Educational games engage your kids for a longer time, as they keep the brain hungry for neural stimulation. More importantly, the impact of learning toys lasts a lifetime. They give kids a jump-start in developing social and motor skills. Plus, children will develop a passion for learning, the most important attitude that makes them smarter.

The following are suggestions for the trendy fun learning toys available online. Our list includes age-appropriate toys for all budgets.

• Basic educational toys for 1-2 years old. 
• Techy educational toys for 2-3 years old.
• STEM educational games for school-age children.

Every child is different, so choose the ones that are age-appropriate and benefit his/her intelligence the best.

A. Educational Toys For Toddlers (1 to 3 years old):

A1. Smartcraft Colorful and Attractive Funny Cottage Educational Toy:

Children 18 months and up will love having a toy cottage all their own to play with. Smartcraft Colorful and Attractive Funny Cottage packs a lot of educational fun into a small space. This cottage toy has eleven 3D puzzle pieces to develop cognition and hand-eye coordination. Kids will love playing guessing games or building different blocks. And a fun pretend piano plays eight musical notes.

For even more learning and fun, six animal sounds and five geometric shapes are also included. It is made of non-toxic plastic hence completely safe for kids. Size:23 x 22 x 23 cm; Weight: 1.24 Kg.

Highlights:

• Visually attractive blocks
• Stimulating and engaging activities
• Music functionality

A2. Shumee activity triangle:

Brilliant for teaching kids ages 2 and above the basics of mathematics! This colorful wooden triangle toy helps develop an understanding of alphabets and numbers. The colorful abacus helps improve your child’s numeracy, cognition, and motor skills. For sparking their creativity, kids can use the slate on one side of the triangle toy. Using this educational toy, kids can master time telling at an early stage thanks to the colorful clock. There’s also an alphabet block to up their language skills.

Shumee activity triangle is a safe toy – it is made of eco-friendly materials and non-toxic, water-based dyes. Weight: 2.29 Kg; Size: 26 x 26 (cm).

Highlights:

• 5-in-1 multiactivity educational toy
• Child safe eco-friendly design
• Great for reducing screen time

A3. Shumee Wooden Number & Shape Sorting House:

Most kids love anything involving shapes and colors, so this learning toy is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. Kids age 18 months and up spend hours playing with it (and learning!). Why? Because it’s great for early math skills like counting, addition, and subtractions. Plus, they will enjoy a mini home out of 6 colorful panels, 3 wooden bars, and screws. This option will teach kids time telling as well. Bonus: You can stash all parts for easy storage.

Speaking of the perks, this toy promotes creativity, visual, sensory and motor skills, problem-solving ability and cognition. The toy house is made of 100% eco-friendly wooden material which is beautified with non-toxic, kid-safe water-based paints. Weight: 971 g.

Highlights:

• Help kids learn numbers, time, and shape
• Made of child-safe material
• Good for boosting creative and motor skills

A4. Toyshine Funny House with Multi-Purpose Learning:

This selection is offered by Toyshine, experts in manufacturing baby learning toys. The funny toy house is perfect kids age 24 months and above. With 12+ activities, this delightful playset encourages independent play, imagination and hours of fun! It features a colorful piano pad to introduce your child to musical sounds. Kids can listen to 123 and doorbell sound, too.

This learning toy for toddler is helpful in building concentration, hand-eye coordination, and auditory senses. The toy house is made of non-toxic ABS plastic. It is safe and lightweight (558 g) as well.

Highlights:

• Flashing lights
• Multiple play and learning activities
• Entertaining Music
• Kids-safe ABS body

A5. LEGO Duplo Number Train Building Blocks for Kids:

For your little boy, LEGO DUPLO Number Train provides hours of fun as he constructs a vibrant mini train out of the colorful wagons. Plus, he can learn the basics of numbers and counting. Encourages creative play, fine motor skills and basic engineering skills as he figures out how to build the train. Two Child LEGO Duplo Figures and a cat figure are also included for role-playing.

Recommended for kids ages 18 months and up, this toy train is designed to be kids safe and suitable for his little hands. Weight: 499 g; Size: 35.4 x 9.1 x 19.1 cm.

