Classic Toys For Toddlers

Wooden blocks for toddlers and older children have been in existence for hundreds of years. If that's not classic then nothing is! Toddlers LOVE building blocks. Their imagination can build cities out of these simple wooden (sometimes cardboard) pieces. I remember as a child building elaborate doll houses out of wooden blocks - complete with basic furniture. Melissa and Doug wooden blocks, available at The Toddler Toy Bin are safe and finished with non-toxic dyes and paints. Melissa and Doug toys are tested and retested in order to meet or exceed all the government standards for their finishes. You can feel confident that even when your youngest toddler decides to out these blocks in their mouth, they are not ingesting harmful chemicals.
Your children will play for hours with these colorful (or unfinished blocks) - building their own worlds just as we did as children.

Lacing beads are another classic toy that is making a nice come-back. They come in various sizes for toddlers of 18mos up to 3-4 years of age. Hand eye coordination is developed around this age and lacing beads compliments your toddlers development in this area. As with the wooden blocks the finishes on the Melissa and Doug lacing beads are also multiple tested for safety and you can be assured that no harmful chemicals are used on them. I like the fact that their lacing beads are in different sizes for different age toddlers. Younger toddlers should not use the smaller sizes as their is a choking hazard - so be careful when your older children are playing with theirs!
Their are several large and bright sets for the toddlers and many "themed" sets for the older kids. Pastels, "gems" and sparkle sets are available at The Toddler Toy Bin and many other places online.

I just love shape sorters for my toddlers. Plastic or wooden - the basic concept of shape sorters is another classic, only now they are combining hand eye coordination with learning to recognize the different shapes - and sometimes even colors! There is even a Melissa and Doug wooden animal shape sorter! Their are LOTS OF SHAPE SORTERS to check out. Some are elaborate and offer much more than just shapes as you can see. These classics - in whatever their form - have been teaching toddlers for years which proves they must do their job - Millions of parents have "said" so!

Wooden puzzles last and last. In our family, they are passed between sister and sister-in-laws as their children come of an age to play with them. We have several that have been played with by 10 children at various times. (I have a large family!) The classic ABC and 123 wooden puzzles are family favorites. They are colorful and the pieces are large enough for even the youngest toddler to manipulate. As with other Melissa and Doug toys there is no fear of toxic paints and finishes as they use only safe and environmentally finishes on ALL their toys.

I love the themes for the wooden puzzles that have come out over the years. There are trains, cars, animals, jungle and under the sea puzzles. I like puzzles myself so I love to see the children enjoying one of their own. It's something they can do into adulthood and still have fin doing it!

Doll houses, horse stables, princess castles and knight castles. All sorts of role playing sets are available at The Toddler Toy Bin to satisfy even the most discerning enthusiast! Little girls love to pretend they are a princess and little boys love to pretend that they are a knight in shining armor or an Old West cattle rustler. What better toy than a solid wooden castle to help their imaginations soar. Whie not a classic in the sense of an exact toy being around for years the concept IS classic and Fisher Price has a great doll house for toddlers too called (appropriately) Fisher-Price My First Dollhouse

. All the pieces are a little larger for their smaller hands to manipulate and arrange. I read quite a few of the comments on this toy and almost all seem to agree that this is a great first dollhouse. It seems that the only drawback is the lack of furniture and accessories that come with the set. They all recommend purchasing additional rooms as well. Either way this looks to be a toy that an 18 month old toddler to a 5 year old preschooler will just love!