Toys For Children With Autism

Kimochi Feelings Communication Toy Plush Green Bear

Happy? Smile. Sad? Frown. Kimochis help children identify and express feelings and help parents understand the thoughts their children try to communicate. Kimochi is Japanese for feeling. Each interactive Kimochi has an open mouth to store its feelings, felt cushions in bright colors with a facial expression on one side and the name of the emotion on the other side. Children learn by placing the cushion that best matches their feelings into the mouth of their Kimochi and sharing the experience. The process calms, comforts and instills confidence. These cuddly toys are modern, curious and fun!

Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)

Small Skwish

Durable wood and elastic manipulative sculpture. Distorts pleasurably and responds with sliding wooden beads. Great tool for therapy and fun.

Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)

Choiceworks Visual Support System

by: Michele Walker

Choiceworks is a learning tool that uses a combination of 3 structured boards, visual images and built in choice making opportunities to effectively help children complete daily routines (morning, day & night), understand & control their feelings and improve their waiting skills (taking turns, not interrupting). The included companion books help teach your child about their daily schedule, dealing with transitions and managing their feelings.

Amazon Price: $65.00 (as of 12/24/2009)

Concave Bubble Mirror

Nine concave distortions in this acrylic mirror give the user a unique perspective. Lightweight and easy to fix to a wall. Colorful pad surrounds the mirror and image is reflected back 9 times over.

Amazon Price: $212.74 (as of 12/24/2009)

WEDGiTS Deluxe Set - 30 Piece Set

Every family will delight in having a WEDGiTS Jumping Frog in their living room. Yes, your child will actually be able to construct a mechanical, jumping frog with their WEDGiTS Deluxe set. WEDGiTS¿ offer creative challenges to the aspiring young engineers and scientists in your family. The open ended design of WEDGITS stimulates children's perception and reasoning skills as they experience different ways to stack, nest and align these rhombus and octahedron shaped toys. Kids can actually build a jumping frog, or, a water molecule through interlocking and levering of their WEDGITS.

Amazon Price: $34.99 (as of 12/24/2009)

Pacific Play Tents Playchute 10' Parachute (Colors and Designs May Vary)

Use this rainbow-colored Playchute for a multitude of activities. It's sure to inspire young imaginations as they invent a hundred different games and activities for the Playchute. Or you can even use it as a ground cover for other outdoor activities. It features handles spaced evenly around the perimeter for little hands to grasp. Encouraging non-competitive play, it's ideal for outdoor group activity. Lift it up and run under before it falls. Bounce balls on top like popcorn. There's no limit to the games you can imagine! Made of durable high quality nylon. Machine washable. Measures 10' in diameter.

Amazon Price: $26.48 (as of 12/24/2009)

Learn to Talk About Nature & Outdoor Play PLUS Data Sheets

This excellent set of high-quality, laminated photo cards provide a wealth of teaching possibilities to develop language and conversational skills. Photos of nature and all the equipment children love to play on are depicted beautifully. The back of the card describes the item clearly and simply. Children learn to converse about these items and understand what they are used for. Children with autism and those with speech delays benefit greatly from this set. These cards are also designed for use with ABA and Verbal behavior programs. Suggested methods of use are included in the product. Examples included in the pack are swings, slides, waterfalls, trees, lightning, the moon and jumping on a trampoline

Amazon Price: $22.95 (as of 12/24/2009)

Teenage Full Support Swing Seat

High Backed Swing Seats provide a supported ride. Seat incorporates a pommel & safety harness. Rope hardware allows seat to be adjusted to height and rake. Seats are HDPE-a strong but soft plastic. Ropes are UV stabilized for frames up to 10'.

Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)

Bullseye Target Game

Lightweight but sturdy folding target that catches juggling balls (6 included) or beanbags in its colored folds.
* Fun activity requires supervision for smaller children
* Encourages gross motor

Amazon Price: $144.92 (as of 12/24/2009)

Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You Knew

by: Ellen Notbohm

Framed with both humor and compassion, the book defines the top ten characteristics that illuminate the minds and hearts of children with autism. Ellen's personal experiences as a parent, an autism columnist, and a contributor to numerous parenting magazines coalesce to create a guide for all who come in contact with a child on the autism spectrum.

Amazon Price: $10.17 (as of 12/24/2009)

1001 Great Ideas for Teaching and Raising Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

by: Veronica Zysk, Ellen Notbohm

"'A friendly voice offering parents and teachers immediate usable ideas that emphasize the practical rather than the technical. Well organised for quick reading with major ideas preceded by helpful introductory text. A great resource that parents and teachers should keep readily available' - Christine Hunt, MS, special education and resource teacher '1001 Great Ideas is just that, a treasure trove of wonderful ideas and activities! This hope-filled book not only connects the reader to the world of Autism Spectrum Disorders but also provides a multitude of practical solutions to the broad range of challenges that parents and professionals face each and every day. 1001 Great Ideas is a resource that both parents and professionals will constantly turn to.' - Scott Tanner, School Psychologist and Director of Clinical Services"

Amazon Price: $16.47 (as of 12/24/2009)

Toilet Training for Individuals with Autism or Other Developmental Issues, 2nd Edition

by: Maria Wheeler

Individuals with autism are reportedly one of the most difficult populations to toilet train. This second edition offers effective strategies that take the child's physical and emotional sensitivities into account instead of trying to force traditional methods. Easy-to-read bulleted lists offer more than 200 do's and don'ts, along with over 50 real-life examples, to help make the process more of a lesson and less of a battle for all involved. The young trainee will learn to overcome fear of the bathroom, properly use toilet paper, flush once, wash hands, and more. The toilet trainer will learn how to overcome challenges caused by communication needs, sensory sensitivities, motor challenges, anxiety levels, etc.

Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 12/24/2009)

The Autism Acceptance Book: Being a Friend to Someone With Autism

by: Ellen Sabin

The Autism Acceptance Book is an interactive, educational, and character-building book that introduces children to the challenges faced by people with autism while also supporting their personal journey toward appreciating and respecting people's differences.
This book offers educational information, conversation-starters, and engaging exercises that invite children to "walk in someone else's shoes" as they learn to treat others the same ways they would like to be treated themselves

Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/24/2009)

Engaging Autism: Helping Children Relate, Communicate and Think with the DIR Floortime Approach (Merloyd Lawrence Book)

by: Stanley I. Greenspan

Greenspan and Wieder (The Child with Special Needs) start out by redefining autism in realistic yet positive terms which open the door for successful intervention: instead of focusing solely on the autistic spectrum, a more flexible axis measuring progress, on which placement is not fixed, can give parents and children a "a healthy developmental trajectory," taking into account such goals as "showing intimacy and warmth ... communicating with gestures ... and talking meaningfully." The authors give readers a pragmatic approach to thinking about people on the autistic spectrum, including specific ideas for enhancing connectivity and communication in people of any age, most of whom "rarely advance intellectually above the ten-to-twelve-year-old level ... when they could progress far beyond the level of concrete thinking," if only there were a curriculum that would "challenge them to do so." Most of the text is used to help develop an engaging program for someone with autism, including resources and examples, in order to address "relationships, specific behaviors, the creative use of ideas, and the various processing areas." This is essential reading for caregivers, parents and friends of people on the spectrum, as well as compelling reading for anyone who wants to learn more about autism.

Amazon Price: $20.48 (as of 12/24/2009)