Is there a mom that doesn’t feel like her house has been hijacked by baby toys?
Probably not. But toys that help with the development of fine motor skills are definitely the kind that you will want to trip over in the middle of the night!
Toys for fine motor skills improve hand-eye coordination and help with learning how to write, how to play a musical instrument, eat independently, and even how to play different sports.
Fine motor skills toys are available for kids of all ages, so they can facilitate the improvement of dexterity at every stage of your baby’s development.
In addition to being educational and improving development, these toys are also incredibly fun for kids, so you can kill two birds with one stone!
Since there are so many educational toys to choose from, I’ve hand-picked a dozen of my personal favorites for you to consider.
I’m pretty sure your kids will absolutely love them!
1. Playskool Classic Dressy Kids Boy Plush Toy
- Who knew getting ready could be so much fun? Your little adventurer can practice again and again with this dress toy for toddlers featuring 5 getting dressed activities
- Help this soft little friend get ready for the day! Theyll love practicing their motor skills by pulling the zipper up and down, or fastening his pants pocket
- Kids ages 2 and up can practice opening and closing buttons with this Playskool Dapper Dan stuffed toy thats not only adorable, but also machine washable
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Even though some kiddos are more than happy to learn how to put their clothes on by themselves, getting a plush toy that can teach them how to get dressed is always a great idea.
This toy by Playskool contains 5 different “getting dressed” activities such as tying shoelaces, fastening, buttoning, zipping, and buckling.
We all know how toddlers want to take their favorite toys everywhere they go, so the toy comes with a plastic clip which makes it easy to carry around.
I also love how the toy can be cleaned in the washing machine and I’m sure you will, too!
2. Melissa & Doug Latches Board
- ENTERTAINING ACTIVITY PLAY BOARD: The Melissa & Doug Wooden Latches Board is an entertaining and educational activity play board that helps kids build dexterity as they navigate latches that hook, snap, click, and slide.
- STURDY WOOD CONSTRUCTION: Our activity boards for toddlers are made from smooth-sanded, solid-wood material that features fun surprises behind the opening doors and windows.
- HELPS DEVELOP MULTIPLE SKILLS: Melissa & Doug hands-on toys for preschoolers are designed to help younger children build fine and gross motor skills, while also discovering vibrant colors, numbers, animals, and more.
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This Melissa & Doug board is one of the best fine motor skills toys around as it includes multiple ways for your little one to play while their little hands develop their small muscles.
At first glance, you will see many different kinds of locks that support fine motor skill development.
Below the locks, there are images of different animals, such as “3 yellow cats”, “5 green frogs”, and “2 blue dogs”.
My kids really enjoyed learning how to count through these fun animals, and this is also a good way to teach them about different animals and colors, too.
What’s more, this board is made out of wood so you can be sure it will last your family for a long period of time.
3. Skoolzy Shapes Puzzles for Toddlers
- LOTS OF WAYS TO PLAY - GROWS WITH YOUR CHILD - 7 TOYS in ONE: This is more than just a shape sorter toy for childrens and toddler games. The early development Montessori toys for toddlers are Shape Sorters, Stacking Toys, a Shape Peg Board Set, a Foam Puzzle Board Play Mat, a Counting Toy, a Shape Matching Toy, & a Baby Learning Color Recognition Activity Toy . The stackable occupational therapy toys are perfect educational toys for toddlers or math manipulatives for 3, 4 5 year olds.
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I’m a really big fan of versatile toys that my kids can rediscover every day and find something new to play with. A pegboard is essential to developing eye-hand coordination.
Also, it’s one of the best ways to develop fine motor skills.
With this set, you actually get 7 toys, which is especially great if you have more than one kid!
Plus, it contains activities for little ones from the age of 1 to 5, so different age groups can enjoy playing with it.
For example, your kiddos can learn about different colors, sort shapes, and put together the foam puzzle board, in addition to many other fun activities.
You will also get a bag to make transportation easy if you’re going on vacation, for example.
All in all, if you’re looking for a toy that will adapt to your little one’s development and offer something new at each stage, this pegboard should definitely go on your wishlist!
