Idaho’s treasure valley has broken a 130-year snowfall record, with temps that have consistently stayed below freezing. Meaning we have spent a whole lot of time inside this winter. It constantly feels like we are exhausting all of our indoor play options. The other day, Eli got into our game closet and pulled out a puzzle. I thought nothing of it until he started jamming pieces together and was so very proud of himself. Next time we went to Target, a couple puzzles made their way into our cart and it has been a blast! We have a lot of block puzzles that are great for playing with the pieces, but not actually all that exciting to “put together.”
Eli will be three next month and we have learned a couple things about toddler puzzle use.
1) Leave them alone! We did the puzzles together with Eli a couple times and then always try to be “busy” when Eli brings them out. If we are right next to him, he wants help putting each piece together even though he can do it himself.
2) To show him how to put the right pieces together we tried to focus on one matching thing. For our puzzles, eyes have been the easiest thing to match, usually only involving two pieces and clearly having a specific setting (i.e. the face). We have broadened our matching to colors, but that still gets challenging when one color is throughout the entire puzzle.
3) Steer clear of too many words if letters are not your kids’ thing. While Eli knows colors and numbers and manners pretty well, he just shows no interest in letters. The puzzles with a lot of wording don’t hold his attention nearly as well as the strictly picture ones.
4) Invest in the more expensive puzzle. We have a Finding Dory puzzle that came in a tin and a set of four Paw Patrol puzzles that came in a cardboard box. The Paw Patrol is just as fun, but the pieces are already bending and not laying flat. It REALLY bothers my little one that the pieces will not lay absolutely perfectly flat which was a surprise to me given that it’s the only area I’ve noticed a shred of perfectionism in.
Jumbo alphabet puzzle | Mickey Mouse puzzles | Mermaids and Butterflies puzzle set | Dinosaurs, Ocean and Safari puzzle set
With Eli’s birthday just around the corner and a couple family trips this year, I’m excited to add to our collection. I feel like puzzles will make a great travel souvenir and will obviously come in super handy with the new baby when I am needing something that promotes quiet time and independent play.
Any puzzles that your littles can’t get enough of? What age did you start to introduce “real” puzzles?
grapefruit / 4584 posts
My 4.5 year old DD also adores puzzles (and is crazy good at them). My favorites have been the Melissa & Doug variety you show above, as well as large “floor puzzles” with anywhere from 24-60 pieces. The Crocodile Creek floor puzzles are fantastic (and the toddler versions come in a cute little cardboard suitcase).
We haven’t had any problems with the Disney character ones from the dollar store…other than the fact that my 2.5 year old seems to break the tips off of those when she wants to help with the puzzle. I try to buy wood puzzles (rather than cardboard) for that reason – DD1 gets really disappointed when her sister breaks a cheapie puzzle.
pomelo / 5621 posts
Yes, DS loves puzzles. He got quite a few for Christmas and can do many by himself.
blogger / kiwi / 588 posts
DS LOVES puzzles. His favorite puzzle to this day is one of the United States that I got at a garage sale for $2. He’s been doing it since he was 2. We also love the Ravensburger puzzles. They are really good quality pieces and images. DS has a couple of these and they hold up really well to our 2 year old too.
guest
Those exact Mickey puzzles are at the Dollar Tree for $1 each! The best place to buy kids puzzles!