I’ve always been a book-lover, so when I found out we were pregnant with Asher, books were one of the first things I began to buy. We were blessed to be gifted many beautiful books from family and friends, including some black and white books from my mom and sister. These are what we’ve mainly “read” during the newborn months and have added to our collection over the past few years. Newborns’ eyesight is one of their least developed senses at birth and high-contrast colors and images are easiest for them to see. So, we introduce black and white books and toys in the newborn months because they help with developing visual discrimination and tracking. Now they are some of my favorite baby shower gifts to give to family and friends! Here are a few of the black and white books and toys we’ve come to love:
Look, Look!
This is one of the first black and white books we owned, and it has been well-loved. The black, white, and red illustrations are perfect for capturing attention in the newborn months.
Hello, Animals! and Hello, Bugs!
These are also old favorites at our house. They have eye-catching images and are really just a fun way to introduce babies to animals and bugs and the sounds they make!
On the Farm
This Usborne book is a newer one in our collection but my youngest has been loving it! It is a fold-out book with colored images on one side and black and white images on the other. It stands perfectly on its own for tummy time and isn’t easily knocked over by exploring babes and curious toddlers.
Wimmer-Ferguson Toys from The Manhattan Toy Company
We have been amazed by the Wimmer-Ferguson toys through The Manhattan Toy Company! We limit exposure to battery-powered toys for the boys when they are infants (an very minimally as they get older), so it important to me to have toys that are on-target with their current development and these are the best! This company bases their developmental toys on more than 40 years of academic research and the high-contrast colors and images they provide are perfect as vision develops for newborns. We love the 3-in-1 Triangle because it is two-sided, has magnets that can hold it in a triangle shape for tummy-time gazing, and it also has strings so it can be tied to a play gym or tripod for babes to look at. Both of my boys were not calm in the car as babies, so the Sights and Sounds Travel Toy has saved me in a few instances! It has a velcro closure that makes it super easy to attach to the car seat, it has a tiny mirror for gazing, and it has rings to work on grasping.
Other High-Contrast Books & Toys We Love:
- one| Baby Animals
- two| Black & White
- three| Daddies and Their Babies
- four| Mommies and Their Babies
- five| Look at the Animals!
- six| Wimmer-Ferguson Stim Mobile
- seven| Gigglespots
- eight| Usborne Black & White Library
- nine| Wimmer-Ferguson Shape Set
- ten| Wee Gallery Art Cards
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