Creative Toys for Children That You Want to Keep
Oct 24, 2023
You're getting rid of excess stuff, including toys, but you want to keep toys that foster your children's imagination and creativity. You want them to learn as they play. You don't want to donate toys you should keep. So, what are creative toys for children? And why is creative play even important for my child? What are the best creative toys? Let's tackle these questions and more.
Why is Creative Play Important?
From the time your baby is born, he/she is constantly learning. Babies learn by watching, experimenting, touching, and even by failing. They grow and learn so much, especially in their first several years. Creative play is important in this process since it helps in many areas of your child's development.
Benefits of creative play
There are many benefits of creative play. These benefits will grow and develop your child in many areas. So, what are some of the benefits of creative play?
- Allows creative thinking and expression
- Develops motor skills
- Develops intellectual skills
- Allows practice in communication skills
- Learn to be hands on
- Enhanced literacy
- Stronger leadership skills
- Better perseverance
What are the Best Creative Toys?
The best creative toys are toys that encourage imagination. Toys that every kid should have are toys that are open-ended. By that, I mean toys that have many ways of playing with them. They don't just do one or two things, but are toys that have endless uses, can be used to create many different things, and encourage hours of play. This type of toy makes the best creative toys for kids.
Toys that encourage imagination
Below are some classic toys that will encourage your child's imagination. Some children will gravitate to some of these toys but not others. However, they're all great to have around. These will also work for boys or girls.
You can't go wrong with classic Legos. These are great for children ages 4 and up. My own children have spent countless hours playing with legos. We also love the toys that encourage imagination listed below.
Besides Legos, here are some other fabulous toys to have around.
- Magnetic Tiles. These are definitely popular in our home for children of all ages.
- Brain Flakes. I think these are a newer option, but they are fun to build with.
- Dolls. Yes, boys can have fun with dolls, too. My children have played for hours with dolls and doll accessories clothes.
- Dress-up clothing. Generic dress-up clothing is so fun for letting the imagination soar. Even silk scarves can be a cape, a dress, or part of a fort. Of course, more specific dress-up clothing is fun as well. My little girls love to be princesses.
- Art and craft supplies. Arts and crafts are a hit in our home. I recommend keeping much of it where it's not freely accessible though. That way you don't always have feathers, sequins, and glitter glue everywhere!
- Musical Instruments. These can be so fun, but definitely noisy as well!
- Trucks and cars or trains. These will vary depending on the age and interests of your children, but are great fun, especially in the first half of childhood.
- Plastic figures of a favorite animal. Dinosaurs and horses have been favorites in our home.
Creative educational toys
Especially as your children grow older, you may want to get them toys that are creative as well as educational. There are certainly many options available, so I would factor in the interests of your child before purchasing. There are some websites such as Fat Brain Toys that are dedicated to creative, educational toys.
This ThinkFun Gravity Maze Marble Run Brain Game and STEM Toy is a "Toy of the Year" award winner. Best for children ages 8 and up. The classic marble run is a great choice as well.
- IQ Builder - STEM learning toy. Made for ages 3-10, this is a building set that provides hours of creativity while developing hand-eye coordination, logic, and problem-solving abilities.
- Grow 'N Glow Terrarium Kit for Kids. This is great for any child interested in the natural world, and combines the wonder of science with the creativity of art.
- Snap Circuits Electronic Exploration Kit. Best for ages 8 and up, children can make over 300 projects as they learn the basics on electric circuits and how they work.
- Butterfly Garden. This kit comes with the live caterpillars, a journal, and then the habitat. Your child will be ready to learn all about the amazing transformation from caterpillar to butterfly!
Creative Toys for Kids
There you have it! You now know many of the benefits of creative play for your child along with some toys to keep around. When you are decluttering toys, these are examples of toys to keep around. You do want to be choosy about which toys to allow in order to decrease clutter, but you also want your children to have great toys for growing and developing. What toys do your children spend hours playing with? Did you see any "must-haves" above? Please comment below.
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