toddler toys Archives - Easy Mommy Life

The Best Open-Ended Toys For Toddlers And Preschoolers

OphiraLeave a commentJune 12, 2022October 7, 2020

Read time: 7 minutes

Has this happened to you? A beautifully wrapped toy is given to the child and the child leaves the toy aside and ends up playing with the cardboard box it came in instead? I am sure this scene has played out in your parenting life at least once so far. What is it about nondescript materials like boxes, kitchen tools, and fabrics that attract a child’s attention so much?

All of these are open-ended in nature and provide the child with an opportunity to manipulate the materials in any way he likes. This type of open-ended play allows the child to express through play. Express how he likes things, what order he wants to put these materials in, how he wants to build using these, or mimic the world he sees around him.

And while you don’t need many toys for your child to make such creative games of his own, a few well-placed open-ended toys can allow the child the tools he needs to express his creativity through play.

WHAT IS OPEN ENDED PLAY?

Open-ended play or free play is play that has no rules or instructions. The child is free to use his creativity and imagination and play a means to express. There is no right or wrong way to play when using open-ended toys.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF OPEN-ENDED TOYS?

Boosts creativity and imagination.
Allows the child an opportunity to practice independent play.
Encourages problem-solving.
Good for motor skills.
Encourages communication and expression.
Allows the child to interact and learn from his environment.
Social and emotional skills development when child practices role play.
Teaches the child self-regulation.

Disclaimer: Before we discuss different types of open-ended toys you must note that all play must be monitored by adults. Especially when the child is still mouthing toys, some of these toys can pose a choking hazard. Never leave the child alone with toys that contain small parts. Better yet, buy age-appropriate toys. I mention the appropriate age for each toy listed below as a reference.

THE BEST OPEN-ENDED TOYS FOR TODDLERS AND PRESCHOOLERS

Stackers

Stackers can be the first open-ended toys your child is introduced to. They encourage hand-eye coordination, the beautiful rainbow colors attract and hold the child’s attention. Besides rainbow stackers add a level of whimsy to the child’s playroom.

As the child grows older he can use the rainbow stackers in different ways in pretend play games. These are a must-have in every child’s toy collection.

Recommendations:

Shumee Wooden Rainbow Stacking Rings

Piccolo Toys Pastel Wooden Rainbow Stacker

Leg & Go Wooden Rainbow Stacker (Get a 5% discount on the all Wooden Montessori toys and Waldorf Toys by Leg&Go, use code easymommylife5 at checkout. They make some gorgeous legacy wooden toys, you must check their website.)

Blocks

Including different types of blocks is another great way to keep a toddler busy in independent play. For younger toddlers start with Mega Bloks (Age 1-3) Lego Duplo (Age 2-4) gradually moving on to Lego Classic (age 4 and above)

Other variations like wooden blocks or bristle blocks are great additions to a child’s toy library.

Blocks are one of the most versatile toys that can be used by children for many years. Toddlers and Preschoolers use such blocks to sort by color, arrange in order, build, create scenes during pretend play. The play ideas with blocks are limitless.

Construction Sets

construction toys- open ended toys for toddlers

One type of toy that is very effective in helping with fine motor skills is a construction set. Toddlers need to use their fingers and wrists in a very coordinated manner to get the construction set to work.

You can start with this type of builder set for younger children ages 3 and above and as the child grows older you can move on to more complex construction sets like this one.

Magnetic Tiles

Magnetic Tiles are creative open-ended toys that encourage hours of independent play. A good time to introduce magnetic tiles is after age 3. The child by now has stopped mouthing toys and is more interested in creating larger builds using blocks. The magnetic tiles don’t fall off if the child builds larger and larger designs.

These are usually an investment buy, but well worth the price in my eyes since we have used this toy the most since we bought it.

Art

Art supplies-open ended toys for 2 year olds

Buy a few child-safe paints, crayons, brushes, and art supplies, and let your child explore.

