You surely remember that one favorite toy you had through your childhood. Whether it was the doll you carried everywhere, the little red truck you were inseparable from, or your Lego kit, toys have been an important and constant part of childhood and growing up, and as more than just entertainment and fun!
We may not have realized it at that time but toys play an important role in the overall development and growth of a child. The right toys can help in the development of a child’s social, emotional, cognitive, problem-solving, thinking and learning abilities. Educators, teachers, and parents today can use a wide variety of toys that are specifically designed and aimed at helping your little one grow and learn.
Toys and Their Role in Your Child’s Life
Toys can be great for your kids and help encourage their natural curiosity, prompting them to question and learn about the world and the environment around them, such as numbers, alphabets, shapes, colors, and words. This makes toys a great option for children to explore their curiosity which, in turn, helps them grow more creative by exploring and making sense out of toys; a vital aspect of a child’s life.
Toys also help develop social skills, encouraging kids to make friends, work as a team, negotiate, collaborate, and establish rules while playing. In doing so, your child’s energy is channelized into productive, yet fun activities, helping build stamina, strength, and overall physical development.
Apart from this, toys also help refine and improve your child’s emotional, motor and mental skills, such as Lego blocks, which help children realize and learn about symmetry. And the best part? All this happens with plenty of fun! Toys keep children happy and engaged, and at the same time, encourage learning and its retention.
Toys That Help Your Child’s Development
As we said, there are a wide range of toys available that can encourage your child’s all-round development. This can make it a little tough to find the right toy for your little one, so we’ve listed our top picks to help your 6-year-old’s learning journey:
1. Write & Learn Creative Center From Walmart – $24.18
The “Write & Learn Creative Center”, manufactured by VTech and sold by Walmart, is a fun and interactive way to get your little one’s writing journey started. The board contains animated demonstrations that indicate the proper strokes and methods for writing both upper and lowercase letters, making it a great pick for preschoolers. You can even input your child’s name into the toy and then have it teach them how to write the word step-by-step! The board also comes with drawing activities that teaches kids how to progress from simple lines and shapes to draw up to 26 different objects. Even better, the toy encourages your child’s creativity and imagination by letting them create their own masterpieces with the included stamps and stencils. At $24.18, the “Write & Learn Creative Center” is a perfect educational toy to help your child’s learning and bring out the Picasso in him or her!
Why We Recommend:
Fun and interactive
Contains animated demonstrations that instruct your child on drawings and alphabets (both upper and lowercase)
Can input your own words and have the toy teach the word to your child
Drawing activities that teach up to 26 different objects
Separate stencils and stamps included with the board
Perfect for preschoolers
Encourages creativity, imagination, and learning, in a fun way
2. Dinosaur Dig Kit from National Geographic – $11.99
A great educational toy that encourages your child to develop a scientific bent of mind, the “Dinosaur Dig” kit is a hands-on educational adventure that introduces kids to the dinosaurs and the prehistoric era. With 3 real dinosaur fossils, a learning guide, archaeological digging tools, and a magnifying glass, the “Dinosaur Dig” kit is a highly educational yet thrilling way for kids to be introduced to science and the prehistoric era, and is available for $11.99 on Amazon.
Why We Recommend:
Contains a digging brick with 3 real dinosaur fossils (dinosaur bone, mosasaur tooth, and dino poop!), a colorful learning guide, archaeological tools, and a magnifying glass
Is educational and adventurous, sparking kids’ interest in science and history
Issued with a choking hazard warning keeping in mind your child’s safety
Is backed by National Geographic’s 100% satisfaction guarantee
3. Magic Science for Wizards Only Kit from Scientific Explorer – $10.32
The “Magic Science for Wizards Only” kit from Scientific Explorer that teaches kids the magic of science! A unique educational toy, the “Magic Science” kit contains 9 activities that teach kids different chemical reactions, which then encourages them to use this knowledge in future experiments of their own. A perfect gift that encourages curiosity and sparks interest in science in a fun and engaging way, this kit is available on Amazon for a steal at $10.32!
Why We Recommend:
The kit is perfect for kids aged 6-10 but adult supervision is recommended.
Encourages interest and curiosity in science as a subject in a fun and engaging way.
Contains 9 activities that use safe chemical reactions to teach kids how chemicals work.
Encourages application of the knowledge gained in little experiments of their own
The kit contains various safe chemicals (citric acid, baking soda, vegetable oil, cross-linked polyacrylate copolymer, red cabbage juice powder, zinc sulfide and 12 color tablets), equipment (4 test tubes with a stand, 1 wizard wand with 2 caps, 1 small scoop, 1 medium scoop, 1 sheet of star stickers, and 1 sheet of purple paper), and 1 science and activity guide.
4. The Learning Journey Match It! Spelling Kit From Walmart – $9.28
Ideal for classroom and home teaching, this spelling kit of simple words helps build the vocabulary, concentration, and confidence of children. With 20 puzzle pairs that help kids learn and spell simple word families, this toy helps children by encouraging them to associate the colorful illustrations with different words, which is the key to solving the puzzle (making it self-correcting) and therefore helps them develop problem-solving skills as well. Highly durable and easy to use, the toy keeps young minds engaged and in a process of learning. At a great price of $9.28, the “Match It!” kit is manufactured by Learning Journey and sold on Walmart’s site.
