Toys for 3 Year Old Boy

Big Leggos
Wooden blocks of varying shapes, sizes and colors
Play tent
Dress up clothes
Toy computer
Leap Pad
Craft (glue + construction paper + darn near anything! cotton balls, beads, rocks, bits of colored paper, etc.)

Hope this helps!!

1 mom found this helpful

Hello M.,

Basic stuff is best.

3 years old is the little scientist stage. Anything that can facilitate his self-discovery of the magical world around him will keep him busy for hours.

Give him an area in the yard, on the patio, or in the house, where he can mix starch and water in a bowl. You could even give him some paint to mix in as well. That will keep him busy for a while. Set it up so HE is the one adding the starch, and the water, to a bowl.

You can also set up a big pan of uncooked rice and let him practice pouring into cups of various sizes. (Tell him he is a construction worker, or a chef -- whatever will catch his attention. Or just set it up and let him discover it.)

If you have an outside area, get a baby pool and things he can float. If not, do the same indoors in a smaller version, in a roasting pan, with an assortment of things that sink or float.

If you want a happy, grounded child, who can focus, steer clear of more than 1 hour of tv a day (and keep it commercial-free), and keep him away from the computer for now.

Other ideas are on our website at: www.RivieraPlaySchool.com

Lots of Love,
Linda

1 mom found this helpful

M., give up the time to play with your son. Forget the dishes and vacumning, he will be in preschool or kindergarten very soon, and he wants to be with you!
He's just a baby, take the time...
you're a good mom, I can tell!
deb

1 mom found this helpful

I do similar things as LS suggested.
My son is 2.5 years old... sand boxes are great. Or Moon Sand.
Anything a kid can "build" really immerses them as well, and their imagination.

Also, my son like those "Operation" games... he can sit there for a long time just trying to pick out the body parts without it going "BZZZZ!"

But each child is different... when my daughter was that age, she always liked to have someone next to her. My son on the other hand is more independent... and can and will be perfectly content immersing himself in anything. He also pretend plays by himself too... and it's so cute.

Also, get some costumes... and knick knacks for him to "pretend play." This is a perfect age for that... and it develops them as well. Kids LOVE costumes! Or, he can play with his Daddy's clothes and put them on and pretend play. My kids like to do that too.

But all in all... each child has a certain window of time they will play by themselves... then they will ebb and flow and then want you near them too, for help.

My son also like to paint rocks. I get them from outside, I lay out a huge piece of plastic so he doesn't dirty the floor, paints, brushes, and then I just let him paint. I don't tell him "how" to paint, but just let him explore it himself.

Also, sidewalk chalk is great too. I just let my kids draw on the patio. Anything goes! Since it rinses off with the next rain.

We have those "Leapsters" too. Both my kids like it. My son figured it out on his own and he can do that for awhile... especially in the car or if I'm busy cooking.

Or, get some big boxes, and let him paint that... and then get things he can glue on it etc. Kids love doing things like that.

Or, get a piece of furniture that you don't mind letting him have a go at, and let him paint it. My son and daughter love doing that.

Lots of different things, that you don't necessarily have to buy or spend money on.

Good luck,
Susan

1 mom found this helpful

I highly recommend the toy lines by Imaginext. I have a 4 y.o. And a 2 y.o. And they both love these toys! They are durable, promote imagnative play and not extremely expensive.They are simply themed toys that are perfect for little hands. We have the Batman theme and the dinosaur theme...these toys tend to keep my 2 entertained for an hour to an hour and a half!! And its so great to hear them using their imaginations and not wanting to watch TV! There are some smallish pieces, but my 2 yo did fine. You can check the web site out for where to buy them and such and Target has great customer reviews about them. Best of luck and happy toy hunting!

Get Marble Works by Imaginarium or Tinker Toys.

Look into My First Leap Pad or a Vsmile system. Educational and fun.

Hi M.,

You might want to visit a parent-teacher store, like Lakeshore in San Marcos or San Diego, or Creative Teaching Supply in Solana Beach. They have some great learning toys that kids can play with by themselves.

When my son was that age we bought him a "Feed the Dog" fine-motor skills game. You "feed" bones into the dog's mouth with a pair of "tweezers"--my son liked it and didn't know he was helping himself develop a new skill. :-) There is also a game called "Mighty Mind" that my son likes. It is similar to Tangrams/Tangoes. It involves shapes--kids arrange plastic shapes onto a card to form a picture. Lite Brites are fun, too, and Duplo Blocks.