4. Spike The Fine Motor Hedgehog
- FINE MOTOR GAMES FOR KIDS: Build fine motor skills with chunky, peg-shaped pieces that fit to the back of this friendly hedgehog
- DEVELOP: Colorful quills help kids build color recognition, sorting, and counting skills through fine motor skill games
- TOYS FOR TODDLERS: Now fine motor intrinsic toys come with easy to grasp pieces that are just the right size for little toddler and preschool hands to hold. Fine motor set includes 2-piece hedgehog about 6” in diameter, 12 quills, and activity guide
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This adorable little hedgehog was one of my kids’ favorite toys for the longest time and it’s always my first choice for when I’m looking for birthday gift ideas.
The hedgehog comes with 12 pegs that your kids can take out and put back in while learning how to grasp objects at the same time.
Plus, you can use the pegs to teach your kids how to count, or about different colors.
The hedgehog also doubles as storage for the pegs, so when your little ones aren’t playing with it, you don’t have to worry about individual pieces getting lost.
5. Montessori Busy Board for Toddlers
- WOODEN BUSY BOARD – Educational toys for 3 years olds and Montessori toys for toddlers. Sensory board toddler toys with 10 preschool activities help kids to develop their fine motor skills.
- ACTIVITY TOYS FOR TODDLERS – deMoca Wooden Toy is a basic skill board with Bright Rainbow colorful wooden pieces. This buckle toy features zipper snaps and a shoe tying teaching kit for kids that allows children to tie and zip their way into independent dressing skills.
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Traveling with toddlers is a skill unto itself. Just keeping them entertained on a long car ride, for example, takes days of planning.
To be perfectly honest, I was never a big fan of sticking an iPad in their hands and letting them watch videos for hours. (Although I do understand that this is sometimes inevitable!)
This board weighs only 2 pounds so it’s super light to carry, even for a toddler.
It’s a great choice for preschoolers and although the manufacturer says it’s appropriate for 3-year-olds, kids a year younger could play with it if they have already reached this stage in their development.
It comes with all sorts of activities to keep your little one busy, such as a shoe with blue lacing, a green zipper, and a purple buckle.
Through play, your kiddo will be able to practice these skills so that he can learn how to dress himself and tie his own shows.
RELATED: Montessori Parenting: 7 Tips To An Advanced Parenting Style
6. Manhattan Toy My Pal Clover Wooden Pull-Along Preschool Activity Toy
- Developmental toy features include shape sorters, spinning dials and bead runs
- Includes a pull cord and rubber trimmed wheels for quiet indoor play
- Wooden bunny toy features a water-based, non-toxic finish
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Even though there are all sorts of toys available today, I still think that a traditional pull-along toy made out of wood is really special.
Besides, wooden toys are so much friendlier to the environment than the plastic ones!
This bunny model comes with a shape sorter and several other fun activities for your little one to indulge in, too.
I also really appreciate that the wheels come with a rubber trim, so the toy won’t cause a ruckus while your kids pull it around.
7. Helping Hands Fine Motor Tool Set Toy
- 4 of our finest tools packaged together
- Builds fine-motor skills
- Strengthens hand muscles needed for writing
- Includes 1 of each tool: Gator Grabber Tweezers, Handy Scoopers, Twisty Droppers, Squeezy Tweezers
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Tools such as scissors are an excellent way to develop a kid’s fine motor skills. But since a pair of scissors in a 3-year-old’s hand just screams trouble.
Learning Resources has come up with a toolset to help those little hands develop in the safest way possible.
In the set, you’ll find tweezers, a scooper shaped like a pair of scissors, and a twisted dropper.
Even though it’s a small set, you’ll find that it goes a long way in terms of how many fun things your kids can do with them!
Melissa & Doug Latches Barn Toy
- LATCH ONTO LEARNING: The wooden latches barn features a painted barn with working latches and locks on doors that open and close. It also includes four 3-inch-tall flocked farm animal figures that fit inside the barn.
- HELPS DEVELOP MULTIPLE SKILLS: The Melissa & Doug Latches Barn Toy helps teach children 3 years and up vital fine motor skills, counting skills, colors, and animal recognition.
