Best Developmental Toys for a Two Year Old

At this age, your child is likely becoming more clear in their interests, whether it’s cars, letters, art, sensory/tactile activities, gross motor activities, nature, animals... the list goes on and is probably changing regularly!

Children’s interests will start to vary so much after age 2. Alongside the suggested toys below, we recommend paying close attention to what your child gravitates to, what work they want to repeat over and over, and what skills they seem to be developing. 

Then if you’re looking for something new to engage them in, simply provide variations or opportunities to explore those things. 

Not only will it help them fulfill a developmental need they feel the urge to improve, but it will help improve their concentration, as they’re likely to become engrossed in activities they’re interested in. 

Enriching and Developmentally Appropriate Toys for a Two Year Old

Here are skills and activities that most two years are interested in:

• Climbing toys - most children at this age enjoy moving their bodies. You've probably noticed! They also enjoy physical challenges, like climbing and  maximum exertion, like lifting or carrying heavy things. They're learning more about the limits of their bodies every day and moving & experimenting is how they do that. The Pikler, Waldorf Rocker, and Balance Beam are especially popular for this age group.
  
  
• Sorting & Matching Toys - children around this age are trying to create order and make sense of the world. Simple sorting and matching activities are often calming and engaging for young children.  
  
  
• Board Games - at this age, children are starting to look outside of themselves and show an interest in playing with others.  Cooperative Board Games are a great place to start with teaching important social skills, like turn-taking, waiting, communicating ideas, etc.   We have a great collection of board games for children as young a 2 years old and they're some of our best sellers!
  
• At two, children are just beginning to engage in imaginative play. Open-ended toys are the perfect developmental tool to encourage more creativity. Compared to close-ended toys with one function, i.e. push the button, turn this knob, etc, open-ended toys have unlimited play possibilities.
  
  
• Real life books and puzzles - at two, children are working to distinguish between fantasy and real life. Books that focus on the real world tend to make more sense to this age group. 
  
  
• Sensory tools - most toddlers love sensory play.  This is a great age to introduce Play Dough and art activities.