educational games for a 3 year old

Play free online toddler games and games for babies!

Online games for babies to play using keyboard or touchscreen.

Free Educational games for babies and kids. We have created the most beautiful and popular online games for kids, babies and young children available to play for free. Our aim is to provide a safe and recommended free website dedicated for kids, crafted with love and offering the best online learning benefits for toddlers, babies, and preschoolers.

Toddler Games to point and Click (PC) or Tap (Mobile)

We believe that learning should be a fun and enjoyable experience for children. Therefore, our online and free educational activities for kids 1-2-3-4-5-years old are designed with the most beautiful drawings to play and captivate their imagination and foster their cognitive and motor skills.

Free Toddler Games: dragging and dropping

From online puzzles for kids and colorful memory games to paint drawing activities for 1-2-3-4-5-years old and educational activities for children, our online collection offers a wide variety of options to keep young minds stimulated and entertained.

Toddler games online to move and direct the mouse or to swap the finger on touchscreens

We have carefully designed each online educational game for kids to be age-appropriate, ensuring that it caters to the developmental needs and interests of preschoolers and young children with the most beautiful drawings.

Toddler Online Games: Coloring and Painting Games

Online activities for kids and preschoolers. In addition to the captivating gameplay, our free website for 1-2-3-4-5-years old also provides a user-friendly interface that is easy for young children to navigate independently.

4 pieces jigsaw puzzles for toddlers: by dragging and dropping

At our free website for kids, we understand the importance of providing a secure online environment for children to explore, play, and learn. Safety of children 1-2-3-4-5-years old is our utmost priority, and we have implemented stringent measures to ensure a secure browsing educational experience for children.

Online Games for Toddlers: Maze Games

We take pride in the positive feedback we receive from parents and educators who have witnessed the developmental benefits our free educational games provide. Our online website offers a wide array of online activities for 1-2-3-4-5-years old young children, with the best drawings and completely free to play.

Free Online Memory Games for Toddlers

From enhanced problem-solving abilities to improved hand-eye coordination, our free activities for kids 1-2-3-4-5-years old have proven to be effective tools for early childhood learning.

Welcome to HappyClicks.net, a website full of entertaining, toddler games and baby games online.

Happy Clicks features a collection of free interactive online educational activities designed with the most beautiful drawings for babies , toddlers , and preschool kids , with brightly colored effects that will keep them delighted. Here, you will find interactive online activities that parents can enjoy playing with their babies and toddlers. These free toddler games are simple to play, and preschool kids can enjoy playing them on their own. Fun and free, our games make learning more enjoyable for your baby, toddler, and preschooler. Our activities are a great way to learn new skills. Additionally, Happy Clicks provides an opportunity for you to spend quality time playing with your toddler or baby.

Our free online games for toddlers are entertaining for everyone.

You may be surprised at how early your son and/or daughter can point, click, and navigate their way through enjoyable activities . The activities are interactive and simple, making learning fun with the coolest drawings. All the online games for babies and toddlers (1-2-3-4-5-year-old) on this site are free. Mothers and fathers can enjoy playing with their toddler or preschooler .

Kids, preschoolers, toddlers, babies, parents , and everyone in your family will find lots of original educational online games for toddlers and baby games . Here, you will find free coloring pages , toddler maze games , memory games for preschoolers , keypress games for babies , point and click games , and many more to play with your baby or toddler.

Play and learn with your child online!

Watch Our Videos! Fun Videos for Babies and Toddlers 1 year, 2 year, 3 year old.

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Parent Resources for Learning > Core Skills > 7 Play-Based Learning Activities for 3-Year-Olds

7 Play-Based Learning Activities for 3-Year-Olds

by Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos | Aug 10, 2023 | Core Skills

Pop quiz: What’s a better way to get a 3-year-old to learn, pop quizzes or playtime? 

If you guessed playtime, you’re right! Play-based learning activities for 3-year-olds help them develop the skills they need for school and life by tapping into their natural love of play . It’s a lot easier to get a toddler to play a learning game than to sit down and study—plus, they’ll actually learn more!

The Short Cut

• Learning activities for 3-year-olds can help them develop Core Skills , Creativity , Critical Thinking , and the other 5 C’s that help them thrive
• Play-based learning activities work well because kids learn more when they’re doing something they’re interested in
• Many of the best activities are simple and use everyday items from around the house

We’ve put together instructions for seven of our favorite play-based learning activities for 3-year-olds, plus some general tips, to get you started.

Why Learning Activities for 3-Year-Olds Work

Three-year-olds have a lot of energy, and they’re often eager to have new experiences. You can take advantage of their natural Curiosity (one of the 5 C’s) to help them learn valuable skills and see where they are in reaching their developmental milestones .

When kids do an activity they’re interested in, their brains literally light up on researchers’ scans. They learn more and retain more of what they learn, including important abilities.

For instance, hands-on activities —in which your child molds, cuts, sticks, sorts, or manipulates objects—help them develop motor skills. They also help them learn to follow directions for precision and accuracy, improving their Critical Thinking. Similarly, activities like putting puzzles together and playing with building blocks help develop reasoning skills and Creativity (another of the 5 C’s).

All of these abilities will help them as they get older and start working on more complex skills like writing and tying shoelaces.

The first six years of a child’s life are a critical time for brain development. The things they learn in this period help them perform well in school, excel in work, build healthy relationships, and live happy, fulfilling lives.

How Should I Teach My 3-Year-Old?

Keep It Simple

Parents sometimes think early learners need an elaborate game or flashy toy to hold their attention. But three-year-olds are fascinated by lots of simple things—different colors and shapes , how these colors change when you mix them (e.g., red and blue make purple), kicking a ball, storybooks about dinosaurs, baking cookies, and so on.

You don’t need anything complicated to create engaging learning activities for 3-year-olds. In fact, you’ll often be more successful if you keep it simple and use everyday items you already have.

Allow for Creativity

Life is full of right answers for 3-year-olds (and a lot of them, like “Can I hit someone when I’m mad?” are important!). But focusing on process over the finished product when you’re playing helps kids maintain their natural Creativity. If they decide to paint a blue dog, that’s OK! And if they choose to create a 10-legged cat, that’s great too. 

Give them time to play with no “right answers” to strengthen this important skill.

Be Flexible and Patient

Not every activity you try is going to be a hit with your kids. That’s OK!

At this age, your child is learning who they are and what they’re comfortable with. Exploring their likes and dislikes (which can change quickly!) is part of their development.

7 Top Learning Activities for 3-Year-Olds

1. number hunt.

What You’ll Need

• A set of fun items—from teddy bears to building blocks to balls, anything goes!
• Hide the items around a room
• Ask your three-year-old to find a set number of an item or a group of items (for example, ask them to find one teddy, two socks, and three balls)
• If this is too easy and they lose interest, try turning it into a race against the clock (can they find the items in just one minute?)
• If they find the game a little tricky, ask your child to search for one item at a time (e.g., one teddy, and then one sock, and then one ball) and progress from there

We love this activity because it helps develop working memory and numeracy, important areas of both Critical Thinking and Core Skills.

2. Pasta Necklaces

• Dry, uncooked cylindrical pasta
• Sealable plastic bags
• Food coloring
• A cotton thread or string (you can also use an old shoelace)
• Paper towel
• Beads (optional)
• Place the pasta into the plastic bags, then add a few drops of food coloring to each bag
• After adding the coloring, seal each bag and let your kids give it a good shake
• Line the trays with paper towels, pour the colored pasta on top, and allow it to dry
• While the pasta dries, cut the string so it’s the right length to make a necklace for your child and tie a knot on one end
• Once the pasta is dry, your child can slide the pasta (and beads if you use them) onto the string to make a necklace. When they reach the end of the string, tie the two sides together and you’re done!

This is a fun way to help your child practice counting (“How many pieces of pasta are you adding?”), develop fine motor skills, and explore Creativity.

3. Trace Yourself

• Have your child place part of their body (like their hand) on a sheet of paper
• Show them how to trace around it using a crayon
• Let them take over tracing and finish
• Encourage them to decorate their tracing however they’d like—maybe their hand needs eyes and a mouth!
• The simplest body part to start with is your child’s hands. Once your child has mastered tracing out their hands, they can progress to their feet.
• For even more fun, use a very large piece of paper and trace your child’s whole body. They can then add features and clothes.

This activity requires little prep and can be great for an easy afternoon when you’re in the mood for low mess levels. And it’s an excellent way to help your child practice their fine motor skills!

4. Make an Ocean

• HOMER Sail the Sea printable coloring page
• Crayons, markers, or colored pens
• Help your child color in the printable and discover the interesting creatures that live in our seas
• As your child colors, point out the letters and say their names, the sounds they make, and creature names that start with them (“S” makes a “sssss” sound, for “seahorse”)
• Try to get your child to make the letter sounds too
• Lean into process over perfection. The goal is to introduce your child to letters, sounds, names, and the links between them—if all they want to do is say “sssssss” and color, they’re still learning!
• To make things even more fun, give the creatures silly names and make up stories about them

This is a great activity for developing Core Skills like letter-sound recognition and fine motor skills!

5. Build a City

• Building blocks
• Get out the blocks and start making things, giving each building a name (“This is a candy store. This is an apartment building. This is a playground.”)
• Invite your child to name their own creations as they build alongside you
• If they’re enjoying the game, ask them to copy buildings you’ve made (“This is a candy store. Can you make one too?”)

This quick, simple activity helps develop Critical Thinking (copying your buildings), Core Skills (fine motor skills), and Creativity, all at once!

6. Watch It Grow

• HOMER printable seed growth tracker
• Crayons or pencils
• Large jar (glass or clear plastic)
• Fast-growing seeds (e.g. peas or beans)
• Paper towels
• An old milk or juice carton
• A ruler or measuring tape
• Ask your child to fill the jar with paper towels, then pour water onto the paper towels until they’re slightly damp
• “Plant” the seeds in the damp towels, positioning them close to the jar’s edge so you can watch them grow
• Use the printable to decorate the “watering can” (the milk or juice carton) and add a tag with the plant’s name
• Each day, make a fun moment of checking the jar and asking your child to note any changes you can track in the field notes (“Oh! We finished breakfast! Time to check the jar!”)
• If the paper towels dry out, add water

This activity introduces kids to how plants grow, stoking their Curiosity (another of the 5 C’s) as they explore the way the seed changes day by day!

7. Create Your Own Color Hunt

• Five objects that match each color of crayon, located in or around the house
• Optional: HOMER Make a Color Hunt printable
• Draw a square in the center of a piece of paper (or use the optional Make a Color Hunt printable)
• After drawing the square, use just one color to color it in
• Hand your child the paper and ask them to find five items in or around the house that have the same color
• For kids who aren’t counting yet , you can place items in a bucket or box and ask them to find all the items inside that match the color on the paper

This is a great activity to help with sorting, learning colors, and counting!

Continue the Adventures with Begin!

There are lots of ways to help your child stay entertained, engaged, and learning at home! These activities should help your 3-year-old develop a wide range of important skills.

And if you need more, don’t worry—we’re here to help. Sign up for our emails or check out our award-winning products, from kid-safe learning apps to hands-on activity kits , or try our Early Learner Bundle to see how it all comes together to give your child their best start to achieving their fullest potential.

Jody has a Ph.D. in Developmental Science and more than a decade of experience in the children’s media and early learning space.

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Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos

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Toddlers are very active and always on the go! As a parent, it can be tough to keep up with their energy levels. However, it’s important to find ways to keep your toddler occupied and engaged and learning!

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Here are 15 activities for 3-year-olds that are both fun and educational:

1. Recognizing Letters and Sounds

Learning activities for 3-year-olds are most fun when they are dressed up as family games, pretend plays, or become parts of our daily activities and observations. Recognizing letters and their sounds is one such activity that can be done in several ways.

Things you need:

A whiteboard or chalkboard, some colored markers or chalk. You can also use letter cards, board games, or online games for kids .

How to play:

You can play games where you write a letter on the board and teach your child to read it. Preschoolers can start learning both uppercase and lowercase letters . If they get it right, give them a point. If not, give them a clue and let them try again.

You can also play the “sound it out” game. Write a letter on the board and ask your child to make the sound it makes. Again, if they get it right, give them a point. If not, give them a clue and let them try again.

Pointing to letters written somewhere as you go about your day—a cereal box, a signboard, a magazine, etc.—is also an easy activity to help your child learn to read them. Children can also trace letters with their fingers on the sand, match uppercase and lowercase letters, erase letters on a chalkboard, etc. 

If you are busy, play some alphabet songs for your toddler to dance or let them play some online English games .

Skills your preschooler will learn:

Letter recognition, phonemic awareness, letter sounds

2. Reading with Your Child

Reading books with your child is one of the best things you can do for their development. Not only does it improve language skills, but it also helps them learn sight words, develop their imagination, and understand the world around them.

Books that are appropriate for your child’s age and interests, such as picture books, easy readers, etc.

Sit down with your child and read a book together. You can take turns reading the pages or have your child read the whole book to you.

Books for toddlers should be short and have many pictures supporting the story. This will help keep their attention span, and they will be more likely to understand the concepts in the book.

Read word by word, pointing to each word with your finger, and ask inferential questions based on how, why, what, when, and where to encourage the thinking skills in kids .

Language skills, sight words , attention span, comprehension, memory, imagination

3. Making Up Stories

Children love to listen to and tell stories, and this is an activity that can be done anywhere, anytime. It’s the perfect thing to do in a car while traveling, at bedtime, or even while waiting in line at the grocery store.

None! Just your child’s imagination

Have your child make up a story, either on their own or with your help. Encourage them to use their imagination and be as creative as they want. If they get stuck, you can prompt them with questions or ideas. You may also correct their grammar along the way, but it’s important to let them be creative and have fun with this activity.

If your child is stumped, set an example by asking them for three or four words and make a story that uses all of them. For instance, if they give you the words “cat,” “green,” “ball,” and “tree,” you could make up a story about a green cat that climbs a tree to fetch a ball.

Eventually, you can give words to your child and have them make up a story using those words.

Creativity, imagination, storytelling, communication

4. Playing a Number Game

Offline and online, math can be fun for kids if it’s taught interactively and creatively. Playing the number sense games is one such activity that will help your child learn numbers, counting, and basic arithmetic operations in a fun and engaging way.

A whiteboard or a chalkboard, some colored markers or chalk. You can also use games focusing on numbers and counting, such as board games, card games, etc. Online math games are also available.

There are many games that you can play with your child to help him learn numbers and math concepts. One such game is the “guess the number” game. Write down a number between 1 and 10 on the board, and ask your child to guess it. If he gets it right, give him a point. If not, give him a clue and let him have another try.

You can also play the “greater than or less than” game. Write down two numbers on the board, such as 3 and 5, and ask your child which number is greater. If he gets it right, give him a point. If not, give him a clue and let him try again.

Numbers , counting , and basic arithmetic operations include addition , subtraction , multiplication , and division .

5. Sorting Activities

Sorting is a fun activity that helps children learn about different attributes such as size, shape, color, etc. It also helps them develop problem-solving skills.

Various objects can be sorted according to size, shape, color, etc. You can use blocks, balls, toy cars, berries, buttons, etc.

Let your child choose a few objects and ask him to sort them according to size, shape, color, etc. For example, they can sort blocks by size or toy cars by color. As they sort the objects, help them identify the attribute they use for sorting.

