Finding And Selecting Educational Toys For Kids

You can only seldom see kids that do not play with a particular type of toy because toys have already become a part of the childhood stage. This means that as a parent, you just have to let you child be. If he wants to spend some of his time playing with the toys, you just have to let him do what he wants. And of course, you can buy some toys for him in addition to what he already has. Because it is not right to prohibit your child in playing with his toys, the best thing that you can do is to get him some educational toys. From the name itself, these toys are not just the ordinary toys that you can see in various toys stores; these are somehow different from the usual. Your child will not only have fun and enjoy, at the same time he will also learn some of the basics like the different shapes and colors. So where can you find these toys and how can you properly select them?
There are several places where you can find educational toys for your child. For instance, you can visit a store that sells different types of instruments. You will surely find something there for your child like a music instrument toy. This kind of toys are actually classified as educational toys because you child can learn different things related to music. Another place where you can find educational toys is a bookstore. Aside from books and other reading materials, you can also find a huge variety of puzzles for kids and adults. Undoubtedly, puzzles are among the educational toys that can enhance some of your child's skills and abilities. This is basically because in order to solve the puzzle, you child should come up with a strategy on how to arrange the puzzle pieces. And of course, you can also consider the idea of looking for such toys online. Perhaps this is best option for you to consider because you are only going to spend a small amount of your time and effort but you can surely find a lot of choices.
Once you have already decided on where you are going to shop for educational toys, you can then move one to selecting the toys according to your standards and preferences as well as your child's. When you are already in the process of selecting the toys for your child, it is important that you also take the age or your child into consideration. If your child is still an infant, then you are limited to the soft and huggable educational toys. But when you child is already a toddler, you can opt for toys that are bright-colored, solid and are more challenging for him. And for course, do not forget to check on the quality of the toy, the materials used and how it is constructed. In general, instead of getting the usual toys, it is best that you consider the educational toys for your kid.

The Best Educational Toys For Kids

What are the best educational toys for kids? Well, first of all I think they should be toys that your child enjoys playing with. If they don't enjoy playing with the toy they won't play with it and therefore won't learn from it. The toys should also teach common everyday life lessons, things that are going to be useful to your child in their early years. Things like the alphabet and numbers are lesson they will need early on.
The thing about kids is that they are very inquisitive and hungry for knowledge. If they can get that knowledge in a fun way it will stick with them for a long time. That is what shows like Sesame Street does so well and way it is so successful. Toys that educate should follow that same rule and they will be more beneficial for your child. Think of it like this, toys that educate combine two things that kids love, playing with toys and satisfying their hunger to learn. So lets take a look at some of the best educational toys for kids.
One toy that has a fun way of teaching the alphabet and numbers to your toddler is the "Learning Home" from Fisher Price. This is a playhouse your child can craw through that plays traditional sing-a-long songs your child will love to sing and learn from. Another one of those great learning toys for toddlers is the "Learning Table" from LeapFrog. This toy also teaches the alphabet and counting, but it also teaches kids about colors and shapes. These are all things kids should know about.
Melissa and Doug's Deluxe Standing Easel will give your child a taste for art while at the same time keeping your walls and floors from becoming all market up with crayons and markers. This toy will expose your little ones to different art mediums in their on little area. Just imagine your little tykes doing their finger painting on their own little pad instead of your walls.
There are a lot of educational toys out there, but these are a few of the best educational toys for kids. You should always make sure that the toys you get your child are safe for them whether it's educational or not. Don't underestimate the power of toys that educate. Learning toys can give your child a head start on their education and give them skills that they will need in life.

Educational Toys for Babies - 1 Year Old

Every parent wants the same thing; for their child to grow up happy. It is not uncommon for caring parents to stress over their baby's educational development. The 6 months leading up to their 1st birthday is a crucial time as babies become much more communicative and mobile. This article focuses on educational toys for babies 1 year old and why they are important for your child's development.
A ball can be just a simple play thing for the park or garden, but when a baby is learning to walk, stand or crawl it becomes an important educational toy for strengthening your baby's leg muscles. Firstly you should sit on the floor holding your baby facing away from you. Put a ball in front of their feet and encourage them to kick it. You can help by moving their legs if your baby can't do it unassisted. Give praise each time they make contact and this will give them confidence. With another parent and baby playmate you can have them kicking the ball to each other. They will both improve their gross motor co-ordination skills whilst having a lot of fun.
As your baby becomes a 1 year old they will begin to babble word-like sounds. To help improve your baby's verbal and hearing skills you can use felt to create animated stories. You can buy ready-made shapes from educational toy shops or make your own. Face your baby and tell a simple story using the shapes to illustrate. Speak clearly and point to the pieces as you talk about them, don't worry about making the story complicated just keep it animated.
Babies love to put items into categories, particularly at about 9 months. A shape sorter is an educational toy that will help to develop your baby's fine motor skills. Although a shop bought toy may be fun to begin with, the novelty will soon wear off. It is easy to make your own shape sorter at home instead, for very little cost. Provide your baby with different objects or food cut in small pieces and small containers to put them in. Encourage your baby to sort the items by colour or shape.
A rattle can help develop your baby's fine motor skills and sense of rhythm. Any toy that is musical can be entertaining, even ones you have made at home with pasta and a plastic bottle. Add variety with colours and different sounds to ensure that your baby doesn't get bored. It may give you a headache but your baby will love it.
Babies begin to understand language and develop motor skills before they can actually speak. Baby signing toys can be used to help improve your baby's communication skills. Signs are attached to words and this enables you to better understand what your child wants. Some people think that baby signing will negatively affect their baby's speech development; however it actually enhances their vocabulary and language skills.
The range of educational toys for babies 1 year old is extremely vast. There are products to suit every parent and baby, whether it is a ball, a homemade rattle or baby signing toys. When choosing a particular toy think about the skills that your baby will develop and try to target all the senses over time.

