This is a simple, classic wooden toy that teaches the concepts of size, shape, color, and sequence! I first saw one of these in my children’s Montessori classroom and was pleased to be able to find one to have at home too.
The idea is simple. There are four sets of five blocks. Each set is a different color and shape. The wooden board has a hole for each block. Children must arrange the blocks in the rows of holes sequence from shortest to tallest.
As with all good toys, children can actually play with this multiple ways. Sometimes they simply like to use the twenty colorful shapes as building blocks, other times they sequence them on the board as they are “supposed” to do.
Here’s another idea: Put the blocks in a bag and have your child (by touch alone) pull out all the triangular shaped ones for example. Or just put in one set and have your child try to pull them out from smallest to largest!
This block board is very durable since is ours is now on child number three without so much as a chip in the paint. At $8.99, I personally think the price is great for such a long lasting and educational wooden toy.
Melissa and Doug, Toy Recommendations, brands, classic toy, educational, puzzle, wood
| 
educational toys, Melissa and Doug, Montessori, sorting toy, Toy Recommendations, Toy Recommendations, wooden toys
It is amazing how amusing crawling through tunnels to a secret house/fort/spaceship/etc. can be.
This tunnel set is nice because it allows for tea parties and hanging out in the center section (plus Mom can check on what is going on through the upper viewing window). The whole set packs away flat in its carry bag for storage under a bed, or in a closet.
The minus is that it can be a bit of a pain folding and securing the three, extremely short ties on each tunnel in order to pack it away. Tying without making knots is a problem. I bought some double-sided velcro straps which I use instead and I can now quickly pack it all away without frustration.
Of course, a couple of cardboard boxes and a table covered with a blanket can be just as fun too, not to mention cheaper…but boxes don’t store as nicely!
My 7 year-old daughter won’t sleep without one of these under her pillow! I bought these as a stocking stuffer two Christmases ago for my daughter (then 5) and they have become part of her nightly ritual ever since.
After I tuck her in, she picks a card and looks at the picture while I read the back. Lately she has started reading the back herself. Some nights, my 5 year-old son even asks for one.
These cards have gorgeous Victorian illustrations on one side (with plenty of fairies and many images of children in fantastic, magical surroundings). The other side presents a soothing poem to put sweet thoughts into a child’s head before sleep.
These are not “children’s” poems but are works by such poets and authors as Rumi, Oscar Wilde, John Keats, Emily Dickinson, as well as many lesser known and anonymous writers (there is even one Navajo saying). The art work is dated and attributed to it’s illustrator, when known.
Some of the poems are quite sophisticated and at times it is difficult to find a quick and simple pre-bedtime answer to the question “what is that about.” The language of many poems can also be a bit archaic and complex, but my daughter does not seem to mind this.
Her favorite card is “Hope Is The Thing With Feathers” by Emily Dickinson and she likes to recite this one by heart. The cards are well-laminated and still look new after one year of loving use (except for the one that my son cut with scissors and we had to tape back together - oh well!).
When asked for a quote for this blog, my daughter says that I must tell people: “These cards make you have really good dreams!”
Book Recommendations, Toy Recommendations, art, cards (literary), cards/card games, children's books, exceptional illustrations, fairies, older children, poems, young children
| art, Book Recommendations, Cooper Edens, fairies, kids poetry, poetry, Sweet Dreams Cards, Toy Recommendations
Varialand is not really a puzzle, I would call it more of a collage. It consists of 80 wooden picture tiles that can be combined any way a child wants to make different scenes. Some tiles are parts of houses, some are clouds in the sky, many are animals or trees.
This is the ultimate in creativity for children. I guarantee that kids will never make the same scene twice!
Plus it is made out of very durable wood. The images are printed on the tiles, not glued on. All in all, this is a toy that should last for generations to come.
Selecta, Toy Recommendations, brands, puzzle, wood
| collage, European toys, German toys, puzzles, Selecta, Toy Recommendations, Toy Recommendations, Varialand, wooden toys
Maggy The Cow, by French toy manufacturer Djeco, wins my award for cutest shape-sorter!
Colorful, wooden cow is a nice baby size (about 4″ x 7″). Her head bobbles up and down on a spring and she sports a stylish red string tail. The six bright blocks fit in holes in the top and sides.
My 19 month-old loves it, but at this stage she just opens the top and drops in the blocks. Why mess with stuffing shapes into strangely-shaped holes when you can do it the easy way, right?
This toy makes me wish I were a baby again!
Djeco, Toy Recommendations, baby, brands, wood
| Djeco, European toys, Maggy The Cow, shape sorter, sorting toys, Toy Recommendations, Toy Recommendations, wooden toys
Comments (0) 
Themocracy