The Best Toys for 3 year-olds: Gift Guide for Christmas 2020
Looking for toys and gift ideas that will stimulate and engage your 3 year old this Christmas? These are my top picks of the best toys for 3 year-olds that will stimulate their imagination, create learning opportunities and will have them coming back to play again and again.
How to choose the best toys for 3 year-olds this Christmas?
- Toys that can be used in different ways – these will keep your child’s attention longer because of the variety.
- Toys that will grow with your child, these will have different difficulty levels or varying options of how to play as your child gets older.
- Toys that encourage exploring, experimenting and problem-solving.
- Toys that focus on hands-on play – open-ended activities will engage your child’s creativity.
Haba Town Maze Magnetic STEM Developmental Activity
This is a great STEM toy to help develop fine motor dexterity, visual spatial skills, counting and colour recognition. The aim of the game is to get the colourful balls back home to their matching-coloured garage. By sliding the magnetic wand over the plastic cover your child can guide the balls home while navigating the roadblocks.
Why do I love this toy?
- The magnetic wand is tethered to game-board by string, with a storage slot on the side of the board (the string is just long enough to reach all parts of the maze but not too long so as to get tangled or present a safety hazard).
- The small balls are completely self-contained, making it safe for young children and easy to take in the car or when travelling.
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Bright and cheerful graphics encourage creativity and early language development, while the challenges of the game promote problem-solving skills.
Flower Garden Building Toy Educational Activity 
This is an engaging educational toy that will help your child to learn about the parts of a plant while developing hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills. This pretend gardening set is a bright and colourful STEM toy made with BPA free, eco-friendly materials. The set contains: 1 box, 8 bases, 52 stem and leaf sections, 34 flower pieces, 34 stamen and 2 flower pots.
Why do I love this toy?
- Easy to clean and pack away in the handy green box, so it is great for taking in the car or travelling.
- The creative possibilities are endless as children can build, match and sort the flowers in different combinations each time they play.
- Children will learn the names of a selection of flower types – lilies, daisies, morning glory, plum blossom, orchid, hibiscus and murraya.
Learning Resources 1-2-3 Build It!
This building kit allows children to construct three different vehicles from just one set of mix-and-match parts. Chunky, easy-to-handle parts let kids build and rebuild their own rocket, train or helicopter before embarking on imaginative journeys. Children improve vocabulary skills of building parts such as wheels and propellers while developing fine motor skills. Included in the kit are the multi-purpose parts needed to create three vehicles (one at a time), a play wrench and fun pilot figure.
Why do I love this toy?
- Early engineering concepts are promoted through hands-on building and problem-solving skills.
- Kid-sized play wrench helps kids put vehicles together and helps them get an understand of real-world tools
- Instructions are included to help children understand how the pieces fit together. As they develop their skills, they can begin to build independently.
Daniel Tiger’s Welcome to Main Street
Looking to introduce your 3-year-old to board games? This is the perfect game to start with as it is a simple enough concept to hold their attention, while encouraging non-competitive, interactive gameplay. In the Welcome to Main Street game, players join Daniel Tiger and his friends as they make their way through the Neighbourhood of Make-Believe. Players stop-by shops on Main Street to collect items for their backpacks, while always remembering to say “Thank you!”. Board games help build social skills and an understanding of waiting for your turn. This game also promotes simple counting and coordination skills.
Why do I love this game?
- With only a 1, 2, 3 spinner, it is easy enough for a 3 year-old to play and understand.
- Encourages interactive gameplay and builds social skills while reinforcing simple counting and coordination.
- Can be played with 2 to 4 players, so it is a game the whole family can get involved in.
Kid K’NEX – Budding Builders Building Set
This is the perfect first building set for 3 year-olds. It will ignite their natural curiosity and creativity. Children learn the basic concepts of building with a toy set that contains 100 vibrantly-coloured pieces, such as eyes, curly tails, floppy ears, big feet, bendable joints, and spinning propellers. Promote creativity by allowing your child to craft basic-looking figures on their own, and guide them in constructing complex structures that will ignite their curiosity. This STEM-based toy supports key areas of a 3 year-olds’ developmental growth such as strengthening hand-eye coordination, fine motor skills, problem-solving skills, spatial awareness, and, of course, exercising their imagination.
Why do I love this toy?
- The connector pieces are large and rubber, which makes it easy for young children to hold and connect, and the large, plastic rods are easy to manipulate.
- Comes in a reusable plastic tub that allows convenient storage of the pieces, making it easy to transport.
- Comes with an instruction sheet that contains step-by-step procedures for 50 building ideas.
Choosing the best toys for 3 year-olds this Christmas doesn’t have to be difficult!
Remember that educational does not have to mean boring! If you get involved with unpacking and understanding how to use these developmental toys, your child will want to get involved as well. The best toys and gift ideas are the ones that allow you to have fun with your child, engage with them and enjoy spending time together – there is no greater way to bond.
