Puzzles are a tried and true form of entertainment for kids and adults alike. Whether ten pieces or a thousand pieces, there’s something really special about the feeling you get when you’ve finally locked that last one in place to reveal your masterpiece. If you think there’s no chance in the world that your tech-obsessed child will want to sit and work through one, I encourage you to give it a shot, specifically a floor puzzle. Floor puzzles are puzzles with extra-large pieces and for that reason are meant to be completed on the floor. They are a fantastic kid-friendly version with so much to offer. Regular puzzles are great, but floor puzzles for younger kids are an absolute genius.
Here is why….
1) Floor puzzles encourage movement
Floor puzzles will encourage lots of physical movement for your child. You read that right, puzzles and exercise. Unlike a regular puzzle that you might do at your coffee table while relaxing on the couch, a floor puzzle will require your child to do a lot of crawling, squatting, balancing, spinning, stretching, and reaching as they work to fit their pieces together correctly. Practicing movements like these can benefit your child’s development and help support physical strength and coordination.
2) Floor puzzles support coordination and dexterity
Puzzles can also support coordination and dexterity. The practice of their little hands working together to line the edges up just right and lock them into place provides a great opportunity for kids to work on fine motor skill development and coordinating both hands to work together.
3) They promote visual perception
Puzzles can also promote visual perception, in that children need to understand how each piece relates to the larger whole picture they’re aiming to complete. Visual attention is also practiced, as it’s necessary for noticing small details like how the angles and curves of each piece match with the edges of the other pieces. On top of that kids practice visual scanning, moving their eyes attentively from piece to piece before noticing the one they may be looking for.
4) Kids practice Problem-solving
Puzzles encourage children to practice problem-solving, which is an important skill that will start small at this age and continue to build in different ways as they grow. When kids are young, problem-solving can look like trying different ways over and over again to match puzzle pieces together even if they don’t get it right on their first try. Slowly (or with some help) they figure out why certain pieces can not fit together and why some certainly do. That small display of grit and the ability to try different solutions and keep going if one attempt doesn’t work out will help your child grow later into a more confident and natural problem-solver.
5) Floor Puzzles encourage Independent Play
While puzzles could certainly be done as a group activity or be wrapped into family night, they’re also a great way to encourage independent play. The focus and attention that’s required of your child makes it an ideal time for them to work quietly on their own to complete it. On top of that, there’s nothing more rewarding than the feeling of accomplishment your child will feel when they finally complete their puzzle and get to see the finished picture in front of them. There’s a tremendous benefit of boosted self-esteem that comes from successfully making a finished product, all by yourself, out of what began as a scattered mess of different pieces.
Tip: When teaching kids to complete puzzles, start backward. Remove only one piece and ask them to complete it. Then do two pieces, etc. This can work with inset puzzles and big kid interlocking ones.
Here are some floor puzzles and regular puzzle ideas from the Toy Ideas Amazon Page.
Also, if you have younger children who just outgrew regular inset puzzles, these first interlocking puzzles might be helpful.