As many children will be starting their school year off at home this year, it’s more important than ever that we stimulate our kid’s brains with spacial thinking and problem solving. STEM toys are a great way to supplement online education, and thankfully there’s a great assortment of toys that are rolling out now.
A great toy is not just impressive to the parent, but interesting to a child. Toys that we have to ‘convince’ our kids to play with are the ones that will eventually end up on the bottom of the toy bin never used. Thanks to my adorable toy testers, I was able to vette the following STEM toys for Early Learners (Age 18M to 5+) that I recently previewed at Toyinsider’s Sweet Suite @ Home event on July 22, 2020. The following toys were ALL a hit with my test group of kiddos & the parents agreed that these were fun, engaging and educational!
MAGFORMERS – Maggy’s House
My daughter grew up with the basic set of Magformers and absolutely loved them. Magformers are magnetic pieces that come in different shapes to construct 3D structions. So, I was excited to see the new ‘House’ sets! Here is Audrey (age 3) playing with the new Magformer’s Maggy’s House set with little doors and windows. It took her awhile to figure out (learning!!) the concept of putting walls together to built the house, but once she mastered that, she spent hours engaging in creative play and re-creating the structure.
Your little one can build anything they can imagine when they use the Magformers Magnetic Rainbow shapes and Maggy character and accessories to create and decorate houses.
Build in Rainbow colors with 4 Triangles, 12 Squares, 1 Sector and accessories including 4 bricks, 2 windows, 1 Maggy Character, 1 Fence, 2 TV, 1 Cupboard, 1 Bed, 1 Bath, 1 Car, 1 TV Stand, 1 Balcony. Find it here.
BLOCKAROOS
Blockaroos are a magnetic construction toy for children ages 18m to 6 years. This early learning STEM system was developed by teachers and the soft foam blocks connect like magic!
Feedback from parents:
‘They kids played with these ALL day! They made built the challenge item, and then pulled it apart and came up with their own new versions. Later in the day, the Blockaroos went in the bathtub for even more playtime! I am so happy the kids were engaged for SO long!” – Ages 4 and 8
“I am packing for a flight right now, and my daughter has been connecting the Blockaroos parts for almost an hour without asking for me to help her! I’m getting so much done right now!” – Age 2.5
“My daughter has been sitting there singing to the pieces as she connects them together for so long. I am so impressed with how interested she is with this toy. ” – Age 3.5
Bonus: You can throw these in the upper rack in your dishwasher to sanitize them! Find them here.
3DOODLER – 3D BUILD PLAY
The 3Doodler Create is a fun and creative toy for teens and adults to create stylish 3D designs from jewerly, home decor, models, art and more. However, the new 3D Build Play set is perfect for early learners ages 4-5. Unlike the adult version, this age-friendly toy has no hot parts!
It only uses low-temperature heat and it’s BPA-free. It’s perfect for children to work on fine motor skills and 3D thinking.
With the help of their molds, it’s easy for kids to fill in shapes and then piece them together! We made a little giraffe – so cute!
Stay tuned for more STEM toy reviews for the older set of kids!
