Once toddlers start to walk and talk, many parents want to provide quality educational toys for them. While there are many toys on the market designed to teach the alphabet and numbers, many of these toys are geared towards preschoolers instead of toddlers. Toddlers can learn a lot about their world and language through a variety of educational toys, such as blocks and books. By selecting the right type of educational toys for your toddler, you can help your child to learn and grow.
Building and Stacking Toys
Invest in a good set of wooden blocks for your toddler. The Melissa and Doug company has several quality sets of both natural and colored blocks. Blocks teach your toddler about cause and effect when they are knocked down. They also allow your child to build and create structures. As your toddler grows up, they will continue to play with the blocks over the years. Your child will also enjoy a set of stacking cups, such as Stack Up Cups, by Learning Curve. Your toddler can learn about size and shape as he puts the cups inside each other and also stacks them on top of each other.
Shape Sorters
Shape sorters are a favorite toy for toddlers because they teach problem solving and expose your child to different shapes. While playing with a shape sorter, the toddler puts different shaped objects in the matching holes in the toys. Some popular shape sorters are the Shape Sorting Cube by Melissa and Doug and Fisher Price’s Baby’s Brilliant Basics First Blocks.
Books
One of the best educational toy that a parent can give to their toddler is a book. Books expose toddlers to new words, concepts and help instill a love of reading. For this age, select board books and books that provide engaging pictures. Some popular books for toddlers are “Where’s Spot” by Eric Hill, “Barnyard Dance” by Sandra Boynton and “Mr. Brown Can Moo. Can You?” by Dr. Seuss. Another favorite book for toddlers is “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” by Bill Martin and Eric Carle.
Creative Toys
As toddlers begin talking, creative toys help them develop their imagination and practice their new found verbal skills. Many toddlers spend hours playing with Fisher Price Little People Toys. The Fisher Price Animal Sounds Farm, Busy Day Home and Lil’ Movers School Bus are popular choices for toddlers. Another option for creative play is a toddler sized play kitchen and play food.
Push Toys
Push toys teach toddlers about cause and effect. Although small cars are not safe for toddlers, the Brilliant Basic Poppity Pot Train and Dump Truck are age appropriate hand held push toys. A wooden train set is also a popular toy among toddlers, but parents may have to help him set up the track. Toddlers also enjoy walking push toys such as the Playskool Walk and Ride. These types of toys increase your toddler’s gross motor skills.
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