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the ultimate toddler gift guide (girls & boys!) 

Yes, of course we want to have toys that our children love and learn from. We also want to keep our homes from being overrun by unnecessary toys, causing clutter, overwhelm and over stimulation. And finally, we want a variety of toys that meet our children’s learning, physical and emotional needs. 

This list of toys for toddlers has got you covered! Whether you want useful gifts for toddlers or the best toddler toys for your own toddler – you will find some great ones here! (I am a mom of twin toddlers and the owner of a Montessori-inspired daycare and preschool, so I’ve got some great recs!)

I’ve put together the best toys for toddlers that will keep your child’s day wonderfully balanced, diverse, interesting and more enjoyable for all. 

You will find what you need in this ultimate toddler gift guide filled with awesome, useful gifts for toddlers!

the best toddler toys are battery-free & diverse

The best toddler toys are the ones that toddlers sit with for a while. The ones that aren’t noisy, busy, flashy, with only one function that gets thrown around or banged on once, but instead are – multi-function, can be molded, changed, recreated, that teach a variety of things that their rapidly growing brains will benefit from. With these types of toys – I see imagination, creativity, problem solving, learning of new things… AND neither them, nor I, get over stimulated by constant loud noises.

When I do have noise-making toys, and I only have a few, I set designated, timed times to use those – like music time or noisy play time. 10-15 minute all-in play, then those get set aside for the next designated time.

Here is my ultimate toddler gift guide, the best toddler toys for girls & boys, that create a balanced day!

In no particular order, these are the best toddler toys for 2-year-olds to 5-year-olds! Whether for your family or useful gifts for toddlers of friends and family members, you are sure to find some beloved toddler toys here! (note: be mindful of small parts if your toddler still places things in their mouth. Always check the age recommendation on each toy before deciding what is right for you.)

 

Brain Teaser Tangram Puzzle – Endless renditions of putting this one together! Independent play, problem solving, geometry – amazing to see your toddler go for it and place those pieces time and time again. I’ve found that this toddler toy is an excellent self-initiated activity and one that is great for quiet time or calm down time.

 

Doorway Sensory Swing Kit – Get those wiggles out! Toddlers need to move often, if not almost always. Moving helps them exert their energy and regulate their emotions. This amazing indoor swing toddler toy is the perfect addition for all toddler homes! Especially so, if it’s too hot in the summer to go outside, too cold in the winter or if your toddler has sensory sensitivities. My spirited toddler loves her swing and the busy toddlers here at my playschool love it too. There are attachments for a handle bar and two swings. 

 

Coin Drop – Repetition, focus, fine motor skills, fun! Listen, I cut a slit in a large amazon box and call it a ‘book drop’ and the toddlers here LOVE IT! This is essentially a mini version of that and it is a very satisfying toddler toy for them to play with. If you sit and play alongside them, you can ask them to count the coins as they drop, in English and Spanish or even wrap the coins in tissue paper and have them unwrap them and then drop them!

Indoor/Outdoor Bounce House – Yes! That is a bounce house haha! One of those toddler toys that really allows your toddler to exert that energy and regulate themselves! Want them to feel calm for nap? Want them to be tired and ready to sit for a meal? Want them to help themselves reset when they are wound up? Adding a bounce house to the mix can absolutely give your toddler the release they need and the calmness you crave! This comes with a pump and is compact enough to fit in a living room or play room space. It’s quick to fill up and deflate and store. I use mine weekly and I can’t imagine not having it! Grab an iced coffee (or glass of champagne) and supervise the independent fun! 

 

Magnet Tiles – Colors, shapes, imagination, creativity, critical thinking, hand-eye coordination, so many things! One of the most beloved toddler toys here at my Montessori-inspired playschool, are these magnet tiles! Independent play and creation all day AND I love to use them for ‘focused play’, where I sit next to a toddler and we do a guided activity. For example, just today we did a letter match and sound aloud activity, where I wrote a handful of letters on a large piece of paper, wrote the same letters on a bunch of magnet tiles and each toddler matched the magnet tile to the letter. We sounded out each letter and then they got to build whatever they wanted after. Hands on fun learning and play! Magnet tiles can also be a wonderful tool to use during potty training. You can learn more about my Mindful & Peaceful Potty Training Method here. And read my potty training blog posts here.