Highlights

• Encourage building and role-play
• Promotes independent, creative play
• Develops motor skills

B. Educational Toys For Preschoolers (3 to 5 years old):

B1. WISHKEY Wooden Educational Puzzle Board:

Get a head start on learning shapes and designs! This wooden puzzle board challenges the mind and boosts creativity, motor skills, and concentration. Kids can arrange the puzzle blocks to learn colors, shapes, and patterns in no time. Names and pictures on the board help not only helps kids to solve the puzzle but build confidence as well.

Six different themes are available with vibrant designs and color options (think: fruits, animals, numbers, vehicles, alphabet, and geometric shapes). In short, this educational pre-schooling kit makes a great gift for your inquisitive kids age 3 years and up.

Highlights:

• Multiple learning themes in one set
• Picture hints to boost self-confidence
• Cartoon designs to keep the interest level high

B2. Fisher-Price Doodle Pro Slim: 

This is a clever mix of technology and learning, so it’s great for encouraging educational play in kids 3 and up. The set comes with four magnetic shape stampers and an easy-to-grasp stylus pen to let their creative juices flow. And, when done with drawing or doodling, they can use the easy-slide eraser to magically clean the screen. One more round of artsy fun, please!

Besides improving creative skills and hand-eye coordination, the toy doodle helps with pre-writing skills as well. For mess-free drawing, gift this lead-free toy. Weight: 866 g; Size: 38.1 x 6.4 x 33 cm.

Highlights:

• Large magnetic drawing screen
• Screen saver pen for mess-free drawing time
• Durable and safe toy

B3. Creative’s Education Aids Action Words:

It’s never too early to get a jump-start on improving their vocabulary and communication skills. And, that’s why we want you to take a look at this learning toy by Creative’s. This 2 in 1 word-picture matching game makes it so fun, your kids won’t even realize they’re learning while putting it together. The 24 self-correcting match ups are just right for little hands to hold, and, once assembled, they learn a new action verb. This self-checking game is one of the best and super affordable kids learning toys out there.

Weight: 4.54 g; Size: 27.5 x 22.5 x 4 cm. Minimum suggested age: 4 years.

Highlights:

• Great toy that relates to everyday activities
• Easy to use and low-priced
• Enhance vocabulary and language skills

B4. My First Library: Boxset of 10 Board Books for Kids Board book:

This book collection will aid in teaching children a variety of topics including everyday objects, numbers, shapes, alphabets and more. The content of these ten books is crafted in a way to spark interest as kids read through the pages. Besides developing reading, listening, and vocabulary, the palm-sized board book will also help with cognition and memory. Not to mention, toddlers will instantly get attracted to the bright bird, animal, fruits, and vegetable images.

All of the board books are safe for smaller hands as the corners are kept rounded. Recommended for kids up to 5 years.

Highlights:

• Well researched, age-appropriate content
• Bright colors and images to enhance interest level
• Handy and easy to carry

B5. GoAppuGo Kids Wooden Writing Practice Board Toy:

It is a safe wooden toy that introduces the world of alphabets and numeric to kids. They can learn pencil gripping and experience the joy of mastering numbers and alphabets. Each of the 12 wooden plates contains 4 to 5 letter or number engraved on it. By using wooden pencils (12), children can get their hand movements, pre-writing skills, numeracy improved. The toy writing board also strengthens the muscles, hand-eye coordination, and cognition.

It will keep kids 2 to 4 years old engaged far longer than a smartphone usually would so it’s well worth the extra money. It is one of the lightweight (721g) kids learning toys.

Highlights:

• Lets kids practice two different alphabet cases and numbers
• Good for writing practice
• Enhances fine motor skills

C. For School-Age Children (5 to 14 years):

C1. Pump It Move It – Hydraulic Crane:

STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) toys are the wave of the future, so push your children forward with this innovative hydraulic crane. This DIY kit is designed to help children in grasping the fundamentals of STEM. With this crane, they will learn basic of Hydraulics, Pressure, and the operation of Hydraulic Machines. The kit comes complete with instruction manual and all elements to build a fully-functional hydraulic crane.