Sorting, categorizing, and problem-solving.

Check out the best sensory activities for 3-year-olds you can try!

One of the favorite preschool activities for 3-year-olds is drawing. At this point, the artistic skills of a child are not really important. Drawing is a fun activity for toddlers to express themselves, work on their fine motor skills, and have fun!

Paper, crayons, markers, colored pencils

Sit with your child and encourage them to draw whatever comes to mind. You can also give some drawing ideas to kids , such as “Draw a picture of your family,” “Draw a picture of your favorite animal,” etc. You may make a drawing and ask your child to trace it or copy it.

Creativity, fine motor skills, imagination, attention span

7. Building with Blocks

One of the easy, no-mess activities for 3-year-olds at home is to let them build with blocks. It is amazing how much fun and creative they can be with this simple activity.

Blocks are also a great way for children to learn about shapes, sizes, colors, and patterns.

Blocks of various shapes and sizes

Let your child play with the blocks freely or give him or her some challenges, such as “build a tower as tall as you can,” “make a house for your favorite stuffed toy,” etc.

Creativity, imagination, problem-solving, eye-hand coordination, shapes, colors, patterns

8. Paper Cutting with Safety Scissors

Children feel empowered with a tool in their hands. And they are so proud of themselves when they can cut the paper!

Paper, safety scissors, craft supplies like pom poms, googly eyes (optional)

Give your child a piece of paper and let him or her cut it any way they want. If you like, you can also give some challenges, such as “cut out a circle,” “make a snowflake,” etc. You can help your child decorate the cutouts with craft supplies if desired.

Fine motor skills, creativity, imagination, attention span

*Please note that only safety scissors should be used for this activity. Regular scissors are too sharp for little ones.*

9. Doing Daily Chores

You’ll be surprised at all the things your toddlers can do if only you let them try. Giving them some simple chores to do not only helps them learn some valuable life skills but also makes kids feel proud and accomplished.

Chores that are appropriate for your child’s age and abilities, such as making their bed, dusting furniture, setting the table, etc.

Choose a chore that you would like your child to help with. Then, show them how to do it and let them try it themselves. Some of the chores that a 3-year-old can do may require some assistance or supervision, but it’s important to let them explore their capabilities and try new things.

A toddler can easily be overwhelmed with too many chores, so it’s important to start small. Choose one or two simple tasks that you know your child can handle. As they get older and more capable, you can give them more chores to do. Remember to praise them for a job well done!

Daily living skills, responsibility, independence, pride, satisfaction

10. Role-playing

What’s funnier than seeing a tiny toddler acting like a fat aunt or an old grandpa? Role-plays are one of the best activities for 3-year-olds as they help them learn about different emotions, people, and situations.

None! Just your child’s imagination. A few props like a walking stick, a hat, a lady’s purse, or a wig could come in handy to help set the scene.

Have your child choose a character that he or she would like to play. It could be anyone—a family member, a friend, a cartoon character, an animal, etc. Then, encourage them to act out the part. They can speak differently, use props, and do whatever they want to bring the character to life. Children learn to observe people around them and understand their emotions in this way.

Creativity, imagination, emotional intelligence, communication, problem-solving

Check out the best outdoor activities for 3-year-olds here!

11. Playing Dress Up

Dress-up games are not gender-specific. Most children love them! This activity helps 3-year-olds use their imagination, learn about social norms and roles, and have lots of fun!

Old clothes, hats, scarves, jewelry, etc., can be used as dress-up items. You can also use old sheets or towels to make capes or skirts. You can also use actual costumes if you have them.

Let your child choose what they want to be, and then help them get dressed in the appropriate clothing. If you like, you can also act out a play or story together with your child in their new costume.

Creativity, imagination, role-playing, problem-solving

12. Making Music with Household Items

This is one of the fun activities for 3-year-olds that can be done with items that you already have around the house. It’s a great way to introduce your child to music and help them develop a sense of rhythm.

Household items that can be used as musical instruments, such as pots and pans, plastic containers, wooden spoons, etc. You can also use actual musical instruments if you have them.

Let your child choose what he or she wants to use as an instrument. Then, encourage them to make music with it however they want. You can also sing along or dance to the music!

Music skills, sense of rhythm, gross motor skills, creativity, imagination

13. Making Art with Thumb , Hand, or Foot Impressions

Most toddlers do not know how to go about making an art piece. But they love to play a role in helping make one! This activity allows them to do just that, resulting in a beautiful piece of art that you can hang on your fridge or wall.

Non-toxic paint, paper, and something to use as a stamp (such as potato, carrot, or eraser)

Let your child choose what paint color he or she wants to use. Then, help them make a thumbprint, handprint, or footprint on the paper. You can also make patterns with stamps by carving a shape into a potato, carrot, or eraser. Once the paint is dry, you can hang up the artwork!

Creativity, imagination, fine motor skills, color recognition

14. Creating a Collage

A collage is a great way for toddlers to express their creativity. They can make amazing birthday cards with photo collages, make wall-hanging art, or have fun tearing up paper and gluing it back together!

Paper, safety scissors, glue, and any other materials you want to use for the collage (such as tissue paper, construction paper, feathers, buttons, ribbons, etc.)

Let your child choose what they want to use for their collage. Then, help them cut out the paper or other materials into small pieces. Once they have a good pile of pieces, they can glue them down onto another piece of paper. You can help them with this if needed.

Creativity, imagination, fine motor skills, color recognition, pattern-making

15. Drawing with Chalk on the Sidewalk

If you live in a safe neighborhood, your children can display their artistic skills outside the home by drawing with chalk on the sidewalk or driveway. This activity is great for gross motor skills and allows you to teach your child about shapes, colors, and patterns.

Chalk in various colors

Let your child choose what color of chalk he or she wants to use. Then, help them draw a picture or make patterns on the sidewalk. You can also join in and create your own chalk masterpiece!

Educate children about different cultures where making art to decorate entrance gates and doorways is a tradition. Indians make rangoli, Chinese make a dragon or zodiac animal drawings, while in the Philippines, it is common to see people painting on bamboo mats called banig . In this way, you can introduce your toddlers to other cultures.

Creativity, imagination, gross motor skills, shapes, colors, pattern-making

A study on Chinese children found that organized extracurricular activities (EAs) are strongly associated with early reading, math, and social skills. Another study indicated that the involvement of parents in preschool children’s learning activities at home during the COVID-19 pandemic was beneficial to kids’ learning behavior and emotional health. 

These studies seem to suggest that any activity that encourages learning, socialization, and creativity would benefit our little ones and shape them into more confident, woke, and aware individuals. 

Some benefits of educational activities for 3-year-olds are:

• They help develop cognitive skills, including problem-solving, memory, and attention span.
• EAs also nurture social skills such as cooperation, empathy, and communication.
• These activities can also boost self-esteem and confidence in children.
• Fun and educational activities are also great for developing gross and fine motor skills.

So go ahead and try out some educational activities with your 3-year-old today! You might just be surprised at how much they enjoy it—and how much they learn from it too.

Explore more online educational resources for kids to aid their learning experience.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How to choose a good educational activity for my 3 year old.

When choosing an activity for your 3-year-old, it is important to consider their interests, abilities, and attention span. You also want to ensure the activity is developmentally appropriate and safe. If you are unsure whether an activity is appropriate for your child, you can always consult their pediatrician or a child development expert.

How can I get my toddler to sit still and focus on an activity?

This can be a challenge for many parents! One tip is to try to find activities that your child is interested in and that they enjoy doing. Also, make sure you provide plenty of breaks during the activity so that your child doesn’t become overwhelmed or frustrated. Finally, praise your child when they display good behavior so that they know that you are pleased with their efforts.

How to help my toddler express their creativity?

There are many ways in which you can help your toddler express their creativity. One way is to provide plenty of opportunities for them to explore different materials and mediums, such as crayons, paint, clay, etc. You can also encourage them to sing, dance, or act out stories. And finally, make sure to praise their efforts and creativity, no matter what the outcome may be.

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20 Great Games for 3-Year-Olds

Searching for games for 3-year-olds that are equal parts delightful and developmental? We’ve got you covered. Read on for our top picks! Looking for games for 3-year-olds that will entertain and educate all at once?

We’re here to help.

Playing games is vital for children’s development , helping those little brains and bodies develop in all sorts of ways.

From promoting creative thinking and problem-solving to helping to cultivate social skills, games are more than just a way to pass the time.

In fact, play is such a big deal that it’s recognized by the United Nations High Commission for Human Rights as a right of every child.

We’ve put together a list of games of all types that are perfect for the transition out of toddlerdom.

Ready to dive in?

How do I entertain my 3-year-old at home?

How long should a 3-year-old play alone, what game can a 3-year-old play, best games for 3-year-olds, board games for 3-year-olds.

We get it — lives get busy. And finding the time to put together a smorgasbord of activities for 3-year-olds can be a challenge.

Peanut’s here to help.

While all kids develop at their own pace, here’s some of what your little adventurer might be up to right now so that you can find activities that are a good fit.

They’re likely able to:

• Run and jump, and walk upstairs
• Stand on their tip-toes
• Ride a tricycle
• Stack blocks
• Draw straight lines and copy a circle
• Dress and undress themselves
• Name colors
• Know their name
• Chat in short sentences
• Remember simple rhymes and songs
• Know the difference between big and small

They’re also beginning to share and play with others.

Keeping this all in mind can help you navigate what might be appropriate for them at this age.

There’s a lot of ideas here for ways to play with your toddler, but some of these can also be great ways for your toddler to be entertained solo while you get something done nearby.

By 3-years-old , they’re getting better and better at playing on their own, so you can probably get at least ten free minutes out of these fun ideas.

And in fact, many experts believe that it’s something that should be encouraged.

You may have heard about the benefits of independent play for young children (basically, playing alone).

It can help stimulate their imaginations, encourage them to problem solve, and teach them patience.

And even if they’re playing on their own, it’s vital that they are supervised at this age.

Sure, you can work on your laptop or make lunch while they’re hard at play, but make sure you can always see them and hear them.

Here’s a list of our favorite games of all shapes and sizes for kids to play solo or as a group.

Many of these games can be hot favorites at birthday parties .

1. Musical statues

Play music for them to dance to. Tell them that when the music stops, they have to stand as still as a statue until it starts playing again.

You can choose to make this game competitive by getting them to sit out if they move when they’re not supposed to.

The last child standing is the winner.

But just dancing and stopping with the music is also fun.

Mama’s choice!

2. Kids karaoke

Little kids love singing and dancing.

And all you have to do to make karaoke age-appropriate is get everyone to join in all at once!

Teach them a simple song.

Putting easy actions to the words goes a long way.

3. Duck, duck, goose

By 3 years old, they may just be ready for this classic game.

Get them to sit in a circle.

Whoever is “on” (possibly you to begin with) travels around the outside of the circle, patting each child gently on the head, saying “duck.”

When that gentle tap is accompanied by a “goose” rather than a “duck,” things get exciting.

The goose has to chase the person who’s “on” around the circle.

And the person who’s “on” has to try and sit in the place of the goose before they catch them.

4. Hide-and-seek

For little ones, mark off a small area that they’re allowed to hide within.

It may help if a grown-up is the seeker to take the pressure off.

Remember to compliment their brilliant hiding places!

5. “Simon says…”

This is another classic that you may have played as a child yourself.

“Simon says… touch your toes.”

And everyone needs to touch their toes.

“Simon says… wiggle your ears.”

And everyone needs to wiggle their ears.

“Pat your head.”

Simon didn’t say that.

So this time, don’t copy!

6. Pass the present

Wrap up a prize in multiple layers of wrapping paper.

Between each layer, place a little prize (so that everyone gets something).

Play music and pass the present around the circle.

When the music stops, whoever is holding the present can unwrap a layer.

And if the idea of passing the present is a bit much, passing a balloon or a ball to get used to the idea is a great place to start.

7. What’s the time, Mr. Wolf?

Kids line up behind a line and you stand apart with your back to them.

They yell, “What’s the time, Mr. Wolf?”

You say a time, like “It’s three o’clock.”

If it’s three o’clock, they should take three steps toward you.

Five o’ clock, five steps.

But if you respond, “Lunch time!” they have to run back to safety before you can catch them.

8. Pin the tail on the donkey

This one never gets old.

All you need is a large picture of a donkey without a tail.

Blindfolded, they need to try and stick a tail in the right place.

Because they’re still so little, it’s best to guide them there when they have their eyes closed to make them feel as safe as possible.

9. Bubble blowing

This is a really simple way to have an incredibly good time.

Blow bubbles and see how many they can pop!

You can also teach them to blow bubbles themselves.

10. Treasure hunt

For 3-year-olds, you can make this one super simple!

Hide some prizes around your garden or house and unleash the toddlers!

Just make sure there’s a prize for everyone to avoid tears.

Ready to kickstart a lifelong love of family funtime?

Board games are a great way to do so.

And there are so many options that are perfect for your thriving 3-year-old.

11. Elefun and Friends

This adorable elephant plays music while it blows butterflies out of its trunk for kids to chase.

You can get it here .

12. Banana Blast

Your toddler’s job is to pull bananas from the trees until the monkey jumps.

This game comes with a fun 24-piece puzzle.

This can be a fun one for independent play.

Here’s where you find it.

13. Candy Land

This popular game allows little travelers to adventure along a delicious path to the Candy Castle.

It’s a great intro to quest games.

Get Candy Land here!

14. Count Your Chickens

This is a great game for encouraging collaboration.

Players have to work together to help Mother Hen bring her chicks back to the coop.

Here’s where you can get a copy of this game.

15. Dominoes

If you spent your childhood delighting in the mechanics of your domino set, you might want to pass that love on to your kids.

It’s a very colorful way to introduce your kids to STEM concepts.

This is another great one for some solo playtime.

Check out this Large Dominoes Set.

16. Let’s Feed the Very Hungry Caterpillar

Based on the classic book by Eric Carle, this exciting board game has little players collecting cards to transform the caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly.

If you’re looking for card games for 3-year-olds, this is a great introduction.

Here’s where you can find it.

17. Bingo Games for Kids

If you want to get the whole family involved, try this comprehensive bingo set that will help your little one recognize words and pictures.

Get it here.

18. Colorama

This fun game is a great way for your toddler to develop their knowledge of shapes and colors — and have a whole lot of fun while doing so.

Get matching here.

19. Lucky Ducks

This adorable game is both “wacky” and “quacky” — and a great way to learn colors.

Meet your lucky ducks here.

20. Feed the Woozle

This award-winning game is as delightful as it is educational.

Helping with everything from language development to balance, feeding a woozle is a great way to make friends and learn new skills.

You can get yours here.

If you’re looking for more inspiration about games for 3-year-olds, or to share your great ideas with others, head over to the Peanut community .

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13 Best Preschool Games for Ages 3 to 5

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Our game closet is overflowing. We play a LOT of games . We always have. This is why I want to share the best fun and learning preschool games for kids ages 3, 4, and 5.

These preschool games are favorites from the classroom and home as a parent of two game obsessed children. I’ll share the games we’ve played over and over –and games that helped my kids practice and learn important skills, too.

What’s important to remember when choosing the best game for your child is that it’s FUN . As you’ll see with the games below, these choices are also playful, engaging, and interesting .