Toddlers can start with simple finger painting and as they grow older try using different natural materials like cotton balls, leaves, flowers, or vegetable skins for art or different techniques like wet on wet painting.

Children love painting and playing with colors. Not only is art good for fine motor skills it also helps the child calm down and feel more relaxed.

We love using Dabble Play Art non-toxic paints, crayons and brushes for art explorations. They are non-toxic and safe for toddlers to use and easy to clean up after. These paints don’t stain furniture or cloth. You can use my code DM09 to get a 10% discount on your purchase from the store.

Play Doh

Rolling, molding, and pinching the dough into different shapes improves fine motor skills. In fact, playing with play-doh is recommended as a pre-writing exercise.

All such activities that involve the use of hands help the child feel more calm and confident in his being which is why such activities as art and play-doh should be part of the daily toddler routine.

Wooden Figurines or Animal Sets

These beautiful wooden animals and peg dolls are perfect for endless pretend play games. You can include them in different sensory bins for the child or the child can dress the dolls, paint them, play little people games. Such toys bring the child’s creative play alive.

Pretend Play Sets

Every toddler and preschooler goes through phases of obsession with a particular theme mimicking real life. You may find your toddler trying to set up a pretend restaurant, play kitchen or playing pretend doctor games. Invest in a few good quality pretend play sets that the child enjoys and watch how the creativity and imaginative play flows.

Shumee Wooden Toys- Lil Chef’s Wooden Cooking Set

Get a 15% discount on Shumee wooden and educational toys, books and nursery decor. Use code LYLEASYMOM at checkout.

Vehicle sets

If your toddler or preschooler is obsessed with vehicles, there is no better option than different types of vehicles as open-ended toys. Here are some really cool vehicle sets I am sure your toddler will love;

Hape Race Track Station

Webby Unbreakable Construction Automobiles

Lillabo Toy Vehicles

Lillabo 45 Piece Train Set

Sand

Sensory play helps the child find his calm on a rough day. Build a sandpit or set up a sandbox with kinetic sand with some tools like toy shovels or scoops. Depending on what interests your child you can add as many toys to create a fun and engaging sand bin for the child.

Ideas like themed sand bins are also a great way for the child to learn as he plays.

Loose Parts

At other times you don’t even necessarily need toys to create an open-ended play environment for your child. You can build a tray with bits and bobs from the house like bottle caps, some threads, silky scarves, different shaped stones or seashells, small twigs from the garden and create an invitation for the child to play and use these materials in his play.

To know more about how you can use loose parts in play read here.

I hope these ideas help you set up a creative play space for your child. You don’t need all of these, just a few that you feel your child may enjoy and then watch the child use these in different ways.

Do write to me in the comments what open-ended toys your child loves to play with? Did I miss any?

10 Most Age Appropriate Toys For 3-Year-Olds

Ophira1 CommentJanuary 4, 2022June 27, 2019

Read time: 5 minutes

There are two criteria for selecting toys for kids, safety and age appropriateness. Many enthusiastic parents buy toys without giving any consideration to the age of the child. Before you buy the next trending toy, ask your self, does this toy match my child’s current skills?

Each child develops at his own pace and often buying toys meant for higher age groups only leaves the child overwhelmed and disinterested.

In order to encourage creativity in play you first need to buy materials (toys and games) that are suited your child’s current skill set.

I always look to my child when I need to buy him a toy. What is his current area of interest? What skills do I see him develop at the moment? Has he spotted something that he wants to try? Using his innate curiosity for things around him we slowly introduce him to new concepts and materials.

There is no rush for him to try everything within a specified time frame. There have been times I buy something I like and my son rejects the toy immediately. Then after a while has passed I see him take a liking to the same toy he rejected earlier. This is because he was not ready to explore when he was first exposed to the toy. There is no rush. More on child led learning here.

Here are a few toys and ideas I think 3-year-olds will enjoy. These are age-appropriate toys for 3-year-olds, some of them also make great 3-year-old birthday gift ideas.

