Are you looking for an educational toy for your grandchild that will actually keep his or her attention for longer than a week? I know I’m always on the lookout for ideas, so I’ve put together some of the toys I’ve come across this holiday season in this guide.
Educational Toys
The toys in this holiday gift guide will keep little hands busy while causing creative juices to flow!
The links in this post are affiliate links. Which means if you click on the link and end up making a purchase, I get a small referral fee at no extra cost to you. It’s very much appreciated!
I’m showcasing a few items here, but they have many, many more toys and educational resources and they’re available on Amazon. So if you’re a Prime member, you can take advantage of quick delivery and often free shipping!
Learning Resources
Code and Go Robot Mouse Activity Set
- This coding set for kids turns coding into a hands-on analog activity for tactile and visual learners
- As kids learn to program they build key skills that include critical thinking, problem solving, sequencing, and programming fundamentals
- Colby lights-up, makes sounds, and features 2 speeds along with colorful buttons to match coding cards for easy programming and sequencing
- This coding set includes 16 maze grids, 22 maze walls, 3 tunnels, 30 double-sided coding cards, 10 double-sided activity cards, cheese wedge, and activity guide to provide a hands-on introduction to coding concepts
- Included 16 maze grids create a 20″ x 20″ maze board and Colby the mouse measures 4″L and requires 3 AAA batteries (not included). Ideal for ages 5+
Tumble Trax Magnetic Marble Run
- Encourage critical thinking and STEM skills with this fun, dynamic toy!
- Endless combinations of designs provide multiple levels of learning
- Includes 14 magnetic foam pieces (longest measures 10″L x 2″H), 4 marbles, and 10 activity cards
- Winner of the Toy Industry Association 2016 Specialty Toy of the Year Award
- Ideal for ages 5+
Puzzle Globe- A fun, engaging way to encourage children as young as 3 to learn geography
- Challenging puzzle will keep kids engaged and playing over and over again
- Teaches continent names, the oceans, famous landmarks, and more!
- Globe rotates on its sturdy base
- For PreK and up!
“Engages even reluctant learners with colorful, versatile super-size floor mat design. Reinforces a range of early learning skills: color and shape recognition, numbers and counting (1-10), problem solving and gross motor skills.” – Learning Resources
Learning Resources Super Sorting Pie, 68 Pieces
- Fruity pie teaches early math skills and attributes (colors and fruit shapes)
- Master early academic standards such as grouping, sorting, and counting
- Strengthen fine motor skills and develop pre-writing pincer grasp with jumbo pinchers
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Educational Insights
This is another great creator of educational kids toys and this is only a small sampling of the many items that are available. These can also be found on Amazon.
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- Set includes three oversized puppets on sticks, including Fez, Kai, and Lex, each measuring 12″ high!
- Rubberized puppets feature silly faces with movable mouths—simply pull the knob at the bottom to open and close!
- Perfect for puppet shows, story time, circle time, YouTube videos, family announcements, and more.
- A playful twist on traditional puppets, these non-electronic friends inspire creativity and imagination.
- Winner of countless toy awards including the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Toy Award, Parent’s Choice Recommended Award, ASTRA Best Toy of the Year, and more.
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- Try a tricky new twist on word games with this two-level, triple-rhyming, family-friendly, card game for all ages!
- Listen to three clues – be the first to shout out three answers that rhyme and you win the round! Win 10 rounds and you win the game!
- Includes 600 questions – 1,800 rhyming words! – and 2 levels of play.
- Builds vocabulary and develops listening comprehension skills
- Winner of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Best Toy Gold Seal Award.
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- Raccoons have raided your closet and they’re having a party! Help these masked bandits get dressed—the critter that collects the most costumes wins!
- The perfect first game, helps preschoolers develop memory, color-matching, fine motor skills, and social skills like turn-taking.
- 2 games in 1! Spread cards out, face down to play a skill-building costume memory game!
- Winner: Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal, National Parenting Publication Gold, National Parenting Center, and Family Fun Toys of the Year awards.
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The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game
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- Develops matching, sorting, strategic thinking, hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills and pre-handwriting skills
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Fat Brain Toys
Fat Brain Toys OffBits – CareBit
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- Sets of uniquely designed nuts, bolts, and springs for building all kinds of fun, robot-like characters
- Encourages fine motor skills, visual-spatial skills, planning, creativity, critical-thinking, problem-solving, imaginative play
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- Great for all ages 5+; high quality, durable, safe design and materials; sturdy game pieces, game board, and instructions are highly intuitive; easy to play, challenging to solve
- Strengthens object recognition, sequencing skills, matching abilities, logic, critical thinking, creative thinking; each puzzle is more challenging than the last; WILDLY effective logic-building entertainment
- Winner of Parents’ Choice Gold Award, Named one of the best educational toys by USA Weekend
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Fat Brain Toys Rollobie Baby Toy – Green
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- A gliding, rolling, rattling, sensory-building friend.
- Encourages gross motor skills, tactile development, fine motor skills, imaginative play, audial development.
- Ages 12 mos +
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Froogz – 50 Piece Suction Toy Construction Set | Building Kit
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- Encourages creativity, fine motor skills, interaction, playful experimentation
- Gratifying fun for bathtub, walls, windows, school lockers, tabletops, desktops
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Legos
Legos are always a good choice when looking for a toy that will entertain your grandchild over and over again. There are so many options available now, for ages ranging from 1 1/2 – 14. Here are some ideas, but there are many, many more sets available too.
LEGO DUPLO My First Farm 10617 Learning Toy for Toddlers
LEGO 31045 Creator Ocean Explorer Science Toy for Kids
LEGO Disney Princess Moana’s Ocean Voyage 41150 Disney Moana Toy
Melissa and Doug
*This game is also available in a preschool version and 1st and 2nd grade version.
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- Whimsical design and lighthearted tone get kids excited about learning.
- Illustrated activities include picture puzzles, math challenges, tongue-twisters, mazes, vocabulary builders, and more.
- Developed with educators to support the curriculum of each grade level
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Melissa & Doug Sort and Snap Color Match – Sorting and Patterns Educational Toy
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- Great for color recognition, sorting, and beginning math skills
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Melissa & Doug Scissor Skills Activity Book With Pair of Child-Safe Scissors (20 Pages)
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- Paper-cutting project book with pre-printed activity pages
- 20 activity pages
- Includes plastic safety scissors that naturally encourage proper form
- Features mazes, puzzles, animal art, sequencing activities, and much more
- Encourages fine motor skills and cognitive skills
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Melissa & Doug Classic Heirloom Victorian Wooden Dollhouse
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- Intricate, realistic Victorian detailing: hand-painted shingles, scroll-cut accents, ornate window frames, elegant staircases
- Full-color interior graphics unique to every room
- Easy to assemble
- Sturdy wooden construction
- Scale: 1:12
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I hope you were able to find something in these suggestions that will be the perfect gift for the perfect little someone in your life!
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