I’ve always found that toys with simple shapes give kids the most room for imagination and problem solving skills, and Nickster toys does just that. Nickster Toys pairs with the Nickster Playland app for an optimal learning experience. Each toy is made of 3-4 block-like pieces that fit together like a puzzle.
Baby D’s favorite was the Sequence Train. First, he played the Sequence Train game on the Playland app. The app showed a train station scene with numbers 1-5. He had to touch each number for the corresponding piece to come out and connect in sequence. Once all the train pieces one through five were completed on the app, he then took the toy pieces and connected them in sequence exactly the way he did on the app. It’s great because it’s challenges him cognitively to memorize the process of putting the train together just as he did it in the app and physically put the toy together in order with this hands. He learns about numbers and completing tasks in sequence.
The Wagon Animals toy came in a close second for this toddler. Three animals have a geometric shape at the bottom of it. They come in a red wagon, and he had to identify each different geometric shapes and then fit the pieces together like puzzles.
They are big pieces, easy for little hands to manuver. The app is almost like an introduction to the toy. Baby D continued to play with the toys even after he was done playing the apps. Raising a tech-savvy toddler, I really love the concept of tieing a traditional toy with digital learning. You can almost see the thought process come to life as the child puts into action the concept he just learned from the apps.
Nickster Toys is recommended for ages 1 and up.
