To make your little kids aged 1-5 years learn how to read is quite easy. Yes, you don’t have to tear your hair out for that. With proper educational toys and your guidance, your child can easily learn how to read letters, numbers, and symbols, etc. related to a language. So in today’s blog post, you will learn about the types of such educational toys that you require for making your child learn how to read anything written.

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Kinds of Reading Toys for Little Kids:

The following are the kinds of such reading toys that you can consider for your child’s reading activities:

Electronic Reading Systems:

Under parental guidance, electronic reading systems are great systems to make your children learn how to read with technological tools like a high-tech pen and learning desk. These reading systems are ideal for children who are 2.5+ years old and who love cause-and-effect and electronic feedback. For example:

Stylus-Based Reading Systems:    

Under such a system and parental guidance, a special electronic pen is available that a child taps with on letters, digits, symbols, sounds or words to hear them aloud. For instance, when a child taps on the letter, A, after opening their picture-based and colourful reading book, the pen speaks the letter aloud. With frequent repeats of the verbal response, the child associates the printed symbol, A, with its spoken version. The same result appears when they hear the word, mat, again and again after repeatedly tapping on its printed symbol present in their engaging book. Isn’t the system nice to create your child’s reading habit!

Interactive Learning Desks Or Tables:

An interactive learning desk is a type of learning table that your child can apply under your guidance to learn how to read letters, words, digits, symbols, and sounds. For example, they can learn per your instruction how to read letters and words through such desk that has printed pictures with the relevant printed words and letters. Whenever they put their finger on a letter, the system reads the letter aloud. With the frequent repetition of the verbal response, they can learn how to read the letter. These pictures assist them associate all letters with relevant words and memorise the alphabet and words easily. 

Then, under your instruction, the child can also learn how to read digits through pressing buttons that are present on a component fitted with the table. The matter is when they press these buttons one by one, the system reads the digits aloud in the same way. And they are able to memorise how to read these digits with the frequent repetition of the verbal responses.

Sensory Books:    

These sensory books are responsible for engaging the senses of children so that their reading experience could be fun-oriented and memorable. Such books not only teach children various concrete lessons but also cause strong love for learning books. The books are ideal learning sources for children aged 1-4 years. For example:

Lift-the-Flap Books:

A lift-the-flap book is that in which a child has to lift the flaps in a book under parental guidance to discover various images and utter the words added with these images. These images can be of animals, insects, or humans, etc. There is a whole short story behind these flaps. And with each flap’s lifting, the children get to know the book’s story more and more until they discover its beautiful end. 

For example, if you purchase a book of the English alphabet that has flaps, then your child’s reading experience would be really enjoyable. Suppose, under your instruction, after opening their jungle story book, they read and lift the first flap with the printed letter, A, and they discover the image of an apple with the printed word, apple. And then, they’re instructed to utter the word, apple, that they utter and even memorise the word after the frequent repetition of the verbal response.    

Touch-and-Feel Books:

Well, whenever a child is guided about a touch-and-feel book, they get really excited usually. Cos children are more inclined to learn how to read their lessons if they can feel relevant items. For example, if your child has a story book of all those objects starting with the letters A, G, I, P, M, then they can easily read the names of those objects after your verbal responses and learn how to utter their names by touching and feeling the object images made with distinct items.

And suppose, after opening a touch-and-feel book, under your guidance, your child touches the hand of a printed pigeon that feels feathery to them because of some real feathers attached. Plus, they utter the word, pigeon, after you say the word slowly. So this process makes them read the word “pigeon” easily because of the sensory engagement involved.     

Letter and Phonics Manipulatives: 

Well, for your kids to start reading words, firstly, they need to understand that words are made of letters. And these letters have distinct sounds. Yes, and they can learn everything about these letters and their distinct sounds through letter and phonics manipulatives under parental guidance. You can use these manipulatives for 2-5 year old children. These toys can assist the children learn letter recognition, sounds of letters, and simple word spellings. For example:

Alphabet Puzzles:       

An alphabet puzzle is a puzzle that your child can apply to learn the letters of a language under your instruction. Suppose you have an English alphabet puzzle, and you instruct your child to arrange the letters in their respective slots on a wooden board. You name three letters before placing them in their slots one by one to show your child what they have to do after you’re done. So what’s the result? With trial and error and frequent practice, your child can eventually recognise these letters or learn them. 

Phonics Puzzles:

A phonics puzzle is a puzzle that assists your child learn different letter sounds and simple word spellings. So let’s suppose you have a phonics puzzle that is made of a few letters and picture boards. The picture boards have relevant pictures and blank letter lines. Such a board makes word sound automatically whenever a relevant letter is placed on a blank. So when you instruct your child on how to fill a letter blank and listen to each letter sound to complete a simple word (e.g., bat, mat, or cat), your child becomes engaged for their turn. With trial and error and frequent practice, your child can learn the sounds of letters and simple word spellings.