Why We Recommend:
Ideal for both home and classroom teaching
Helps vocabulary expansion, growth in focus and concentration, and also builds your child’s self-confidence
20 puzzle pairs divided as 10 three-piece word puzzles and 10 four-piece word puzzles
Colorful illustrations
Durable cardboard composition
Self-correcting puzzle pieces that encourage problem-solving
Great for preschoolers
Helps improve basic spelling skills
Interactive and fun
5. 2-in-1 Educational Construction Engineering Building Block Toy from Walmart
This completely fun and creative toy is sure to keep your kids engaged! A 2-in-1 building block set that can be fitted together to either make a truck or airplane, this toy is both a fun as well as an educational way to better your child’s imagination, creativity, learning and problem-solving. With 361 pieces that can be easily taken apart and put back together, this toy is an excellent stimulator of your child’s spatial imagination, positive manipulative ability, practical abilities, intellect and education. A fast seller, this building block toy is sold and shipped by AMI Ventures through Walmart.
Why We Recommend:
2-in-1 mode (dump truck or airplane)
361 self-locking plastic blocks
Operated by internal mechanism
Easy to fit and take apart
Detailed, illustrated instruction manual
Can be adjusted if operation is not appropriate
Helps build your child’s creative, practical, problem-solving, spatial, and positive manipulative skill
Can be hazardous if swallowed due to the size of the blocks
6. Mia’s Vet Clinic from Lego -$29.99
Lego blocks have been a staple of many childhoods for the endless hours of fun they entail! This offering from Lego, based in a vet’s clinic, encourages your child to not only develop their problem-solving, creative and spatial skills but also learn about the environment and functioning of a vet’s clinic. At a price of $29.99 in the Lego shop, this Lego set is a great way to introduce kids to animals and medicine as well as evoke compassion by helping them play-act tending to animals with the help of Olivia and Mia, the vets!
Why We Recommend:
Includes an assortment of two mini-doll figures, a rabbit, baby rabbit, cat, turtle and hedgehog doll figures
Features a vet clinic, ambulance, wheeled stretcher and a rabbit house
The vet clinic features veterinary supplies and a table for the animals while the ambulance features an opening door at the back and functional rolling wheels
Includes accessory elements such as a stethoscope, otoscope, thermometer, feeding bottles, medicine spoon, ice pack, syringe, animal food, clipboard and pen
Includes a detailed, illustrated instruction manual that is easy to understand and is also downloadable from Lego’s site
Introduces kids to animals and medicine
Develops children’s creative thinking, problem-solving, imaginative, creative, and spatial skills
Is fun and engaging!
Product comes with a choking hazard warning
7. Multi-Craft Weaving Loom from Melissa and Doug – $29.99
Melissa and Doug have long been pioneers of fun yet educational devices and this multi-craft weaving loom is a perfect example! A great way to encourage your child’s artistic and creative skills, the weaving loom comes with an adjustable frame, an oversized wooden needle, and 91 yards of rainbow yarn with which kids can make an assortment of projects such as scarves, coasters, pouches or their own creative designs. Perfect for the skillsets of a beginner or slightly advanced level, the loom also includes three picture tapestries that kids can reference and weave. Available at $29.99 on Melissa and Doug’s official site, this weaving loom is a great way to keep your kids engaged, productive, creative and focused!
Why We Recommend:
The kit includes an easy-to-use adjustable frame (that needs to be assembled by an adult), an oversized wooden needle, 91 yards of rainbow yarn, 2 wooden dowels and 3 picture tapestry kits (fish, owl and turtle)
Detailed instructions to weave a tasseled coaster, drawstring pouch, rainbow scarf and craft carry-all, that are easy to understand
Encourages your kid’s creativity, imagination and artistic skills by letting them weave their own designs
Easy to handle due to the adjustable loom
Perfect for all skill levels
Increases focus and finger dexterity
Safe to use as needles are wooden, though the product comes with a choking hazard
Adult assembly required
8. Deluxe Magnetic Standing Art Easel from Melissa and Doug – $99.99
Another great educational toy that sparks creative expression and encourages budding artists, the “Deluxe Magnetic Standing Art Easel” is a deluxe wooden easel that features both a magnetic chalkboard as well as a dry-erase board. Easy-to-remove plastic trays allow kids to easily store and access art supplies; while the 39 letter and number magnets help increase the range of your little one’s creative expression and learning, and is available at $99.99 on Melissa and Doug’s official site.
Why We Recommend:
Oversized magnetic easel that features both a magnetic chalkboard as well as a dry-erase board
Easy-to-remove plastic trays that allow easy storage and access
39 letter and number magnets
The easel can hold either an 18 or 12-inch paper roll
Encourages creative expression and learning
Choking hazard included with the product
Adult assembly required
The Perfect Toy
Though parents, educators and teachers often search for the “perfect toy”, this is a highly subjective concept. Kids are unique which means that each kid has his or her own way of interpreting, responding to and learning from toys. Each child responds differently to different topics and therefore, no toy can guarantee a learning experience in all cases. Our top toy-picks have all been well-designed with the specific intent of combining fun and education in an engaging experience for your child and are great options to start your child’s journey into learning. Always remember to keep in mind what your child needs and pick toys based on their needs and responses, and you’ll find that you’re soon learning as much from your child as you’re teaching them! So put one of these toys into your child’s hands soon and watch them grow and bloom in all aspects!