For us to stay as non-technology-oriented as possible, my family plays board and card games in the evenings. (Instead of watching TV or being on electronics.) I highly recommend this. It’s a great way to spend family time together. And I love that we’re building memories.

13 Preschool Games for Ages 3 to 5

The Super Sorting Pie Ages 3+ Not only is this a learning game for beginning math skills but my kids loved to pretend play grocery store with it, too. As a math game, it gets kids sorting and counting. Then, use it to make pies, play grocery store, and do other interesting fruit-related things. (And my kids won’t allow me to get rid of this — it’s just too much fun. Even now that they’re well beyond the preschool ages.)

The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game Ages 3+ Practice matching, sorting, counting, and simple math skills with this entertaining, educational game for preschoolers.

Racoon Rumpus Matching Game Ages 3+ Raccoons are having a party in your closet. Roll the color and costume dice and search the cards until you find a match! The person with the most critter cards wins. Kids think this game is so much FUN!!

Feed the Woozle Ages 3+ Preschoolers use fine motor skills along with counting skills to feed silly snacks (like hairy pickles) to the Woozle in this playful cooperative learning game. Players also have to get up and move, too — so get ready!

Frankie’s Food Truck Fiasco Game Ages 4+ Get kids to practice shape-matching with foods! Talk about fun! Not only is this game a blast, but the lift-the-flap board book of the same name is also darling.

Sum Swamp Ages 4+ We played this addition preschool board game a LOT when my daughters were new to addition and subtraction. Get this board game to make practicing math facts fun!

Zingo: Bingo with a Zing Ages 4+ Help your preschoolers to develop language and matching skills with this exciting bingo game that’s not only easy and fun to play but very popular with kids, my own included. This is one of our favorite preschool learning games.

Guess Who? Board Game Ages 4+ My kids played this reasoning game from the time they were preschoolers until middle school. It’s a great parent-child game that kids love!

Mini Muffin Match Up Ages 3+ Play this preschool game with kids to learn how to recognize numbers and colors, then use the materials to pretend play later. Your kids will LOVE it!

Go Fish / Crazy Eights / Alphabet Concentration / Old Maid Ages 4+ These are the classic card games of childhood. Stick them in your bag and have them with you at restaurants. I used to take my kids out for game dates at a bagel store and have many happy memories of Go Fish and bagels. My suggestion for Go Fish is to start with pairs instead of fours — it makes it easier to win with preschoolers and shorter to play, which is also better for younger kids.

Outfoxed Ages 4+ Can you use the clues to eliminate suspects and figure out whodunit? This preschool game asks players to find the guilty fox to win.

Hoot Owl Hoot ages 4+ In this cooperative game for preschoolers, players help the owls fly back to their next. The game will help children practice color matching and decision-making.

Cootie ages 3+ Does anyone else have fond memories of playing this game as a child? Players choose a cootie bug body first and then begin to create their entire bug by adding legs, eyes, a mouth, and more.

Free Preschool Games Online

If you’re looking for a preschool game option on the computer or phone, here are the best learning game options for preschoolers.

Splash Learn

The Best Logic and Strategy Games for Kids

The Best Card Games for Kids The Best Books for 3-Year-Olds The Best Books for 4- and 5-Year-Olds Gifts for 4 Year Old Girls Gifts for 4 Year Old Boys Gifts for 5 Year Old Girls Gifts for 5 Year Old Boys

Melissa Taylor, MA, is the creator of Imagination Soup. She's a mother, former teacher & literacy trainer, and freelance education writer. She writes Imagination Soup and freelances for publications online and in print, including Penguin Random House's Brightly website, USA Today Health, Adobe Education, Colorado Parent, and Parenting. She is passionate about matching kids with books that they'll love.

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One Comment

Really important to remember when choosing a game for child is that it’s first and foremost FUN. I appreciate your work which you made to write this beautiful article. Nice to Read it. Thanks

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10 Educational Games for 3-Year-Olds (Beyond the Hokey Pokey)

PureWow editors select every item that appears on this page, and the company may earn compensation through affiliate links within the story. All prices are accurate upon date of publish. You can learn more about the affiliate process here .

If you have a toddler at home, you are probably familiar with the big highs and big lows. The secret to staying on the upswing? Lots of entertainment. It is hard work to keep a 3-year-old happy: They require a lot of feedback and engagement. And they absolutely expect you to get down on your knees and pretend to be a dog. Yup, our knees hurt, too—so here are some other ways to keep your threenager entertained during these trying times.

19 Crafts for Toddlers That Won’t Leave Your Home Covered in Glitter Glue

1. Color Mixing with Paint

Give your little one a lesson in primary, secondary and tertiary colors with paint. This project is all about exploration and creativity—and it’s as simple as it sounds. Pour some red, yellow and blue paints into different cups and show how these primary colors can be combined to make green, purple and orange. Once the secondary colors have been whipped up, ask your kiddo to see what happens when one primary color is mixed with one secondary color. The fun surprise? With some careful mixing, your child can create all the different hues he has in his big box of crayons. But don’t sweat it if this activity ends with a whole lot of brown-black paint—that’s learning, too.

2. Toilet-Paper Tube Color Sorting

Don’t throw away those empty toilet-paper tubes! With this two-part project, your child can have some painting fun and then move on to mastering his matching and sorting skills. Step 1: Set your child up to paint each tube a different, solid color. Step 2: Once the paint has dried, pull some pom-poms in corresponding colors from your craft box and ask your little one to fill each tube with pom-poms of the right color. (If you don’t have pom-poms, your child can make his own by painting cotton balls at the same time as the toilet-paper tubes.)

3. Camera scavenger hunt

This game is a crowd-pleaser, and all your kiddo needs to participate is a camera— this kid-friendly option is great, but you can also just use your smartphone for a quick scavenge. Send your little one on a fun hunt for all kinds of ordinary treasures by giving simple directives (e.g., “Find something shiny,” or “Look for something green and skinny.”) Feel free to take the scavenger hunt outdoors so your little one can learn by exploring nature. Each completed task can be captured with the camera, and when all items have been found, you and your child can paste the photos on a poster board to create a collage of her findings.

4. Name That Picture

This modification of the camera scavenger hunt lets you handle the photography (’cause that iPhone isn’t cheap) but still provides plenty of educational fun. Snap a few shots of random objects, making sure you zoom in super close so that your child can’t immediately identify the item. Have your child hunt around your home for the mystery object using only the texture and color from the photo as clues. A fun and exciting exercise for those critical thinking skills!

5. Foil Letter Crafting

The 3-year-old in your life can have some hands-on fun with plain old aluminum foil while learning all about letters. Write a big, bold capital letter on a piece of paper and then pull out several large sheets of tinfoil for your tot to scrunch and manipulate into the shape of the letter you drew. Your child might not have the hand control to write the alphabet, but this activity will give her a head start—and the sensory aspect will make it a hit, too.

6. Beanbag Socks

This activity begins with the sensory fun of creating homemade beanbags. Fill a pair of old socks with rice, lentils or whatever you have on hand, and have your child help. Once made, the beanbags are great for promoting balance and coordination. Think My Fair Lady and ask your tot to walk with one atop his head. Then suggest he sling it over an arm and try to keep it there. And when that sophisticated balancing act brings the beanbag to the floor, ask your giggly little one to stand on it with one foot. The gains? Gross motor skills...and lots of laughs.

7. Pasta Necklaces

Your child might not have perfect pencil grip at this point, but if she can thread some twine through a handful of elbow noodles, she will have made great strides and a lovely necklace, too. This activity can’t be beat when it comes to building fine motor skills, and it’s not bad for building frustration tolerance and concentration either. Note: Definitely offset the frustration aspect with creativity; your child can enjoy both an artistic and sensory experience by dipping each noodle into paint before facing the bigger challenge of stringing the pasta beads.

8. Recyclable Instruments

Your 3-year-old will likely be wowed by the opportunity to make something from household items. (Think a guitar made from a takeout container and rubber bands, or maracas made from a water bottle and rice.) After the unparalleled excitement of making something , the opportunity for emotional learning is basically boundless. Musical instruments can be used for emotional literacy in a number of ways. To start, try inviting your child to shake those maracas according to emotional cues—like he’s angry, happy or sad—so he can act out all the feelings with a little healthy distance.

9. Story Stones

There’s a good chance your kiddo will return from your next nature walk with a rock collection—but if not, recommend it! Once you’ve got a handsome pile of rocks hanging out in your home, make use of them with this storytelling activity. Help your child paint or color each stone with a simple image (dog, boy, raindrops, beach ball), and once all the stones have been decorated, ask your child to arrange them to tell an original story. The visual component will help your child grasp the concept of narrative, and storytelling in any form is a wonderful way to give the imagination a workout.

10. Found-Object Building

All those things you never really wanted to bring into your home (or find weeks later in your coat pockets) have a purpose now. We all know those found objects have a special significance, and it’s about time they lived up to their potential. If your child collected bits and pieces from the outside world on his last neighborhood walk, give him a cardboard box to serve as a structure of his choosing (rocket ship, castle, house). Then, help him place and paste his found materials to create the scenery and build the narrative. (Is that ivy growing on the castle walls? Are those asteroids hitting the rocket ship?) This is both a story-building and storytelling exercise, so it’s great for early literacy. The multimedia aspect makes for a great sensory experience, too.

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10 Brain-Boosting Activities for Three-Year-Olds

• Family Time Tips & Tools , Preschool
• May 1, 2018

Support Your Preschooler’s Development with These At-Home Activities

These ideas expand upon what your preschooler is learning in their classroom. Activities are adapted from the Ages and Stages Questionnaire Learning Activities by Elizabeth Twombly and Ginger Fink.

1. Muffin Tin Geoboard

Using rubber bands, encourage your child to make shapes like squares and rectangles on the backside of muffin tins. Or they can create letters and numbers on the geoboard.

2. Coin Exploration

Gather loose change and count them together. Sort the coins by size and color, and talk about which one is bigger or smaller. Create a coin toss game with cups. Have fun and be creative in exploring coins.

3. Interactive Reading

As you read with your child, invite them to look at, point to and talk about what they see on the page. Interactive reading helps your child stay interested in a book and learn. Give your child time to ask questions about the book.

4. Create a Face

Talk about the parts of a face as your child creates one using different shapes cut out from paper or foam pieces. Your child’s self-image will strengthen as they learn how to create a likeness of themselves.

5. Move Like an Animal

Talk about what is happening as you and your child run fast like a cheetah or gallop like a horse. Your child will learn words at the same time they learn to coordinate their body and control their actions.

6. Two-Step Directions

Give your child directions that ask for two or more actions. Two-step directions give your child practice in understanding and completing all the parts of a task.

7. Searching For Sounds

Find various objects around the house and describe the sound your child can make with each object. Your child becomes more familiar with their environment when they have the chance to hear and classify sound.

8. Matching Pictures

Let your child look for one matching pair among several pictures of the same kind of thing, for example, among several pictures of cars. Your child will notice which pictures are nearly alike and which are exactly alike.

9. Pack My Own Picnic

Invite your child to pack a picnic lunch and decide what to include. Packing a picnic allows your child to act independently and learn from their choices. Talk about where they will be eating and what foods might be easy to eat there.

10. Props for Pretending

Stock a box or basket with supplies that encourage your child to imagine themselves in different roles. Your child’s thinking may expand as they dress up to play various parts.

Curious about what learning looks like in our classrooms?  Explore more about our preschool curriculum today!

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20 Educational & Developmental Activities for 3 Year Olds

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If I have to be honest three year olds are my favorite! They are sweet and kind and so loving, but what I love even more is watching the growth that happens when they are three. They go from barely being able to form a sentence to in-depth conversations where you might find yourself scratching your head how they learned all this! To help them in their growth I love to have plenty of educational activities for 3 year olds on hand to help them in their growth when they are ready to learn!

Whether you are looking for educational or developmental activities for your 3 year old we have an entire list that will help teach and entertain your child throughout the whole year! 

Be sure to check out our activities for 2 year olds as well! 

Activities for 3 Year Olds

1. animal sounds.

Kids love animals, in fact, they probably point out every animal they see to you as you drive by them or while they watch a show. Use this time to ask your child what sound the animal makes. 

By doing this it helps develop cognitive skills and increase memory. 

2. Animal Walk

If your child loves animals, then pretend to be animals! You can name out an animal and have your child act it out. This could be as simple as a dog, or you can have them use their imagination as to what a unicorn would do. 

Kids will learn coordination, hopping, balance, and galloping as you play together. 

There is no better way to educate a three year old than to read to them. Make it a habit of reading with your child each day or night for at least 15 minutes. Use this time to snuggle. As you read talk about what is happening in the story. Ask questions and get them to cognitively think about the outcome. 

I love to have books available and out so they can always grab a book and “read” on their own as well. 

The development of fine motor skills is crucial in three year olds. Sit at the table and draw with them. Give them a variety of colors. Have them draw pictures, have them practice tracing their letters if they are interested. All of these things will strengthen those fine motor skills. 

Cutting is another skill that might scare any parent! If your kids are like mine, they might have given themself a haircut or even cut an important document that they thought was scrap paper. So keep the scissors up high and bring them down when it is time to cut. Have them practice cutting on lines and also cutting out objects. The more they cut the stronger their skills will be. 

6. Play Hide and Go Seek

Hide and go seek is so fun at this age because they are actually hiding and starting to understand the concept of the game! Not only will you giggle together and have fun, but this game teaches patience to your kids as they have to find you even if they might find it hard as well as patiently wait while you find them as well. 

With three year olds, you can start to introduce some harder puzzles to the mix. We love to have a bunch of 24 piece jigsaw puzzles on hand for them to work on. As they do puzzles, they will learn concentration, patience, and the satisfaction of a job well done when they complete the puzzle. 

8. Outdoor Scavenger Hunt

Three year olds are explorers! So take them on an  outdoor scavenger hunt . Here they can explore nature, look for things big and small, and practice their observation skills. 

9. Sidewalk Chalk

On nice days, go outside and do various  sidewalk chalk activities . Have them trace around you and you trace around them. Have them practice writing their letters and numbers and a variety of other fun activities. 

10. Talk to them!

One of the best ways for your kids to develop educationally and developmentally is to talk to them. Have conversations with them. Answer your kids why questions 5000 times a day. You will be surprised at how well they are listening and soaking every word in that you are saying, even the ones that make you cringe when they repeat them, so beware!

11. Stickers

Stickers are another great activity. Have them grab the sticker off the sheet (which helps with those fine motor skills) and have them place them on the designated paper. Remind them that stickers only go on certain locations or you might end up with stickers everywhere! 

12. Play Soccer

If you want to help your 3 year old with coordination, go outside and kick the soccer ball with them. This will help them with hand-eye coordination, following directions, and help them stay active.

When in doubt, dance! Turn on some music and watch your kids dance! This helps relieve energy and helps them have fun and gain a love for music. Over time your kids will start asking for their favorite songs and asking you to turn off songs that they don’t care for. 

14. Sensory Bins

Create a fun sensory bin for your child to play with. These are relatively inexpensive and help with your child’s development. Have them look for certain things in the bin or create certain structures as they play. 

There is no better time to start counting with your child than now. Count together as you drive in the car and while you are sitting waiting for an activity to start. If you are giving your kids a candy treat, then count each object individually. This is the very beginning of basic math development and number recognition.

16. Finger Paint

Kids love to make messes. So put on some old clothes and let them finger paint. They will love using their fingers to create their very own masterpiece. 