It helps to enhance analytical skills, motor skills, and practical skills. It is a perfect gift for older kids ages 8-14. Weight: 1.05 Kg; Size: 90 x 30 x 25 cm.

Highlights:

• Non-toxic, made of recycled wood
• Promotes creative and team play
• Develops motor skills

C2. Shifu Orboot – The Educational, Augmented Reality Based Globe:

This Smart Globe talks about lots of things around the world. Listen to cultures, cuisines, inventions, animals and more. With over a thousand information pieces stored in it’s digital memory, it truly is an amazing gift for studious kids age 4 to 10 years old. Install the compatibility app and scan each location to get a glimpse of its culture, the animals and the flag. This AR (Augmented Reality) globe also contains mysteries and quizzes for the kids to solve. Best part – with each winning kids can collect reward coins.

Speaking of device compatibility, it works on Android (min. 3GB RAM), iPad 3 and above, iPad mini 2 and above, iPhone 6 and above and Kindle 8 and above. Though a little pricey, it really is an incredible learning tool which every kid should own. Weight: 1.2 Kg; Size: 25 x 25 x 33 cm.

Highlights:

• Interactive AR-mediated app
• Hands-on play with passport and stamp
• 3D voice and music

C3. Jungle Magic Garden Sciencz Experimental Educational Game:

One of the best educational toys on this list! Garden Sciencz is perfect for children ages 7 and up is a great introduction to Botany. Educational and fun, it has 20 experiments including seed germination, planting, gardening and more. The kit has everything your child needs to grow his own garden – 7 types of seeds, soil pellets, plant pots, water droppers, instruction manual, soil pellets, and gardening tray.

It allows children to make a strong connection between nature and understand soil types. In addition, it improves their practical, analytical, and social skills. Weight: 640 g; Sizes: 6.3 x 30.2 x 36.8 cm. Seeds included: Mustard, Ragi, Fenugreek, Green gram, Wheat, Coriander, and Marigold.

Highlights:

• Eco-friendly and natural
• Hands-on experience on ‘Botany’
• Good for gaining practical knowledge

C4. Kitki Escape Evil Fun Board Game:

Children are not-so-fascinated by Chemistry because of the complex equations and chemical reactions involved. This set teaches them about sixteen ‘magic tricks’ behind chemical reactions. Also included are 45 chemical cards that shed light into trivia and examples of chemistry in everyday life. Ideal for kids age 8 to 11 years, Escape EVIL gives inspirational ideas for mini science projects, too.

A unique and fun way to inculcate the love for Science and Technology at an early stage. Weight: 798 g; Size: 22.9 x 24.1 x 5.1 cm.

Highlights:

• Multi-player wooden Science board game
• Quality-tested and child-safe
• Improves Practical and analytical knowledge

C5. Genius Box – Play some Learning Science Lab Toys:

For kids interested in Science and Technology and would like to dive deeper into the subject, Science Lab Toys will prepare their way to Science mastery. It includes 30 Science experiments categorized into Liquids, Optical Illusion, Light and Shadow, Chemical fusion and more. This practical play enhances your children’s sensory and motor skills, creativity, cognition, and world awareness. It may even stimulate their interest in Science.

Made of paper and wood, this STEM game is recommended for kids ages 5 and up. Weight: 2.01 Kg; Size: 34 x 32 x 8 cm

Highlights:

• Safe and quality material
• Practical 30 Science experiments
• Kit includes Scientist glasses and gloves

The Bottom Line:

The early 90s was the time when toy manufacturers began to innovate on educational toys for kids. Fast forward to today: it’s all about interactive and AR (augmented reality) learning toys.

Both toy makers and parents are more interested in toys that incorporate audiovisual materials, role-playing games, AR storyboards, and puzzles.

Stats show that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) toys’ popularity is at its peak in 2019.

With the ever-growing technology, we can expect more innovations in the field of children’s learning toys in the upcoming days.

Let’s not forget – for any techy learning toy to be effective, it needs to be used correctly.