Age Appropriate Toys For 3-year-olds

Puzzles And Pattern Blocks

You can introduce puzzles at age 2 and by age 3 most kids can solve 9-10 piece puzzle sets. This is also a great time to use pattern blocks and allow the child to use his creativity and come up with his own designs.

A few puzzles and pattern blocks to try;

Creative Educational Aids (5 – 9 piece puzzles)

Shumee Animal Floor Puzzle

Melissa & Doug Pattern Blocks

Magnetic tiles

Magnetic tiles is one of the best birthday gift ideas for 3-year-olds. By now most 3-year-olds know how to build using building blocks and magentic tiles add another level of creativity to the mix. The colored tiles hold 3-year-olds attention for long periods of time. This is one toy our son can be seen playing with first thing in the morning.

Coloring And Art

Toddlers love using crayons and paints and getting really messy with them. Copy coloring becomes a particularly interesting activity at this age as toddlers begin to figure out how to color within the lines.

Paint using materials from the kitchen like okra or potatoes. Paint on stones or eggshells. There are many ways to add variation in art and craft.

Outdoor Toys

As 3-year-olds develop gross motor skills engage them in a variety of outdoor play and activities. Toys like a sandbox, trampoline, cricket bat and ball, football, and beach toys all engage little ones to get out there and catch some Vit D and exercise.

Ride-on Toys

This age group also enjoys ride-on toys. They are figuring out balance and motion and ride-on toys are a lot of fun.

Example: Ride on tricycle, bicycle, scooters, and cars

Vehicle Sets

Anything that moves and has wheels can catch the eye of little ones. Most 3-year-olds are beginning to name the different modes of transport and this is a great time to introduce them to pretend play with vehicles

Some of great vehicle toys,

Melissa & Doug Car Loader Truck

Hape Classic Train Toy

Hape Wooden Train Set

Activity Subscription Services

Activity boxes are a great way to introduce little ones to different themes and learning concepts. There are many subscription services these days that provide interesting materials for art and craft activities. These are to be done with the help of a parent and can be used as a way to have conversations around the themes and gauge the child’s interest and likings.

Some of our favorite subscription activity boxes are,

Firstcry Intellikit

Flintobox

More educational toys for 3 year olds.

Dress-up

Pretend play is a huge part of a young child’s games. If your child is enjoying a particular role play buy him that outfit for dress up. Dress up games are a great way to allow the child’s inner creativity to shine.

Blocks

After using the mega blocks since age 1, it is now time for your child to graduate to building blocks that require advanced motor skills.

We really like these bristle blocks, our son finds the texture of the blocks interesting and they require the use of fine motor skills to be made into different structures.

Pretend Playsets

And of course, I am going to end this list with pretend play. If you follow me on Instagram you know we are big on pretend play in our house. We use a Kitchen set, a teepee tent and lots of stuffed toys to build endless hours of fun.

You can catch my reviews on our Hape kitchen set and Cuddly Coo teepee tent here.

Use your child’s interest and find toys that cater to his creativity. There are so many pretend play toys out there from doll houses to doctor sets. Find a few that interest your child and use pretend play as a way to spend one on one time with your child.

I hope this list is handy to moms of three-year-olds. What toys does your child like to play with?

The What, Why and How Of Toy Rotation

Ophira2 CommentsJanuary 4, 2022May 29, 2019

Read time: 7 minutes

Does all the toy clutter make you wonder how to organize toddler toys? Have you considered a toy rotation?

In this post, I will cover what is a toy rotation, how to maintain a successful toy rotation and why you should consider rotating toys.

WHAT IS A TOY ROTATION?

Toy rotation is the system of rotating toys from an existing toy collection every week or few weeks so as to maintain the novelty of existing toys and encourage more creativity in play.

WHY MAINTAIN A TOY ROTATION?

1. Minimize the clutter of toys

Any toddler parent can attest to the toy jungle that is left behind every day as the toddler waddles through his toys.

The toddler picks up a toy, plays for 5 mins then moves on to the next. Before you know it your living area looks like it was hit by a typhoon!

