Treasure Basket Challenge
Turn a basket into a small treasure challenge. Your baby can grasp, pull, rotate, and use both hands as they test ways to move favorite toys through different openings.
- 9 months
- Quick prep
- At home
- About 5 minutes
Developmental benefits
- Cognitive：Trying different actions and openings to free a toy gives your baby experience changing an approach to solve a simple problem.
- Movement：Reaching through the ribbon and moving a toy out of the basket gives your baby practice controlling and coordinating both hands.
Preparation
What You’ll Need
- 1
A basket
- 2
toys in several sizes
- 3
wide ribbon. Place the toys in the basket and wrap ribbon across the opening to create gaps of different sizes
Step 1
The Dinosaur Is Stuck
Place several toys, including a favorite, in the treasure basket. Take one toy out through a gap to show that the toys can come out. Then invite your baby to try.
What to notice
- Pulls an easy-to-reach toy out of the basket
Reasoning and Problem-Solving - Grasps, pulls, or shakes a toy while trying to remove it
Fine Motor
Tips
- If a toy gets stuck, pause before helping and watch what your baby tries next.
- Your demonstration only shows that the toys can come out. It does not need to teach one correct technique.
Step 2
How Can It Come Out?
Give your baby time to explore. Describe the actions you see—“You’re pulling,” or “You turned it”—so each attempt becomes easier to notice. Encourage another try, and wait for a look or sound that asks for help before stepping in.
What to notice
- Tries more than one action to free a stuck toy Reasoning and Problem-Solving
- Looks at or calls to you for help when a toy does not come out
Relationships with Adults
Tips
- Around nine months, babies may use actions such as grasping, pulling, and pushing to work on a simple problem.
- If repeated attempts stop, make success more reachable by guiding the toy toward a larger opening.
Step 3
The Treasure Is Free
Offer a clue that matches the problem: turn a wide toy so it is vertical, try a larger opening, or use one hand to hold the toy while the other moves the ribbon. After one toy comes out, invite your baby to try another.
What to notice
- Tries again after an attempt does not free the toy
Cognitive Self-Regulation (Executive Functioning) - Shows happiness after getting a toy out
Sense of Identity and Belonging
Tips
- When helping, leave the final action for your baby whenever possible so they can complete the attempt.
- Different toy sizes create different challenges. Repeat with several toys while your baby remains interested.
- Every attempt adds experience, whether or not the toy comes out.
Better Parenting Content Team · Updated September 11, 2026