We love wooden toys! I often feel that most children play best when they are given the simplest of toys to play with. In fact, as baby’s my boys were always more fascinated with the wrapping paper and packaging than the actually toys on their birthday or at Christmas. It’s this idea of pure play that leads me to believe that children crave toys that offer open ended play. I’m excited to write a little bit about our favorite wooden toys and why wooden toys are so great. 

WHY WOODEN TOYS

What I love most about wooden toys is that they inspire creative and imaginative play in children. In addition to having fun they are learning through play, while working on key developmental and cognitive skills. Wood toys are also classic, they will never go out of style and very durable. In fact, my brothers wooden railroad tracks from over 20 years ago have passed down to my boys in mint condition. I love that when I purchase wooden toys for my children, I know they are a great family investment because they can be passed down to future generations. Wooden toys are better for the environment and our children’s health too. With wooden toys you don’t have to worry about harmful chemicals such as BPA or phthalates. They yield less waste than plastic toys and are biodegradable. 

HAPE TOYS

Hape Toys is passionate about making toys that are both creative in design and eco-friendly. Their mission statement is amazing… “Hape believes that the future begins and belongs to our children. It is our duty to leave them with infinite possibilities, not unsolvable problems. Our toys are created to inspire play, learning, and exploration of the world we live in; through responsible business practices we aspire to leave the world in a better condition than when we received it.” In addition to their mission state, I love that they focus on six key areas of child development: Imagination and creativity, social skills, self-discovery, problem solving, gross motor and fine motor skills in order to create toys that promote learning through play.

Our two favorite collections by Hape are the Marble Run Construction sets and Railroad sets. These toys are great because you can build on them and collect more pieces over time to add to your collection. My boys will play with these sets for hours non-stop. They love configuring the tracks in a variety of different ways to make new marble runs or train tracks. Not only are they extremely fun but help kids develop:

  • Problem Solving Skills: Children using problem solving as they try to figure out how to arrange their track or set up their marble run. 
  • Social Skills:  These toys encourage children to take turns, as well as come up with solutions to problems together when playing with others.
  • STEAM: They are working on the basic principle’s science, technology, engineering, art and math through experimenting with concepts such as physics and gravity.
  • Coordination: They are strengthening hand eye coordination and fine motor skills.

Be sure to check out Hapes Website and Facebook Page to learn more or even order toys for your kids.

You really need to check out the Solar Power Circuit set by Hape. Your little engineer will step into the future with this solar-powered rail set. The engine has its own solar panel that generates enough electricity to power its lights.

***Thank you Hape for donating  the Quadrilla Marble Run Construction Set and Solar Power Circuit in order for The Playful Parent to share with the community. The Playful Parent is a 501c3 Non-profit and does not accept payment for endorsing companies. All information is based on my own non-bias opinion. Content and photographs are intellectual property of The Playful Parent.***