Best Puzzles for Toddlers
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Let’s face it: Toddlers are always on the go — and challenging to keep busy. If you’re struggling to find new ways to keep your child entertained and educated, puzzles are an ideal toy to keep toddlers focused at this unique developmental stage. Puzzles challenge your little one’s developing motor skills and hand-eye coordination, plus they teach other important concepts like shapes, numbers, colors and letters.
Keep in mind that not all puzzles are suitable for all ages. Some come with smaller pieces that may pose a choking hazard for younger kids, so be sure to double-check the age limit before buying. We’ve rounded up a few of our favorite toddler puzzles that are sure to provide hours of fun and learning.
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Best Overall
Dreampark Wooden Jigsaw Animal Puzzles
- High quality
- solid wood blocks are developmentally ideal for toddlers.
- Doesn’t have a lot of pieces.
Is your toddler just getting a handle on hand-eye coordination? The Dreampark Wooden Jigsaw Puzzle puzzle is made with easy-to-grasp, large wooden pieces that challenge your child’s spatial skills and hone in on those early fine-motor skills. Six cute animals in bright colors will keep kids’ hands and minds busy.
Weight: 1.69 pounds
Dimensions: 6.26 x 6.22 x 2.95 inches
Best Puzzle for Learning Letters
Melissa & Doug See-Inside Alphabet Wooden Peg Puzzle
- Critical thinking skills are required to match letters to their corresponding images.
- Cutouts aren’t well-defined
- so children may struggle to differentiate between letters with similar forms.
“B” is for basket...“Z” is for zipper. If your little one is mastering the alphabet, this playful puzzle puts letters into context. Each of the 26 pieces has a coordinating image underneath, encouraging critical thinking to pair letters with pictures. Pegs make it easy for little fingers to insert and remove each piece.
Weight: 12.8 ounces
Dimensions: 0.8 x 11.7 x 8.4 inches
Best Problem-Solving Puzzle
Coogam Wooden Blocks Puzzle Brain Teasers Toy Tangram Jigsaw
- There’s not just one one unique solution.
- Pieces are small and thin
- which may be challenging for small hands to manipulate.
Remember Tetris? This puzzle brings the classic game offscreen to a new generation. Colorful blocks add creativity to eye-hand coordination. With endless combinations of plug-and-play shapes, this puzzle will challenge every play session.
Weight: 3.17 ounces
Dimensions: 10.63 x 7.09 x 0.39 inches
Best Puzzle for Learning Shapes
Dreampark Wooden Shape Color Recognition Preschool Stack and Sort Geometric Board Blocks
- Colorful shapes encourage stacking time and again.
- Smaller than some buyers expected.
Challenge your toddler’s counting and shape skills in one go with this stack and sort puzzle set. Four forms in bright colors teach your child basic geometric shapes. The four peg-and-hole stacking columns challenge baby’s hand-eye coordination. Thick and sturdy blocks made of solid wood with non-toxic paint are ideal for kids ages 1 and up.
Best Puzzle for Tots Who Love “Things That Go”
Melissa & Doug Vehicles Wooden Chunky Puzzle
- The perfect size for the average toddler.
- Few pieces compared to other age-appropriate puzzles.
For toddlers who love all “things that go!” Several types of motorized vehicles that travel by road, rails, sea, or air will capture your little one’s imagination. Pieces are thick and easy to grasp to work your child’s fine motor skills. Each piece stands up on its own, doubling as a stand-in for pretend play.
Best Puzzle for the Littlest Toddlers
Sesame Street Alphabet Foam Floor Puzzle
- Affordable and engaging for lovers of Sesame Street.
- Mat is small
- and the pieces don’t sit flush to one another.
Leave it to Sesame Street to come up with a puzzle that’s both fun and educational. This puzzle features 27 large foam pieces for every letter of the alphabet. Each piece has a cute image of a word that starts with the same letter. The completed puzzle serves as a small but soft floor mat for your child’s room.
Best Puzzle for Learning Numbers
B. Toys Wooden Number Puzzle
- Large and high-quality wooden pieces are easy for toddlers to grasp.
- Doesn’t come with a “0.”
Learn numbers and colors in one go! With 20 bright wood pieces, your child will discover the numbers 1 through 10 alongside the colors of the rainbow. Numbers are reinforced, as each rainbow cutout features a number beneath. Thick wood blocks are sturdy and easy for small hands to manipulate.
Dimensions: 10 x 10 inch x 0.5 inches
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