17. Shaving Cream

Another fun activity with three year olds is to play with shaving cream. Place a big black trash bag over the table and on the floor and then add shaving cream. Let your child smash it, spread it, and squish it! 

18. Puppet Show

Create a puppet show with the kids. Make your own sock puppets or buy some puppets and play. Let your child take the lead on naming the characters and what will happen in the play. This is a great activity to develop creativity and develop their imagination. 

19. Build with Blocks

If you want another creative activity that uses their imagination as well as helps with fine motor skills grab some blocks. Here they can stack them on top of each other, build houses, and a variety of other fun structures. This is a fun activity to get on the floor and do with them through parallel play. 

20. Playdough

Make a big batch of playdough and give them some basic kitchen tools and let them play playdoh. Your child will spend hours each day playing with playdough. 

What other activities for 3 year olds would you add to the list? Share in the comments!

Check out these other great posts! 

15 Fun First Day of School Activities for the Little Ones

10 Smart STEM Activities for Kids

How to Make a Paper Airplane?

5 Cool DIY Water Balloon Launcher Ideas

How to Build a Catapult for School Project?

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Preschool Activities For 3-Year-Olds: Writing Practice, DIYs, Sensory Play, Art Projects, Counting Tasks, And More

April 15, 2024 //  by  Eileen Zajac

Whether you’re planning for a full term or just a week of curriculum, we know the challenge of preparing activities for your 3-year-old preschoolers! We also realize that finding learning experiences that meet the different abilities of your kiddos takes a lot of time and energy. Implementing three to four 15-minute activities is the perfect way to hold your little learners’ attention. Use this list to find a few activities that can be easily integrated into your lessons, or used throughout the day during mini-breaks and transition periods. Let’s dive in!

1. Rainy Names

Did you know that learning and understanding names can boost confidence and build community in the classroom? This activity has your students paste raindrops with the letters of their names in the correct order. It’s perfect for a rainy day and for enhancing your students’ name recognition, pre-writing skills, and much more! 

Learn More: Instagram

2. Baby Tub Time

Your little ones will adore using dolls to improve social skills in this engaging educational activity! Hands-on activities like this one where they’ll wash and care for their doll will help your children gain a better understanding of how to treat others appropriately. 

Learn More: The Imagination Tree

3. Letter Fishing

Engaging and challenging activities for your preschool children that also enhance their letter recognition skills? Where do we sign up? Use a basket or fill a tub with water and let your little fishermen start casting for letters! This fun learning experience will engage even your most lively kiddos.

4. Counting Caterpillars

Your kiddos will love practicing their motor skills and number recognition by building little caterpillars! Draw some circles to create a caterpillar and then write a digit from 1 to 10 in each circle. Your preschoolers will match these to numbered dots on other circles that you have made from construction paper. 

5. Building With Magnetic Tiles 

Get your hard hat ready and start building with magnetic tiles! This activity helps develop your children’s motor skills and creativity, and is simply a lot of fun! Use MAGNA-TILES (or blocks) and have them either copy your creations or create their own designs! 

6. Kids Busy Boxes

‘Busy boxes’ will be a definite game changer for your preschool classroom! For this quick activity, fill individual compartments of plastic containers with items such as markers, dried cereal, or anything else that will keep busy little hands and minds occupied! You don’t need to get fancy – even a shoe box will work! 

7. Mini Pies

Preschoolers love being outside! Outdoor play gives your students the space to observe nature while they test out their skills! Imaginations will soar as they make mini pies by filling muffin tins with natural objects like black walnuts, dirt, and a sprinkle of grass to top it off! Just hope they don’t expect you to try their creations!

8. Color Sorting

By preschool, kids are usually pretty skilled at recognizing different colors, but that doesn’t mean this toddler activity shouldn’t be practiced. Have your children sort colored objects into matching colored dishes to learn critical thinking and organizational skills. This is a great activity to supplement lessons focused on categorization. 

9. Obstacle Courses

There’s no doubt that building motor skills is extremely important for childhood development.  This fun obstacle course activity will be a hit with your youngsters! It will also help them develop muscle strength, balance, problem-solving skills, sensory processing, and coordination – all essential components of motor skills! 

10. Name or Letter Recognition

You’ll love this activity that requires little prep and has multiple uses! Whether your kiddies are working on building names or identifying letters, these colorful sticker dots will spark their interest and enhance their recognition skills. Get them to match the letters with those on paper or use the stickers to practice building sight words.

11. Boo Boo Counting

Boo Boo Counting is great for developing math skills and for practicing empathy. Your young mathematicians will relate to matching numbered band-aids to the owie spots on a cardboard cutout of a child. Consider laminating the cardboard and using velcro to make this activity last longer – it’s a keeper!

Learn More: Toddler Rat Play

12. Logical Sorting

Add this one to your week of activities focused on logical sorting. Your little ones who are ready for a challenge will love using a grid to sort colorful little houses into categories to match both the house color and the roof color!  This activity will go a long way in helping them understand the relationship between different patterns. 

Learn More: Teachers Mag

13. Arrow Matching

This is an adorable hands-on learning activity that will develop motor skills and increase your children’s curiosity about nature. They’ll love matching arrows to create paths for a caterpillar on its journey to become a butterfly and for a spider to get to its web! 

14. Elephant Ring Toss

Any animal activity is sure to spark even your most difficult students’ interest. Use a recycled box to create a cardboard cut-out of an elephant’s face with a 3D trunk. Next, construct three cardboard rings. Have your children help paint the elephant before they start the ring toss game! 

Learn More: Pinterest

15. Swing Painting

This was one of those activities that couldn’t be left out of this list!! It combines two activities that are particularly calming for children – swinging and painting. Have them hang from a swing, paintbrush in hand, and let their creativity shine! This art project is a super way to vary things up if you’ve got kids who struggle to stay focused all day! 

Learn More: Homegrown Friends  

16. Splitting Hairs

Scissor skills are pretty vital as your preschoolers move on to kindergarten and elementary school! They’ll love using scissors to cut the hair of little paper people in this fun activity that builds their motor skills. They can build up to more wavy or zig-zag lines as their skills develop.

Learn More: Facebook

17. Dot Puzzles

This one will be a good challenge for your little ones! Create a paper puzzle and puzzle pieces with a colored dot pattern and let your preschoolers work independently or with a partner to place the pieces over the matching part of the puzzle. This can be tricky so encourage them to ask for help if they need it!

18. Bubble Wrap Popping

Number recognition and bubble wrap? Now this sounds like a good time! Write numbers on the bubble wrap; the bigger the bubbles, the better! Next, read out a number and your children will pop the bubbles with a toothpick or even just their finger! Remember to mix up the numbers and spread them out when creating this exciting resource to boost their recognition skills.

19. All About Me Process Art

@art.is.smart All About Me process art with 3 year olds! #preschoolteacher #artissmart #teachersoftiktok ♬ Colors of the Wind – Instrumental – Vesislava

Sometimes slowing things down is the way to go! Have your kids participate in an artistic mini-portrait experience that focuses on the process of art more than the finished product. This project is great for getting them to understand the steps in making art, while also discovering different techniques, materials, and tools. 

Learn More: Tiktok

20. Playdough Shapes

@planningplaytime 70+ pages of Preschool Fun #preschoolmom #preschoolteachers #toddlermoms #preschoolathome #preschoolactivities #learningthroughplay #playtolearn ♬ Cute – Bensound

Everybody loves playdough, but using it for educational activities is a surefire way to get your class excited about learning! There are benefits to playdough free-play, but this tactile activity will also reinforce your kids’ knowledge of shapes. Simply print this template and watch your students mold their dough to match the shapes. 

Learn More: TikTok

21. Artsy Preschoolers

@carreyme Preschool teacher thangs. 3 year olds are amazing! Artist study 👩‍🎨 #pietmondrieaanstyle #preschool #preschoolteacher #preschoolactivities #earlychildhoodeducation ♬ Kyoto Flow – Official Sound Studio

Do you have an old art history book lying around? If not, track one down to inspire an early love of art in your preschoolers. Show them one of the masterpieces, open the fingerpaint jars, and let them get to work on creating their own interpretation of the painting! 

22. Spaghetti Play

Who doesn’t love a little spaghetti play? Add some different colored slimy ‘spaghetti’ noodles to your activity table and watch your students as they use their tiny hands to play with different tools to cut their noodles! They’ll have the time of their life with this super sensory activity!

23. Dancing Corn

@byemilylawson This is the number one preschool science idea on my blog for 5 years now #stemforkids #preschoolstem #prekstem #prekactivitiesathome #toddleractivitiesathome #activitiesfortoddlers #keepingkidsbusy #scienceismagic #scienceforpreschool #fallactivitiesforkids ♬ original sound – Emily | relatable mom life

It’s never too early to start experimenting with different science projects. This dancing corn demonstration is sure to be a hit with your preschool students! Place corn in a clear cup and then add baking soda and some vinegar to have your kiddos jumping with joy when the corn starts to dance! 

24. Painting Ice

@littlebirchpreschool #ice #preschool #earlyyears #tufftray #tufftrayactivities #heatwave #playingandlearning ♬ Ice Ice Baby – Vanilla Ice

This activity is great for a hot summer day; the combination of ice cubes and paint is the perfect mix to cool little hands! Add plenty of ice and paint to your activity table, and have your students use paintbrushes to explore the melting ice and the changes in the water’s color! What a cool activity!

25. Race and Paint

@daynursery Racing the cars while making marks! #makingmarks #preschoolactivities #activityideas #fyp #viral #trending #earlyyears ♬ Roary The Racing Car Main Theme (From ""Roary The Racing Car"") – Geek Music

On your marks, get set, paint! Your kids will have a blast dipping plastic cars into paint and letting them race to the finish, creating beautiful streaks of color in the process! Whether you have them race each other or just drive the cars around,  this activity will surely result in smiling faces and some eye-catching artwork!  

26. Alphabet Practice

@bigcityreaders #abcs #alphabetactivities #readingteacher #teachersoftiktok #teachertok #momtoks #preschoolactivities #preschoolathome #preschoollunch #preschoolmom #StJudeDadPhotos #fypシ゚viral #learningtoread #3yearoldbrain #alphabethack #letters #letterssong ♬ Face Dance – Funny Tok

Make learning the alphabet more fun with missing letters! Write part of the alphabet on a strip of paper, but cover a few of the letters with sticky notes. Then start singing the alphabet song and either have your children write the missing letter or let them reveal it by uncovering the hidden letter! 

27. Patterning

@play.inspire.grow Hands on patterning #earlymaths #simplemaths #preschoolmath #preschoolactivities #prek #teachermom #homeschool #earlyyearsideas #kindergarten #learningisfun #canadianmom #montessoriathome #learningthroughplay ♬ FEEL THE GROOVE – Queens Road, Fabian Graetz

Get creative by starting a pattern for your kids to practice ‘what comes next’! This activity uses a range of objects like stickers, dot markers, and manipulatives to teach them more about this important skill. Your little ones will love the variety in this task as they work to identify patterns and create their own!

28. Dressing Dolls

@mrs_burland Dress the dolls activity, encouraging children to strengthen their hand muscles and develop their fine motor skills. Also, encouraging independence. #earlyyearsactivities #finemotoractivity #earlyyearspractitioner #preschoolactivities #eyfsactivities #handandeyecoordination #finemotorskills ♬ Low Down – venbee & Dan Fable

Playing with dolls is always a great opportunity to help your students better understand themselves and others. You can gather a variety of small dolls and let your kids get creative by dressing them up! The small size will be more challenging for their little hands, making this the perfect practice for developing fine motor skills.  

29. Listen & Do

How good are your kiddos at listening and copying? Have them point to the body part they hear you say to increase movement and develop active listening and cognitive skills. Playing this game daily or a few times a week will reinforce important vocabulary and is a perfect break to get your active kiddos moving! 

Learn More: YouTube

30. Shake Your Sillies Out

Preschoolers have A LOT of emotions and brain breaks are vital to creating a positive learning experience. Your little ones need the time and space to express their feelings and  ‘Shake Your Sillies Out’ is the perfect song to make that happen! Play this video and let them go for it!

31. A Hole In the Bottom of the Sea

Are you planning a lesson about the food chain? This song is absolutely adorable, and the animation of the video provides a great visual for your little learners! They’ll love the repetitive lyrics that will help them better understand and remember the concept of a food chain.

32. Sight Word Surprise

Providing consistent exposure to letters and sight words is essential throughout the preschool years. This online learning game offers your kiddos this practice, and gives you the flexibility to use it for either in-person or distance learning!

33. Beginning Sounds

Your learners’ oral language development starts with an understanding of different sounds. This online phonics video is a great way to introduce initial letter sounds to them! Make this even more fun by projecting the video onto your whiteboard and having your children use magnetic letters to identify the beginning sounds of words. 

34. Guess the Fruit

By preschool, your students are probably familiar with many different types of fruit. This video can be used to assess what they already know while also giving them a chance to learn about some new delicious examples! Even your shyest kids will love showing off their knowledge on this topic!

Learn More: Youtube

35. Where Will It Land?

Making predictions in the early years is a great way to prepare your little ones for studying STEM subjects in elementary school and beyond!! This exciting activity introduces them to the concept of friction and to skills like problem-solving. Fast-track their interest in STEM by incorporating this into your preschool curriculum today!

36. Finger Painting

Foster creativity and sensory development with this messy art project! Give your students non-toxic paint and large sheets of paper, and let them use their fingers to create anything their heart desires! You can always rely on finger painting for a wonderful and relaxing tactile activity that enhances fine motor skills.

Learn More: Raising Children Network

37. Animal Yoga

No, it’s not yoga for animals! Your children will adore transforming their bodies into the shapes of different animals in this fun movement activity. It’s a playful way to promote physical activity, and flexibility, and introduce mindfulness and relaxation techniques to your young learners.

Learn More: Mother Natured

38. Puzzle Time

Puzzles never get old and are a perfect down-time activity! They’re a fantastic way to help your preschoolers develop problem-solving skills, hand-eye coordination, and persistence! Offer a selection of simple puzzles with large pieces and let them explore this challenge individually or in small groups.

Learn More: Amazon

39. Nature Walks

Take learning outside by going on a nature walk with your kiddos! Encourage them to observe their surroundings and collect leaves, stones, or sticks to use for art projects in class. Not only are these walks fun, but they also promote physical activity, observation skills, and an appreciation for the environment.

Learn More: The Artful Parent

40. Story Cubes

These story cubes are made with pictures and are perfect for your younger learners! Have them take turns rolling the dice to create a story based on the image shown. It’s sure to spark imagination, enhance language skills, and if done in a small group or whole class setting, increase collaboration skills!  

41. Playdough Creations

Playdough is an excellent choice for fine motor development and creative expression. This fantastic resource includes 16 activities with playdough to engage your preschooler in some hands-on fun! Your kids will love squishing, rolling, and molding playdough into figures, animals, and abstract shapes! 

Learn More: My Bored Toddler

42. Water Play

This activity is guaranteed to make a splash with your little ones! Set up a water table or fill a basin with water and add cups, sponges, and toys. It’s sure to be an enjoyable and soothing activity to introduce them to concepts like volume, buoyancy, and cause and effect.

