Gifts that Pre-school Age Children will Love!
The best toys you can get for any pre-schooler are toys that encourage play in several key areas: pretend play, music, sports, active play, and games to name a few. Plus, you're hoping they are just plain fun for the child receiving them! Choosing toys as a gift online is a great way to view the entire range of toys to find the perfect fit. Below are the top ten toys we recommend for preschool children, ranging from ages 2-5 years.
Play Tents
Tents are always a huge source of children's delight. In the old days, we used blankets and whatever furniture would hold the blankets up high enough for us to crawl inside and play for a while. Now the toy industries make play tents to save our furnishings. Several fun styles are available now from circus style, tepees, spaceships, and even cabins.
 |
Bazoongi Kids Circus Tent Play Structure - This colorful play tent will have your children playing circus all day long. |
Musical Toys
Some would argue the gift of music can truly influence a child for their entire life. Music stimulates every part of the human mind. Melodies, rhythms, lyrics all come together and open all the senses! In addition, what if you could inspire the next Liberace by giving your youngster his first piano? All musical instruments are made for children now and you can get anything from the most basic of drum, all the way to a grand piano.
 |
Grand Piano Music Toy by Melissa & Doug - Any little pianist will enjoy playing tunes on this fun piano. |
Building Sets
Construction and building is a favorite activity for children. Starting out with tons of pieces of legos, blocks, magnetic bars, even Lincoln logs, assembling them and having a one of a kind building or robot is a delight. The building category is expansive and the options are endless. Introducing building at this age can possibly steer them to exotic mobiles, cars, and jets as they get older and give you both an activity to enjoy together.
 |
GuideCraft Stak'ems Gears - 96 Piece Set - Your little builder can stack these colorful 96 pieces to make all kinds of interesting buildings and creatures. There's hours of fun to be had with this building set. |
Dress Up and Matching
This gift is similar to paper dolls we had as children, but made sturdier and much easier to dress. Most matching and dress ups are wooden boards or dolls with magnetic elements on the surface. Several choices of interchangeable pieces are available to mix and match outfits, gardens, cars, and much more. For a fun game/activity that is inexpensive, and will hold a child's attention long amounts of time, this is the perfect match!
 |
GuideCraft Flower Match Garden Patch - Your child can follow patterns or create his or her very own garden of flowers using this fun kit. |
See-n-Spell
For exceptional ways to encourage spelling, writing, and learning in general, the see-n-spell is it. This is not the electronic version made for older kids; this activity is set on a wooden board with words carved onto the surface. Similar to puzzles, this game can teach little one's the staples of speech, letters, and how they form to make words. Reading and spelling are encouraged as young as two years of age for many children. You can never start the dynamics of grammar too early!
 |
See & Spell by Melissa & Doug - Your child will learn to spell three and four letter words the fun way when using this see & spell game. |
Shoe & Shape Lacing
This gift helps children practice fine motor skills along with lacing and tying shoes. Shapes and shoe shaped pieces of wood with holes are paired with durable laces. Children love stringing the laces through all the holes connecting them together and making fun patterns. This is the perfect way for parents to introduce their child to the art of tying shoes. It?s much easier to learn when not attached to your foot!
 |
Montgomery School Lace-a-Shape by Maple Landmark - These toys will enhance your child's eye-hand coordination through fun play. |
Play Kitchens, Workshops and More
Mimicking adult activities is a huge part of growing up for children. Playing house, doctor, fireman, and teacher are fun ways a child can learn how to socialize and function day-to-day. Play kitchens are the epitome of this. Baking, mixing, and creating a masterpiece for parents and friends to eat gives them great pleasure. And the delight is double fold when we pretend to enjoy eating our pretend food. Just be sure they are the ones stuck doing the pretend dishes!
 |
Anatex Country Living Kitchen - Your little cook will be thrilled to whip up some amazing "pretend" dishes in this adorable play kitchen. |
Train Sets
Just about every child goes through the Thomas the Train phase. Trains with long rows of cars and fun design are fascinating for children. With so many options you can go from the most basic of set to a full on train table with buildings, farms, and ponds. These sets are not only toys, but can become great collectibles too. There are many "grown children" with train sets as well.
 |
PlayKraft Which Way Junction Train Set by KidKraft - Every child loves the action of a fun train set. This set will keep your little conductor busy for hours. |
Puppet Theaters
Imaginations soar with the perfect stage. Puppet theaters create the perfect space for make believe lands and even sorting out every day situations. Now puppet theaters are created from blank boards that you can draw your own theme, then erase when ready for a new one. One day you can have a show set in the big city, the next in Camelot. Sky?s the limit!
 |
Table-top Puppet Theater with Markerboard Surface by Beka - Introduce your child to the theater with this adorable puppet theater. This table-top theater will encourage hours of creative play. |
Riding Toys
For the ultimate in children's gifts, the ride-on toys take the cake. Everything a parent and child loves is set in this plastic or metal mechanism. Great physical activity, sensory stimulation, pretend play, all enjoyed in the great outdoors. The choices for ride on's are vast, but the trike, for a preschooler, is a must have. For the perfect classic gift, the tricycle is it. If you really want to give a gift that takes you back in time, as well as, delights the child, vintage style tricycles are made for total family enjoyment.
 |
Airflow Collectibles Skyking Tricycle - This tricycle will have your little guy or girl zooming around for hours. |
