Baby Play: Basket of Balls

For the last month or so

Edie has been playing with a wicker basket

Filled with lots of different balls

I have added to her treasure basket over the weeks

And she has loved getting to grips with the collection

Balls are a brilliant toy for babies

And there are so many different kinds available

It can be quick and easy to build a collection

Balls can be used in many different ways

To aid baby’s learning and development

And to have lots of fun

They facilitate sibling and collaborative play

And are worth spending money on

As they are toys that will grow with your baby

My children are between 8 months and 8 years of age

And they all enjoy playing with our basket of balls

basket of balls

In the mornings I often put the basket on Edie’s playmat

She loves to look through the balls

Touching them

Grabbing them

Grasping them

Running her fingers over them

ball basket

She will often choose a ball

And play with it

Passing it from hand to hand

Feeling the shape

The texture

feely ball

More often than not the ball will end up in her mouth

texture and shape

Within the treasure basket of balls

I have placed balls made from different materials

Balls of different colours

Plain and patterned balls

Balls of different shapes and textures

Balls with spikes and knobbly bits

Balls that can be squashed

Some that roll and some that do not

Balls with sounds

Balls without

I have tried to make a collection that offers lots of different sensory experiences

sensory balls

Balls offer much more than a treat for the senses though

Ball play helps babies develop their grasping skills

It helps to strengthen eye-hand coordination

Tracking and finger muscles

fine motor balls

Playing with balls helps babies develop the ability to move objects from one hand to the other

ball play

Babies learn through their play about the properties of balls

The differences between different balls

They can begin to understand cause and effect

Balls encourage babies to crawl

To chase the balls that they roll around

cause and effect

Balls are great for sharing

Rolling back and forth

Balls can be used to introduce turn taking

in and out

Balls can be used to help baby start to identify colours

And begin putting balls in things

So that they can take them out again!

We have found Grimms rainbow balls and bowls perfect for this

grimms balls and bowls

And Grapat balls and bowls too

grapat balls and bowls

We bought ours from Babipur

The other balls that we have in our treasure basket are

My B Toys Sounds So Squeezy

Edie loves these so much

Four unique balls on a teething ring

A baby ball in a mama ball

A bumpy ball to squeeze for funny squeaks

A crunchy, crinkly, patterny fabric ball

A chiming bell hidden in a soft, squeezable ball

These are perfect for sensory play

b balls

Infantino Sensory Balls

infantino balls

Haba Discovery Balls

These wooden balls are beautiful

We have had ours for years

All the children love them

They make different sounds

And visual effects when rolled

haba discovery balls

They are the perfect size for little hands

haba pincer grip

Air Flow Balls

air flow balls

Bolli Ball

Bolli is a new sensory development ball for kids AND babies

Bolli is great for stretching, manipulating, grasping, and teething

Made from 100% nontoxic, BPA and phthalate free, food grade silicone

The soft and pliable material can be squished and stretched
The open ball design is fantastic for shape exploration

Fine motor skills, grasping, and hand-eye coordination

Bolli is dishwasher and freezer safe

bolli ball

Heimess Rainbow Ball

We call this our Jingle Ball

As it makes a lovely jingle bell sound

jingle ball

Skip Hop Hedgehog Balls

These hedgehog balls are so cute

And perfect for sensory play

Bursting with colour

Soft enough to mouth and chew

skip hop discovery ball

These ball like toys make noises

So baby can learn about cause and effect

As they shake rattle and roll

skip hop mirror ball

Our basket of balls is a true treasure basket

Bursting with potential

Offering many ways to play

ball collection

This invitation to play is so easy to set up

And simple to adapt to give your baby new and different experiences

If you find yourself

As we have

With an abundance of balls

You can buy an egg spiral for extra storage

This also acts as a ball track

For baby (and siblings) to drop balls onto

And watch them roll down and round the spiral

It looks fab on display too!

ball spiral

basket of balls

Do you play ball with your baby?

Do you have a ball that we should add to our collection?

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