Whether it's a birthday party or the holidays that are coming up, here is a guide to the 10 best open ended toys for your little one.
These are the items that my children continue to love over the years.
No, they are not all wooden or bougie Montessori toys that cost a fortune. They're just good toys that have stood the test of time and entertained my own children from the ages of 18 months to almost 6. I'm sure there are lots of children who love their wooden peg dolls and alphabet boards, but for my kids, those toys end up in a corner, crying to be played with.
If you're curious about other ways to entertain your preschool aged child I highly recommend browsing the following posts:
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These geometric tiles are so strong, they can build all kinds of structures. Yes, I’ve seen the cheaper versions and no, they don’t work as well. What makes Magnatiles so incredible is how easily even the youngest children can successfully build three dimensional creations of all kinds. My favorite Magnatiles activity was when my kids' friends made a maze for their hamster with them!
These solid, quality wooden blocks have ignited so much play in our house. Kids won't just build architectural structures...They use them as food in a shop, babies in a nursery, plants that grow, and so much more. There are natural colors and bright colors to fit your taste!
It’s not just for painting! Playing school has never been so easy with dry erase and chalkboard sides, plus it comes with alphabet magnets. You know Melissa and Doug always deliver quality too.
We have loved this set for many years, and got it preloved from another family. These babies last and, kids just love to play chef and cook. Why? It’s because they see YOU doing it ; ) There are a multitude of other ways to play with the cabinets, which kids just love opening and closing. I do love the retro style, but Kidcraft also has modern styles of kitchens too! After many years, our kitchen moved on to a kindergarten classroom.
I don’t always have these but when I do, it’s like a concentration button for my children. These are the perfect entertainment to bring along to a restaurant or airplane, kids can build and create without mess or lots of pieces. Plus it’s easy to plop one of these in your purse...a great stocking stuffer!
If you haven’t tried kinetic sand, you need to! The sand doesn’t dry and easily clumps together for less mess than regular sand. Also, it feels so satisfying to squish... it's like sensory play heaven. Kinetic sand omes in lots of different colors and additional sets. It's one of my favorite sensory bin fillers. To get a free printable list of easy sensory bin fillers, check out this post.
A friend got this for my 3 year old on her birthday. Before that, she hadn’t really shown interest in drawing, but since she got this art set, she has become an artist. I also trust that when Crayola says washable, they really mean it, so this has been a favorite of mine as well. It’s also great to bring on a trip, since it folds flat and weighs very little.
Nothing beats the convenience and bright colors of Play-doh. This is a big stocking stuffer for us, and I feel great about all the play that it brings about because it’s all fantastic fine motor practice!
You are very likely to already have this "best open ended toy." There are endless fun ways to build with Duplo, and they're perfect for little hands to connect with a satisfying snap. These everlasting toys came to my children from my Transitional Kindergarten classroom, and what I love is that I use them for many learning targets too. I've used legos for making patterns, measuring sticks, and practicing counting. I even use them to teach word families in this post.
They seem at first to just be for building, but Duplo is my top choice for an open ended toy that brings in the learning!
Kids will build so many unimaginable things with these bendy straws and connectors. Seriously, I've seen kids build boats, whales, flowers, and even spiderwebs with this unendingly imaginative toy. It's so easy to use that little fingers will accomplish creations beyond their wildest dreams. In my kindergarten classroom, this was a very popular toy to use in groups.
An open ended toy can be played with in multiple ways. This means that kids must use their imagination and creativity to play with it.
The best open ended toys can be reimagined many times and played with for years as children go through different life stages.
A toy might be played with by a toddler, then preschooler, and finally a grade school aged child. I did question myself a little putting the kitchen related items like the kid appliances on the list, but from my observations as a parent, they are open ended because each time the play is different and surprisingly not all food related. Goodness, the appliances have even been used with sensory bins and science experiments.
An example of a toy that is not open ended would be a board game, a basketball hoop, or a child's laptop game. There is value in all kinds of toys, however I have found that the best toys are open ended and/or spark creativity. Those are the toys that my kids always come back to and I can rely on!
I hope you've found this list to be helpful! It doubles as a preschooler's holiday gift guide, so don't be shy about sharing it not so subtly to grandparents.