Learn More: Kildare County Childcare Committee

43. Sensory Bins

This activity is a great addition to your preschool toolbox! Grab a few bins and fill them with items like rice, beans, or water beads, add scoops, small toys, or natural elements like twigs and leaves, and you’re good to go! Have your kiddies feel the items to explore textures and calm their active minds. 

Learn More: Sheeking Out

44. Rhyming Games

Engaging your preschoolers in rhyming games is a fantastic way to boost their phonemic awareness! Choose songs or storybooks to recite and identify rhymes, or have them create their own for an added challenge! Not only are the rhymes delightful, but they also serve as an important step toward developing reading and writing skills. 

Learn More: 20 Great Rhyming Activities for Preschool

45. Collage Making

Collages are an excellent way for your preschoolers to express their ideas in a visual way! With safety scissors, glue, magazines, and construction paper, your little artists will explore textures, colors, and composition. Have them share their stories about their creations to gain insight into their thinking and to give their oral language skills a boost! 

46. Obstacle Course

Obstacle courses can be tailored to any skill level, ensuring an inclusive experience for all! Design a course using cushions, ropes, and hoops to encourage movement and problem-solving. Your kiddies will navigate by crawling, jumping, and balancing to improve their gross motor skills. Watch as they overcome obstacles – both literally and figuratively! 

47. Dress-Up Play

A box full of costumes, hats, and accessories is a treasure trove for imaginative play! When your little ones dress up and start role-playing, they’ll delve into the world of make-believe, fostering creativity, empathy, and social skills! This activity will lead to spontaneous storytelling performances that will certainly showcase and celebrate your kids’ unique ideas.

Learn More: Healthline

48. Letter Hunt

Transform letter recognition into an adventure by hiding foam or magnetic letters around the classroom! Your children will love practicing their gross motor skills by reaching and stretching on their hunt for the hidden letters. This is a dynamic way to reinforce alphabet knowledge in a context that feels more like play than instruction!

Learn More: Hands On As We Grow

49. Parachute Games

Bringing out the parachute always sends the excitement sky-high! Your kids will love working together to lift and lower the parachute to make waves, bounce balls, or billowing mushroom shapes.  Games like this are not only fun, but also enhance teamwork, coordination, and gross motor skills. This activity is bound to captivate their attention!  

50. Bubble Popping

There’s something irresistible about bubbles! Blowing and chasing bubbles engages your children in a playful pursuit that enhances their hand-eye coordination while getting them to burn off some energy! They’ll soon tire themselves out trying to pop the bubbles before they float away!

Learn More: Red Ted Art

51. Matching Games

Matching games that use cards or objects are excellent cognitive exercises for your littlest learners. As they match pairs based on color, shape, or theme, they’ll be enhancing their visual perception, memory, and concentration. This simple social game encourages cooperation while also laying the groundwork for them to develop some more complex problem-solving skills.

Learn More: PBS Learning Media

52. Salt Tray Writing

It’s not just a tray of salt, it’s a tactile and sensory-rich experience for your preschoolers! You can guide them to use their fingers or sticks to practice writing letters, numbers, or shapes in the salt. This is a super way to encourage experimentation and reduce the pressure of perfectionism by having them just shake the tray to “erase” any mistakes! 

Learn More: Happy Hooligans

53. Balancing Beam

A balance beam is a great tool for developing coordination. Have your little tight-ropers walk across a real beam or a line of tape on the floor to practice controlling their body movements and strengthening their muscles. You could also integrate it with other learning, such as counting or reciting the alphabet while taking steps.

54. Homemade Musical Instruments

Creating musical instruments out of household items is a dual-learning activity! Your students will use their fine motor skills and creativity to craft their instruments, and use them to explore sounds, beats, and rhythms!  Have your mini musicians fill bottles with rice, or string rubber bands across a cereal box and start jammin’! 

Learn More: Playgroup NSW

55. Shadow Play

Shadow play is a totally captivating activity that blends art, science, and storytelling! Using a flashlight and a blank wall, let your children explore the properties of light and shadows by creating shapes and figures with their hands or with cutouts on sticks. This magical form of play invites them to use their imagination like never before!

Learn More: Koko Tree

56. Bean Bag Toss

This simple game is a great way to get your kids playing all together! Set up the targets and give them some bean bags for throwing; it’s a simple way to develop their hand-eye coordination and gross motor skills. Focus the play on cooperation or switch things up by adding some healthy competition! 

57. Gardening

Grow your little ones’ wonder with this hands-on activity! Have them plant seeds in cups filled with dirt or in a garden plot and watch their enthusiasm grow as they tend to the new sprouts! Along with learning about the life cycle of plants, this activity is a simple way to let them experience a little bit of responsibility.

Learn More: Baby Sparks

58. Cooking Simple Recipes

Get cooking with hands-on learning in the kitchen! Introduce your children to essential skills like following instructions and measurement using simple recipes to make sandwiches or fruit salads. These easy kid-friendly recipes are perfect to get them excited about cooking and they’ll love tasting their creations!

Learn More: Good To

59. Alphabet Fishing

This is the perfect activity to get your kiddos excited about the alphabet! Write letters on small squares with a paperclip attached, then have your learners use a fishing rod with a magnetic cast to reel in a letter! Fishing for the alphabet is a fun way to reinforce their learning around letter recognition and helps develop focus!

Learn More: First Palette

60. Mask-Making

This fun activity might result in an imaginative play or an outrageous costume party! Let your children make masks using a variety of materials like paper plates, feathers, sequins, and glue. Their creativity will come to life as they explore the world of make-believe and develop fine motor skills.

Learn More: Artful Parent

61. Puppet Shows

Puppet play is a great way for your preschoolers to explore drama and storytelling! They can use soft toys or even make their own puppets from old socks or paper bags. They’ll delight in the magical play and storytelling of puppetry that encourages creativity, language development, and even sharing their feelings!

62. Lacing Cards

These adorable cards will help your littles learn how to lace! This tricky skill makes for a quiet and calming activity that is also excellent for developing fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and concentration. Get going by printing these cards, cutting the holes, and gathering some old shoelaces! 

63. Recycled Material Building

No need for fancy materials with this creative activity! Collect recycled materials like boxes, tubes, and cartons, and have your little ones start building their structures. They won’t even notice that they are learning about physics and developing their creativity and problem-solving skills in the process!

64. Sorting Games

Sorting activities will help your kids to develop their foundational math skills like categorization.  Gather common items like coins, playing cards, and different types of beans and pasta, then challenge your learners to sort them by their shape, size, quantity, or category.

Learn More: Keep Toddlers Busy

65. Ice Cube Melting

This sensory experience is perfect for a hot day! Give each of your students an ice cube to hold and have them watch it melt; it’s a great way to teach them about temperature, states of matter, weather, and seasons. You’ll be surprised at how this simple activity can lead to such engaging student discussions!

Learn More: Stir The Wonder

66. Sticker Stories

This activity incorporates a little learning into your kiddos’ love of stickers! Give them some sheets of stickers and paper and let them go crazy!  Foster their creativity and narrative skills by encouraging them to create scenes or stories with the stickers. They will also practice fine motor control as they master peeling and placing the stickers.

67. Hopscotch

Sometimes classic games are just what you need and hopscotch is certainly one that never gets old! Draw a hopscotch grid with chalk outside or use tape indoors for a rainy day brain break. It’s a timeless game perfect for your little ones that promotes number recognition, balance, and coordination!

Learn More: WikiHow

68. Bubble Wrap Stomp

Your kiddos will love this activity if they can contain their excitement! Lay out a large piece of paper on the floor and set up some trays of paints. Next, wrap your little learners’ feet in bubble wrap and let them stomp out a colorful masterpiece! 

Learn More: Mess For Less

69. Shadow Tag

This fun twist on the classic game of tag is the perfect way to engage your children in an outdoor movement activity! Instead of tagging each other with touch, they’ll have to step on each other’s shadows! What a fun introduction to the concept of light and shadow! 

Learn More: Joyful Parenting

70. Kinetic Sand Play

Your learners will love this amazing sensory experience! Kinetic sand is less messy than traditional sand, but is still moldable; so they’ll still be able to make creative shapes and structures! This is a great way to encourage creativity while also keeping your classroom a little cleaner!  

Learn More: Access and Inclusion Model

71. Story Stones

There are no fancy materials required for this activity; just some stones! Have your children paint pictures on stones or do this yourself, and then encourage them to use the stones to tell stories. This fun activity encourages their creativity and is a great way to explore sequencing events. 

Learn More: Early Impact Learning

72. Color Mixing

Experimenting with paints is a sure way to hold your preschoolers’ attention! Provide primary colored paints and let them mix their own colors on paper or in containers, and use this printable sheet to record their results! It’s a hands-on way to learn about colors that can also feel like a magical experiment.

Learn More: Little Bins For Little Hands

73. Marble Run

There’s a reason marble runs have been around for generations! They help develop problem-solving skills, creativity, hand-eye coordination, and spatial awareness. Have your littles build a marble run using tubes, boxes, or a pre-made set. They’ll love predicting the path of the marble as they learn a basic understanding of physics principles like gravity and momentum.

Learn More: HABA USA

74. Stomp and Catch

Test out your kiddos’ stomping ability with this fun game! Create a launching board out of a wooden plank and a strong cardboard tube, then load it up with a beanbag on the end. Next, let your preschoolers stomp down, and then try to catch the beanbag as it’s thrown up into the air before it hits the ground! Is their hand-eye coordination up to the task?

75. Memory Tray

This fun activity will test your students’ memorization skills! Place several objects on a tray, let your children observe them for one minute, and then cover them with a cloth or piece of paper. How many objects can they remember?  

Learn More: Play To Learn Preschool

76. Nature Collage

Complete this collage activity after you’ve taken your class for a walk outside! Have them collect leaves, sticks, and flowers that they’ll use to create a beautiful collage. This is an artistic activity that ends up being a wonderful tribute to our wonderful planet!

Learn More: Mama Teaches

77. Alphabet Bingo

Shake up the classic game of Bingo by playing it with letters instead of numbers! Your children will love practicing letter recognition by identifying the letters they hear them called out and the excitement of calling out Bingo when their card is full! It’s a fun group activity that encourages active listening. 

Learn More: New Horizon Academy

78. Dance Party

There’s nothing like watching your little ones get their wiggles out by dancing to a good tune! Play some upbeat music and let them dance freely; we’ve even found the perfect playlist to get you started!  Dance parties are a simple way to encourage physical activity and rhythm, and to foster a little bonding during a joyful group activity! 

Learn More: Miss Nina

Free Math Games Games for 3-Year-Olds

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Introducing our captivating collection of Math games, meticulously crafted for 3-Year-Olds! Designed to ignite a passion for numbers and shapes in young minds, our games blend interactive fun with foundational math concepts perfect for toddlers. With a mix of engaging activities now available and more exciting web-based options coming soon, our games are meticulously tailored to make learning enjoyable and accessible. Whether it's counting, recognizing patterns, or understanding sizes, our Math for 3-Year-Olds games ensure a delightful educational journey for your little one, setting the stage for a lifelong love of learning. Explore our collection today and watch your child's math skills flourish!

The Magic of Math for 3-Year-Olds: Unlocking the Joy of Numbers Through Interactive Games

In the vibrant world of early childhood development, introducing young minds to the wonders of mathematics can be a delightful adventure. Our carefully designed math games crafted specifically for 3-year-olds, offer an enchanting journey into the realm of numbers, shapes, and patterns. These games are not just educational tools; they are gateways to a lifetime of curiosity and love for learning. By blending the essence of play with the foundational concepts of mathematics, we have created a unique learning experience that is both engaging and immensely beneficial for toddlers.

The Power of Interactive Learning

Interactive learning stands at the core of our math games for 3-year-olds. Studies have consistently shown that children learn best when they are actively engaged and enjoying the process. Our games are built on this principle, providing a hands-on learning experience that captivates young minds. Through touching, dragging, and clicking, toddlers can explore mathematical concepts in a way that feels more like play than education. This interactive approach not only enhances cognitive development but also improves fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

A Wide Range of Math Concepts

Our games cover a wide array of math concepts tailored for the developmental stage of 3-year-olds. From recognizing numbers and counting to understanding basic shapes and patterns, our games are designed to lay a strong mathematical foundation. Each game introduces these concepts in a gentle, approachable manner, allowing children to progress at their own pace. The use of bright colors, friendly characters, and engaging sound effects further enriches the learning experience, making each mathematical concept memorable and fun.

Accessibility and Convenience

Recognizing the dynamic nature of today’s digital world, we are excited to announce that our math games will soon be available to play on the web. This development ensures that our educational tools are more accessible and convenient for parents and educators. Whether at home or on the go, your child can continue their mathematical adventure, ensuring consistent learning without the limitations of platform or location. This accessibility is key to integrating learning into daily routines, making math a constant companion in your child’s growth journey.

The Benefits of Early Math Introduction

Introducing math to children at the tender age of 3 has profound benefits. It not only prepares them for formal schooling but also nurtures problem-solving skills, logical thinking, and a keen attention to detail. Our math games are designed to tap into the natural curiosity of toddlers, encouraging them to ask questions, seek solutions, and celebrate their achievements. This early introduction to math fosters a positive attitude towards the subject, often translating into academic success in later years.

Our math games for 3-year-olds stand at the intersection of education and entertainment, offering a rich, interactive learning experience. By engaging with these games, children embark on a journey of discovery, where numbers and shapes become fascinating friends. As we expand our offerings to the web, we are excited to bring the magic of math to even more young learners. Join us in nurturing the next generation of mathematicians, problem solvers, and creative thinkers.

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Does My 3 Year Old Need Preschool?

I found preschool to be so beneficial for my daughter at this age. The socialization is one of the biggest benefits of a preschool program.

They’ll be exposed to so many new opportunities that may not be available at home like different toys and learning materials, daily structure and routines, learning to respect their teachers, various educational activities, much more.

I don’t believe that preschool at 3 years old is absolutely necessary and your child will be fine without it. However, I would enroll a 4 year old in some sort of program to get them prepared for Kindergarten.

Some schools or daycares offer full day or half day preschool and you can choose whether your child goes every day or a few times a week.

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What You Can Teach Your Three Year Old

If you’re not in the education field, you may be unsure of simple ways to teach your three year old or ways to incorporate new learning into everyday activities.

Below are a bunch of things that you can help your 3-year-old learn and understand. Practice and exposure is the best way to develop new skills with your child so try and make every opportunity a learning opportunity you can.

This list is for children in the 3 year old range up to 4. Not exclusively once they turn three.

Also, always remember that every child develops at their own pace so don’t worry too much if your child doesn’t have all of these skills yet. This isn’t a list of what they should know at this point, but rather a guide to help you understand what they are capable of learning at this age.

1. New Vocabulary

Your 3-year-old will probably be speaking in full sentences or at least long 4-5 word phrases by now. Three year olds should have at least 250-500 words in their vocabulary as well.

Although there are way too many words to give you a full list, here are some of the common words, phrases, and concepts that your three year old should be able to say and understand:

• Body parts , Animal sounds and names , Friends/Family Names (and their own first, middle, last), Vehicles , Household objects (food, utensils, furniture, clothing, etc)
• Colors and Shapes
• Direction words (below, above, next to, on top, underneath, etc.)
• Days of the week, Months of the year, Seasons, Weather (sunny, rainy, cloudy, windy, snowy, hot, cold, etc.)

