With the winter gift giving season approaching it can sometimes be hard to choose gifts for children from the sea of products available. YDL’s youth librarians evaluate lots of toys and STEM products when we create YDL’s Youth Kits. We wanted to share a few that we have found particularly fun, educational, and worth buying in 2022.
Toys for Little Ones
Wooden Puppet Theater
Putting on puppet shows with your little one, or watching them put on their own show, is a great way to help them develop their storytelling skills. Telling stories with puppets helps little ones practice vocabulary, sequencing, and fine and gross motor skills. Our Puppets Play Kit contains the Imagination Generation Wooden Wonders Mother Goose’s Tabletop Puppet Theater, a small puppet theater that can be broken down for easy storage. This would also be great for home use, especially if you don’t want a full sized puppet theater up all the time.
As for the puppets, there are a lot out there! We love the puppets from Folkmanis Puppets because we find that they are high quality, durable, and feel great.
Wooden Dentist Set
Our Dentist Play Kit is one of our most popular kits. It includes this nice cloth and wood play dentist set. Playing dentist can be a great way to talk to your little one about teeth health, and help them feel more comfortable about going to the dentist to get a cleaning. This kit has a lot of fun parts that are sure to keep your little one engaged.
Friends and Neighbors Game
This game is designed to foster empathy in young children, ages 3 to 6 (or even older, depending on the child). The game is simple and easy to use for little ones. The company who makes the game, Peaceable Kingdom, makes lots of games that are great for ages kids 18 months to 6+ years old.
STEM and Sensory Toys
Wooden Balance Board
Balance boards are multi-functional, encouraging imaginative play and the development of gross motor skills and balance. It can be a swing, a slide, a bridge, a tunnel, a desk, a tray, and anything else you can imagine!
Straws and Connectors
This set is great for imaginative play and works for a wide age range. It is not recommended for little ones under three because of the small parts. Use the straws and connectors to build houses, cars, spaceships, and so much more.
Magna-Tiles
Magna-Tiles are great for imaginative building. They support geometry skills and architectural thinking. They are a relatively safe way to play with magnets for smaller kids where choking is a concern.
Fat Brain Toys Coggy
We recommend this item because it is one part fidget and one part puzzle. It works on critical thinking and logic skills. It is small and lightweight and even fun for grownups!
Geology Kit
We have heard great feedback on how much kids like hitting rocks with a hammer. This hammer and chisel is the real deal. The kit is recommended for older kids who can follow safety guidelines.
If you do end up purchasing any of the items through Amazon, consider supporting Ypsilanti District Library via Amazon Smile.
This post is not sponsored, no affiliate links were used.