Toys in Storytime

As I discussed in my Dealing With Large Groups post a few days ago, I like to present the children in our baby time with toys to play with while we read so that they have something to occupy their hands with if they aren't in the mood to focus on a story.

 Most of our toys are from Lakeshore Learning. The balls in the center are fabric while the blocks on the side are plush, vinyl-type material.

We all sit down on the cushions and the kids are invited to sit in laps or wander around on the parachute, building structures or playing catch.

At the end or when they've demonstrated that they've had enough of my voice :), we play with the parachute. We put the balls in the center or let the children run underneath. We teach them words like "fast" and "slow" and just participate in free play until storytime is over.

What toys do you supply in your storytimes?