The 10 Best Learning Toys for Preschoolers (that parents love too)!

Certain toys can have a special way of making learning fun so that children don’t even realize that they are learning. Maybe you are looking for some ideas of the best learning toys available are right now.

A quality learning toy can be used for years and in different capacities as a child grows.  The best learning toys for preschoolers are good quality and versatile. They can be used even as your child enters their elementary years.

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We know that children can, and will, learn without any fancy learning toys. And I fully support the use of every day items for a child to experience hands-on learning.  However, there are also many wonderful toys available to purchase.

I personally appreciate lists of resources that have worked well for other moms and their children. In fact, some of those type of lists helped me find many of the wonderful learning resources we have. I wouldn’t have known about some of them otherwise. And so I want to share some of our favorites with you.

Kids can continue to learn with these toys

These are our 10 favorite learning toys, mainly for preschoolers. But many of them can continue to be played with beyond preschool age. They are appropriate for both girls and boys. And they are also learning toys with educational value.

In addition to our own children enjoying these toys, they have also received positive reviews by other parents.

Here are the 10 Best Learning Toys for Preschoolers that also make great gifts:

1.) Learning Resources Super Sorting Pie

This learning toy can be used in many different ways. The pieces are fruit-shaped and have different colors. The pie can be sorted by color, number or type. The fruit pieces can be used for doing patterning, sorting and pretend play on their own. The set also comes with large tweezers so your child can work on their fine motor skills. 

2.) Munchkin Bath Letters and Numbers

These letters and numbers are inexpensive and can be used both in and out of the bathtub.  When they are wet they stick to the bath walls which is so much fun.  We have a few of these sets so we have enough letters to create words and names with them. These hold up very well as long as you make sure they are dry before storing them.

3.) Learning Resources Counters

Learning Resources has a wide variety of different types of sets that can be used for sorting, patterning and play. While you can certainly use the super sorting pie fruit pieces, if your child likes bugs, dinosaurs, safari animals or something else, you can get these little figures to match their interests.

4.) LEGO DUPLO Blocks

LEGOs are extremely versatile and can be used for years. Our kids have spent hours at a time building and playing with them. And even after they “graduated” to the smaller, regular sized LEGOs they still enjoyed building with their DUPLOs when I would get them out. A great investment for us and many other families too.

5.) Melissa & Doug 60-Piece Standard Unit Blocks

This a wonderful set of wooden blocks that can be used from very young all the way into the elementary years. Your child can build all types of things with the blocks. From a racetrack for their cars, to a zoo for their animals, or a house for their little dolls there are so many things for them to create. Additionally, the blocks are very sturdy and good quality, and come in a nice wooden box. The children can have as much fun figuring out how to fit all the pieces into the box as they do building things with them.

6.) Alphabet Floor Puzzle

With so many awesome choices of alphabet floor puzzles available you really can’t go wrong with any of them. Children can learn the alphabet and sounds as you work on the puzzle together. In fact that is one of the main ways our son learned his letters and sounds.  He would point to the letters and ask what sound it made. We would do this over and over again. Our girls also loved the puzzle and got years of enjoyment out of it.

7.) Magnadoodle

It is now in color! How cool is that?! The version we had was not in color and was called a Pro Doodle. It was one of the toys that got more use than just about any other toy that we had. The kids used it to practice writing letters, numbers, words, to create drawings, and stories to go along with those drawings. It was used over and over again as one creation would get erased in order to work on another. Great for saving on paper too!

8.) Playdoh

Playdoh is a must-have item for kids, in my opinion! Children can use this in their toddler and preschool years and well beyond. There are so many great sets. And so many kids love the feel and ability to create with Playdoh. Our kids have had so many hours of fun with it.

9.) Lacing Cards

Lacing cards are a fun way for children to develop fine motor skills. Many kids enjoy them and our girls especially liked them. There are so many cute and interesting shapes and characters available. Melissa and Doug has some very cute options of lacing cards. We also like the Eeboo lacing cards.

Lacing cards are actually very easy to make. So if you prefer not to buy any you can read my post about making your own lacing cards here.

10.) Indoor Trampoline

While it’s technically not a learning toy, this indoor trampoline for kids was a lifesaver for us. During those long winter months when the kids would get really antsy, they could hop on and jump. This trampoline doesn’t take up too much space. And it lets the kids the burn off lots of energy so they can focus when they need to.

What learning toys do you and your children love that you’d add to this list?

Happy Learning!