Toys again: for 2-year-old

I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia

Gia wrote:
I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia


http://www.amazon.com/LeapFrog-10170...toys-and-games

LeapFrog Learning Friends Phonics Bus - teaches letters, sounds, words
that have that sound and the ABC song. Plus the characters come out
for play, and each plays a different instrument when inserted in the
"driver's seat" of the bus. DS is almost 3 and loves this thing - he's
had it for just over a year. It runs about $19.99 at KMart or Target.

-L.

In article om,
"Gia" wrote:

I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

They're called books.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

If you don't think playing at cooking is educational, you need to broaden your
understanding of education. You need an understanding of the world to
understand what you are reading.

--
Chookie -- Sydney, Australia
(Replace "foulspambegone" with "optushome" to reply)

"Parenthood is like the modern stone washing process for denim jeans. You may
start out crisp, neat and tough, but you end up pale, limp and wrinkled."
Kerry Cue

"Gia" wrote in message
ps.com...
I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.

All forms of play are educational for children. Don't get too bogged down
with teaching academic type things. There's plenty of time to learn the
ABC's. These early years are for fun and exploration. Cooking is
educational too.

Jen

Everything is educational to a 2-year-old. Just get her things that she is
interested in and don't worry about the educational aspect because she
learns something with everything she does.
--
Sue (mom to three girls)

"Gia" wrote in message
ps.com...
I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia

Go with the play kitchen! She can learn colors for vegetables and fruits,
count different items in the kitchen, and if you get sets where many things
are labeled, will have tons of real-world exposure to environmental print,
which sparks interest in letters and reading much more than "the A says
aaaa" type toys. My 2 yr old loves to imitate me, so things like a small
broom and dust pan, rake for raking leaves, a bin of sand outside and
measuring cups, and anything "real" is a big deal. And I admit I'm enjoying
having a child who thinks sweeping the floor or wiping the table or washing
dishes is fun right now. And, again, there's tons of opportunities for
real-world learning.

As far as letters, numbers, colors, shapes, etc, my 2 yr old has learned
most of hers from Sesame Street. At least I assume that's what sparked the
interest, because one day she started asking me what various letters were,
and telling me to "read ABCs" on everything-and by the end of a several
month obsession, she had them down. Recently, it's been naming colors and
shapes on everything. Actually, it's been a relief to see more imaginative
play instead of "The lego is red. The lego is yellow. The lego is Orange"
for every single duplo in her bucket!

Gia wrote:
I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.

The vast majority of "teaching toys" are boring
and useless. The "teaching toy" that actually works is
*you*. Find something she enjoys, like cooking together,
and myriad teaching opportunities will present themselves.
At the same time, if you try to spend most of her play
time "teaching" her, she's likely to rebel. When they
say that young children learn best through play, that's
exactly what they mean--real play, not a bunch of
drills disguised as play.
I'm not saying you can't make games out of
sorting by colors or playing counting games or pointing
out letters and sounds as those things come up in life
and play, but I'd be very cautious about pushing the
educational toys and insisting that everything be
"educational." Two year olds know darned well when
they're being pushed like that, and they can get
*very* rebellious about it--and no wonder!
A play kitchen is considered so educational
that almost every preschool classroom spends quite a
bit of money and dedicates quite a bit of space in order
to have a play kitchen, and they won't even hold formal
lessons as the kids are using it. If she would like a
play kitchen, by all means, let her play in either your
kitchen or a play kitchen. You can spend a fortune
buying educational toys that she'll barely bother to
use.

Best wishes,
Ericka

On 24 Nov 2006 22:05:53 -0800, "Gia" wrote:

I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia

I also vote for the play kitchen! So-called "Educational" toys, while
looking good to parents, tend to be booooring to kids once they've
pushed the buttons and heard all the sounds.

Play, play, play is more educational than any electronic teaching toy.

Nan

"Nan" wrote in message
...
On 24 Nov 2006 22:05:53 -0800, "Gia" wrote:

I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia

I also vote for the play kitchen! So-called "Educational" toys, while
looking good to parents, tend to be booooring to kids once they've
pushed the buttons and heard all the sounds.

Play, play, play is more educational than any electronic teaching toy.

Nan

Yeah, keep up this educational play thing: not only will she love learning,
but she will even develop an imagination. What more do you want?

Jeff

Thank you for the suggestions! I might go with the play kitchen. They
have a number of choices at the local Toys R Us. Somehow, I wanted to
escape the stereotype of girls cooking, I guess.

As for books and blocks, we have tons of them already, so I was
wondering about something else that might give us a better start in
preschool. She is interested in letters and shapes, and I don't think
I'll be pushing these too forcefully

My husband was considering a toddler laptop, but I didn't see one that
I liked yesterday at the store.
Gia



Gia wrote:
I am trying to find a good educational toy for a 2-year-old girl.
Ideally, it would help with the numbers, letters, and shapes in a fun,
interactive way.

(Having said what I wish, though, my child has recently become very
interested in pretend-cooking, so the thought of a play kitchen crossed
my mind. This is not as educational as I'd like it to be, but it's a
possibility.)

In any case, please suggest good toys that will entartain, but also
teach a curious 25-month-old.
Gia