Building puzzles is a fun and rewarding activity for children and adults of all ages. From toddlers embarking on their first puzzle to adults working on their latest 2000 piece masterpiece, puzzles are something that the whole family can enjoy.
Puzzles have been around since the eighteenth century - for good reason!
Did you know that while your children are playing with puzzles there are vital skills being developed? Here are 5 reasons why you should encourage your kids to keep building puzzles.
1.Grit and Perseverance
Puzzle building takes patience! Lots of it. Making sense of all those pieces, finding and building the edges and grouping colours, takes time and continued effort. Completing a task and not giving up builds grit. Grit is passion and perseverance for long-term and meaningful goals. It is the ability to persist in something you feel passionate about and persevere when you face obstacles - and is a vital skill for your child's future success!
Take puzzling to the next level with our range of Puzz'art jigsaw puzzles from Djeco. With no edges or corners, building these tricky puzzles is like creating your very own work of art. This 350 piece Dodo puzzle is teeming with vibrant details that make it a joy to complete.
2. Fine Motor Skills
Hand-eye coordination is a key skill to be learned while building puzzles. This is the ability to coordinate what the eyes see with, what the hands do with and what the brain pictures. Children who have developed fine motor skills usually find it easier to write, draw and play musical instruments. Toddlers and pre-school children will use the pincer grip to pick up the pieces and place them correctly - this kind of action will help them with other skills as they get older, like dressing and feeding themselves.
Browse our range of first puzzles for toddlers to find a selection of wooden and board puzzles to start them on their puzzling journey. This adorable Mummy and Baby puzzle consists of six different two piece chunky puzzles, just right for little hands to piece together.
3. Problem Solving Skills
There are several steps to solving a puzzle - identifying which pieces may go together, trying out your guesses, regrouping when your guess wasn't correct. Taking a jumbled mess of pieces and creating a finished picture with them is an amazing problem solving exercise. Children will learn how to create short term goals (i.e.get the edges done first, or find all the pieces of a particular colour) and follow through to the final task of completion.
Kids can learn all about the world around them with this stunning Endangered Species of the Planet puzzle. Sassi's premium quality puzzle and book sets are dedicated to the environment in both content and material. Products are printed on FSC certified board or paper using environmentally friendly inks.
4. Social Skills and Teamwork
Building and completing puzzles with family or friends promotes cooperative play. Discussing who will build which part of the puzzle, sharing frustration when a piece doesn't fit and joy at the final completed result, is a great way to fine tune their social skills.
Our range of Orchard Toys puzzles come with a 'talkabout' guide on the back of the box - encouraging further learning by asking questions about the puzzle. For example with this beautiful Unicorn puzzle you could ask "How many fairies can you see?" or "Where is the Frog Prince sitting?" which adds to the fun of building and completing a puzzle together.
5. Self Esteem
The satisfaction of popping that last piece in is timeless! "I did it!" That feeling of accomplishment will boost confidence and self esteem that will prepare them for other challenges later in life.
Timeless Toys offers a large range of premium quality jigsaw puzzles for all ages, that children will enjoy piecing together, time and time again.
