When a child is on a rocking toy they need to use their leg and core muscles to make that backwards and forwards movement. While doing this your children are learning how to balance which is very important for them as they learn to walk and run. They also develop fine motor skills and they hang on to handles, which develops their hands and fingers. The whole movement teaches coordination between hands, arms, legs and feet.
Rocking toys are excellent for children with autism as one of the ways that they calm or organize the input from their day is by rocking, so rocking toys are a must for these kids. The back and forth motion of rocking toys can calm any child. If they’re getting a bit hyper, get them on their rocking toy and you’ll be amazed at how quickly they calm down. If you think about when our kids are babies, rocking is often used to calm and soothe.
Rocking/swing toys encourage creativity
What will your child become on their rocking toy? Will it be a cowboy riding across the wide open spaces chasing the baddies on the train, or will they be sailing the seas to capture the pirates, will they be a pilot flying high in the sky keeping their passengers safe or will they be the bus driver or an animal drinking at the watering hole. All this pretend play develops language and thinking skills, social and emotional skills as well as creativity!