4 Types Of Popular Educational Toys

Educational toys are becoming a staple in most homes across the world. As parents realise the important of early education, they try to find ways to make it as fun and simple for their children as possible. This is where educational toys come into handy. They are affordable, fun for your children and provide them with the best educational material you can find. We take a look at a few of the most popular educational toys on the market.
Memory Games: One of the most popular toddler games on the market are memory games. These memory games help develop your child's motor skill development and their memory banks. Playing these sort of games with your children are also perfect for strengthening the bond between parent and child. You can use these memory games while you're on the road or at home for fun evening in. You can find memory games with numbers or pictures or a combination of both numbers and pictures.
Puzzles: The preschool puzzles help your children recognize objects and shapes. Most younger puzzles include about nine double-sided picture and word puzzle pieces. The most common puzzles have two distinct ways to play the game. You can either let your child connect the words on one side or connect the pictures on the other sides. You can also let them build each puzzle individually.
Building Blocks:Most educational building blocks have letters, numbers and pictures attached to them. Your child will be able to spell out words or create different situations with the building blocks. It is a lot of fun for toddlers.
Snap Cards: Snap cards are great fun. You need to match the word with the specific picture. When each piece finally connects together, on the other hand side, the word will be in bright, bold colours. This is perfect for children who need to practice their shapes and sounds.
These four games are the most popular educational toys on the market currently. Children absolutely love memory games, snap cards, building blocks and puzzles. If you can find bright, colour, fun, educational toys for your children then make sure you snap them up. You will be able to see an amazing difference when it comes to how far your child actually improves.
Educational toys are a fantastic addition to your arsenal of educational tools for your child and the betterment of their learning and academic skills.

Melanie Thomas (CEO Melrose Kids Ltd) is a mother of two boys and lives in London, England. Melrose Kids Ltd are the official distributor of Brainy Baby® products in the UK and Ireland.

Educational Toys and Childhood Development

Almost all toys can be described as educational, each offering a physical, sensory or creative aspect from which the child can learn and develop. There are, of course, educational toys out there which have been specially created to help nurture childhood development, designed to support a specific development such as co-ordination or identification.
But why are toys such an important part of childhood development? No child is born understanding the world they're brought in to, so from day one they have to learn what things are and how they work. This makes it important to let children play and explore with everything to help build their knowledge and understanding.
There are a range of educational toys all designed to help with the development of various vital learning skills. For example, infants particularly need sensory products which allow them to experience different textures and noises. These sorts of stimulating educational toys are great for infants to begin to understand how things fit into the world. For example, you will probably notice how babies love to drop and pick up; this is them beginning to understand gravity. Toys such as rattles allow them to find a connection between an action (shaking) and an outcome (noise), with push-pull toys again teaching them that they are initiators.
Toddlers can then build on these foundations, and play with educational toys which help them to imitate more adult skills. Much more physical at this age, toddlers enjoy educational toys which involve co-ordination and experimentation, with it important to encourage understanding of the toys and activity they are taking part in. Allowing toddlers to express themselves, either through arts and crafts or dressing-up, enables them to be creative, and important tool to allow them to independently make choices.
For pre-school and early primary school ages, the encouragement of turn-taking is important, so games should be introduced to allow the understanding of 'fair play' to develop. Much more social at this stage, pre-school children can use educational toys and games to help initiate social interaction, and can also allow parents to really introduce the importance of good and bad behaviour. They are also still building on their understanding of adult skills and knowledge, and enjoy identifying objects from the world around them. Animal and transport toys in particular are favourites amongst this age group, as they help to satisfy the child's curiosity.
Educational toys are important as they allow children to learn as they are having fun. Even as adults, we all know the importance of fun to help encourage interest, and for children nothing is more important than getting them to engage in learning and development. The development of skills such as imagination and creativity are just as important as skills such as fairness and knowing right-from-wrong, so providing children with a wide array of educational toys is essential.
With childhood development taking place from the day they are born, children need toys from day one to ensure they are stimulated and encouraged to learn the next set of skills. All of this helps to make sure that come school-time they are equipped with the basic skills to support their understanding of lesson-based subjects.