 

Kinetic Sand Kit – Real life skills – cutting, scooping, balancing, fine motor skills, creativity, super sensory! This toddler toy is a favorite! All of the accessories give lots of variety and options for what to use to handle the sand next. The bag to store all of the supplies is super helpful, toddlers love the blow up tray and it is sure to provide lots of focused play! We play with this almost daily with 1-4yr olds here. Kinetic sand can be messy, so stay close and set a time limit if you have to step away so you aren’t dealing with overly thrown around, crazy sand mess (been there!)

 

See My Feelings Social Emotional Mirror – Just as your toddler is learning the rules of the world, their ABCs and their numbers, they need to learn about what emotions are, what impulses they make us have and how we can manage our reactions from our emotions so we can play nicely with others, be less destructive with toys and help ourselves feel better when we are worked up. Co-regulation is a key action parents must take to help their inexperienced, impulsive, irrational, brain-under-construction toddlers learn how to manage their emotions and this toddler toy, the See My Feelings Mirror is an awesome way to get them engaged in their learning! They get to hold the mirror, it’s shatter-proof and there are pop up tabs for faces that correspond with each emotion that they can mimic in the mirror – such a great, hands on way to learn! We keep ours in our peace corner, similar to a calm down corner or calm space, and bring it out for story times too.

 

 

Alphabet, Animal, Number, REAL FOOD Puzzle Set – This is a great puzzle set that can grow with your toddler! Puzzles are an essential toy on the list of best toddler toys because they offer hand-eye coordination, finger strength, problem solving skills and repeated exposure to images, shapes, letters that they are learning about. One thing I REALLY LOVE about this set is that it has the letter, shape, number basics PLUS a puzzle with real pictures of food, which is very very helpful in teaching toddlers about foods and warding off picky eating! Early and frequent exposure to real pictures of different foods and real foods, can help a toddler feel safe and comfortable to eat new foods. Struggle with picky eating? Grab my FREE Transforming Picky Eating Starter Guide here. And you can read my picky eater blog posts here.

Indoor/Outdoor Trampoline – Yes! A trampoline. Get those bodies moving in a safe, contained way! This one is compact, with a 3ft frame, making it practical for most living rooms and playrooms. It can easily be hung in the garage by a bike hook or put outside. We move ours in and outdoors, depending on season and/or weather and mood for the day. We’ve had ours for over 2 years now and the 1yr -5 yr olds love it. Another wonderful and safe way to bounce, jump, hang, swing and release all that energy and emotion! 

Color & Shapes Matching Egg Set – This toddler toy is another favorite! Many toddlers love surprises and discovering goodies inside of easter eggs, carrying them around in baskets or purses and lining them up in the carton. No need to wait until Easter now! With this toddler toy, they practice real life skills, gripping, hand-eye coordination, have exposure to shapes and colors and counting too! You can mix them up and have them find and match them, they could open and reattach or take out, count, and replace back into the carton. Lots of opportunity for versatile and engaging learning with this toddler toy!

Bristle Blocks – Another staple! Timeless! Toddlers and older children, even adults, love handling these sensory blocks. Sort them by color, shape, count them, create endless creations! This is another great one to use with potty training. We like to use these for travel, in the shower, in or outdoor, in the car – almost anywhere!

Sit And Spin – Another perfect busy toy to get those wiggles out! Toddlers and preschoolers 18 months to 5 years have so much fun grabbing on and spinning with this toddler toy! We use it at story time if the kiddos are feeling fidgety, during free play, during dance parties, a lot! It’s light, compact and flush to the floor, making it very safe and easy to handle. “Look how fast I can go now momma!” Our play room would not be the same without it!

