Top Educational Building Toy Sets for Kids

Building toys are not like every other toy in the box being left alone in the dark never to be played with again. I mean yeah they offer entertainment value, but so much more. Children building with blocks boost creativity and physical development. They contribute to establishing early logic, spatial skills, engineering, and learning. So what is the best building toy sets for kids?

Open-ended games such as building blocks encourage your little one to form problem-solving readiness and quickness along with motor skills!

Big building blocks for kids From Large to Jumbo building sets for the toddlers to intricate sets for the more experienced.  The best building blocks for kids will vary depending on age and skills. Block building activities for preschoolers will have different options than for a 10-year old that is able to build by the following plans.

If you’re planning to shop for building toys, you might want to take a few factors into account. Particularly if you’re concerned about how the toy is going to have an impact on your little tot’s brain. Children building blocks come in many shapes and sizes with lots of different materials. Most importantly keep an eye out for recommended ages. Safety is the first on the checklist. So if you’re thinking of buying building block toys for your child nothing fits the bill better than the building blocks recommended below.

Building toys are supposed to encourage development. Here are some very important benefits best building toys for kids.

The Benefits of Toy Blocks, What skills do building blocks develop?

• Building Toys develop Motor Skills and Hand-Eye Coordination

How does a child or even an adult use building toys? He or she picks up the blocks, takes them apart, and puts them back together. They do so while also building finger dexterity. So such actions contribute to developing gross and fine motor skills and hand eye coordination.

• Building Toys and Problem-Solving

It’s not always easy to assemble building blocks the way you pictured in your head. Children tend to learn quickly that the structures will topple over if not balanced. And according to that, they understand how and where to fit the blocks to avoid the tip-over. So it’s only logical to assume that your child learns to correct problems. By problem-solving the child learns to develop spatial reasoning skills. Trial and error will start to happen in the mind before they even try it. Spatial abilities increased in this study from using toy blocks.

• Building Toys and Social/Language Skills

Collaborative play, in most cases, is an inevitable outcome of building toys. And when more kids are involved, communication skills receive a boost. And so does the necessity for language. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16908476: this study proves social skills increase from lego therapy with other kids. https://www.thesmartconsumer.com/tips-raise-children

• Building Toys and Creativity

The possibilities with building blocks are endless. I mean a robot structure can be transformed into a spaceship, building, tower, or box. The sky is the limit when it comes to building from your imagination. This is what promotes counterfactual reasoning. It helps your kid to understand and use his or her creative mind. So remember, the more building blocks your child has, the more he or she can experiment in terms of creativity. Think different types and styles as they grow.

Toy Block Construction play helps kids develop engineering skills

Understanding structures and gravity is a complicated task to master. Using legos and blocks can help begin this understanding early on. Engineers and scientists build physical models: It helps to test and explore ideas. Blocks are even used in some classrooms at the college level. Blocks can be used with logical principles to understand scientific relationships.

• Building Toys and Entertainment

Fun is the most important part of every toy, and it always should be. Many such building kits are equipped with a book full of suggestions and instructions. This opens the door to more design possibilities and unlimited building options. Even better for parents, kids learn to play on their own. Yes-you may actually get a few minutes to yourself by buying Legos, planks or blocks.

 Top Building Blocks for Toddlers​

For toddlers, you want to keep it simple. Large and easy to stack. If they can learn numbers or letters at the same time then we have a win.

My top pick for toddlers building blocks are alphabet blocks

SainSmart Jr. Wooden ABC Blocks 

• A big plus to these alphabet letters is they are Washable and reusable mesh bag included
• 40 pcs that include letters, numbers, and math symbols and pics with words
• highly rated and Improves dexterity, fine motor skills, and hand-eye coordination
• Remember safety is at the top of the list. These are NATURAL AND SAFE WOODEN: Made of 100% natural pine wood and
  • stained with non-toxic water-based paint and heat printing illustration with burnt color
  • Fully tested to the highest U.S. ASTM toy safety standards.
  • ∙ Recommended age: 18+ months

You can find these top rated ABC blocks here on Amazon

Cons:

• Some of the etching is a little light
• the mesh bag is cheaply made

Big Lego Blocks for Toddlers is My Second top Pick:

Mega Blocks First Builders Deluxe Building Bag 

I love the size for young ones and the endless possibilities of imagination. With plastic, you always get more for your money than wood. My kids have spent endless hours with these. It works out great for kids to be able to play alone. I don’t know what I would have done without legos and blocks. The larger shape makes it easier for younger ones to handle.

