Kids just love presents, and eagerly await special occasions like birthdays or Christmas. Many of the toys you can buy in stores are made from plastic, and the planet is already swamped with trash. Moreover, every day more waste keeps adding to the pile. Eco-friendly living starts from childhood, so it's the best time for our children to learn how to appreciate and help mother nature.
Unfortunately, if you want to find sustainable toys, you have to try harder than just go to the nearest store, but it’s all worth the trouble. These toys are not only better for the environment, but they are made from non-toxic, natural materials, so they will last a lifetime. Here, you can find a selection of toys that are non-toxic, sustainable, and ethically made.
Coloured Geo Blocks
Blocks are an essential part of any child's playroom. They promote motor skills, colour recognition, perception of shape, and social skills. In the early stages of life, imagination helps children discover the world that surrounds them, and develop the brain, so it’s vital for them to be able to create things without any boundaries.
Grimm's Coloured Geo Blocks are handcrafted from high-quality wood, painted with non-toxic paint, and they are free of lacquer and varnish, so you don't have to worry about your child putting them in their mouth. They will make a perfect gift for any preschooler. The company makes all their toys sustainable, so if you want to check out the whole collection, you can find the best toys from Grimm's available here.
Wooden Musical Instruments
Making music helps with building children's motor skills and supports sensory development. As your child learns to play, movement, balance, hearing and touch are all involved. It can also engage in hand-eye coordination skill, making it easier to perform daily tasks.
A study conducted in 2016 proves that young children who played instruments experienced an increase in brain development compared to those who did not. Researchers specifically saw growth in the brain areas responsible for language development, speech perception, sound processing, and reading skills.
You can find various wooden musical instruments for toddlers on Amazon and eBay. It is best first to check out the company that makes them, and see what materials they are using. The best sustainable instruments you can find include Hape and PlanToys.
Reusable Shopping Bags for Kids
Everyone knows how kids love to impersonate adults and mimic their activities. With reusable shopping bags, they can play and pretend they are doing zero-waste grocery shopping. It can strengthen positive habits, and teach them about the value of food. If done right, maybe they will be more eager to try new vegetables and fruits without any complaints?
Haba offers a beautiful reusable bag with wooden fruits or vegetables made from wood from sustainably managed forests and controlled sources. Accessories are painted with a non-toxic, water-based stain.
Wooden Home Tools
Wooden tools are an excellent gift for any tinkerer. They are great to teach your children about the importance of self-reliance and zero-waste life. You can safely show them how to use some of them, and what to do when something in the house breaks. It will help your child learn fine motor skills, precise hand movements and how to focus attention on one thing at a time. You can spend some fun quality time with kids, and they will have so much fun, they won't even realise they are learning.
You can find sustainable toolsets on the Internet. You can go on sites like Etsy to find handcrafted toolsets from artists, or check out a Get Busy basket. Each purchase of this gift basket donates 5% to a charity that is designed to help inspire, strengthen and empower children by making their wishes come true.
Eco-Friendly Art Supplies
Art supplies are an excellent gift for a kid of every age. You can find crayons made from beeswax, eco-dough made from all-natural ingredients including plant, fruit and vegetable extracts, paint pads made from recycled paper, natural vegan paint kits, etc. If your child loves painting and sculpting, you won't find a better gift than this. Additionally, you can always create games that will help express your child’s creativity and emotions, which can benefit later life.
The Bottom Line
Nowadays, finding attractive, eco-friendly gifts is not as hard as it was years ago. These products will not only benefit our planet, but the health of your children. You won't have to worry about small broken parts that can get stuck in the mouth or hurt the skin. All products listed above are made with non-toxic ingredients that won't harm your child.
You can make your kids happy without spending money on plastic toys that break after a few months, and instead, you can help them understand why living in harmony with nature is so vital for everyone. By purchasing eco-friendly gifts for children, we can help future generations live on a beautiful, healthy planet.