Storytelling Or Narrative Play Sets:

When a child acts out a story under parental guidance and storytelling set, they learn various aspects of narration related to future reading activities. They learn what a narrative structure is, what characters are, and how a story unfolds. Basically, they build narrative skills with a storytelling or narrative play set when guided by their parent. Besides, these storytelling or narrative play sets are suitable for children aged 3-5 years. For instance:

Book-Based Play Sets:

In a book-based play set, there are different characters and settings that revolve around the main theme. For example, in The Three Little Pigs storybook, there are small text blocks and pictures of characters and settings that indicate the incidents of that story. You can tell your child everything about the story through those elements easily. And they can easily learn the story due to the involvement of colourful and self-sufficient images. Consequently, they can successfully enact the story too in front of you through some figurines with parental guidance and their frequent practice.

Flannel Boards:

A flannel board also called a felt board is used to visually build a story on a board. Yes, on this board, some characters, objects, and sceneries are placed to display a story. Suppose you have a flannel board for a famous fable, the hare and the tortoise race. Well, you have to instruct your child regarding the placement of relevant flannel board pieces so that they can depict the famous fable on the board. And when your child creates the fable on the board on their own successfully after some practice, then their narrative skill is developed.

Puzzles and Board Games:

These puzzles and board games that are based on reading themes teach various skills to little children aged 2.5 to 5 years when guided by parents. They learn how to take turns, follow some rules, and associate images with words during activities related to puzzles and board games. So with these games and puzzles, the children develop logical thinking, pattern recognition, and certain vocabulary. For example:    

Bingo Board Games:

Well, suppose you have an alphabet Bingo board game, and you instruct your child regarding how to play it. Then, your child places four or five chips one by one in a row or column on the board‘s letters after hearing the letter sounds that you make after randomly picking lettered tokens and moving them out of a small bag, one at a time. So after placing four or five chips in a row or column on the board, your child gets a Bingo or wins the game. Therefore, with their frequent practice, the child properly learns the sounds of the letters and memorises the English alphabet during this board game. 

Matching Games:

For a matching game, firstly, instruct your child regarding how to play it. Suppose you have some animal cards, and each card contains an animal photo with the animal’s name. And you instruct your child to match the animal photo with a photo that is similar to the first one and utter the animal’s name. So in this game, under your instruction, for example, your child matches the dog’s photo with another dog’s photo and verbally says the word, dog. In this way, your child can learn simple animal names with the frequent practice of this game.

Classic & Timeless Reading Toys:

A classic and timeless reading toy is a toy that you can’t categorise specifically. These toys under parental guidance teach little kids so many lessons related to letter recognition, imaginative play, and creative storytelling. The kids within the age range of 1-5 years can be taught basic literacy lessons with these toys. Just make sure you supervise your kids when they handle the small pieces of such toys. For example:

Wooden Railway Sets:

Well, these wooden railway sets are not literally reading toys. However, these can be used to teach little kids various prepositions and creative storytelling. Suppose your kid has a wooden railway set, then you guide them on how to operate the train and make a story about it through simple and direct words. Consequently, they play with the railway train in an imaginative way and learn prepositions during their play like around, through, over, and under the bridge.

Play Food and Grocery Sets:

Well, a play food and grocery set is an educational toy that you can use to educate your child regarding the food item names. Through this educational toy, you can introduce your child with many words related to vegetables, fruits, and food packaging. Plus, such toys encourage pretend play among children that makes them read food-related words during their play when guided by their parents. For example, under parental guidance, if they have to read a shopping list for their grocery shopping during a pretend play, they will have to read the food-related words in the list verbally that can assist them learn these words through repetition.

Hmm, you might be thinking:

How to Choose the Right Reading Toy:

Well, you should choose your child’s reading toy depending on the following factors:

1. The passion of your child
2. The age of the child
3. Educational goals for the child
4. Your space for the play
5. Your budget
6. The toy’s durability
7. The toy’s warranty period 

So bear in mind all of the above factors when you have to purchase a reading toy for your child. And always prefer a toy that is not only suitable for your child but also durable for its long-term use. Also, do consider the toy’s warranty period while purchasing the toy for your child.

Conclusion: 

That’s all what I have to share with you regarding the educational toy kinds for kids’ reading activities. I hope you like my post. And if you really like what I shared with you, then please share the post with your connections. In this way, they can also know about the reading toys and get one for their child’s reading activity.  

See Also:

Guide of Writing Toy Kinds for Little Kids