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The current toy market has countless flashy, fancy toys.
Walk in that toy store or along a toy aisle in the supermarket and you’ll sure be amazed by the different variety of toys on sale.
Surprisingly, even with the hype that comes with these fancy toys, wooden blocks are still popular.
But are wooden blocks really good for toddlers?
The simple answer is Yes.
Wooden blocks can often be better investment than plastic building blocks for several reasons.
Read on to learn why wooden blocks are good for toddlers and how you can make it more enjoyable for your little one.
By Lilian.
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Benefits of Wooden Blocks for Toddlers
Here are a few reasons why you should get your little prince/princess those wooden blocks.
Develops their Fine Motor Skills
As your little tot picks up, stacks and positions the wooden blocks, they’re exercising the muscles on their hands and fingers.
This gives them good fine motor skills.
Fine motor skills will help them dial the phone, tie their shoelace, brush their teeth or even turn the door knob!
Builds their Imagination and Creativity
You know what I love most about blocks?
They allow our children to get on a voyage of exploration and discovery!
With blocks, a kid as young as 2 years can think of something and get right into building it.
Toddlers can make very beautiful designs with wooden blocks.
This exercises their imagination and creativity skills.
Enhances their Hand-eye Coordination
Have you watched a toddler carefully position wooden blocks so that the tower they’re building does not crumble down?
They could also go through a box of blocks to pick up only a certain color of blocks to place on a specific point of the tower they’re building.
These are perfect examples of hand-eye coordination in practice.
Don’t forget about the color recognition as they sort out the blocks!
Gives them Spatial Awareness
When playing with wooden blocks, your toddler will move them, arrange them, put them on top of each other, etc.
They start to appreciate spatial vocabulary such as ‘over”, “on top of”, “beneath”, “besides”, etc.
In this way, they’re growing their spatial perception.
Now that you know the benefits of buying your little bambino some wooden blocks, you’re probably wondering, “what can I do to ensure my little one get the most from playing with wooden blocks?”
Don’t worry. I got you covered! Read on.
Parents Tips to Ensure Toddlers Get the Most from Playing with Wooden Blocks
As a parent, there’s so much you can do to ensure your little one gets the most benefits and enjoys playing with the wooden blocks.
Play with your child(ren)!
It keeps them engaged and also makes construction play more enjoyable for them!
Initiate building challenges
You could challenge them to build a bridge, a mighty tower, a car, hospital, etc. using the wooden blocks. Let them work on this challenge.
Combine story-telling with playing with wooden blocks
For instance, if your story book mentions a princess living in a palace, you can build a palace as you read the book!
Plastic Blocks Vs Wooden Blocks
If you’re unsure whether to get plastic or wooden blocks for your toddler, let me help you.
In so many ways, wooden blocks are better than plastic ones, especially for younger toddlers.
Wooden blocks are better for the environment because they are biodegradable, hence result in less waste. This is a sharp contrast to plastic blocks which yield more waste and are non-biodegradable.
Wooden blocks are also more durable than plastic ones. They are less likely to be scratched or shatter – which also means there’s a lower risk of choking!
And although good quality and environmentally friendly wooden toys seem expensive upfront, wooden blocks are actually cheaper because they last longer than plastic ones!
Photo by AlexCorv