They can facilitate the acquisition of new skills or provide knowledge about the world. Undoubtedly, they have a significant impact on the development of children at different ages. What is worth knowing about them and which one to choose for your child?
Supporting the development of the youngest children
In children who are at least 12 months old the development of manual skills is very important. That is why children at this age should be offered sets of thicker, wooden puzzles. Many of them are equipped with special handles. They will be a perfect exercise for kid's hands. Sets for children at this age are usually jigsaw puzzles consisting in matching appropriate shapes to gaps in a picture. They often present images of animals living in a given environment. These may be creatures living on a farm, in a forest or in the ocean. Colorful and friendly characters will attract the child's attention and make it easier to learn concentration. It will also enable the development of logical thinking. See Educational toys for babies.
Among great suggestions for toddlers from about two years old, there are sensory puzzles. The pictures usually consist of a dozen or so large elements. It is important that the friendly images are equipped with pieces of material of different texture. Pieces of soft plush or fabric imitating animal fur allow the child to learn about the world on many levels. The child learns to associate empirical impressions with images. It also influences the development of the sense of touch. Above all, however, it is an additional attraction that will certainly encourage toddlers to play.
Puzzles for older children
Preschoolers and school children should be offered jigsaw puzzles, which will facilitate the assimilation of new knowledge. Among such sets there are extremely interesting projects that make it possible to learn about the structure of the human body or to arrange a map of the whole world by oneself. A good solution, especially for pupils, may also be sets for arranging maps of individual countries. Such educational puzzles will certainly facilitate learning geography. Among interesting proposals there are also sets with the Solar System or star constellations. On the pictures showing maps of the world may also appear images referring to the culture of the given areas, which will allow to create associations. Puzzles for children matched to the age and interests can have a very positive impact on the development of the toddler. Certainly, they will also prove to be a great entertainment.