If your 3-year-old isn’t talking much at this point or is not trying to speak in full sentences, mention it to your pediatrician. Here are more  tips to get your child to talk  here.

2. Conversational Speech

Your 3 year old should be able to ask and answer simple questions and tell simple stories or anecdotes. They’ll probably be asking a lot of WHY questions as they are curious to learn all about the world around them.

Be sure to answer them with the correct responses and not just ignore their requests for information. Every question is an opportunity to teach your child and you don’t want them to miss out on those experiences.

It’s also important to make corrections in their grammar. When they were 2, some of the things that they said wrong sounded pretty cute. However, now that they’re 3, you don’t want them to get into bad habits of the way they speak.

Whether they’re pronouncing a world wrong, using the wrong tense, pronoun, or grammar, the only way they will learn the right way is if you correct them. So let them know the right way to say the word or sentence and have them repeat it back to make sure that they understand.

In order to get your child to initiate conversation or answer your questions , you can:

• Ask them about their favorite characters/shows/books/toys. What easier way to get a kid to talk than to get them talking about their favorite tv show or super hero?
• Ask them about their day , ie. what did you eat for lunch? What did you play with in the bath tub?
• Ask them for their opinions
• Tell them to ask you about the above mentioned things

If they still tend to give you one-word answers, ask them more questions to get them to elaborate. The more you ask. the more responses you will get. In turn this will help them to realize that they need to add more detail in their responses.

3. Reading books

At 3, your child should understand the concept of “reading” a book. They won’t actually be reading the words , but they should know how to grab a book, hold it the right way, and flip through the page independently.

They should be able to get a good understanding about what is happening in the book by looking at the pictures . They should even recognize that there are letters and words on the page that mean something, but won’t know exactly what they say or mean.

Read to your child everyday to instill their interest in reading. When you are reading to them:

• Use your finger to follow the words on the page so they start to associate the letters with what you’re saying
• Read word-for-word what the text says on the page instead of making up words or describing what the pictures look like
• Ask them questions about what they see on the pages

Your 3 year old may even be able to answer some inferential (why) questions (although this is a tougher skill), but it can’t hurt to try and ask them some of the questions. These are questions that the book doesn’t actually give the answer to, but the child has to think about their own answer or reason. For example, Why is the girl sad in this story? Why shouldn’t the boy have crossed the street? Why did the dog jump over the bone?

Reading doesn’t have to begin and end with books; labels on cereal boxes, words on toys, printed words on street signs, text on the television, or signs at stores are some examples where you can point out words and letters.

Related Post:  The Outstanding Benefits of Reading to Babies and Toddlers

4. Promote Independence

Your three-year-old should be doing many things on their own now so be sure to give them these opportunities to learn, understand, and make mistakes (within limits, of course).

Of course they may not have perfected every skill yet, but the only way a child will learn is by doing it themselves. You can give them a hand completing the task once they’ve finished.

They should be increasing their independence in areas like:

• Dressing : choosing their own clothes, dressing for the weather (warm items or cool items), taking on/off a shirt, pants, underpants/pull-up, shoes, and socks, and learning the right way to put on items (backwards, forwards), and that shoes are on the right feet.
• Self-feeding:  using utensils without spills, choosing their own meals and snacks (check out these  veggie puffs ), opening containers, drinking from an open cup with some supervision, and why it’s important to eat healthy. I love these utensils as my 3 year old graduated from her “baby utensils” to wanting to be just like mom and dad- these look like our silverware but are a perfect size for preschoolers.
• Brushing teeth and hair:  Teach them how to brush correctly on their own (back and forth, top and bottom), putting toothpaste on (with help), and why it’s important to keep our teeth clean. My 3 year old LOVES using an electric toothbrush like this one , especially the ones with their favorite characters.
• Cleaning up:  wiping up messes, putting toys away, bringing dishes, cups, & utensils to the sink when done, throwing away their garbage, using handheld vacuum to clean, and putting away toys when completing activity
• Hygeine : Blowing their nose, washing their hands, using a washcloth to wash themselves in the tub. Make washing hands and standing at the sink much easier by using stools and sink faucet extenders .
• Transitions:  Getting in and out of the car on their own, going up and down the stairs, ending one activity and moving to the next without complaining, turning on/off lights when entering/leaving the room

Be sure to model and show your childhood to do these skills the right way so that they don’t keep practicing something the wrong way.

5. Pretend Play

Using their imagination opens up a world of fun and play for your 3 year old. This skill typically comes naturally as they copy and imitate what they see in the real world, in books, or on tv.

They will use a combination of imagination and reality to copy the things they see daily , like these:

• Cooking in a play kitchen with pots and pans
• Hosting a tea party for their dolls and stuffed animals
• Feeding, burping, and changing a baby doll with play spoons, bottles, and diapers
• Talking on the phone with a play cell phone
• Playing doctor with a doctor or nurses kit
• Going shopping with a shopping cart and fake food
• Driving a car
• Sweeping, mopping , and vacuuming the floor
• Dressing up as their favorite princess , super hero, or character

At 3 years old, your child should have moved passed scribbling and be able to make intentional marks on the paper. They should be able to draw a:

• straight line down
• straight line across
• cross ( + )
• other shapes such as a square or triangle come later, but they can still attempt these, but may need help or the angles won’t be perfect

You can also guide them into making drawings using those elements (lines and circles), for example to draw a sun, a person (stick figure), or a flower . Of course, these drawings won’t be perfect, but they’re gaining insight as to how to make their marks on the paper look like something real.

Imitation is the best way to have your child learn to draw at this age, meaning that you draw one line and have them watch and repeat the same thing . This as opposed to copying (where you just show them the picture and expect them to figure out how to draw it).

7. Coloring and Painting

At age 3, your child can start learning how to color a picture correctly. You can guide them by showing them how to:

• Stay within the lines of a shape, border, or object
• Finish coloring each section without leaving a ton of white spots
• Use correct colors for certain objects, ie. coloring a strawberry red and a horse brown, instead of just picking any color that they choose
• Use different colors for different sections of a picture, ie. Coloring a beach scene with blue for the water, yellow for the sun, green for the palm tree, etc. instead of jut coloring the whole thing one color

Be sure that they are holding their crayon with the correct grasp at all times. I highly suggest  these finger crayons  for the young ones.  They are perfect for little hands and promote a good grasp when holding the crayons.

If your child likes markers, but you don’t trust them being alone in a room with them, these Crayola Mess-Free Coloring Sheets are my absolute favorites!

The markers come out clear if they are used on any other surface besides the paper. On these special sheets, they’ll turn a color so your toddler sees the masterpiece that they are creating. They have so many characters available so I’m sure you can find a pack that your child will love.

Tracing is a great visual motor skill (hand-eye coordination). You can teach your 3 year old to trace lines and letters by:

• Having them use their finger first to trace the line on the paper
• Tracing straight lines first and then working toward shapes, zig zags, and curved lines
• Making sure that they know to stay on the line the best that they can
• Tracing letters in preparation for writing

Cutting is a skill that 3 year olds can begin practicing. They may still have a difficult time, but here are some tips to get your preschooler cutting:

• Be sure to use child safety scissors so they can’t hurt themselves.
• Teach them how to hold the scissor correctly with their thumb toward the ceiling on both the cutting hand and helper hand
• Position the paper in front of them  while they are cutting instead of holding it off to the side or way up high.
• Make sure that their  arms, shoulders, and elbows are down and relaxed  as they cut right in front of them. As they’re concentrating, children tend to hike up their elbows and cut up high.
• Once they are able to make small snips on the paper by just opening and closing the scissors, teach them how to cut on a straight line
• Use sturdier paper like construction paper to make holding and stabilizing the paper easier on them.

10. Numbers and Counting

Your 3 year old may be able to count up to 20 (with some errors at times) from memory and maybe even up to 30 with more practice. They can also work on recognizing and identifying numbers and counting objects.

You can practice counting with so many different, everyday objects :

• count each step while you’re walking up the stairs
• count the number of blueberries on their dinner plate
• count the number of toys in their toy bin

Numbers are everywhere so be sure that they are counting whenever they can.

The concept of one-to-one correspondence (one object is one number) should be emerging now. Just show them how to point to each object as they count it and correct them if they start saying 2 numbers as they count one object or skip over objects when counting.

11. Letters and Sounds for Beginning to Read

Your child may already know many of the letters of the alphabet. At this age, they should probably be able to recite the ABC’s from memory (with some errors and help as needed).

Now you can work on recognizing letters, as well as the sounds they make. To make letter learning easier, try these tips to teach your 3 year old:

• Look at both uppercase and lowercase letters when learning . The lowers case letters are the ones that they will see more often when they read or see words.
• Point out letters to them everywhere : on cereal boxes, on street signs, on banners, and on snack bags
• When talking about a letter, always tell them the sound that it makes and a word that has this letter as its starter. For example M: say M says mmm for mom. Always have them repeat you to etch it into their memory.
• Use different sensory modalities to trace, write, or copy their letters . For example, writing them in sand, placing stickers inside the written letter, tracing the letter written in puffy paint with your finger, erasing the letters from a dry erase board , matching upper and lower case letters , etc. Here are some more fun sensory activities for letter learning .
• Sing songs that help them to remember the letters
• Use puzzles with letters for letter matching

These name puzzles from Bloom Owl are a great way to get your child learning the letters of their name. They’ll love playing with the puzzle as they start to recognize the letters they see all the time.

By far my favorite resource for having your child learning letters and letter sounds is the Leap Frog shows on Netflix . They include Letter Factory, Phonics Farm, and more. If you have Netflix you can access these shows! My 20 month old was reciting all of the letter sounds because he loves this show so much!

Once your child has a good memory of most letters and their sounds, you can teach them how to put them together to form short words. At 3 years old, a child may be able to start reading 2 or 3 letter words. Teach them how to use those sounds to read short words from the -at, -et, -it families, such as mat, rat, bat, get, set, let, sit, fit, kit, etc.

Related Post: Sticker Activity for Learning Letters

12. Building

Building helps to improve your child’s hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness. They’ll be able to use their imagination and creativity to create masterpieces and then knock them all down when they’re done.

This Melissa & Doug Alphabet block set  is great to stack and Bristle Blocks are also perfect for stacking, putting together, and taking apart at this age. My 3 year old is also obsessed with Magnetic Tiles – it’s the one toy that just never gets old!

Have them use blocks to encourage imaginative play and see what they can come up with. Building blocks let them problem solve and investigate the world around them. 

13. P uzzles

Puzzles are a great activity for fine and visual motor skills (hand-eye coordination). Having to fit a piece into it’s correct spot by turning and manipulating it is great for visual-spatial awareness.

Your 3 year old should have moved past inset puzzles and can do more complicated interlocking puzzles . Start them out with small interlocking puzzles like these or these , which only have 6-9 pieces per puzzle.

14. Physical Activity, Sports, and Getting Outside

Three-year-olds are known to be pretty wild so you probably won’t need much coaxing to get them active. However, make sure they’re getting plenty of physical activity to learn new gross motor skills . These include:

• Jumping and running
• Climb up and down playground equipment or a jungle gym
• Start learning how to ride a balance bike or a bike with training wheels
• Throwing/catching/kicking a ball
• Hop or stand on one foot for a short time
• Walk backwards

The best way to get them active is to give them lots of outdoor time . Take them to playgrounds to climb on the equipment as they offer so many opportunities for enriching gross motor skills. Take them for a walk and point out all the sights you see.

Your child can also start playing cooperative sports with peers and follow directions by watching someone do a movement. Activities like gymnastics, dance, soccer, swimming lessons, and tee ball are all great organized activities to practice all of the above skills.

15. Music, Dance, and Rhythm

Children love rhythm and music so get them singing, dancing, and exploring their bodies with music. Put on music for them to dance to, sing along to their favorite songs with a microphone , or make their own music with  toy instruments like maracas, xylophone, tamborine, etc .

You can also make musical ‘instruments’ with so many household objects , like shaking pill bottles, banging wooden spoons, or filling plastic Easter eggs or water bottles with uncooked beans or rice.

Do the Hokey Pokey to get them moving and learning body parts. Imitating movements that they see you doing is a great way to develop body and spatial awareness , as well.

Singing songs and doing dances are also a great way for your preschooler to learn and memorize new words and concepts like the days of the week song, months of the year song, head shoulders knees and toes, finger family song, etc. They’ll know their days of the week s quickly if you just put a tune to it!

16. Potty Training

Around 3, many children will be fully capable of using the toilet. If you haven’t started yet, give it a try! Your child may do better than you think.

If they’re already potty trained, make sure that they are fully independent with pulling their pants and underwear up and down, wiping themselves both back and front, and washing their hands afterward.

Be sure to wait until they’re ready and don’t force it on them. Here are some great tips on potty training your child here.

17. Sense of Time

Of course your three year old will not be able to tell time, however you can still teach them a basic sense of time, including:

• Understanding morning, afternoon, and night. They should understand the concept of when they wake up it’s morning, lunch time is the afternoon, and before bedtime is night. They can also understand this better by seeing outside when it’s light or dark.
• Recognizing the numbers on a digital clock . If they can identify numbers, they should be able to see the first number and say it’s 7 o clock. With my daughter, we tell her that 7 o clock is bedtime so when she sees 7 on the digital clock, she knows it’s time to go to bed.
• Knowing when they have 1, 5, or 10 more minutes left. They still won’t have a true sense of how long these increments of time are, but you can try to make them aware that 1 minute is quick, compared to 10 minutes or 20 minutes.
• Days of the week. They may be able to get a sense of what day it is today, what it will be tomorrow, and what it was yesterday

Before they fully have a sense of time, try setting an audio or visual timer when you need to show them when time is up. For example, when you say clean up in 5 more minutes, set a timer for 5 minutes to ring when it’s time.

We love the Time to Wake clocks for my little ones. They let them know when it’s time to call for mom or get out of bed by simply turning a different color when it’s almost time to get up or when they should leave their room.

This is a great visual way for them to “see” and understand time.

Of course, safety is a crucial lesson to teach your child. This is the age where they will probably have no fear or understanding of dangerous situations. The following practices need to be taught to your 3 year old as they may not just come naturally:

• not running away in public
• not running out into a parking lot
• stranger danger
• staying close to mom or dad
• being cautious when crossing streets
• holding hands when in public or outside
• sun safety: applying sunscreen, wearing hats
• being careful of hot items: kitchen appliances, flames, etc.

Speaking of safety for your little ones, the Whystle App is a great resource for all parents to have that tracks all safety information that’s important to your family. This includes product recalls for toys, food, and more that could promote dangers into your home. Download this app free on your phone and then there’s a free trial for the subscription so you never miss an important safety warning.

19. Manners and Respect for Others

Understanding how to properly treat others is a valuable trait to instill in your child. This goes for respecting both adults and other children. It’s important to teach your children how to use polite words and actions to show manners.

At this age, they are still testing their boundaries and exploring new ways of getting what they want. Instill rules for respecting others even through times of frustration.

