It may not have escaped your notice that we are focused on helping kids to learn on the KiddyCharts site, so today we have partnered with Orchard Toys to help bring you some ideas for good educational toys for your kids.
This is a sponsored post and contains Amazon affiliate links.
Making learning fun is a really important part of any educational games that your children may have. Whatever their level, from preschool to key stage 2; if it isn’t fun, it won’t go in!
In order to encourage them to retain the information that the games are focusing on, it helps to maintain that level of fun. The knowledge they obtain while have a blast is much more likely to stick around. If learning becomes something they associate with a positive experience, you are much more likely to find that your children will relate their learning to loving life. This can have a wonderful knock on effect that their develop a passion for learning that can continue from their childhood, well into their adult life *fingers crossed*
Orchard educational toys for your kids focus on ‘Learning Made Fun’ which is at the centre of everything they do. The company is conscious that their games and jigsaws need to spark the imagination of children so that there is the perfect balance between having fun and being educational. The toys are specifically made to strike that happy between between age appropriate learning, and having a good time! Products are even Teacher Tested to make sure that learning doesn’t take too much of a back seat.
We have look through the Orchard catalogue, and come up with what we feel, given our focus on learning, are the toy that keep that happy balance between creating those fun memories, while maintaining good play and learning value. Why don’t you take a look and see what you think too?
1. Alphabet Lotto 3-4 Years
Learning your letters is such an important emergent reader skill; and something that is relatively easy to make fun with the right tools. With this lotto game, children are able to learn the alphabet using chard displaying letters, words, and pictures. The game provides great variety as there are four way of playing; enabling the game to grow as your child’s abilities develop.
2 Pizza, Pizza 3-7 Years
Shape and colouring matching for EYFS and pre-schoolers can provide your children with ours of learning fun. In thi game, you children can race to get their pizza done in time. Some of the “interesting” toppings make for great conversations too! The game will also encourage turn-taking and good sharing practise as well.
3. Match and Spell 4 Years+
Another matching game for the children, focused on helping them to recognise their letters for reception/EYFS and Year 1. The games also promote phonetic understanding using words and pictures. As with other games within the Orchard Toys range, there are two levels of play within this to help insure play value lasts as your children grow. You can play this game with your kids, but it is also possible for them to do so without your help.
4. Match and Spell Next Steps 5 Years +
If you have reached the stage where your children need a little more than Match and Spell, this helps to teach more advanced reading and spelling skills, by incorporating sounds and blending.
5. Magic Spelling 5-7 Years
What more fan can a child have then learning with a spot of “magic” as well? The game incorporates a magic viewer with rub and reveal cards that will give the game added “magical” moments so there really is a more fun element to the educational value of the game. There are two difficulty levels within this game too, focusing on word building and letter recall.
6. Magic Maths 5-7 Years
This is for Key Stage 1 Maths, developing addition, subtraction and multiplication capabilities in children. It uses the same cards as the Magic spelling game to allow children to check their answers. Players have to do sums and fill up their boards with rather icky ingredients, so what’s not to like? 🤣
7. First Times Tables 5-8 Years
Get the kids to have a go at their 2s, 5s and 10s times tables with a fabulously fun pancake game. Go flipping mad! There are some basic principles that help children to excel within their times tables, and this game is designed to help with those; from grouping to sequencing. The game even helps parents out a little too.
8. Money Match Cafe 5-8 Years
Learning all about real money is an important skill for us all; so why not go to the virtual money cafe and help your children to learn all about money handling. They can even be sneakily taught about addition at the same time. *clever* Incorporating your children’s own toys, your kids will make their own cafe, and then use their imagination to serve the correct meal to their customers. They can then add the change and coins up as they take part in the game.
9. What’s the Time Mr Wolf 5-9 Years
There is nothing quite as important (!) as being taught how to tell the time. Though if we aren’t, perhaps that’s a good excuse for being late for work 🤣. This game helps children to hone their digital, as well as analogue, time skills in a race around a clock board. Mr Wolf is ever present of course. The clock that comes with the game can be used to help with learning time at any time too.
10. Times Tables Heroes 6-9 Years
This is a more advanced game than First Times Tables, helping children to learn all their times tables from 2-12, rather than just the 2,5 and 10s. It is aimed at KS2, and is a great way to bring a little fun into multiplication learning. Do check out this article on the benefits of multiplication practise too from Orchard Toys.
Do check out the other games on Orchard Toys too – their ethos around learning being fun shines through on their entire range.
We hope you like this article, do check out some of the other learning resources that we have on the site:
Educational activities for kids on KiddyCharts
In case there isn't enough to stimulate your kids here, then why not check out the other ideas on our site?
25+ websites that offer free printables
There are LOADS of sites that offer free printables like us; why not check them out.
Free shark activities for kids
Sharks are fabulous and fun - here are some activities for you to do to learn with sharks, as well as having a little bit of fun too.
Human body matching game - Free printable
Learn the parts of the human body with with fun matching game.
Label a tree free printable
Another bit of STEM learning; this time understanding the different parts of a tree.
There are also loads of other sites that have great learning ideas too:
Imaginative play resources offsite
Ideas for encouraging imaginative play from elsewhere on t'internet.
What is Imaginative Play and How to Encourage it?
Explanation of what exactly imaginative play is, and how to encourage it within your children.
I is for Imaginative Play!
More ideas for imaginative play activities - including some great sensory ideas for babies.
Open Ended Resources for Imaginative Play
Open ended play ideas to encourage your kids' imaginations.
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Helen
Helen
Helen is a mum to two, social media consultant, and website editor; and this site is (we think) the only Social Enterprise parenting magazine!Since giving up being a business analyst when juggling travel, work and kids proved too complicated, she founded KiddyCharts so she could be with her kids, and use those grey cells at the same time.KiddyCharts has reach of over 1.1million across social and the site. The blog works with big family brands (including travel) to help promote their services, as well as offering free resources to parents of kids under 10.It gives 51%+ profits to Reverence for Life, who fund a number of important initiatives in Africa, including bringing running water and basic equipment to a school in Tanzania.Helen has worked as a digital marketing consultant (IDM qualified) with various organisations, including Channel Mum, Truprint, Talk to Mums, and Micro Scooters. She loves to be creative in the brand campaigns she works on.Get in touch TODAY!