What are open-ended toys and why must you add them to your playroom? Open-ended toys encourage problem-solving skills, imaginative play, and communication. You’ll want to add these types of toys to your child’s playroom because they will keep your child engaged all day long.
So what’s the opposite of an open-ended toy? Close-ended toys are a one and done deal. For example, a play remote control with buttons that make different sounds is a close-ended toy. The purpose is to press the buttons and hear the sound it makes. I loved these kind of toys for my daughter when she was 10 months old. Now that she’s older she quickly loses interest with these types of toys. Another example of a close-ended toy is a hammer and pegs. This a great toy to teach hand-eye coordination, but the only purpose is to hammer in the pegs. Once your child has mastered this, they no longer have a use for that toy.
When it comes to adding toys to your child’s playroom, variety is key! Below is my list of 6 types of open-ended toys that will foster creativity and independence. If you’re looking for more help with organizing your playroom so that your child actually plays with their toys check out my other post.
1. Stacking Toys
Toys that you can stack are great for young toddlers and they grow with your child. My daughter’s favorite thing to do at 18 months is build a tall tower and knock it over. As she gets older, she can use these blocks to build different structures. Figuring out how different shapes fit together encourages problem-solving skills. Below are some great stacking toys:
2. Small People, Places, and Things
This list of toys encourages so much communication and imaginative play. You can teach a ton of language like animal sounds, preposition words, and functional words they’ll use throughout their day.
- I love the Little People sets for young toddlers
- Animal Figurines
- The Calico Critters Doll House was my favorite when I was little!
3. Pretend Play Toys
It’s amazing watching my 18 month old begin to engage in more imaginative play. She loves feeding her baby, tucking her in, and taking her on stroller rides. Pretend play toys are a necessity in every playroom and there are so many options out there.
- We love our play kitchen and accessories! When my nieces and nephews are here, I can see the range in ages and how this toys grows with children. From chopping vegetables to serving a meal at a pretend restaurant, this is a toy you’ll want to invest in for years of fun.
- Baby doll and accessories
- Dress up costumes like this veterinarian set.
- Puppets– create a stage out of a cardboard box and have your child color the box to set up a scene.
Sensory Play Toys
The sky’s the limit when it comes to sensory play! As a former teacher, I can say this type of play is a crowd favorite.
- Play-Doh
- These Sensory tubes are flexible and they connect so you can turn them into shapes, letters, or necklaces. Your little one can practice their fine motor skills by dropping poms poms through them or they can become whisper phones. They also make a fun sound when you spin them around.
- Kinetic Sand
- Read my other post to learn how to make your own sensory bin!
Art Supplies
The wonderful thing about art supplies, is the more options you give your child, the more open-ended it is.
- Paint, crayons, pipe cleaners, felt stickers, poms poms, feathers
- Think of things you have lying around your house that can be recycled like a cardboard box, toilet paper roll, or a rock from outside.
- If your younger toddler isn’t quite ready for arts and crafts, try this water doodle mat or this magnetic drawing board.
Gross Motor Toys
We often forget about this category of gross motor play. It’s SO important to make sure we are teaching gross motor skills in addition to fine motor skills. Here are some open-ended gross motor toys:
- The Nugget couch can be used as a reading spot, gymnastics mat, fort, or obstacle course.
- A parachute teaches cooperative play skills and you can use it in so many different ways.
- Hula Hoops and balls
- Carpet markers can be used for direction-following, color sorting, counting, obstacle courses and more.
- I will be adding this new toy called the Moluk Bilibo to my daughter’s Christmas list this year. Kids can use it as a seat, a sled, or a bucket for sand. They can stack different sizes on top of each other, use them as a hat, or sit and spin in them.