• Saying  excuse me  when needing someone to move or get their attention
• Patiently waiting  for a parent to finish talking to another parent before chiming in
• Saying  please and thank you  shows consideration and appreciation
• Making  eye contact  when speaking to others
• Apologizing  when you do something wrong
• Ask questions  to others about how their day is or how they are feeling
• Compliment  others on their clothes, hair, or something they did
• Share  their toys or items that belong to them
• No pushing, hitting, biting, or pulling hair to hurt others in any way

20. Staying Healthy: Good Hygiene and Eating Well

Teaching your 3 year old to practice good hygiene and healthy eating is great to start young . Build-in their hygiene routine throughout the day and they will become accustomed to this regimen. Eating healthy foods early on to set them off for a healthy diet for the rest of their life. These include:

• eating fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins. Avoid: processed foods, unhealthy snacks, and sweets
• washing hands after meals and potty
• brushing teeth morning and night
• bathing daily or every other day
• keeping their clothes and body clean while they eat or play
• covering their mouth when they sneeze or cough
• blowing their nose into a tissue
• wiping their own privates after going potty

Complying with:

• brushing and combing hair
• cutting fingernails and toenails
• cleaning inside ears with a  child safety q-tip

Related Post:  How to Get Your Picky Toddler to Try New Foods

21. Acting Appropriately in Public and Understanding “No”

Preschoolers are very ego-centric (only care about themselves). It’s totally normal for them to only think about how things will affect them. This almost always leads to inappropriate behaviors as they learn what behaviors get them what they want.

Don’t always give in to every cry  and teach them that sometimes they can’t get everything that they want. Don’t always give them the cookie that they’re begging for or the new toy at the store. If they must get the object that they desire, make them earn it.

Teach your 3-year-old how to act appropriately to avoid tantrums in public. Try  putting rules in place  when you are out so they know what is expected of them. Always have a way to redirect or distract them when you see a tantrum starting (using something else they are interested in). Lastly, just avoid situations that could set them off.

This is a great article about  Tips for Cry-Free Shopping with Your Toddler

22. Empathy and Compassion

From a young age, you want to fill your child with compassion and empathy for others . Teach them about emotions and to be conscious of other people’s feelings.

• If they see someone crying, ask what’s wrong.
• If they see someone alone, go over and play with them.
• If they see someone that looks different than them, treat them equally.
• If they hurt someone, apologize and make it better

It’s never too early to talk to your children about race , ethnicity, disabilities, and recognizing differences between others.

23. Structure and a Routine

Your 3 year old probably already has some routine in place throughout their day . However, you want to ensure that they are consistently doing what is asked of them so that they could even do it on their own if needed.

The more structure that your child has in their day, the more they will start to understand time and a daily schedule.

I love using a  routine or responsibility chart (like the blue/green one on the right) so my toddler can have a visual cue of everything that is expected of her. Use  one with pictures  instead of just words, ( like this Mickey Mouse chart ), so your toddler actually understands what it’s for.

Here are some examples of day-to-day routines that you can create a specific pattern for:

• Bedtime: Brush teeth, go potty, wash hands, put pajamas on, read a story, go to sleep
• Morning: Go potty, wash hands, brush teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast
• Before naptime
• Pre-dinner wind-down time
• Cleaning time
• Getting ready for school/daycare : Packing their backpack, putting their jackets and shoes on, getting themselves into the car

Related Post:  Why Your Child Needs a Daily Routine and How to Make One

24. Staying on Task

A 3 year old’s attention span is still quite short, although it should have increased a lot since toddlerhood. It’s only reasonable to ask them to focus on a task for around 6-10 minutes at this age.

However, it is important for them to be aware that once they start a task they should finish it to completion. My daughter loves to grab a puzzle and put in 3 pieces and walk away or sit down and read 2 pages and then walk away.

The goal of teaching your child to stay on task is to complete what they start.  Here are some tips:

• While playing with your child, make sure that they complete the entire activity, ie. puzzle or read through the whole book, before they get up and run around.
• If they’re coloring or building a tower, keep them engaged in that one activity for as long as possible before you let them move on to the next.
• During mealtimes make sure they remain seated and finish their meal before getting up and playing.
• Make sure they clean up one activity before moving on to the next

25. Be a Helper and Doing “Chores”

Little kids LOVE to help grown-ups. They want to do everything that you’re doing because they’re starting to gain this growing confidence and independence. Invite them to perform tasks that they may not be able to do independently, but that they can help you with.

• Get the mail
• Take the trash out
• Refill the toilet paper roll dispenser
• Help with cooking: mixing, adding ingredients
• Carrying in bags or groceries
• Fill the dog bowl
• Entertain a younger sibling
• Cleaning up their toys
• Cleaning up after themselves: throwing their dishes in the sink garbage in the trash can
• Wiping down the table or floor when they make messes

26. Technology

Technology or screen time should be  limited  for preschoolers to no more than 2 hours a day, but it is still important for your child to learn how to use these devices. The fine motor skill of swiping, clicking, and sliding to nagivate through tablets and smart phones are something that your 3 year old can easily learn.

Ipad  educational games like  ABC Mouse are great to sharpen a lot of the educational skills listen above, as well as practice using a tablet or smart phone. There’s a great curriculum based on age and developmental level that teaches them so many new skills.

My 3 year old loves  ABC Mouse because of the wide variety of games and fun. She’s learning how to trace letters, numbers, make new sounds and words, etc.

Leapfrog Laptop  is also a fun interactive computer that little words can learn letters and typing on.

27. Sorting and Comparing

Sorting and comparing is a skill that you can teach your 3 year old. Make them aware of how objects are the same and different. Some of the criteria that they can use to sort is by:

• size (big, medium, small)
• categories (fruits vs. vegetables, farm animals vs. ocean animals)
• pattern (stripes, polka dots, solids)

This sorting pie from Learning Resources is a great way to practice sorting and categorizing objects by the features mentioned above.

28. Follow Multi-Step Directions

Your 3 year old should now have progressed from only understanding and following 1-step directions (i.e. put your shoes on) to following 2-3 step directions (i.e. get your shoes from the closet, put them on, and go wait by the car).

Practice with 2 steps at first to make sure they can focus on the direction given, process it, and carry it out. Then you can try adding in another step to see if they can still follow.

At times, your little one may be distracted to get all the distractions, and that’s ok since their attention span is still short, but as they approach 4, they should really be listening to you intently and follow your commands.

29. Rhyming Words and Opposites

You can teach your 3 year old some rhyming and opposite words at this age, as well. Short words that sound alike (ie. rat, bat and sky, tie) should be easy for them to catch on to.

Opposite words, for example in-out, up-down, should also be learned at this age as they use these words all the time. They should already know the words, but now understanding the meaning and how they are opposites of each other will really get their mind stimulated and understanding these concepts.

30. Sight Words

The first sight word that your preschooler may be able to spell and recognize is their name. Teach them how to spell their name and how to recognize it when it’s written. Those name puzzles shown above are great for practicing this!

Although your child isn’t expected to know sight words until later on, it can’t hurt to expose them to it now. Sight words are words that may not sound the wya they are spelled so they will have to just memorize the way the word looks.

These are typically commonly used words, for example, like, the, and my. As you read to your child, you will probably come across these words several times.

Point out the words to them and tell them what they say. If you tend to read the same books over and over, they should quickly pick up on what a word looks like and say it as you read. Not only soul you point these words out in their favorite book, but wherever you see it whether it’s a cereal box or sign.

Flash cards are also great for learning sight words, however they are a bit young for this.

31. Days of the week/Months of the Year/Seasons

By going over the calendar daily or singing songs, your 3 year old can learn the days of the week and months of the year pretty quickly. They still may not get a true sense of how these time periods work, but they can memorize a list of these items.

Most of these skills listed above can be accomplished at some point while a child is between three and four, but every child develops at their own pace.

This article is not intended to skew your mind into thinking that your child MUST know these concepts. However, if you are looking for activities to do with your child, ways to engage their mind, or knowledge to teach them, these are some great tips. Your child is NOT behind if they can’t adequately do all of these things, but if you are concerned, please speak to your pediatrician.

Have fun teaching your three-year-old and enjoy watching them blossom this year. They’ll be growing and developing before your eyes so don’t blink! Here are some more great activity ideas to do with your little one.

Related posts:

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40+ Board Games for 3 Year Olds: Learn, Play, and Have Family Fun!

Board games aren’t just play; they’re the building blocks of learning for your little ones! 

Our guide to board games for 3-year-olds is packed with options that turn giggles into growth, strategy into skills, and family time into lifelong memories. 

We’re here to help you sift through the top picks that promise to deliver fun and a feast of learning and development tailored to your toddler’s curious mind. 

So, get ready to roll the dice on learning, laughter, and much love! 🎲👪

40+ Board Games for 3 Year Olds

1. animal upon animal.

• DEVELOPMENTAL STACKING GAME: These classic wooden kids games offer hours of fun as kids stack wooden animal pieces, enhancing hand-eye coordination. These games for kids ages 4-8 are ideal early development animal games & fine motor skills toys.
• FAMILY-FRIENDLY FUN: Perfect family games for kids and adults, these juegos para niños are designed for 2-4 players. Be the first to place your wooden animals upon the animal pile. One of the best family games for all ages to enjoy together.
• HIGH-QUALITY MATERIALS: Crafted from durable, high-quality sustainably-sourced wood and non-toxic water-based stain, this beloved juego de mesa by HABA is a must-have among party games. Includes 29 wooden animals and a wooden die. Made in Germany.
• Playtime: 15 minutes
• Skills Learned: Dexterity
• Number of Players: 2-4 players
• Minimum Age: 4

Think of Jenga plus Safari animals. You and your child will take turns balancing different wooden animals on top of one another. The goal is to stack all animals from your provision and be the first one done. Honestly, I’m surprised there isn’t an adult version of this game.

2. Banana Blast

• This monkey is too greedy and wants all the bananas for himself
• Can you steal from him Roll the die to see how many bananas you can pick and try to collect as many as you can
• Be careful, one of the bananas will make Joe jump but it’s a different banana every time!
• Playtime: 10 minutes
• Skills Learned: Addition and subtraction
• Number of Players: 2-5 players

With a roll of a die, kids pick one or two bananas from the banana tree. However, players have a chance to gift or take a banana from other players. The game has a fun little surprise where the money can jump out. Whoever catches the monkey can add two bananas from each player. The player with the most bananas is, well, bananas.

3. Wonder Forge Richard Scarry’s Busytown, Eye Found It

• What you get – The game includes 1 game board, 4 movers, 4 mover bases, 1 spinner, 1 ferry tile, 10 magnifying glass tokens, 6 food tiles, 30 goldbug cards, 1 sand timer, and instructions
• Fun play experience – Eye Found It is a ton of fun for 2-4 players and makes a great gift for kids and families. It’s a cooperative game for preschoolers where you race across Busytown along a game board that’s more than 6 feet long
• Clear instructions – The game is easy to learn with clear instructions, so you can start playing right away!
• Playtime: Varies
• Skills Learned: Matching, Observation, Teamwork

Kids move around a six feet long game board (yes, six feet long), taking turns looking for specific items on the board. After a minute of searching, everyone gets to forward the number of spaces equal to the number of items found. It’s a win-win situation!

4. Candyland

• CLASSIC BEGINNER GAME: Do you remember playing Candy Land when you were a kid. Introduce new generations to this sweet kids’ board game
• RACE TO THE CASTLE: Players encounter all kinds of “delicious” surprises as they move their cute gingerbread man pawn around the path in a race to the castle
• NO READING REQUIRED TO PLAY: For kids ages 3 and up, Candy Land can be a great game for kids who haven’t learned how to read yet
• Skills Learned: Color recognition, Matching 
• Minimum Age: 3

Hasbro has refreshed this classic sweet adventures board game has with new illustrations, but the gameplay hasn’t changed. Little ones take turns moving their gingerbread man around the board in a race to the candy land kingdom.

5. Chutes and Ladders

• CLASSIC BEGINNER GAME: Do you remember playing Chutes and Ladders when you were a kid. Introduce new generations to the classic gameplay of this kids’ board game for 2 to 4 players
• NO READING REQUIRED TO PLAY: For kids ages 3 and up, Chutes and Ladders can be a great game for kids who haven’t learned how to read yet
• CLASSIC UP AND DOWN GAME FOR PRESCHOOLERS: Spin the spinner and move the pawn up the ladders and down the chutes. Chutes and Ladders is a classic game that children enjoy playing over and over
• Skills Learned: Counting, Number recognition

Chutes and Ladders is another classic board game for 3 years olds. The goal is to get to the top with the help of ladders. However, watch out for the chute! Players can slide back down if they land on a chute. No reading required; just go ‘ole fun.

6. Color Go Fish Card Game

• COLOR GO FISH A new take on an old game involves fish-shaped cards and color matching, with bold colors like hot pink and chartreuse. A great first card game that is easy to play. Illustrated by Julia Gorton.
• For ages 3 and up.
• Cards are 3.25 x 4.5 inches. Cards are durable and easy to use.
• Skills Learned: Color recognition
• Number of Players:   2-4 players

This game mixes the card game’s simple rules of “Go Fish!” and uses colors instead. Some parents have concerns that colors are not base colors, such as red, blue, green, etc. Rather, the colors in this game are buttercup, jade, and apricot.

7. Colorama

• ENGAGING LEARNING GAME: Colorama brings together fun and learning with its unique pattern and shape recognition gameplay, ideal for children aged 3 and up
• QUALITY COMPONENTS: This game includes 40 game pieces, 1 color die, 1 shape die, and comprehensive instructions for immediate play
• FAMILY-FRIENDLY FUN: Perfect for 2-4 players, it offers a fun play experience that lasts about 30 minutes – a great gift for families who treasure game nights
• Playtime: 20 minutes
• Skills Learned: Matching, Shapes, Colors
• Number of Players: 1-6 players

Kids roll a color and a shape die to determine which colored shape a player needs to place on the board. For instance, a kid rolls a red color and a circle shape. They need to match a red circle piece to its place on the board. There is no score, and it’s not a race. The goal is for everyone to match the pieces to the board.

8. Count Your Chickens

• FARM FUN: The baby chicks have flown the coop and Mama Hen needs help to bring them back. Spin and count numbers to travel and collect chicks while working together. Gather all the chicks and everyone wins!
• COOPERATIVE COUNTING: Remove competitive stress, empower young learners and teach kids that playing together can be fun! A counting game to help kids learn at a young age how easy it is to cooperate!
• EDUCATIONAL GAME: Cooperative games cultivate emotional development, shared decision making, positive self esteem, creative problem solving and develop a sense of community in a non-stressful play environment.
• Skills Learned: Counting
• Minimum Age:  3

If you’re looking for a game where everyone works together and teaches, Count Your Chickens is a great pick. Players spin a spinner that indicates which square the mother hen moves to next. For each square they move, players collect the same amount into the chicken coop.

9. Create and Tell Me a Story Cards

• ANIMAL VILLAGE A Create a Story card set lets you join the animals in this village as they dance, sing, and play. Recurring characters, locations, and props encourage linking the cards in endless combinations for fresh, new stories every time it’s played. Use this beautifully illustrated visual card set by Stephanie Graegin to create your own stories! Can be played individually or in a group, make up your own way to play!
• PROVIDES GREAT INTERACTION, CREATIVE AND IMAGINATIVE PLAY! This playful collection involves recurring characters, locations, and props allowing the cards to be linked in endless combinations for fresh, new stories every time it is played.
• Cards are perfectly sized at 3.75 x 4.75 inches. 36 cards in the set. Instructions included.
• Skills Learned: Imagination, Storytelling
• Number of Players: 1+

These story cards allow parents to create unique stories every time they play. Parents make up a new part of the story based on the card drawn, leading to endless stories. Over time, kids can start to tell their own stories when playing independently.