And toy clutter isn’t just a problem in families with multiple kids and lots of toys.

Little kids have very short attention spans and need to use their hands constantly. This automatically leads to a messy play area full of toys.

Toy rotation can be a start to using a few select toys daily in various ways so as to minimize the clutter.

2. Creativity

When you minimize the number of toys, the child now has to learn how to use whatever he has in the most creative ways.

One big benefit we experienced with toy rotation is newfound creativity. Our son comes up with new ways to play with the same toys each day and gets good use of his toys.

3. Learn the value of things

When implemented at an early age, children learn the value of things.

A toy rotation has given us the opportunity to talk about caring for our things and why we repair and reuse what we can rather than throw away and discard.

You will notice how the child learns to care for his toys and books.

4. Great for small spaces

If you live in a small space you may not have a room in the house that’s dedicated as a playroom. You may have a small nook in the house or the living room itself may double up as a play area for the children.

A toy rotation system can save space and help organize the toys better.

Okay, so how do you go about starting a toy rotation? read on

TOY ROTATION TIPS

1. How to maintain a toy rotation?

This is what we do in our home. Every 1-2 week we rotate toys. We choose 5 toys at a time. I choose the toys such that we can cover educational skills, motor skills, pretend play aspects each week.

For example, each toy rotation will include 1. Musical Toy/Pretend play toy

1-2 Educational toys

1-2 Fine motor skill development toys

Here are some of the educational toys we love for toddlers and preschoolers.

2. What about the non-negotiable toys?

There are some toys that are a “must play with everyday” type of toys. Over a period of time, I realized these are my son’s non-negotiables. This was actually the reason why our first attempt at toy rotation was a fail because there are some toys he just wanted around him all the time.

Once I realized my mistake I made these toys a central feature of the play area. Now he is comfortable rotating the other toys.

Non-negotiable toys in our home are building blocks, our Hape play kitchen and his car collection. We recently setup dedicated toy storage just for these in his play area so that these toys are permanently kept outside for him to access.

Your child too may have some toys he loves and needs to have around every day; it’s okay to exclude these toys from the rotation.

Remember, every child is different, that means that this may/may not be an issue at all for your child, but with a little trial and error and you will figure out what system works for your family.

It is also a great idea to keep a tiny basket with toys or books in different nooks of the house. I usually choose spots where I spend a lot of time in the house with our son.

There is one box of toys and books close to my workstation. This box gets refreshed every 3-6 weeks. Depending on the size of your house you can decide which spots to add extra toy boxes to.

3. Toy storage and organization

I personally feel storage bins are a great option over toy cupboards because you can move the toys around the house.

We have a storage unit from Ikea for the non- negotiable toys I mentioned above and I place the 5 toys of the week on the top shelf of the unit.

The rest of the toys go into storage boxes that are tucked away in cupboards.

Best toy storage boxes: These are amazing storage boxes for smaller spaces. We have used similar styles in the past to store toys.

3 Sprouts Cube Storage Box

Shumee Canvas Toy Storage Box

E-ware 4 Drawer Rack

Our current toy storage system includes

Ikea FLISAT Toy Storage

Ikea TROFAST Storage

When the child grows out of the existing toys you can donate, resell or put the toys away in the storage for future children. This way the toys that are in rotation are the ones that are apt for the current developmental age.

4. At what age can a toy rotation be started?

Honestly, it depends on the size of the current toy stash. Our son had a very minimal toy stash until he was about 2 years old. All his toys fit in one box so I didn’t feel the need to start rotating the toys. Also, when he was a baby he didn’t need many toys to stay engaged. He played with spoons and plates from the kitchen on most days.

Once he entered the twos we slowly started adding new toys to meet certain developmental needs and his new interests. And as time went on we accumulated a lot of toys as gifts from family and friends.

Thats when I knew I couldn’t deal with the toy clutter anymore; our son was not even playing with most of the toys in his play area.

A toy rotation system made the toys more visible to him and he now has an organized space to play in.

