As toddler toys go, they don't come much more versatile than the shape sorter. They may appear pretty basic to us adults but they are one of the best educational toys you can buy for your child.
Shape sorter toys appeal to children from about 12 months of age when they first grasp the concept that a particular shape fits in a corresponding hole. At this age, the shape sorters are really quite simple inset puzzles where a farm animal or insect needs to be placed in the correct shape to complete the puzzle. A classic example of this would be the John Crane Chunky Farmyard Puzzle, pictured below:
Although basic, these first shape sorters help your child to develop some key early skills such as concentration and colour recognition as well as them learning the names and shapes of different animals or insects.
As children get more skilled in the very basic shape sorter toys they first play with, the next step (usually at around the 18 month mark) is usually to add some more generic shapes such as triangles, circles and squares. As well as teaching shapes other than those of (now) easily recognisable animals, they also encourage children to develop other key skills such as dexterity (fine motor skills), the ability to problem-solve and the ability to apply logic to get the puzzle solved. Take the Pintoy Sorting Cage as an example here:
Children are given a number of different coloured shapes which they have to either fit in the correct holes or fit through the bars of the cage to solve the puzzle, in other words to get all the shapes into the cage. Initially this will prove to be very difficult but after weeks and weeks of practice, a child’s manual dexterity and matching skills will develop, enabling them to complete the puzzle in next to no time. Once the puzzle is complete, a child must then work out how to get the shapes out of the cage in order to start again, thus making them practice their fine motor skills even further. So, all in all the Pintoy Shape Sorting Cage may look a basic toy but is actually a goldmine for any child’s development.
As your child gets a little older, you would imagine that the shape sorter toy had fulfilled its duty as both a fun and an educational toy. Think again! Shape sorters can be used for a variety of educational purposes even past the age of 3 when their toy collection is becoming a little more sophisticated and can include toys such as dolls houses, play kitchens and toy castles. Shape sorters can still play an important educational role in learning to tell the time with a toy like the Melissa and Doug Shape Sorting Clock:
Or they can help little ones to start to recognise the shape and concept of letters with the John Crane ABC Board:
And help a child develop the recognition and understanding of numbers with the Melissa and Doug See Inside Numbers set:
The fun doesn’t end there – how about a tasty way of learning shapes in the form of the John Crane High Tea Shape Sorter where kids have to find the right shape for fifteen delectable cakes in a truly delightful pink cake stand?
The shape sorter is an essential element of a child’s toy collection; essential for fun and essential for their mental development. We stock a huge range of shape sorter toys on our site from toy legends such as John Crane, Pintoy, Melissa and Doug, Plan Toys and BigJigs and we’re sure you’ll find the right toy for your little one which helps them develop mentally and also lets them have a whole lot of fun.
