Today we will discover the best learning toys for 5 year olds, and even older kids, that are appropriate for their age and developmental stage. And focus on the best choices for kids aged 0 to 5 and even up to 8. We will discuss the criteria to determine whether toys are truly educational and look at great examples in each age group.
Buying toys for Christmas and birthdays is a tradition a lot of us follow every year. And surely there is nothing wrong with the spirit of giving. However, this year we have decided to challenge the traditional gifting a little bit. We have decided to only invest in learning toys this year!
We will only buy toys that are truly educational and will assist in learning, appropriate to our kids’ ages. Are you also up for the challenge?
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Free kids learning printable
Did you know you can easily improve your child’s overall learning capacity, skills, and memory? Yes, you can! And this is how:
Now, let’s jump into the educational toys review
A Search for the Best Educational Toys
When starting my learning toy search, I was astonished by a large number of toys available making unjustified educational claims.
And, upon further investigation, you won’t believe these ‘educational benefits were proven to be nothing more than unsubstantiated marketing ploys… Can you imagine!
You might be wondering
How do you choose true learning toys then?
That is exactly what this educational gift review is all about!
In order to help you find the perfect learning toys for your kids, I have compiled a guide of the best educational toys for this year as appropriate per developmental stage. With a special focus on the best learning toys for 5 year olds.
Each learning toy listed were carefully considered and only chosen when the criteria below were met. And, in addition, I have listed the major milestone per age to help you choose the best age-appropriate toy.
Therefore, you can be at ease knowing that these gifts are truly educational and will stimulate your child’s learning.
But what criteria am I talking about? Let’s have a quick look at those
Learning toys Criteria
The developmental criteria below had to be met in order for a toy to be labeled as truly educational.
And what’s more
You can also use this list to make sure the toys you consider matches one or more of these requirements.
List of learning toy criteria
- improve hand-eye coordination
- stimulate verbal learning, including letters and words
- develop auditory learning, including music
- multifunctional toys, stimulating multiple senses
- improve fine motor skills
- stimulate memory and focus
- improve gross motor skills
- spark creativity and imagination
- stimulate physical development
- safe for age – applicable to ALL toys
Top Tips for Buying Safe Learning Toys
- Read more about safe toy guidelines here
- To make sure you do not unknowingly buy a dangerous toy, search the US Consumer Product Safety Commission Recall List prior to purchase
- Avoid toys that are too loud as they can cause hearing damage, the volume control is beneficial
- Choose toys that can grow with your child, those with the possibility of changing to be more complex
- Match the toy and your child’s stage of development
- Invest in toys that are non-toxic and easy to clean
- For kids under 3 years, make sure the toy has no small parts
- Check out the great infographic at the end of the post to help you determine the developmental stage of your child
Best learning toys for 0 to 5 year olds
Our kids’ brains develop at an enormous pace between 0 and 5 years old. And we need to make sure they get the most benefit from educational toys during this time.
Infants 0 to 6 months
Babies like to look at, reach for, suck and listen to things. Good options are soft books, rattles, and soft music toys
Here are some great examples
Infants 3 to 6 months
At this age your infant will become more interested in music and interesting colors and shapes
Infants 6 to 12 months
Infants start moving and learning to use their large muscles at this age. Stimulate development with these kinds of toys
Toddlers 1 to 2 years
Let’s move it, move it! A toddler needs to move, create and learn words at this age.
Toddlers 2 to 3 years
Language skills are one of the most important milestones at this age. Therefore be sure to choose toys stimulating
- verbal and auditory language development and
- sensory fine motor skills
good examples include
- Play-doh
- Award-winning the early reading program
- Touch and teach workbook
- Race Car Radio Control Toy for Toddlers
Preschoolers 3 to 5 years
Pre-schoolers love to
- solve problems
- ask why and
- discover new things
Stimulate their brain development with construction sets and electronic pads like
- magnetic STEM building block set
- VTech little apps tablet
- LEGO Duplo town truck and tracked excavator
- STEM Learning 101 Piece educational construction engineering building blocks
- Boxiki kids learning pad
- IQ challenge set
- educational insights design and drill activity set
Kids 6 to 8 years
Reading and writing skills are important at this age.
But other important abilities include
Keep this in mind when you invest in toys like
I hope you have enjoyed
the best learning toys for o to 5 year olds
and even up to 8 years, reviewed in line with the developmental stages of a child and are able to use the list to find the best learning toys for your kids.
Leave a comment
and let me know what you will be buying this year. Do you also prefer the gift of learning?
Related kids learning posts
- how to help a distracted child focus
- play based learning made easy
- 2 Amazing learning style activities to do with your kids right now
- Learning Styles Guide
Here is a great infographic to help you
know the developmental stages of your child
Thanks to Invo-Progressus for the cool infographic!
Remember to invest your own time in your kids learning abilities.
By doing great activities that help them improve their learning skills and memory. This is super easy with the free Kids Learning Guide.
**Disclaimer
Even though I have taken great care in choosing all the best and safest toys on this list, based on my own experience, I obviously can not guarantee your satisfaction.
These are simply my personal recommendations.
All further safety and educational value have to be investigated by yourself prior to purchasing toys of any kind.
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Nice blog, I like your tips on toys for kids. They were very helpful for me in choosing the write toys for my kids.
Glad it was helpful!
Real instructive and excellent body structure of written content, now that’s user pleasant (:.
Thank you Lauren, hope you found the perfect Learning toy for your child.
Thanks for sharing the post with us
Learning toys are the perfect toy to stimulate children’s imagination and learning skills while encouraging discovery, motor skills, and creativity.
Hi there
Thank you for your message and for visiting the blog.
I agree, by investing in learning toys we invest in our children’s’ future!
Such an easy thing we can do to help our kids thrive.
Love your Montessori Toyz site!
Best wishes
Estie