5. How to handle birthdays with new toys coming in?

When you get too many toys for birthdays, store them away and introduce a new toy on occasions when you want to mix it up within your current toy rotation.

If you feel your child already has too many toys, talk to your guests about a no gift option.

I know sending out a wishlist of toys to the guest list is still a controversial topic. Many people consider it rude or entitled while others think it’s a great idea.

Personally, I’d rather buy from a registry than gift something I am not sure if the person appreciates. There is no need to think of what to buy, no repeat presents, plus you save money knowing well that your gift will get used.

But ultimately the decision to run a gift registry or not depends on the type of family relationships you have.

I would never make such requests if I were not sure how the other person would feel about it. I’d rather say no gifts.

Here are some more toy-related posts for you;

10 Wooden Toy Brands For Kids

How To Select Learning Toys For Kids

Small Homeschool Room Design and Organization Ideas

To sum it up,

A toy rotation is a great way to get more value from existing toys.

Do you run a toy rotation system in your home? Do leave us with your toy rotation tips in the comments below.

11 Must Have Toys For Fine Motor Skills Development

Ophira5 CommentsJanuary 4, 2022October 2, 2018

Read time: 6 minutes

One of the key skills your preschooler needs as he starts school is fine motor skills. In this post, I list toys for fine motor skills development. Hopefully, you find this list useful. Here goes,

WHAT ARE FINE MOTOR SKILLS?

Fine motor skills are needed for smaller muscle movements in wrists, fingers, and hands.

Simple everyday tasks like buttoning a shirt, tieing a lace, putting on a belt, writing, all require fine motor skills

FINE MOTOR SKILLS FOR PRESCHOOLERS – WHY ARE FINE MOTOR SKILLS IMPORTANT?

Many school-related activities like writing, drawing, and craft etc. require a preschooler to use his fine motor skills.

The toys in this list can help them exercise those muscles and become adept at these tasks.

TOYS FOR FINE MOTOR SKILLS

Such hand-eye coordination toys for toddlers make great gift ideas. So much better than noisy electronic toys that don’t offer any challenge.

Not to mention these toys for fine motor skills are engaging and fun to play with and your toddler won’t even miss his electronic toys.

You don’t need to buy each of these toys to develop fine motor skills, even a few in your toy collection will go a long way in helping your child.

These days the market is flooded with toys to develop fine motor skills and none of these options are difficult to find.

MUST HAVE TOYS FOR FINE MOTOR SKILLS

Stickers

We started using stickers around 14-15 months of age. A great way to practice pincer grasp and learn hand-eye coordination. Initially, I bought individual 3 D sticker sheets, since these are thicker in breadth and easier for younger toddlers to get a good grip.

Once they become adept at using these, move on to using the Melissa and Dough reusable sticker pads. The sticker pad comes with 4 different scenes and offers a variety of stickers for the toddler to use in different combinations. It’s reusable making it an eco-friendly and cost-effective option.

I also like that the 4 scenes showcase different animal habitats – aquatic, farm, jungle and prehistoric. This encourages creativity and learning in a fun way.

Fruit cutting tray

A great toy not just for fine motor skills but also for pretend play. My son has spent many hours with his pretend vegetables and knife set.

Cooking set

Again, not only do toddlers love the pretend play aspect but they are also developing those fine motor skills as they go along pretending to cook.

A cooking set is an age-appropriate toy for 2-year-olds beginning to learn about the nuances of the world they live in. There is so much to learn through such toys, fine motors skills aside.

Toolbox

A toolbox contains tiny pieces that need to be rotated using fingers, pushed and pulled, hammered in and basically be tinkered with. Each of these actions requires the use of muscles in the fingers and wrist.

Also, the toolbox is another open-ended toy that toddlers can use in many ways making it a must-have in any toddlers toy collection.

Latches Board

Opening and closing latches and doors, this latches board toy is an engaging and challenging toy for toddlers. Many brands introduce different concepts like farm animal sounds, shapes, or colors alongside to make the board more interesting and educational for toddlers.

