Learning Toys I Love

It feels like there are a whole heck of a lot more toys available to kids today than when we were kids, don't you think? Maybe I'm just seeing things differently as a parent. But I remember Cabbage Patch Dolls, Barbies, Strawberry Shortcake, Care Bears and dress up clothes. I knew my boy cousins played with Legos, Hot Wheels and GI Joe. But whoa. The myriad of toys kids have today (mine included!)? Yikes!

It feels like we're always in need of doing some major spring toy cleaning. But among the multitudes of toys in and around our house, there are some basic indoor learning toys that I especially appreciate and recommend having on hand. In no particular order...

FOR HANDS-ON BUILDING AND CREATING:

Wooden Blocks
Magformers
Legos
K'nex

Snap Circuits
Felt Mosaic

Spinaroos
Wooden Trains
Straws and Connectors
Wooden Marble Run
Build Your Own Solar Robots


FOR HANDS-ON MATH AND ALPHABET/READING LEARNING:

Wooden Geometric Solids

Basic Skills Board
Wooden Number Cards and Counting Rods

Fraction Towers

Wooden Circular Fraction Board
Magnetic Fraction Circles

Shape Sorting Clock
Dice
Wooden Upper and Lower Case Alphabet
Dry Erase Writing Board

OTHER HANDS-ON LEARNING TOYS:

Montessori Botany (and other) Puzzles
USA Puzzle Map
A Variety of Musical Instruments
Squishy Human Body
Rock and Mineral Collection
Seashells

Color Mixing Set
Magnetibook Vehicles
Brain Games

ART SUPPLIES TO HAVE ON HAND (along with basics like pencils, pens, crayons, scissors, various glues, a variety of paper, paint, brushes, tape and chalk, stickers, coloring books... to name a few) : )

Air Dry Clay
Modeling Clay
Wooden Clay Tools
Tracing Paper
Small Spiral Sketchbook for Nature Walks
Assorted Felt
Metal Brads
Peel and Stick Wiggle Eyes
Leaf Rubbing Plates
Flower Rubbing Plates
Wooden Flower Press

I have most of our art supplies in one spot where my kids can easily access them. We call it "the creation station" and they are constantly grabbing various materials from there and coming up with all kinds of art and innovation. The creation station is usually the first place they head when they wake up in the morning... and it gives my husband and I a bit more time to sleep. : ) This photo shows part of our creation station. There's another spot nearby where we keep the paint, clay and other less frequently used materials.

Is having art materials out and easily accessible to little kids a mess? Yes! There are always cut up strips of paper on the floor, pens and pencils all over the place, artwork and inventions everywhere. I usually require E and R to clean up before we get started with school every morning... and if they've made an art mess later in the day, they usually need to clean it up before bath and bed. I can't stand mess... it drives me nuts. But allowing the kids this on-going creative outlet is worth it.


GAMES:

The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel
Zingo
Monopoly
Scrabble
Scrabble Jr.
Uno
Skip-Bo
Spot It

This is just a start. There are, of course, so many more learning toys that could be listed. What are some of your favorites?