 

    

Trains and Tracks – This toddler toy (is a two part set, they sell the trains separately) is another timeless piece AND can grow with your toddler. They can start out just putting tracks together and linking trains, then start building some impressive railways and really going for it! Excellent for quiet play, motor skills, creativity, problem solving and more. The boys and girls here use them as a team, independently and often! We’ve had ours for over 5 years now!

Pattern Blocks – This toddler toy is one that I just love to see what toddlers create with. They make such beautiful and interesting designs both laying on the ground and straight up into the air. Each creation looks like a masterpiece! You can tell the kids even amaze themselves with what they create. So special! This set comes with cards that you can use to inspire or challenge them to shape creation or you can just let them do their own creations! Color recognition, shapes, geometry, counting and math, fine motor skills and fun fun fun. Oh, and these blocks with the cards can be another great one to use with potty training.

Balance Board – Another great busy, movement, energy release toddler toy! We use this often for story time, free play and quiet time. The children love to balance on it if they are feeling wiggly at story time, they love to lay in it and look through books or cuddle their baby during quiet time and they flip it over and use it as a stool or surface for cars and building! I love having this as part of our play options and seeing the toddlers use it in so many different ways each day. A very useful toddler toy!

Race Car Drop – Talk about an obsession! Ages 2 to 5 years old love this race car drop race track! My husband loves it too haha! Place the car and watch it race down, and repeat! Sometimes we put painter’s tape or draw a track on paper and use this car drop  as the starting point for a longer race. This toddler toys has longevity and appeals to girls and boys!

Realistic Kitchen Set – Practice those practical life skills and have fun mirroring what mom and dad do! This toddler toy is a must-have staple that kids go to every day throughout the day to ‘work’ at! Comes with a bunch of supplies like a knife and foods for cutting, an apron, mixing spoons, pots and all are BPA-free, non-toxic and eco-friendly. Give your toddler a gift they will use for years and years AND as they grow, you can make it more functional by adding real snacks in the cabinets, their cups and utensils etc! 

Hammer Toy – Not one single kid I’ve ever worked with hasn’t loved this open-ended hammering toddler toy! It’s such a fun activity that helps with hand control, hand-eye coordination, focus, patience and it is so fun! We use this with pumpkins in the fall (yes! Hammer into a pumpkin!) and into playdo and recycled boxes. The kids can go for hours with this toddler toy! For the older kids, I will challenge them to hammer a letter onto the box like a “C” or follow a line I draw on the box. So many possibilities! I like to use this with potty training (hammer into a box) and just be sure to monitor closely with this one!

Hopper Balls – I had these when I was a kid and loved them! And the kids still love them today! Another excellent ‘get your body moving’ toy that will grow with your toddler! You can race on these, toss these to one another, play bowling with them, flop on top with your belly, and sometimes the kids even like to sit on these for wiggly story time OR lunch time – so many ways to get bouncy and release some energy!

Felt Wall Hanging Story Board – We all LOVE our felt under the sea board! I ordered felt letters too. It is a wonderful activity for quiet time, wind down time before nap, encourages problem solving and motor skills! I love to also use it for guided activities like – ‘hunt and place’ – where I place a large creature on the felt wall and ask the toddlers to look through all the pieces to find the smaller ones and place them onto the wall. Lots of fun to be had for years with this toddler toy!

See & Spell Letter Puzzles – This toddler toys has pictures, letters, a variety of colors and a great storage tray! Be careful not to use it if your toddler is still putting things in their mouth, as the letters are small. This puzzle set is versatile – I use it for forming sentences with my older preschoolers, practicing letter sounds, sorting by color and letter, matching, counting, we use it for quiet time and wind down time – so many options, fun and educational! Easily a toddler toy that is useful for years.

Number Count & Match Pops – Lots of toddlers love to take caps on and off of things AND they love popsicles sooo needless to say this math toddler toy is a hit! We keep them in the toddler kitchen, use them in the bath and even for water play and focused/guided play – very versatile and durable!

 

 

 

 

conclusion

And there you have it! The ultimate toddler gift guide of awesome and useful toddler toys! These are some of our absolute favorites and we hope you find so much joy and ease filling your playroom with them too!

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