As a parent, it is sometimes difficult to identify whether a particular type of toy holds any developmental benefits for your children, especially because there are so many on the market. In this blog, The Early Teacher will discuss the benefits of engineering toys so you can decide which ones are best for your child, depending on their areas of development.
So, what are the benefits of engineering toys? Engineering toys for kids hold an array of benefits to support development. These include developing fine motor skills, problem solving skills, creative thinking, concentration skills, and patience. They even help to enhance STEM skills including critical thinking, enquiry skills, and engineering design-thinking.
Keep reading to find out more about engineering toys including how engineering toys can improve STEM skills and whether they are expensive.
What are the Benefits of Engineering Toys for Kids?
Just like all children’s toys, engineering toys for kids provide educational benefits that contribute towards your child's progression and transferable skills. Whether it be a simple 1-2-3 Build It Rocket Train Helicopter or a more complex City Builder Engineering Set, each provide their own benefits. Below we have detailed the main benefits of engineering toys.
| Fine Motor Skills |
More often than not, engineering toys involve the construction of small pieces to create the end result. This could be in the form of a robot or even a car, and tends to include step by step guides to reach the final structure, which is a great skill to utilise as they get older. As a result, engineering toys for kids are ideal for developing children’s
fine motor skills. This is because children have to learn to use their hands and fingers to grip, hold and connect certain components in order to make the engineering toy.
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| Problem Solving Skills |
Another benefit of
Engineering toys is that they are ideal for enhancing children’s problem solving skills. This is because engineering toys naturally involve an aspect of building, using different pieces and materials. This means that children are placed in a scenario where they have to use trial and error as well as their problem solving skills to figure out how the pieces will fit together to create the end result. This is a vital skill that is transferable to school lessons and growing into a young adult.
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| Creative Thinking |
Creative thinking is an additional benefit of engineering toys for kids. A lot of engineering toys require children to use their imagination to not only figure out how pieces can be fitted together, but how to also create their own design. For example, the
Magnetic Science Lab Kit, is an open ended engineering toy, where children can use their creative thinking to develop their own creation. Creative thinking is a very important skill which will benefit children at all stages of their development.
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| Concentration Skills |
Engineering toys for kids also provide the benefit of improving children’s concentration skills. Engineering toys are a great way of entertaining children and encouraging them to focus on building their creation. Children begin to learn how to concentrate in order to focus on fitting the pieces together and successfully create their engineering toy design. Concentration is a transferable skill that is highly beneficial if it is developed at a young age.
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| Patience |
Engineering toys can also be beneficial when it comes to developing patience. More often than not,
engineering toys can take time to build and are not always straightforward. This is a great lesson for children to learn because it shows them how to overcome difficulties and have patience and perseverance whilst they continue to build their design. Patience is a skill that can be transferred to all aspects of life as children grow up, therefore developing it at a young age is highly beneficial. |
How Can Engineering Toys Improve STEM Skills?
You may have heard the term STEM skills mentioned within your children’s schools but not fully understand the importance of them and how to develop them. STEM skills are the real world skills that are developed through educational lessons such as science, technology, engineering and maths, and can be improved through the use of engineering toys. Below we have detailed exactly how engineering toys for kids can help to improve STEM skills.
Critical Thinking:
Critical thinking is a key STEM skill that is used in most careers that people pursue, therefore if it can be developed from a young age, you can be confident that your child is going to flourish. Engineering toys for kids are a great tool for developing critical thinking skills because they encourage children to try a building method, analyse whether it has worked and then identify a solution if their first method of construction was not successful. Developing the ability to think critically is a skill that will benefit children through their education and when they enter their career.
they place children in the scenario where they are required to solve problems and question how they are doing things. For example, when playing with the Geomag Glow Magnetic Construction Set, children will naturally find themselves questioning themselves and how they are constructing the toy, to see if there are better ways of doing it. This is a great skill to develop and will change the way they approach difficult tasks.
Engineering Design-Thinking:
Engineering design-thinking is another example of a STEM skill that is developed through the use of engineering toys for kids. This type of thinking takes place when a child tests out different methods of designing to find the one which works best for their objective. For example, if a child is using an engineering toy to create a building that has a bridge, it will take them multiple attempts of testing to learn the perfect way to create a usable bridge. This type of STEM skill is highly beneficial and can be transferred to alternative tasks as children grow up.
To learn more about STEM skills and their importance, check out the video below:
Are Engineering Toys Suitable for Children of All Ages?
Engineering toys for kids come in a variety of complexities and skill levels to cater for children of all different ages. This is good because it means that children can begin to develop key STEM skills from a young age and enhance them as their knowledge develops.
For example, for children aged two or above, the 1-2-3 Build It!™ Car-Plane-Boat is a great engineering toy that can introduce young children to fine motor skills and problem solving. At the age of two, children are just beginning to develop their fine motor skills, therefore having an engineering toy that is safe enough for them to play with and enhance these skills is going to give them a great start.
For children aged five or above, the Geomag E-motion Panels Magnetic Construction Set is an engineering toy that is perfect for developing logical thinking. Developing logical thinking at this age is highly beneficial especially because children will be entering their first years at school, where this skill can be put into practice. By already being exposed to scenarios that involve critical and logical thinking, children may find the transition into education a little easier.
For children aged eight or above, the Solar Powered Rovers is a good engineering toy option for your child. As your child grows older, you may find it harder to select toys that continue to develop their STEM skills, but with this toy, the complexity has been increased to ensure your child is entertained and their brains are stimulated enough.
Engineering Toys at The Early Teacher
The Early Teacher provides an array of Engineering Toys to keep your children entertained whilst also helping to improve a variety of skills such as problem solving, creative thinking and patience. The range of engineering toys have been safety tested and selected with your child’s development at the forefront of our priorities. For more information on our engineering toys, get in touch today.
Are Engineering Toys Suitable for Children of All Ages?
Engineering toys for kids come in a variety of complexities and skill levels to cater for children of all different ages. This is good because it means that children can begin to develop key STEM skills from a young age and enhance them as their knowledge develops.
For example, for children aged two or above, the 1-2-3 Build It!™ Car-Plane-Boat is a great engineering toy that can introduce young children to fine motor skills and problem solving. At the age of two, children are just beginning to develop their fine motor skills, therefore having an engineering toy that is safe enough for them to play with and enhance these skills is going to give them a great start.
For children aged five or above, the Geomag E-motion Panels Magnetic Construction Set is an engineering toy that is perfect for developing logical thinking. Developing logical thinking at this age is highly beneficial especially because children will be entering their first years at school, where this skill can be put into practice. By already being exposed to scenarios that involve critical and logical thinking, children may find the transition into education a little easier.
For children aged eight or above, the Solar Powered Rovers is a good engineering toy option for your child. As your child grows older, you may find it harder to select toys that continue to develop their STEM skills, but with this toy, the complexity has been increased to ensure your child is entertained and their brains are stimulated enough.
Engineering Toys at The Early Teacher
The Early Teacher provides an array of Engineering Toys to keep your children entertained whilst also helping to improve a variety of skills such as problem solving, creative thinking and patience. The range of engineering toys have been safety tested and selected with your child’s development at the forefront of our priorities. For more information on our engineering toys, get in touch today.