Gifts Your Autistic Child Might Actually Want to Play With
November 26, 2006 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
In the past week, autism has been the topic of articles in more than a few sections of the New York Times, from Tuesday’s op-ed; to Wednesday’s sad, sad report of the killing of Ulysses Stable, allegedly by his father, Jose Stable; to Saturday’s mention of autism mother Gauris Melo and her twins autistic daughters, Stacy and Stephanie. Today, Sunday, the Times has published six letters in response to the op-ed—-and also, in its Business section, an article on holiday gifts for autistic children.
“Almost everyone knows of a family affected by autism” the article begins and I would alter this slightly to “everyone knows of a family with an autistic relative.” I have included a round-up of the websites the Times article mentions, but first a few sites that I have found good resources of toys and gifts for Charlie. Please feel free to let me know of any other websites and resources, and original ideas as well!
- Different Roads to Learning
- Stewart Toys for Charlie’s beloved squishy “inside out” balls and Ravensburger puzzles
From the Times article:
- Stars4Kidz.com
- Neurodiversity.com’s list of Children’s Books on Autism
- DiscoveryToysInc.com
- Lekotek
- Toys ‘R’ Us Guide for Differently-Abled Children
Ellen Notbohm, author of Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew, also suggests thinking “beyond the toy store, especially by emphasizing everyday items that provide sensory experiences”:
One year she gave her son with autism a tissue-lined wicker basket containing 10 cans of shaving cream, to be dispensed at will in the bathtub, sink or wading pool. “He was beyond happy,” she recalled.
Because children with autism often like to play with one type of thing for a long time, large quantities of typical items can delight them, she said, like a bucket of flashlights or a treasure chest of costume jewelry collected from local garage sales.
On the list for Charlie so far: a new, specially made-for-him bike helmet (especially after the fall that brought him to the ER in October); a big trampoline for the back yard; a few more squishy balls (you can never have enough)………
For the record, Charlie has never visited Santa Claus but he sure has been good this year.
Mmm…add to the list a few of Amigo’s favorites. Bean bag chairs, fidget tools such as action figures or heavy kitchen tools, things that are tactile, yet socially acceptable to hold and manipulate in public. Oh, and Braille cookbooks.
Some of Kassiane’s favorites, and favorites of kids she knows (she has a habit of introducing “weird things”, oops):
Dizzy disk jr, Abilitations-I break one in at every conference I go to
Rocker board-getting one this year, since I used one in ankle rehab
“icky yicky” ball-a “fuzzy” ball full of OTHER balls
BIG pieces of stretch velvet
Soft blankets
Safe chocolate for ALL!!!
“One free squish” coupons (Gave those out to kids one year, total hit)
The nifty beaded stuff my friends make that has me going “yeah right”
The knitted stuff they make that has me laughing even harder when they offer to teach me
ANYTHING polar fleece seems to go over well
And I LOVE getting pictures of me with my kids, especially when I didn’t know we were being photographed at the time. Home-decorated frame is a bonus.
Great! Polar fleece is big around here—–and Charlie is getting a new rocker bean bag chair from my parents.
Kristina, I like the website beyondplay.com. It’s a great resource for toys and books.
My autistic son’s favorite toys at the moment are puzzles (jigsaw or inset), trampolines, bouncers. Books can entertain him for hours too… He also loves an old classic, the Slinky spring… And dressing up with hats and shoes is also fun for him.
Charlie has definitely always returned to the Slinky. I’ve liked to make sure to have some gifts that he will like to play with immediately on opening them—-and some that will be more challenging and will need us teaching him……and some clothes, too….
Oh, and the Bop-It and Bop-It Extreme. With his memory and quick reflexes, Amigo always sets records on these toys. No one can top him.
We liked the Toys’R'Us Differently-Abled suggestions when he was younger. Buying toys for a blind baby was a challenge. For a blind teen with Aspergers? Well, we keep working on it.
Bop-It rules. Every family should have one. That game keeps my brother, sister, and me rolling and competing for days.
Will have to look for it for Charlie!
Great website for reinforcer products. Bought the Tactile Totes for my class and am going back for the Audio Totes. They are grouped according to function in a nicely labeled plastic tote with a picture of what’s inside. So important for children with autism. They really do make learning fun!
Thanks for the suggestion!
http://www.especiallymine.com . . . . Great web site!!
The “squishy inside out ball” sounds like a great gift …. but I don’t know what it is! Thanks very much.
It’s these balls—-at this site:
http://tr.im/1jw4
Though my son does not play with the balls anymore, he still has two (a pale green and a pale blue one) in a corner of his bedroom.
Matthew likes Mr Potato head with the suitcase. Nick loved playing with these – http://www.senseoputty.com
I am working on an article with some suggestions for various age groups. I always get slinky as a stocking stuffer.
I am getting a felt book this year for Matt. Also ordered the Leap Frog leap in a line and now going to look to see what the Bop it is, sounds familiar, but cannot picture it at the moment.
I made a mistake with name and link, did it off top of my head. Now looked at the putty and realized error. it is http://www.dokedoputty.com
Thanks for the link!
Peg
my nephew likes flags, balloons, those wrist bands people wear (such as livestrong). He likes light beams and thunderstorms…lol
He likes things that go around such as merry-go-rounds and things that make noise, unfortunately