My son has also enjoyed playing with a horse stable--I had one as a kid, but he likes it, too--he enjoys putting all of the animals (horses plus other farm animals) into the stable and taking care of them--giving them water, food, "brushing" them, and doing other things that a veterinarian might do. I never thought of a stable as something that a boy might like, but he does! He plays with it differently than I did (my play involved relationships with the horses, but his involves more practical skills). It's a good reminder not to put a gender onto certain toys.

What about a big box? That is a really fun "toy"--we currently have one sitting in our living room that is serving as a rocket ship, fort, restaurant, house, elevator, and boat. It can be colored on and is also a great place to "hide."

I almost forgot--a shopping cart and a kitchen! Again, those may not seem like typical boy toys, but oh my goodness, we've gotten so much usage out of those items! My son's "restaurant" is very masculine-looking and is often "out of food" and "very expensive" but the "service is good." It is so great when my older niece and younger nephew come over because those toys serve both genders and involve extended play. It's fun to see how the girls and boys play differently and together in the kitchen.

:-) D.

Big cardboard boxes. He can do so much with them and they're free! Encourage him to color them and cut them with safety scissors. Big Legos are a big hit around my house. My three year-old is checking out a picture book right now that we got from the library and he's been self-occupied for fifteen minutes. Hope this helps!

GeoTrax - My father-in-law got my son his first set when he was 3 and it was a life saver. He will need some help in the beginning setting up the tracks but then there are hours of playing with trains. My son is now 8 and still pulls them out and puts together trains.
Good Luck
kati

Anything he can climb! Little boys focus development on large motor skills for quite some time. This is why they are so active & don't use many words (more sounds like grunting, or humming, & car sounds). Little boys (& big) are more like puppies, take um to the park & let them run & climb till they drop. When you get them home they might sit still long enough to let you make dinner. The good news about most boys is they are rarely moody & dramatic like little girls. I raised 3 busy boys & had a blast!
Blessings ~ d

My 2 1/2 year old daughter likes to play with the large legos. She plays with them all by herself.
Good luck,
L.

I echo Imaginext, Thomas the tank, and and blocks.
Also try Little People. They have a bunch of boy things-car garage, dump trucks, fire engine, train, etc. The perfect thing is that your 1 year old can play too. My mom always buys the grand kids the farm house for their first Christmas and everybody adds to it each Christmas and birthday.
My son is 9 and my nieces are 10 and 7-they would never admit playing with "baby toys" but there magically seem to be little people out when we have to pick up before they leave.
Good Luck

well you know how they have play kitchens for boys and girls (but mostly girls use them) well they have little tool benches for boys. try the color wonder finger paints, play dough (if he wont eat it cause some kids do haha), maybe get a little esle (spelling?) so he can paint you pictures on butcher paper. does he like puzzles? maybe set him up with a simple treasure hunt make a map with pictures he will reckonize around the house and have it go to a special toy or book or even lunch for that matter lol. does he like to build? blocks! what kid doesnt like blocks? how about a box of large pop cycle sticks (like the kind in the drs office... tongue depressers) give him a glue stick and little pretty things and have him make you a magnet or a frame or whatever he wants. theres endless possibilities just ask him what he wants to do... oh how about a light bright i loved those as a kid and they are a lot safer now (i think i saw one at walmart lol). good luck!

Duplo!

It will lead to Lego when he's older but it's fantastic for learning/playing. We like to build with our son too but he's loved Duplo since his second birthday and he's 6 1/2, still plays with it (though Lego is his favorite now).

It can be expensive but the more the have the more fun it is to build and it will last forever.

Try good old fashioned wooden blocks. Both of my kids loved them and played with them until they were about 10.

M.

One of my son's favorite things to play with at 3 was his bucket of Duplo blocks. He would play with them for a long time and would proudly show me his creations. When your son gets a little older, he can graduate to regular Legos. My son also liked Playmobil sets and the figures that came with them. The pirate ship and construction equipment were big favorites. Even at 10, he and his friends still play with the pirate ship and figures. If he's into something like Bob the Builder or Thomas the Tank Engine, figures from those shows would also be good.

My oldest boy, 4 1/2, loves his super hero figures, he roll plays them playing together, so he doesn't need me all the time. He does like when the whole family plays though. My youngest boy,2 1/2, does the train and car thing, but he's picked up on the roll playing too. They both love bubble guns and water guns. They'll play together or alone. The reason I say the bubble gun or machine over a bubble wand is that with the wand they sometimes need help blowing the bubbles.