- INSPIRE PRESCHOOLER PRETEND PLAY: Kids can unlatch and open the six doors to reveal friendly animal pictures, prompting imaginative storytelling and pretend play fun.
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Farm animal toys are always a huge hit with kids, and this toy comes with 4 different animals (a horse, pig, goat, and cow) which can be placed inside the barn.
Your little one can then work on unfastening the latches on the barn doors to get to the animals which develops their fine motor skills!
9. Fisher-Price Infant Activity Gift Set
- Gift set includes 1 My First Fidget Cube and 1 Stack & Roll Cups
- My First Fidget Cube features 6 sides of play, each with a unique activity!
- Stack & Roll Cups includes 10 colorful, numbered cups to stack, nest, or snap together to make 5 balls
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Designed for babies as young as 6 months, this set, which includes a fidget cube and colorful cups, is a great choice for their fine motor skills development.
Each side of the fidget cube comes with different sound and touch activities that will keep your baby entertained.
There are also different ways of playing with the cups since you can put them together and make balls or stack them on top of one another.
10. SainSmart Jr. Wooden ABC Blocks
- Deluxe 40pcs ABC blocks: comes with storage bag Each of the 40 traditionally styled solid wood Blocks are carved and then painted on two sides with Capital letters, numbers, and mathematical symbols. Good idea for stacking, building and counting.
- 1. 8 inch large wooden cube: the extra-large blocks with rounded edges (1. 8 inch/ 45mm) are sanded smooth, making them comfortable and more easier for small hands to grasp, stack, sort, and build. Playing SainSmart Jr. toy blocks without any worries
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Wooden ABC blocks are a really simple toy that can provide hours of fun!
This set comes with 40 pieces that your kids can stack and play with as they work on their hand-eye coordination.
Each side of the cube is painted with a letter (one is capital and one is lower case), numbers, and pictures, which will help your little ones develop their reading and numeracy skills early on.
11. Sassy Developmental Bumpy Ball
- Multiple textures & materials engage babys developing tactile sensitivity & teach baby about variety
- Chunky sized bumps encourage reaching, grasping, and transferring from one hand to the other
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For the development of a baby’s fine motor skills, a toy that has different textures and produces rattling sounds is a great choice.
This toy ball with bumps will encourage your little one to explore the different textures and she will be able to practice holding objects in her hands.
Plus, it comes with beads that rattle which provides even more fun for your baby!
12. Melissa & Doug Primary Lacing Beads
- BRIGHTLY COLORED WOODEN BEADS: The Melissa & Doug Primary Lacing Beads set is composed of 30 brightly colored wooden beads in a variety of shapes, 2 colorful laces, and a wooden storage case.
- EASY TO ASSEMBLE: Our wooden bead play set includes beads in five distinct shapes that are easy for little hands to grasp. The laces are thin enough to allow the beads to fit seamlessly.
- HELPS DEVELOP STRONG SKILLS: This Melissa & Doug kids beading set helps children develop strong fine motor, cognitive, and visual perception skills, while promoting hand-eye coordination.
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Lacing beads provide perfect practice for the muscles in your kids’ hands since they have to engage them in different ways to pull the string through the beads.
This set comes with colorful beads (30 pieces!) designed in 5 different shapes and 2 laces, so your little one can share with a friend or a sibling.
Since the holes in the beads are big enough for the laces, your kids won’t have any trouble playing!
To conclude
Toys are an essential part of every childhood.
And regardless of all that talk about kids spending too much time in front of screens, the fact is that kids still love playing with toys.
Whether they’re playing alone or with friends or siblings, kids simply let their imagination run wild when they engage with toys.
Toys for fine motor skills, specifically, can help them practice and perfect the skills they will need as they enter preschool and ensure they can do “big kid” things like getting dressed by themselves, tying their shoelaces, or zipping up their jacket.
With toys for fine motor skills, you can be sure that your little one is on the right developmental track and having fun along the way!
READ NEXT:
- Playgrounds For Babies: How To Turn Your Home Into A Play Area
- What Are Gross Motor Skills + Gross Motor Development Activities
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