For Gus' first birthday he received a ball tracker as a gift. It quickly became his most favorite toy and now, nearly a year later, it has never left his toy rotation. He loves it! He uses it every day and it is hands down the things he has used the most - ever. Now, this weekend while volunteering at the Montessori booth I could see that the appeal of the ball tracker extended far beyond Gus. The booth also has this ball run and it was so popular. And not just with toddlers! But even older kids couldn't pass by without playing.
After watching the appeal of the ball track, it got me thinking about the appeal of these toys and all the wonderful tracking options available. Tracking is an important skill for babies and toddlers to develop. Everything from language development, to hand-eye coordination, to reading skills depends on eye strength.
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1. Hammer Track | 2. Round rainbow drop | 3. Hape Tracker | 4. Larger car tracker | 5. Large wooden tracker (ours) | 6. Small wooden tracker | 7. Haba tracker | 8. Small car track | 9. Ball track with drawer
Augustus has some visual eye tracking delay as a young infant and for his care team, getting his eyes properly tracking was the number one concern because it can delay motor and language skills. For a baby, the visual and the tactile mobiles are a wonderful way to work on tracking and eye development. These toys help pick up where the mobiles left off for older children!
Plus, these are just naturally so much fun! There is so much experimenting that can happen - what can roll, what can't roll, what will go fast, what will go slow, who will win. I love watching Gus use his tracker and just sit mesmerized! It seems to be that perfect blend of concentration and movement that is so hard to come by for toddlers!
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