Toys

[TXhomedaycare]

I have 6 boys age 1 year old to 4 years old and I am planning to buy some new toys for my home daycare. I opened a year ago using toys I already owned or that my family donated and I really would like to get a few new items like a kitchen and Legos (more we have a few) for the inside and soccer goal or something for thecoutside. Does anyone have some ideas or feedback on the best toys for boys? My son is 4 and he likes to be challenged so he already has regular Legos and we have the duplo one's in the daycare room which he thinks are lame and the other toys I have are his old or reject ones so I really am trying to keep him in mind. The other kids are two 1 year olds, 2 year old and two 3 year olds. We dont have any large toys mosty cars, puzzles, legos and building stuff. I don't want to waste moneyon the wrong toys even though I think anything new would be great.

[Thriftylady]

First off, I would start my search at Goodwill and other thrift stores, I get a ton of toys there. Even my boys love the kitchen, I always find the stuff for it and see kitchens at my thrift store. Also manipulatives are a favorite here. Mine like puzzles, and cookie sheets with magnets such as the abc and number magnets. So you have the legos but there are so many others. I will show you links of some of our favorites.

http://www.amazon.com/Edushape-Ez-Grip-Stars-Piece-Development/dp/B003O54LWQ/ref=sr_1_3?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1430838258&sr=1-3&keywords=manipulative+toys

http://www.amazon.com/Learning-Resources-LER4285-Mathlink-Cubes-100/dp/B000URL296/ref=sr_1_9?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1430838258&sr=1-9&keywords=manipulative+toys

https://search.yahoo.com/yhs/search?p=manipultaive+toys&ei=UTF-8&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-004

[Meeko]

The favorite toy in my daycare by far is stickle blocks (or bristle blocks) Ther all play with them above anything else. My husband bought a HUGE amount of them off of ebay.

[Josiegirl]

I bought a bunch of dinosaurs at WalMart, for 1.00 each. They're a good size and we took them all out this morning, for sandbox play and building caves with rocks.
I have all girls right now and I stick with mainly gender neutral toys. We do have a couple dollhouses. I spent 500 bucks of grant money on this gorgeous wooden 3 story high dollhouse with lots of people and furniture. What a waste of money. I also bought a plastic dollhouse with furniture at a yard sale for 10 bucks. *That's* the go-to dollhouse.
We have a play kitchen with lots of toy food. Lots of different kinds of blocks, garages and buildings, cars. I have musical instruments but it seems like they have to be in the mood to play with those. (Or maybe that's me? ) They love dress-up and use that every day. Different sized balls. Playdoh. I really can't think of anything big that they play with often, except maybe the kitchen set.
Outside, the kids do lots of digging, 'cooking', climbing. I started a large-sized bean teepee this a.m. so when we plant the beans, they'll have their own hideaway. I hung a plastic pail over the limb of our tree with a long rope so they can tug that up and down, fill it with whatever. They love that too.
Water/sand table? That may be a worthwhile investment for you if you don't already have one, because it can be so versatile and most everything I've used in it, has been a hit.

And yard sales, yard sales, yard sales. That's my favorite summer go-to shopping place. If you realize a mistake, you've only lost a few bucks as opposed to spending tons for new, and you can just give it away.

[Thriftylady]

The favorite toy in my daycare by far is stickle blocks (or bristle blocks) Ther all play with them above anything else. My husband bought a HUGE amount of them off of ebay.

Yep my kids love them

I am going to look for the Dinos at WM, my kids would love them in the sandbox.

[Josiegirl]

http://www.amazon.com/WEDGits-WEDGiTS-Deluxe-Set-30pc-Set/dp/B00V76676W/ref=sr_1_1?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1430843820&sr=1-1&keywords=wedgits

Your 4 yo might like these. I find them fun and the kids will play and create with them for quite awhile. I'd like to buy more because when you've got groups of kids playing together, they don't get many to themselves. And you know how well some kids share.

[childcaremom]

Kitchen set. I've put real utensils out for them to use. It gets used every day. Cars and vehicles of all types and sizes. Loose items out for them to explore (gems, shells, rocks). Blocks get used everyday (lego, wooden, tree blocks). I have a train table that hardly ever got used but changed where it was in the room and now it does. Magnets. Art stuff. Playdough. Little figurines. Play silks (used every day in many different ways).

Outside we've also had dinosaurs out in our play lately. Bubbles. Water play. Dirt. Sand box (seriously this is the best investment ever. I have to drag kids out of the sand and I have two sand boxes (one wet one dry). Figurines. Tea set. Ride ons. Balls. Hula hoops. Balance beam. I am making some roads this weekend out of scrap wood pieces.

I have a sensory table but I don't have it out every day. I fill it with random things and this is well used by all ages, as well.

My group ranges from 1 to 5, and they all have equal interest (although not equal access!) to the items, boys and girls alike. My own girls (7 and 9) like to play with the stuff in the evenings, too.

[AmyKidsCo]

Sand box outside!

Blocks, figures (like the dinosaurs), puzzles, and "loose parts." Right now my kiddos are using puzzle pieces for everything BUT puzzles: they're cookies, stew, money, etc.