Puzzles for Toddlers

Yes, it’s been a while since I’ve had a post…but for good reason. Starting a new photojournalism consulting business and excepting baby number 2 takes a lot out of you.

Vivien is 32 months now and really loving puzzles but we aren’t loving all the pieces that get left out. Now that she has mastered all her wooden peg puzzles we have found a few other puzzles that are a great next step before the box of little 250 piece puzzles are introduced.

One she LOVES over and over a again is a wooden Robot Puzzles by Vilac (above) that is 3 different puzzles in one box. Great early puzzle as the pieces are wooden so it stands up to more abuse and potential chewing. She puts the rocket ship together by herself no problem as it’s 5 pieces. The robot is about 8 pieces and the spaceship is about 16, each a little more difficult than the last one. Cute playful design as well.

I found The Learning Journey puzzles to be a great brand for toddlers as there are many puzzles only 30 pieces, big enough for their little hands and not too complicated to put together. They aren’t too easy either so there is life for these puzzles after the first time they are put together. The pictures are fun, busy and bright. The puzzles are designed to promote discussions with what is going on in the puzzle. Some, like the castle one above, you can turn over and color the scene yourself adding another level of creativity to the puzzle.

The third puzzle I think is really great Vivien just got for Christmas. Creature by Andrew Zuckerman floor puzzle(below). The images are photographs of animals, a monkey, pair of baby tigers, a lion and an elephant ( that reminds me of images in a book called Vanishing Giants: Elephants of Asia, by Palani Mohan, a photographer I worked with for several years at Getty Images.) It is two full puzzles printed on both sides (so less pieces) but a total of 4 different scenes. These are a notch or two more difficult and she needs a lot of help, yet the pieces fit together even if they don’t match making her feel like she is doing a great job. “I did it, I did it!” as she says.