By the time your child reaches three, they’ll be ready to tackle 12-24 piece jigsaw puzzles. Keep in mind that some toddlers will be ahead of others, and they may be able to stretch themselves to a puzzle around 40 pieces. You have many choices, too, including floor puzzles, concept puzzles, and matching game puzzles.
When choosing puzzles for 3 year olds, it’s best to keep their interests in mind. For instance, if they are drawn to barnyard animals, it’s a good idea to give them a puzzle that features these animals. There are five specific benefits your child can receive from building puzzles, too. These include building their vocabulary, focus, motor skills, and patience, along with encouraging their independence.
Lock Basic Puzzle
Make-a-Match Puzzle - Number Train
Chalk & Chuckles Busy Bear's Tell the Time Puzzle
Chalk & Chuckles Happy Habits Puzzle Activity
Jigsaw Puzzle - 12 pc Rocket
Chalk & Chuckles Moody Snakes Game & Puzzle
CoComelon Sound Puzzle
Headu Tactile Puzzle Montessori
Lauri Number Puzzle Boards & Pegs
Puzzlo Airport 35pc Wooden Jigsaw Puzzle
The Lock Basic Puzzle helps them build manual dexterity by challenging them to learn how to open a basic lock. To keep it more interesting, there are three different locks and keys that come with this set. Plus, once they get the locks open, they’ll be greeted by an owl, an elephant, and a chicken! Your toddler might not be tall enough to operate the locks in your house, but by mastering this puzzle, they’ll be prepared for when they are!
Make-a-Match Puzzle - Number Train can strengthen their puzzle building skills by stretching them from 24 to 30 puzzle pieces. The best part, though, is that this puzzle game doesn’t only have one solution. In fact, it comes with a guide for parents that includes 31 different games to play. Once your child puts their hands on the jumbo puzzle pieces, you’ll see how perfectly sized they are. Help them learn more about colors and animals, along with visual perception and spatial imagination.
If your child is a bit ahead of their peers, then why not give them a harder puzzle? Chalk & Chuckles Busy Bear's Tell the Time Puzzle is recommended for children between the ages of three and six. It includes 37 round puzzle pieces that are thick and sturdy. They’re also sized at 2.5 mm to ensure your toddler can grab them. This engaging puzzle has plenty of brightly colored pieces that enable your child to follow all the bear’s daily activities.
The Chalk & Chuckles Happy Habits Puzzle Activity is also recommended for those from three to six years old. The theme of this puzzle is that happiness is a skill. Therefore, it allows them to practice social emotional skills and feelings by rolling the dice. Furthermore, they’ll get to solve seven unique and progressive puzzles. In other words, the puzzles come with six, nine, 12, and 16 pieces.
Gift this Jigsaw Puzzle - 12 pc Rocket to any toddler who dreams of going to space! The puzzle is shaped like a rocket, too, so it will teach them that puzzles aren’t always rectangular shaped. Because this is a puzzle for three year olds, it also features a cat astronaut in its upper window. Even putting the puzzle away can be fun as its gorgeous gift box also comes in the shape of a rocket.
Chalk & Chuckles has appeared in the list three times already, which says a lot about the company. This time, we’re featuring their Moody Snakes Game & Puzzle, which is aimed at three to six year olds. It has two things to do, rather than just one. After they’ve completed the 40-piece puzzle, they can roll the included dice to help track the snake back to its pot! This is a game that both of you will love. Your child gets more out of it, and they’re also encouraged by the gameplay to clean up after themselves.
The CoComelon Sound Puzzle makes a good choice for toddlers who have experienced difficulty with puzzles. After all, it only contains five puzzle pieces. However, it also has a special feature; it makes sound! This offers an engaging experience for younger kids, but it’s also fun for most three year olds, too. As they slip each of the puzzle pieces into place, they’ll get to discover five different noises.
Let your child learn about farm animals and explore their sense of touch with Headu Tactile Puzzle Montessori. Instead of being a normal puzzle, this one includes special tactile pieces for an added sensory element. As they work out the puzzle, they’ll also increase their object and shape recognition, spatial awareness and problem-solving skills. This puzzle comes with 21 pieces and will keep your toddler happily occupied for hours!
Want to teach your three year old about math? This progressive puzzle encourages them to place pegs in holes. They’ll learn the basics of how to count with the regular game, but then they can combine the boards to learn about addition and subtraction, too. Lauri Number Puzzle Boards & Pegs is recommended for children three and up. Challenge your toddler to see how high they can stack the pegs before they fall over.
Finally, Puzzle Airport 35pc Wooden Jigsaw Puzzle can become a great learning opportunity for your little one. As they put together a puzzle about the airport, you can help them learn why they may visit one. To keep their attention, though, this isn’t a human airport. Instead, it depicts a vast array of animals, including a few boarding an airplane. It also features 35 simplified puzzle pieces, which makes it perfect for those who usually complete 24-piece puzzles.
Choose the Perfect Puzzles for Your Toddler
Whether your child is ahead, behind, or just on the curve, you can find a puzzle listed above that will suit them perfectly. Remember to keep exposing them to harder puzzles, too. For example, if a child has no problems putting a 24-piece puzzle together, it’s time to challenge them with a 36 or even 48-piece puzzle. That way, they can continue to develop at a fast rate!