Lego

Another open-ended toy that requires hand manipulation and hand-eye coordination. The endless possibilities of play with Legos make it an absolute essential in your child’s toy collection.

Sewing toy

Putting the sewing tool through the tiny holes and making patterns helps with hand-eye coordination and develops those small muscles in the wrist and fingers. A sewing tool is an age-appropriate toy for 2- 3-year-olds.

Wooden lacing shoes

This lacing toy enhances the child’s hand-eye coordination, and focus, ultimately teaching key life skills like self-reliance. A lacing toy helps the child practice lacing his shoes, a fun way to teach through play.

Busy books

Busy books combine different themes appropriate to the age of the child. Containing pages on different concepts. Some busy books focus on life skills, some on shapes and colors. Each page contains an activity that needs the use of the pincer grasp, wrist muscles along with logical reasoning and basic concept understanding.

Peg and Knob Puzzle

Peg puzzles are great for toddlers hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. Also trying these simple puzzles gets their mind trained to focus for short periods of time. These are a few types of peg puzzles and knob puzzles to try;

a. Skillofun Peg A Puzzle – Engine

b. Skillofun Geo Sorting Board

c. Hape Wooden Toddler Knob Puzzle

d. Skillofun Wooden Identification Tray Vegetables with Knobs

Play-doh

I love the use of play-doh for fine motor skills development. Simple activities like pinching the dough into pieces, making round balls out of the dough and trying to make different shapes all require the use of the finger and wrist muscles. The endless opportunities to play with Play-doh is just another reason why this classic toy is found in every preschool class.

Here are some previous posts on toys that you may also find interesting:

Toys for the first year

Toys for 1 year olds

Toys for 2 year olds

Best educational toys for toddlers and preschoolers.

FINE MOTOR SKILLS ACTIVITIES TO TRY AT HOME

There are a number of fine motor activities you can do at home and not necessarily rely on toys as the only option. A few examples of fine motor activities at home would be;

Peeling garlic or peeling hard-boiled eggs.
Chopping soft vegetables like boiled potatoes.
DIY cardboard board with zippers and laces.
Buy tongs from a local store and build activities that require the use of tongs. For eg. Sorting different colored pom-poms into containers using tongs.

Instead of buying a large number of toys, buying a minimal set of toys that cater to a variety of skill sets is best in the long run. Open-ended toys like a toolbox, legos, and play-doh meet these criteria offering endless hours of play over the early years.

I hope you found this post useful. Which toys does your child enjoy playing with?

The Only Toys You Need For Your Toddler ( 1-2 years)

Ophira38 CommentsJuly 3, 2018September 30, 2017

Read time: 7 minutes

As a mother I am very particular about the kind of products I expose my son to. Be it baby care products or clothing. So toys are no different. In-fact children below the age of 2 often mouth toys, which directly exposes them to the chemicals in plastic and coloring agents used on toys. That is why toys along with baby care items and clothing are the categories where I don’t compromise on quality and try to invest in safe and sturdy materials.

I try and stick to wood toys made of hard woods. Avoiding cheaper quality wooden toys made with MDF materials.

MDF and Ply-wood are commonly bonded using toxic glues and adhesives.This can sometimes include the toxic chemicals like Formaldehyde. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), classified formaldehyde as a “known human carcinogen”. Furthermore, if the wooden toy is coated with cheap paint and lacquer which possibly contains lead, the wooden toy is just as bad as any plastic toy.

If a wooden toy is not available I choose cloth toys and trusted brand name plastic toys. Also note, when a plastic toy starts to wear off, it is time to discard the same, and don’t use second hand and old plastic toys as there may be possibility of chemicals leaching out and the toy not meeting the current toy safety standards.

Don’t just think about material when you think of safe toys; the shape and size of the toys are also important. Check that there are no sharp edges to the toy and that it passes the sizing standards for that age group. Especially with children below age of 2, there is always a risk of choking on toys. It’s best to stay away from toys that contain tiny parts.

