One of Banoota’s favorite by a brand called Melissa and Doug. You can find it at some toy stores or Mumzworld. This one is nice as the same piece can go in many different places creating different outfits for the mermaid.
We started doing puzzles with Banoota when she was just a year old. First of all we would get the colorful wooden puzzles where you need to insert the piece in the correct space and there would only be 6 pieces in the whole puzzle but she would clap her hands and smile so much after each piece it was so rewarding to see feel happy and accomplished.
Now, she is fixing 49 – 60 piece puzzles on her own and many people wonder and ask us how we got her to this level. Its a long process but doesn’t take a rocket scientist to do. Here is what you have to do:
1). Start early. The earlier the better, children will follow you and if you introduce them to puzzles or any educational activity at a young age they will learn to get used to them and in the long run love them.
2). Play with your child. Even though most children will turn the car puzzle piece into a car or the lion into a lion, if your child sees you play they will copy you. Monkey see, monkey do. Do not make it look as if you’re trying to teach them what to do, just play in front of them and they will start to copy you eventually doing it the right way. You don’t need to hold your child’s hand and force them to put a piece in a certain place or point to where it should be. Just let them copy you.
3). Smile and be happy. It could be a fun pass time of you and your child’s to create this good memory or having fun with mom or dad doing educational activities including puzzles. Make it turn into a positive experience.
4). Choose age appropriate puzzles. Paying attention to the age range on puzzles is also very important. Do no give your child something too advanced that will make them feel like they can’t. You want them to feel a sense of accomplishment.
5). Teach them when they ask you. Banoota started asking me about puzzles more at the age of 4. So I taught her the basics, what a corner piece is and that the side pieces are supposed to have straight lines. These basics will help them learn the concept and logic of solving puzzles but only when they are interested. Do not make your child feel that you are better than them, they have to know its okay to make mistakes and we learn together.
6). Let them choose. If they like a certain character, get them puzzles related to that character. Let them choose a puzzle as a reward as long as its age appropriate.
7). Variety to they don’t get bored. Make sure you have all different types of puzzles to make your child feel that they are doing something different and not the same thing. You can have cardboard, foam, wooden and box puzzles too. Some have pictures to guide them, some are big and some are small. We love to do floor puzzles and leave them as a carpet on the floor. You can also get different textured puzzles with velvet, cotton or even felt on them to make the experience different.
8). Don’t give up! Some children learn fast, others need time. They need to see you are willing to wait and have will power so they can continue to try.
One of our all time favorite brands of puzzles, they start at 3 years and come in so many varieties. We got our from Mumzworld. They are also very affordable and come in big pieces and smaller ones too.
An easier puzzle for beginners. This one if from the Early Learning Center which has now opened their second brand in the Avenues. It has grip holders making it easy for beginners. Love the theme of this one as well, it comes in a boy version too.
This one is another one for beginners and helped Banoota learn the Arabic letters. It was from a subscription box but you can find it at the bookstores in coops.
This is a box puzzle available at center point, its only 1.250 KD and comes in so many different varieties both in English and Arabic.
Hope this helps, happy puzzle solving!