Once kids turn 4, it seems like there are so many options that you can choose. It’s easy to go wrong. However, these toys have been huge hits with my 4-year old. Whether you’re looking for a gift or looking to add to your toy collection, these toys for 4 year olds are sure to be loved!
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Games
There are tons of games that 4 year olds can play, and playing games is such a great way to spend time together as a family! Some of our favorite games are:
- Candyland
- Eye Found It! – I really enjoy this game, as it can have lots of players and is easy to bring wherever when you need to kill time with your kiddo!
- Old Maid
- Guess in 10
There are so many games and toys for 4 year olds that these are just some basic ones that we enjoy in our family, but explore the game aisle at your local store – you might be surprised at what you find!
Books
As an English teacher, I will always recommend books for kids as a toy. Reading and exposure to books is one of the top factors that leads to success in school. We’ve been really lucky to have lots of access and exposure to books, from a retired preschool and kindergarten teacher grandma to two English teacher parents. With that, both of my kids (who are 4 and 1 right now!) have a lot of interest in books and reading. It is so important!
Leapfrog Learning
For Christmas, my daughter got a Leapfrog Learning padlet and she loves it. She has been really interested in learning how to read and this was such a great purchase for her to start practicing. She’s already starting to recognize sight words after just 2 months of having it!
Color Wonder
I am a big fan of Color Wonder supplies as a toy for 4 year olds – or really any kids that are young and still learning how to keep coloring on the paper. It limits the mess of coloring, plus there are so many different options.
- Coloring sheet sets – we will get these every once in a while and then keep the markers, so we have a great collection going!
- Magic light paint – this thing is so cool, I love to just try and figure out how it works ha!
Toniebox
We have loved our Tonieboxes in our house. They are great toys for 4 year olds and also help reduce screen time! They also make gift giving easy, as you can just ask for a figurine as a gift, plus the Creative Tonies where loved ones can record their own audio.
One of my favorite things that I’ve seen is having grandparents or family that you don’t see very often read a story and put the audio on one of the Creative Tonies. It honestly melts my heart so much and is such a great way to make someone far away feel closer.
Magnatiles
I have found that once kids get up into that preschool age, they enjoy building! I highly recommend that a great toy to have for 4 year olds is some type of building material. My go-to is Magnatiles, as they are easy to use and can also be fun for light play since they are translucent.
Play-doh
Alright – I’ll let you in on a secret. I actually hate play-doh since it’s so messy. But my 4 year old loves it so much. Plus it’s great for building hand strength to lead to writing skills.
So I read about ways to keep it clean and the best idea I’ve found has been to lay a disposable tablecloth down on the ground or the table! BRILLIANT.
The play sets are super great to have, as it provides some guidance on what to make and comes with fun tools. Some of our favorites are the pizza oven and the noodle making set. But you can also just have cookie cutters to make the play doh into fun shapes.
If you’re worried about the premade play-doh, as it definitely has a funky smell, it’s super easy to make as well! I really like this recipe for playdough from I Heart Naptime!
Remember, you can put all the thought into the perfect toy for your 4 year old – and they will probably still enjoy the box more.
