide them the most appropriate to their age and level of development. The most suitable ones for children with autism that we highlight here are those that facilitate multisensory stimulation los, those that favor motor skills, language and communication and all those that allow us to work on emotions and the development of social games.- Multisensory toys

. During the first three years, these types of toys are ideal for children with autism since they enable the stimulation of the sense of touch, hearing or sight. We emphasize toys that have different textures, panels of activities, stackable blocks, musical games, rattles or other sound accessories, ...- Toys that favor the gross psychomotricity.

Balls, bowling pins, tricycles, bicycles, skates and scooters grant the child with autism to know their body and their possibilities of movement. These toys allow to develop different skills such as flexibility and balance, skills that may also be affected in some children with autism. - Toys to stimulate fine motor skills.

Toys for stringing beads, cutting and gluing, twisting or modeling are ideal for the development of hand-eye coordination. - Toys that favor communication and language.

Board games such as questions for guessing a character, finding matching pairs, mime, or any other that requires the participation of two or more people are ideal for working on the language and communication of children with autism . - Toys to work emotions are especially useful to explain feelings.

In this category we highlight card games, imitation games of expressions, puzzles and magnetized toys that allow you to configure different faces and expressions of anger, joy, surprise ... Remember that the child with autism has a large deficit to understand the emotions of others . -

Toys for symbolic, social or role play. These toys range from dolls, vehicles, telephones, doll strollers, cribs, fruits, vegetables, costumes, dresses, etc. They are excellent toys to promote and develop the social skills of these children while we seek them to play and get into a role. Let us remember that children with autism develop a very different kind of play with respect to children with a typical development, especially in terms of symbolic play. Deficiencies in the symbolic game are part of the diagnostic criteria for ASD.