Adaptive Toys, Special Needs Toys, Switch Adapted Toys

What are Adaptive Toys?

Because play is one of the most fundamental ways that all of us learn, it is important to provide accessible play for all children. Kids with developmental delays and other physical or mental challenges often require assistance to help them play. Adaptive toys ensure that every youngster is provided this ability to engage in play, even those with severe disabilities.

Experiencing fun with toys speeds learning and comprehension skills for children of all ages and levels of ability. Toys that have been adapted for special needs kids are also very much enjoyed by their more able-bodied peers, and can often level the playing field for both groups of children playing together.

Adaptive toys include battery-operated toys that can be activated through the use of various switches easier for the disabled child to manipulate dependent upon his or her specific abilities. They may also include stimulus reward toys that require a certain action on the child’s part to subsequently be “rewarded” with a sound, music and/or flashing lights or colors. Other adaptive toys feature sensory enhancements such as interesting textures, aromas, auditory and visual cues to more fully engage the child’s interest and focus. Toys with enlarged parts aid children who experience difficulty with seeing or grasping.

What are the Benefits of Adaptive Toys?

Adaptive toys highlight numerous physical, mental, social and psychological benefits for all children, and they are especially beneficial for children with any level of disability. Because there are so many choices available when it comes to selecting the right adaptive toys for your own child, here are some questions to consider:

Does this toy provide the right level of challenge for my child, without causing frustration?

Will this toy be safe for my child to use?

Does this toy have the durability required to withstand my child’s level of play?

Will this toy match my child’s physical and developmental abilities?

Does this toy have the capability to allow for choice-making and creativity?

Many adaptive toys have been created with input from occupational therapists, biomedical engineers, special education teachers, parents, caregivers and other pediatric specialists to ensure that these toys meet the unique requirements of the young end user. These specially designed electro-mechanical toys enable children with disabilities to play, learn, communicate and function more effectively, enabling them to more fully enjoy the world and improve their quality of life.

Adaptive toys can creatively fulfill and enhance all of the developmental needs. Sensory toys stimulate, relax or balance input for visual, olfactory, auditory and tactile senses, while they also address the vestibular system and normalize proprioception. Motor toys stimulate and augment gross and fine motor skills, socialization, cognition, communication and independence.

Another very important benefit of adaptive toys is the socialization aspect. Because many adaptive toys feature a special added switch that allows disabled children independent access to their toys, they can choose to play by themselves without help, or can more fully engage in play with other children with or without disabilities. Learning and accepting our differences is crucial behavior for every child to master, and being able to play together quickly furthers that endeavor.

What Kind of Adaptive Toy is Right for My Child?

Adaptive toys are available in a wide array of configurations and formats, with a number of various adaptations and features suited for a varying range of children. Many of these adaptive therapy toys are activated through the utilization of capability switches, also known as being switch-adapted. Aside from making them easier to use for children with specific kinds of disabilities, switch toys also help in teaching cause and effect. They additionally aid in boosting self-esteem as they give children more of a sense of control and interaction within their immediate environment.

Cognitive Adaptive Toys
Enhance thinking and reasoning skills with cognitive adaptive toys. Cognitive toys help to create associations via special relationships or sequencing, and may include puzzles, sorting activities, remote motion control and building toys.

Motor Adaptive Toys
Motor toys help children to develop healthier fine motor and gross motor skills. Flexibility, range of motion, agility, gripping and manipulation are all physical skills that can be improved through the use of motor toys. Often combined with vestibular and proprioception aspects, motor toys may include toys and play equipment for standing, turning, hopping, crawling and climbing, along with toys that help teach fine hand motor skills as well.

Socialization Adaptive Toys
While most of the socialization adaptive toys also offer auditory, visual and communication benefits, the toys in this subcategory all encourage cooperation, healthy competition and how to share and take turns. Socialization toys include cooperative games, competitive games, gentle games, sport games, throw and catch activities and dolls.

Communication Adaptive Toys
Perfect for non-verbal children, communication toys heighten verbal skills along with teaching kids the proper breathing techniques required for vocalization. Communication toys may include musical instruments, interactive sound, storytelling, AAC communicators and sound sensitive toys.

Visual Adaptive Toys
Often appropriated to intensify visual tracking or peripheral vision, visual toys may complement other developmental and sensory skills as well. Visual toys encompass brightly colored objects, light panels, disco balls, specialized lamps, flashing colors, mirrors and various light-up toys.

Auditory Adaptive Toys
Auditory toys stimulate hearing skills that also help with cognition. While these are great toys for children with various hearing and visual disabilities, they are also often used as stimulus reward toys as well. Auditory toys consist of noisy toys and puzzles, CDs, DVDs, musical devices, resonance toys and other specialized audio devices.

Tactile Adaptive Toys
Whether your child is over- or under-sensitized to the sense of touch, there are a wide range of tactile toys to suit his or her unique requirements. Often incorporating proprioception approaches, some of the vibrating tactile toys help via the application of deep pressure, squeezing or brushing. Other tactile toys may aid in reducing self-stimulatory behaviors like mouthing. Tactile toys include sand and water sets, ball pit pools, squishy toys, textured walls, touch and feel toys, chew-on toys and a wide variety of various textured devices.

Multisensory Environment (MSE) Adaptive Toys
Often employed to calm, relax or stimulate children and adults of all ages with severe physical and learning disabilities, sensory challenges and other processing disabilities, multisensory rooms and their attendant equipment have been demonstrated to render significant improvements for mental, physical and emotional health. Multisensory equipment can enhance motor skills, sensory skills, communication skills, hand-eye coordination and the ability to recognize color, and they are utilized to both calm hyperactivity and to stimulate inactivity. Multisensory toys may include fiber optics, special projectors, bubble columns and aromatherapy.

Where are Adaptive Toys Used?

Adaptive toys are used anywhere a child may roam. They are used at home, therapy centers, rehabilitation facilities, day-care centers, hospitals, group homes, schools, and developmental centers and workshops.

Rehabmart is pleased to offer a vast assortment of innovative adaptive toys from renowned and superior quality manufacturers that include Enabling Devices, TFH, Ablenet and Experia-USA.

Hulet Smith, OT
Rehabmart Co-Founder & CEO

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