By Elena Epstein, Director of the National Parenting Product Awards
Whether you’re shopping for home, the classroom or therapy settings, these products can help create positive, supportive sensory experiences.
- Hape x The Met Tree of Life Playmat
Designed to give little ones an eye-catching way to build early developmental skills as they explore colors, textures and sounds. Inspired by The Tree of Life, a British tapestry dating to the first half of the 17th century, now in The Met collection, this soft, sensory-rich mat helps stimulate vision, touch and movement. $32.99, ages birth+, toys.hape.com - Spring Play Kit
Designed to encourage curiosity and exploration. Each activity supports key developmental skills, logical thinking and creativity through open-ended play. $75, ages 3-4, goodevas.com - ThinkFun MazePop
Use the magnetic wand to POP metal beads to the surface and build a path to the goal. With each satisfying “pop,” the puzzle comes to life — no batteries, no screens — just smart, sensory fun. Includes 60 mazes ranging from beginner to brain-busting. Perfect for on-the-go fun. $14.99, ages 8+, various retailers. - TOSY’s Picture Cube
A 6-in-1 magnetic collectible puzzle. Available in 48-, 61-, and 80-piece sets with various themes and collections, each cube features six faces that can be flipped and rearranged to form six unique
images. $19.99-$24.99, ages 6+, various retailers. - The Comfort Cub
A weighted therapeutic teddy bear created to comfort. Its gentle weight is designed to deliver deep touch pressure, which has been shown to release the “feel good” hormones, offering a sense of comfort, connection and calm. $59, ages 3+, thecomfortcub.com - Strawberry Shortcake Slime Charmers
This soft, buttery pink slime is filled with character-themed charms and shiny bingsu beads for extra sparkle and crunch. Stretch, squish and mix your way into sweet fun. $12, ages 3+, crazyaarons.com - Lite-Brite x Toy Story 5 ColorPop! Edition
Bring your favorite characters to life with vibrant, high-definition designs. With 650 Mini-Pegs, specially designed to be smaller and slimmer, you can craft ultra-detailed, high-definition masterpieces that POP with flair. $19.99, ages 6+, various retailers. - Roll With It
Each roll of the dice set provides coping strategies based on specific emotions: anger, anxiety, sadness and boredom. The game includes feeling identification cards, a mindful mat, write & draw board, stress ball, boredom busters cards and a comprehensive parent guide. $29.99, ages 5-12 years, thinkpsych.com - Jelly Blox Princess Castle Set
Soft building blocks kids can squeeze, stretch and squish. This 45-piece set is a magical adventure filled with sensory textures like stars and super sand. Perfect for building castles, fairytale scenes and endless imaginative stories. $49.99, ages 2+, various retailers. - MAGNA-TILES Coral Reef 25-Piece Set
Using magnetic tiles in reef-inspired colors, little ones build arches, rock formations and swim-through tunnels, then populate the world with playful animals like dolphins, turtles and more. The reconfigurable design encourages kids to experiment with new layouts every time they play. $39.99, ages 3+, magnatiles.com - Ravensburger Play + Rattle Teether: Pineapple Teether is made of 100% food grade silicone, is BPA-free and has an easy-grip body that is perfect for little ones to grasp and squish as they explore the different textures. $14.99, ages birth+, ravensburger.us
- Lunix LX15 14-Piece Modular Kids Couch
A versatile 14-piece play sofa designed to inspire creativity and imaginative play. Made with CertiPUR-US and OEKO-TEX certified foam, it transforms into forts, slides, reading nooks, obstacle courses and more. $179.97, ages 12 months+, lunixinc.com
Find Activities and Toys Through a Lending Library
Many libraries across the region offer toy lending. Willoughby-Eastlake Public Library provides toy collections as well as Tonies that bring stories and songs through an audio system (we247.org) . Cuyahoga County Public Library has a Toy Library that includes adapted toys for children and families to borrow (cuyahogalibrary.org). Ohio Developmental Disabilities Council has a guide to assistive technology lending libraries in Ohio that also includes adaptive toys (ddc.ohio.gov) such as United Disability Services’ toy lending library (udsakron.org) and Wayne County Public Library in Wooster has “The Library of Things” that offers games, toys and more (wcpl.info).