2 - 3 Years

Toys for 2 year olds should suit the age of "me do it": cube puzzles, building blocks, hammer benches, activity cubes and pull-along animals, all in wood and all inviting small hands to try, miss and try again until it works.

Best 2yr old toys, by what they love doing

• Fitting and solving: the wild animals 4-block cube puzzle, the 2-cube puzzle with six animals and the layered growth puzzle, plus magnetic jigsaws with a pirate ship, a castle or Little Red Riding Hood.
• Building: the 75-piece blocks with a walnut-oil finish, the safari set of 50 and a stacking shape train that also pulls along.
• Hammering: the classic blue hammer bench with cylinders, the peek-a-boo bird bench and the colourful bench with mallet.
• Moving: a push-along lion xylophone walker, a farm tractor with rattle beads and the safari cascade ramp racer.

2yr old educational toys that never feel like lessons

At this age, learning hides inside the game, which is the whole idea of Montessori games. Turning a cube to find the right half of a lion is already reasoning; knocking every cylinder down, then flipping the bench to start again, is cause and effect at its clearest. The activity cubes and the farm multi-activity table gather several small challenges in one place, ideal for a child who flits from one thing to the next. Closer to the third birthday, the dressing frame and colour box 1 (both ages 3+) open the door to practical life and sensorial work, in the spirit of the Montessori method.

Gifts for 2 year olds: matching the toy to the child

The best toys for two year olds match the thing your child repeats all day. A climber who never sits still will get more from the lion walker than from a puzzle; a careful builder will spend weeks with the walnut-oil blocks. For a little one who loves noise, the rainbow xylophone and the three-sided musical tower join our children's musical instruments. The same toys suit boys and girls alike.