Pros and Features

• 150 classic colored blocks that are 100% washable 
• the recommended age group is 1- 5 years old
• Perfect for little hands
• Comes with durable Reusable bag for easy storage
• Will fit all other Mega Bloks toddler block sets
• BPA-free and from top quality 100% safe commercial-grade plastic

Cons

-no educational letters, numbers or pictures

Best Stem Toys for Preschoolers age 3 and up

As kids get older they advance into more options. My favorites are magnetic building blocks or tiles. These have built-in magnets that allow fascinating structures to be built. I previously wrote on Picasso magnetic building tiles here . They are a perfect choice for stem or steam toys for toddlers age 3 and up. My next favorite for this age would be Tegu Blocks. I love that they come in sets like legos to build specific plans but at a 3-5-year-old level. Tegu magnetic kits come in robots, car, rocket, helicopter and many more fun sets to build.

Tegu Magbot Magnetic Wooden Block Sets  

-Naturally safe-They use non-toxic, water-based dyes.

– Created with beautiful Central American hardwoods and safe water-based finishes

-hidden magnets inside wooden building blocks

-enhanced fine motor skills, Problem-solving, pattern recognition, balance, sense of scale, imaginative play, spacial development, storytelling.

-for 3 years an older

Here is there main product store page on Amazon with all the options (once there scroll down the page to see the sets)

Building Toys for Kids: Factors to Take Into Consideration

1. Design = pain

The chances are most of the building blocks are going to be lying around all over the floor of your house. So the risk of you or somebody else stepping on these blocks with bare feet is quite high. Small hard plastic like lego seems to be my worst enemy. Seriously though, keep in mind the level of building challenges. Younger kids do better with larger shapes. Older kids are able to follow detailed plans like those that come with the massive complicated lego sets.

2. Material

You’ll come across many great options that are constructed using wood or plastic. Both materials are perfect in every sense. Just check the box to see if the materials and paint are children-friendly. Many kids even chew on building blocks, which means they should be safe to touch and put in the mouth as well.

3. Quality and Safety

How do know the building toys are high-quality products? It’s quite simple. All you have to do to determine that is look for organization-approved, pediatrician-approved, or award-winning options. These are green indicators when it comes to choosing only high-quality games for kids. I also love to use Amazon rating and reviews to help decide if a product is worth trying or not.

Types of Building Toys for Kids

• Magnetic Building Toys

I think you probably know that there are many, many options out there for magnetic toys. These consist of various metal shapes that stick together with the help of magnetic balls. As I talk about this, I simply cannot get out of my mind the very popular debate between Picasso Tiles vs Magna Tiles. They are transparent magnetic tiles your kid can construct 3D structures with. There are several STEM activities utilizing Magna tiles that will teach your children about science in a fun way!

Other magnetic building sets are just made of magnetic balls that you can stick together to form different shapes.

• Plastic Block Toys

As soon as I hear plastic blocks, I immediately think of LEGO. And I’m sure you do too. Plastic blocks like these are perfect for children, no matter what age. They are chunky, large pieces, which stack together quite easily.

The wide range of LEGO kits on the current market can be quite confusing. My advice to you; buy according to your child’s age.

• Building Sets

Maybe its a car or a dog. Building sets usually have an end product in mind. Here’s another type of building toy suitable for any age. The brand and options vary and offer hundreds of options.

• Building Block Toys

If you have a toddler, he or she will benefit more from brightly colored building block toys. These are packed with letters or numbers to promote early language and counting skills.

The blocks are available in all kinds of sizes and shapes. But you should go for smaller pieces since they encourage the development of motor skills.

• Wooden Building Toys

It’s a classic toy that remains popular even today. As a child, I only remember playing with such wooden toys. They come in various sizes and shapes too. You can choose the traditional sets or pick more recent wooden houses.

Now you have some more options for child building toys

So there’s no reason to not jumpstart your child’s developmental skills early. The thing about building blocks is that they’re fun toys. Enhancing learning and promoting skills are an extension of what they do. The entertainment part comes first as that’s what’s going to keep your kid or kids interested.

Go for a set that you know will keep your little one’s mind occupied while also pushing him or her to think creatively. And don’t forget to check the age range at the time of buying.

Sources:

1. https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/1076-tips-for-choosing-toys-for-toddlers
2. https://raisingchildren.net.au/babies/play-learning/getting-play-started/choosing-toys
3. https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Toy-Safety-Tips-from-the-American-Academy-of-Pediatrics.aspx
4. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3582172/