I have another gift guide for you, and this time it’s focused on preschoolers.
For many parents this is quite a fantastic age group as they can often carry a conversation and meltdowns, whilst still relatively frequent, are usually a little easier to resolve. In the years from age 3 to age 5, your child is going to grow and learn so much. These really are the last years of complete dependence on you before they are starting school so let’s make the most of opportunities to support learning and encourage play.
Brio Train Set
This is definitely a childhood classic and another toy that is easy to find second hand due to how popular and reliable the brand has been. The layout options are endless with a variety of lengths of both straight and curved track, bridges and tunnels. These train sets can be used alongside other small world toys to create whole worlds and story lines keeping children entertained for hours on end.
Board Games
Whilst not all preschoolers are ready to play chess, tiddlywinks and snakes & ladders are perfect at this age. The learning opportunities from board games are endless - patience and turn-taking, problem solving and resilience, without forgetting counting and number recognition skills. Board games are also a nice way of connecting and bonding with your child, which as they get older can be harder to do.
Arts and Crafts Kits
The first of many kits in this gift-guide, I am always impressed by the creativity and imagination of children at this age. This is a gift that may guarantee hours of quiet however I don’t promise that leaving a preschooler with a craft kit and low supervision won’t result in a lot of mess and possibly a new haircut for your child, pet or their favourite dolly.
Science Kits
If you hadn’t realised by now, my gift guides seem to have recurring themes. Though this gift will require supervision, preschoolers are at a great age for absorbing all sorts of information. And science kits are a great way of learning in a playful and hands on way.
Dressing Up Clothes
In my under 3’s gift guide I explained how imaginative and role play helps children to understand the world around them. Dressing up costumes can also enable children to explore their sense of self and identity.
Books
If you have a preschooler then you may well have entered the “why?” stage. Whilst I absolutely love children’s curiosity and thirst for knowledge- there is nothing that makes you more aware of the holes in your own knowledge than a child with a million questions. Books like these “look inside” fact books can be great for finding age appropriate information and answers to some of the many questions that may be heading your way.
Puzzles
In my under 3’s gift guide I explained some of the benefits of puzzles, including problem solving skills, developing logic and resilience. But if you haven’t already introduced puzzles I would be aiming for a child between 3-5 years to be able to complete at least a 24 piece puzzle.
STEM Kits
I’ve already shared a science kit but KiwiCo offer more than just science kits. They have a whole host of kits designed for different ages and stages, with a focus on science, technology, engineering and maths. Activities include building little robots and mechanical toys to biology sets and they can be ordered as one offs or as a subscription which is handy too!
Magnetic Tiles
I love magnetic tiles, not only because they are pretty and colourful but also because they are open ended and can be used in so many ways. They are great for exploring shapes and can be used similarly to tangrams to make various images. Using the magnets they can also be used to build structures of various shapes and sizes and depending on the kit you can also add wheels and make vehicles. I recently occupied two 3 year olds and a 6 year old for a full hour using only a box of magnetic tiles so they will last beyond age 5 too!
YOTO Player
To be honest, I recommend the YOTO player from birth and over the years they have extended their range of cards to suit children from newborn through to the early teens. The YOTO player is a portable, screen free audio player basically an MP3 player (remember those?!) but for preschoolers. There are a portable audio players on the market however, I prefer the YOTO for a few reasons. Firstly they offer cards in a range of languages which I love, as it can expose children to different languages from a young age. Secondly, they present less as a toy than the ones with character figurines. I also like that you can record your own tonies which is great for connecting with relatives in different countries or recording stories in other languages plus I prefer the range of stories that they have.
Recipe Books
It goes without saying that you can cook with children before the age of 3 however having done plenty of cooking with toddlers, I know that not everyone has the patience nor the energy to do this. However involving preschoolers in cooking is not only a fun activity but it can reduce fussiness and food-related anxiety as well as setting the foundations for healthy relationships with food. If the idea of a recipe book feels too overwhelming there are also plenty of cooking kits that come with pre measured ingredients.
I hope my under 5’s gift guide has been helpful to you- if you are a parent or care for a toddler I’d love to know if there are any things that you have bought for your child this Christmas that I haven’t shared here!
Happy holidays!
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