Preschooler toys

[Stringy]

What do your 4 year olds play with? My mom said it feels like M has nothing to play with at her house (aka younger toys). But I couldn't think of things she actually plays with at home. Coupled with the fact that she can't do much without her sister ruining it (strategies for that also helpful. She doesn't want to sit at the table or go alone to her room usually). Which also makes small piece things hard. Maybe I need to put her in the playpen with them? Ha.

She has all the babies. All the puzzles. Blocks. Books. I don't know. Sometimes I think we just need to lay them out/organize/present them better.

[brandiewine11]

I don't have a 4y/o but I know a few. What about a train set, colors, matchbox cars, and things like that?

[rugger]

R plays with her stuffed animals/beanie babies a lot. Coloring entertains her sometimes. And Duplos.
But mostly she pulls out a few stuffed toys and plays with them and dresses them up in her hair accessories.
And the sprinkler outside.

If she has blocks and dolls and puzzles, why does your mom think she doesn't have toys?

[Stringy]

Cuz she doesn't play with them rugger. She kinda does her own imaginary games or plays with P or wants to bake or paint. Which is good but hard to bake and paint when you are watching a baby too.

[MapleMe]

I don't know if this would involve too much support from your mom, but what about a Kiwi Crate? I think that my M is still a little too young for this, but it seems so cool. www.kiwicrate.com/koala/?utm_source=Google-g&utm_medium=SEM&utm_content=10272343436&utm_campaign=195780356&utm_term=kiwi%20crate%20%2Bkoala%20crate&gclid=CKjbmuqLpNMCFYhLDQodVK4PTA

[sarenu]

Would she play with kitchen toys? We have a good amount of felt food and E will set up a tea party or make sandwiches for me.

Will your mom allow play doh? It makes a mess but it can be restricted to the table.

[freezorburn]

For us, Year 4 has been all about Brio wooden trains, legos (regular), play doh, buying groceries and making sandwiches in his play kitchen, and coloring. Favorite games are Zingo and the orchard game. He also has a few easy jigsaw puzzles (12-20 pieces) that he enjoys. He also really started to enjoy drawing and coloring this year.

[jnu76]

My 4yo will play with wooden train tracks all day. And duplos.

[CurlieWhirlie]

When E was 4, he was all about the wooden train tracks and the play kitchen. Especially in the warmer months when we put it outside on the deck and put real water in the sink and let him wash his dishes.

[Stringy]

M might be broken. They regularly make play dough but then she doesn't want to play with it. She enjoys connecting railroad tracks together but not playing with it. Duplos haven't been a big hit. Hmmm

[freezorburn]

Just re-read the OP, and wanted to add -- that this past year has been a big one for DS learning to play independently, as well as socially. So it's been important, no matter what the activity, for me to spend at least a little time coloring with him, or playing a game, or pretending to be the cashier at the grocery store. Or the customer at the deli.

It's nice that grandma wants to have more toys for M at her house. But the best thing is already there -- the opportunity for quality time with grandma. Do they have a common ground, things they like to do together?

[CurlieWhirlie]

Apr 14, 2017 12:00:37 GMT -5 freezorburn said:

Just re-read the OP, and wanted to add -- that this past year has been a big one for DS learning to play independently, as well as socially. So it's been important, no matter what the activity, for me to spend at least a little time coloring with him, or playing a game, or pretending to be the cashier at the grocery store. Or the customer at the deli.

It's nice that grandma wants to have more toys for M at her house. But the best thing is already there -- the opportunity for quality time with grandma. Do they have a common ground, things they like to do together?

This is a really good point. My M is just three and he's great at playing by himself, but it's because his dad and his grandpa both spend SO MUCH time with him making up stories and building these imaginary worlds that M can then continue to play through on his own. 

[ovenrack]

I was gonna say grocery store - does grandma have a space in a low cabinet where she could stash a box of play food? Then M goes "shopping" with her grocery cart (DO YOU NEED AN EXTRA) and then makes y'all lunch.

[ovenrack]

Give her a paintbrush and a bowl/cup of water and have her "paint" the deck or driveway. Or a spray bottle too. TJ recommended this and it was awesome.

[ovenrack]

New books? New CDs? Water table? Sensory games (rice in things making sounds, etc)? Paper dolls?

[sarenu]

Washing dishes is another favorite for both of my kids.

A sink of water and a couple brushes. Throw in a few dishes and this is entertainment for over an hour. E is also really good at keeping the water in the sink now.

[dramaphile]

What about things like stringing pony beads on yarn? We used to do that in my pre-K class and some of the kids really loved making necklaces. At 4, she's old enough for the real legos, which are way more exciting than duplos. Games like candyland could also be fun, or another preschool-oriented game. Having special things just for Grandma's house can also make them more exciting. My grandma always had special coloring books and a drawer full of markers and crayons and pens that I was always excited about.

[freezorburn]

Apr 14, 2017 12:12:08 GMT -5 sarenu said:

Washing dishes is another favorite for both of my kids.

A sink of water and a couple brushes. Throw in a few dishes and this is entertainment for over an hour. E is also really good at keeping the water in the sink now.

DS's preschool director is a fan of this -- she says just a basin of water, maybe on a low table or chair in the kitchen. If it suits you, add a bit of dishwashing liquid because bubbles. And then it all inevitable ends up on the floor, you can make a game of wiping up with big towels, and voila -- mopping is done.

[Stringy]

Apr 14, 2017 12:10:50 GMT -5 ovenrack said:

Give her a paintbrush and a bowl/cup of water and have her "paint" the deck or driveway. Or a spray bottle too. TJ recommended this and it was awesome.

Yea once outside is regular things will be better. She and my mom have lots they like to do but P is there too so one on one is short and random. She's always played pretty well independently- maybe she doesn't need toys.

As we speak she's telling me a story about pacifiers and I'm not even slightly listening.

[critter015]

My older kids are 5 and 3.5 and their favorite thing besides digging in the dirt is their duplos. Also big on their list are hot wheels - they mostly just line them up on the coffee table. C LOVES games and will play the princess cupcake party game by herself for an hour. Another good one is the Peaceable Kingdom mermaid game. I have the issue of a younger sibling wanting to play a lot too. We have a picnic basket toy that my kids all love, I think it is leapfrog. They've always played great together with that and now expand their play using their play kitchen and accessories. We also have a play tent and a tunnel that my kids especially enjoyed when they were smaller. I usually just get that out for the day and then it folds up small. I guess the biggest thing is rotating between different choices so they don't get bored.

[ComeMai]

Apr 14, 2017 8:34:41 GMT -5 Stringy said:

Cuz she doesn't play with them rugger . She kinda does her own imaginary games or plays with P or wants to bake or paint. Which is good but hard to bake and paint when you are watching a baby too.

Have you tried watercolor pencils?  We have the Crayola brand and they're pretty inexpensive & work great. They work best on watercolor paper.  It's just like regular colored pencils for drawing.  But then you use q-tips & water to smear the color and it turns into painting, without the mess of traditional watercolors.

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