When you start investing in good quality toys it becomes about quality over quantity. So your child will have a smaller collection but one that can last him/her through childhood.

Again, these are just basic guidelines for you as a parent when you choose a toy; I don’t mean to preach by any means. I too have a collection of toys for my son that are a mix of largely wooden, few plastic and cloth toys. In the end it’s about having an understanding about the chemicals in our children’s toys and being thoughtful about our choices.

Now getting to the list of toys that I found most age appropriate between 1-2 years of age. Some of the toys from my previous list of toys for baby’s first year are still relevant to this age group e.g, stacking rings, blocks, pull along toys, books etc. So we carry those forward into the toddler years.

Only toys you need for your toddler 1-2 years

Mega Blocks: Once the child gets the hang of stacking, he/she will move onto building. Mega Blocks are easy to use for those tiny toddler palms that are not yet very adept with fine motor skills.

Recommendations:

Fisher Price Big Building Bag

Balls: This is the perfect age group for them to start understanding the concept of throwing balls. They have just started running and jumping and a ball is the perfect play companion to them. This one is a must buy.

Recommendation:

Kipsta Green Blue Ball

Books: Once they enter toddler years kids get really excited about books, especially if you already have a routine that incorporates reading. Try and find a variety of themes and storybooks. Some board books, a few pop up books, interactive books, paperbacks etc. Let them get exposed to a variety of formats. Some of our favorites are:

Kitchen set: Pretend play becomes a huge developmental activity in this period. Toddlers pick up on the nuances of what cooking looks like, trying their hands at stirring pots, serving on plates etc. I looked everywhere for a steel set or a wooden one and finally found one by Hape Toys. I will highly recommend this set. My son loves it a lot, it is one toy he is found playing with everyday. If you follow me on Instagram, you have probably seen this set in the many pictures I have put up there.

Recommendations:

Hape Gourmet Wooden Starters Kitchen Set

Hape Wooden Tea Set For Two

Vehicles: Kids at this age love the pretend play concept of cars, trains, airplanes, construction vehicles. They are now aware of their surroundings and observing the vehicles on the road, this helps them connect the real world physical objects they see through playtime.

Recommendations:

Maya Organic Wooden Pull Along Engine

Shumee Tow Truck

Shumee Blue Race Car

Musical toys: At this age children start enjoying music and want to participate in it by dancing, playing musical instruments. Introducing an xylophone is great for this age. They enjoy the process of creating music. I like the ones that come with a single stick unit rather than ones that have a tiny ball attached at the end. Because if the ball falls off, it can pose a choking risk. You can even buy other musical instruments more suited to their age like a baby casio, drums etc.

Recommendations:

Hape Wooden Xylophone

Plan Toy’s Wooden Xylophone

Coloring books and pencils: Coloring is a great activity to enhance your child’s fine motor skills. Also helps hone their creativity. They learn about colors and textures through coloring activities. There is no real need to buy special coloring books, you can just give them blank papers or old diary’s, notebooks lying around the house. Look for age appropriate crayons especially if your toddler still mouths his crayons. Crayons made of natural materials like soy or beeswax are most suited to this age group. I like the ones by Azafran Crayons as they are made of organic waxes of palm, soya, soya butter and food grade colors.

Recommendation:

Azafran Crayons

Animal Set/Fruit Set/Vegetable Set: Through books, observation and conversation toddlers start picking up names of animals, fruits, and vegetables. Buying them play sets of the same becomes a new pretend play activity for them. They soon have their own favorites among these. I found that my son picked up names of a lot of animals, fruits and vegetables when he saw them in such a toy format.

Recommendations:

K’s Kids Take Along Playset – Jungle

Shumee Safari Truck

Hape Wooden Fruit

I hope you found this list useful. Its always great to have an age wise compilation like this at hand when you want to gift a toy or have forgotten what you used for your previous baby. Which toys does your child love? Leave me a comment below. If you liked what you read follow me on Facebook and Pinterest for more ideas.

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