10. Wonder Forge Disney Classic Characters Matching Game

• FUN LEARNING TOOL: This Disney Classic Matching Game offers a fun and engaging way for kids, aged 3-5, to enhance their focus, memory, and matching skills
• EASY TO UNDERSTAND: Comes with a clear and concise instruction manual – have your little ones playing and enjoying the game within five minutes
• LOVED DISNEY CHARACTERS: The game features delightful illustrations of favorite Disney icons, including Mickey Mouse, Minnie, Dumbo, The Incredibles, Donald Duck and more
• Skills Learned: Matching

Lay all the cards facedown and take turns finding the match. Adding familiar Disney characters, such as Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy adds excitement to the game. This card game works well for families and allows solo play.

11. Don’t Break the Ice

• FUN KIDS GAME: This Don’t Break the Ice game is an exciting preschool game that has players tapping out ice blocks one by one, as they imagine helping Phillip the Penguin make a new igloo
• INDOOR GAME FOR AGES 3+: The object of this game for kids is to keep Phillip the Penguin on top of the ice, but as the game goes on, the ice blocks start falling. One wrong block and he’ll go ker-plop.
• FAMILY GAMES FOR KIDS: Get everyone together for family game night with the Don’t Break the Ice game. Players will be on the edge of their seats just waiting for the moment that the penguin falls through
• Playtime: 15  minutes
• Skills Learned: Strategy

In this game, players attempt to tap out blocks of ice with a small mallet. The goal is not to let the penguin fall through. This tabletop game will make the kids scream in excitement each time they successfully remove a block of ice.

12. Dragon’s Breath

• AWARD-WINNING KIDS BOARD GAME: HABA’s Dragon’s Breath is a top-rated kids board game, making it one of the best family games for kids and adults that brings the magical world of dragons to life.
• PERFECT FAMILY GAMES FOR KIDS & ADULTS: Considered one of the best board games for kids, Dragon’s Breath offers hours of entertainment for the whole family, fostering teamwork & strategic thinking.
• DEVELOPS KEY SKILLS: Looking for fun kid games? Dragon’s Breath is not only fun but also educational, helping children enhance their counting, color recognition, and strategic planning skills.
• Skills Learned: Color matching
• Minimum Age: 5

This inventive game allows children to pretend to be dragons. Players act to melt an ice column by taking turns to remove rings. Any freed crystals that fall within a dragon’s color are up for grabs.

13. Elenfun and Friends

• FUN MUSIC AND SOUNDS: The motorized Elefun elephant begins the game with a trumpet call. Then it plays music throughout the game while it blows butterflies out of its long trunk
• INCLUDES BUTTERFLY NETS: In this lively and active game, kids can chase the butterflies that come out of the elephant’s 3 foot trunk. The game includes 20 colorful butterflies and 3 butterfly nets
• GET UP AND GET SILLY: This game gets kids up and about, running around in all different directions as they try to catch the most butterflies to win
• Skills Learned: Gross Motor skills
• Number of Players: 1-3 players

This motorized elephant (batteries required) shoots butterflies in the air—the game tasks kids to catch the falling butterflies with their nets. Kids will have a blast playing. Parents will have to cherish the laughter while they pick up the mess.

14. Feed the Woozle

• SILLY SNACKS: The Woozle loves to eat hairy pickles and fuzzy donuts. Can you help feed him 12 crazy treats before all the snacks are gone? A monstrous game of mixed up fun!
• GROWS WITH YOUR CHILDREN: Comes with three levels so it grows with your child. Kids ages 3 and up work together to help feed the Woozle. No reading required, so even the smallest can participate!
• LEARNING AND GROWING: Kids learn dexterity, fine motor skills, body awareness, and counting all while having fun and cooperating. Kids learn about taking turns and develop valuable social skills.
• Skills Learned: Dexterity, Fine motor skills

Kids take turns rolling a die to determine how many snacks to feed the Woozle. They’ll have fun trying to balance as many snacks on their spoon. I wish I can use the same strategy to make them finish their dinner.

15. First Orchard

• EXCITING PLAYTIME: These toddler board games for 2+ year olds have been enjoyed by families for over 30 years with over 3 million copies sold. The First Orchard toddler game is a perfect cooperative learning game for 1-4 players.
• DEVELOP SKILLS: Our First Orchard toddler games ages 2-4, help develop social skills such as taking turns and following directions. These excellent toddler board games also reinforce color recognition, counting, and fine motor skills.
• FAMILY TIME: Designed by educators, these board games for 3 year olds are ideal for family time. In these games for toddlers 2-4 years, kids can work together as a team to roll the dice and pick the matching fruit from the orchard before the raven!
• Skills Learned: Color recognition, Counting
• Number of Players: 1-4 players
• Minimum Age: 2

Kids take turns harvesting specific fruits into their baskets. But, they better hurry! A raven slowly moves closer to their basket. Everyone wins when everyone gathers all the fruit.

16. Franke’s Food Truck Fiasco

• GAME AND BOOK COMBO: Bundle this award-winning board game with an adorable board book for hours of foodie fun and learning
• GAME INCLUDES: colorful game board, 1 Frankie squeezer, 20 food game pieces, 1 game spinner, 4 placemat player boards, and instruction guide
• HOW TO PLAY: Spin the spinner to place your order. Then use your Franke Squeezer to follow the directions on the space. The first player to deliver a five-course meal is the winner. NO READING REQUIRED
• Skills Learned: Practical shapes

Are you looking for the next Master Chef Junior? With this Educational Insights game, players use a spinner to place an order. The first player to deliver a five-course meal wins! Maybe this game is the beginning of your kids preparing their own.

17. Ravensburger Snail’s Pace Race

• Fun play experience – You can play a game in 15 minutes, and it’s perfect for 2-6 players ages 3 and up, which makes this a perfect gift for families who love to play games together.
• High quality components – Contains 6x wooden snails, 2x colored dice, 1x playing board and instructions.
• Easy to understand instructions – High quality, easy to understand instructions make it possible to start playing right away.
• Skills Learned: Counting, Color matching, Memory
• Number of Players: 2-6 players

Kids move snail game pieces down the board to reach the end. Although it is a snail-themed game, it doesn’t take more than 15 minutes to play.

18. Hi Ho Cherry-O

• CLASSIC BEGINNER GAME: Do you remember playing the Hi Ho. Cherry-O game when you were a child. Introduce new generations to the classic gameplay of this kids’ board game for boys and girls ages 3 and up
• FUN COUNTING BOARD GAME: Kids ages 3 and up can have a blast picking pretend fruit from the trees on the game board, and filling their buckets. The spinner lets them know the number of pieces to pick — or put back
• SIMPLE GAMEPLAY FOR PRESCHOOLERS: Players take turns picking pretend cherries, blueberries, apples, and oranges from their trees to fill their baskets. The first to fill their basket wins
• Skills Learned: Counting, Addition, Subtraction
• Number of Players: 2-3 players

Another board game for 3 year olds is the Hi Ho Cherry-O board game. Kids take turns picking fruits from their trees to fill up their baskets. And whoever picks all the fruits from their tree wins!

19.  Peacable Kingdom Hoot Owl Hoot!

• HURRY LITTLE OWLS: In this color coordinated matching game, players cooperate to help the owls fly back to their nest before the sun comes up. Help all the owls home before sunrise and everyone wins!
• LEARNING AND GROWING: Kids learn simple strategy, following directions & taking turns. Two levels of play allow the game to grow with your child and lets older kids play with younger ones too.
• BENEFITS: Cooperative games cultivate emotional development, shared decision making, positive self esteem, creative problem solving, and develop a sense of community in a non-stressful play environment.
• Skills Learned: Strategy, Teamwork

In this Pre-School board game, players attempt to help owls get to their nest before sunrise via a sun token. Everyone has to work together to reach their goal. Now, if I can use the same logic to get my kids to bed early, that would be great!

20. Caterpillar Matching Game

• A matching game featuring Caterpillar construction vehicles and equipment
• Officially Licensed Caterpillar Product
• Includes: 18 sets of cards
• Skills Learned: Memory, Matching
• Number of Players: 1

This game is another matching card game and is for construction equipment enthusiasts. Or, this is a good introduction for kids to learn more about construction. Even as an adult, I didn’t know what an excavator was.

21. Let’s Feed the Very Hungry Caterpillar Counting Cards

• Fun, colourful and educational board game starring Eric Carle’s renowned storybook characters
• Collect puzzle pieces to transform your caterpillar into a unique, beautiful butterfly
• A fun game of counting, collecting and puzzle building
• Skills Learned: Strategy, Decision making
• Number of Players: 2-4

Kids move the hungry caterpillar around the board collecting puzzle pieces, which create a butterfly. The first person to collect all the pieces and move to the center of the board wins!

22. The Little Orchard

• A co-operative memory and color dice game for 1-4 players ages 3-8. Playing time about 10 minutes.
• The pesky crowwants to steal the ripe cherries from the orchard. Can the children harvest them before the raven reaches the tree?
• Children learn about team work and cooperation as they rush to beat the greedy crow.
• Skills Learned: Memory, Color recognition
• Number of Players: 1-4 player

Kids roll a die and pick a tile with a matching flower. The goal is to get five cherries before you hit too many crows. This board game for 3 year olds is similar to another favorite, Hi Ho Cherry O.

23. Math For Love Tiny Polka Dot

• Sixteen easy-to-learn games help kids fall in love with numbers!
• Playfully teaches counting, arithmetic, and logic
• Vibrant, colorful designs
• Skills Learned: Math

This game is perfect when you’re on the go or when waiting with your child at an appointment. It also offers different kinds of games with cards, allowing you to have more options with your kid.

24. Monkey Around

• GET READY TO MOVE: A wonderful first board game for kids that was created specifically for you and your two year old. Kids love getting to move about while playing a game!
• LETS MOVE TOGETHER: From hugs to high fives to simple skills like balancing, hopping, and marching, the cards in the game will prompt you and your toddler to get on the move! The included beanbag banana adds to the fun!
• LEARNING AND GROWING: Monkey Around improves gross motor skill development, coordination, understanding spatial concepts, recognizing matching body parts, listening, and building vocabulary.
• Skills Learned: Motor skills, Hand-eye coordination
• Number of Players:  
• Minimum Age: 2 

The game offers solo and partner play. Depending on the card, kids have to imitate the actions described on the card. There isn’t a designated winner in this game. Instead, it’s a good reason to act silly and monkey around.

25. My First Castle Panic

• Mythical Marvels – Bring home a cooperative game for little kids that offers a fantasy-filled challenge. Defend your castle from misbehaving monsters in an immersive and captivating game.
• Quest Together – Avoid sore losers and team up to oust any monster you find! Fire up game night with cooperative board games for kids 4-8 years old. Teach teamwork and strategy through adventure.
• Grabbing Goblins – In this kid’s board game 3-6 year-olds will enjoy catching monsters with special abilities and throwing them in the dungeon.
• Skills Learned: Matching, Strategy

If you’re looking for board games for 3 year olds that have action, check out My First Cast Panic. Kids battle monsters that approach a castle. A kid can only battle a monster in a space with a matching shape held by the kid.

26. Pengoloo

• COLOR MATCHING PRESCHOOL MEMORY GAME: This fun board game is designed to develop memory, teach young children about colors and strengthen social skills. Easy to understand and play – no reading required.
• HOW TO PLAY: Roll two colored dice and lift two penguins to search for colored eggs that match the dice. Collect six penguins on your iceberg to win!
• KID FRIENDLY: Pengoloo makes the perfect first board game with easy to follow instructions for children and parents alike. Reinforce color learning, help develop matching skills, strategic thinking, turn-taking, hand-eye coordination, and fine motor skills with this fun, fast board game for kids. For 2-4 players, perfect for ages 4+.
• Skills Learned: Color recognition, Memory,

Pengoloo is a new take on playing the memory game. Unlike other matching games where you usually flip over a card, this game requires you to lift a penguin to discover a colored egg. The goal is to find the colored egg that matches the rolled die color.

27. Pete the Cat: The Missing Cupcakes Game

• Pete the Cat Adventure: Embark on an exciting adventure with the Pete the Cat Missing Cupcakes Board Game, inspired by the New York Times best-selling book series. Let Pete the Cat guide preschoolers through a delightful gaming experience full of fun and learning.
• Preschool-Friendly Board Game: Tailored for preschoolers aged 3 and above, this board game is thoughtfully designed to capture the attention and imagination of young players. It provides age-appropriate challenges and entertainment.
• No Reading Required: Enjoy hassle-free gameplay as no reading is required for kids to play. The game is accessible and engaging, allowing even the youngest players to participate in the excitement without any literacy barriers.

This game is another matching card game but with Pete the Cat. If your kids are fans of Pete the Cat, they’ll enjoy this simple card game.

28. Pick Me Up, Piggy!

• TELL A STORY: Tell stories about Piggy’s friends as you drive the toy car around the board in Peaceable Kingdom’s Pick Me Up Piggy! Can you remember each of the stories at the end? No reading required.
• GAMES THAT GROW: This creative memory game is an educational learning tool for kids to practice cooperation and vocabulary. It’s also a great tool for teachers: use it in a class demonstration to encourage turn taking, storytelling and memory.
• COOPERATIVE GAMES: Peaceable Kingdom’s Cooperative Games cultivate emotional development, teamwork, creative problem-solving and a sense of community. They are fun for families and perfect for classrooms.
• Skills Learned: Memory, Cooperation, Storytelling

The game begins by hiding the characters in different locations. A player creates a story to help everyone remember where the characters. It’s a fun way to play a memory game using imagination.

29. Race to the Treasure!

• COOPERATIVE GAME: Build a path with your team and collect 3 keys on a race to beat Ogre to the treasure! It’s a game where everyone plays together, no one is left out, and everybody has fun!
• FUN CHALLENGE: Kids love working together to beat the Ogre. Players strategize, cooperate and build the path together. Building onto a path encourages kids to think 2 steps ahead and examine options.
• Skills Learned: Strategy, Cooperation
• Number of Players: 2-4 posts

Players work together to build a path to the treasure. As part of their mission, they also need to collect three keys. However, if the ogre gets to the prize first, everyone loses. Thus, race to the treasure!

30. Rat-A-Tat-Cat

• Children’s card game that helps develop timing and basic mathematical concepts
• Teaches strategy, memory building, and addition
• Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Best Toy Award; Mensa 1996 Best New Mind Game Award
• Skills Learned: Math, Memory

In this game, the lowest score is better. The idea is to get rid of the highest card by peaking and trading with other players. Although the recommended age is high, the concept is simple for three and four year olds to grasp.

31. Robot Turtles

• EDUCATIONAL & FUN: This game seamlessly blends education with entertainment. It’s designed to introduce programming principles to preschoolers in an engaging, easy-to-learn manner. Perfect for kids 4+ and adults to enjoy together
• KICKSTARTER SUCCESS: Conceived by programming expert Dan Shapiro, this game made history as Kickstarter’s most-backed board game. Trusted globally, ThinkFun is a leader in brain and logic games
• CRITICAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT: Gameplay offers a ‘stealth learning’ experience, where players unknowingly learn key programming principles. This game is inspired by the Logo programming language, letting kids write programs with playing cards
• Playtime:  Varies
• Skills Learned: Basic programming logic

This game originated from Kickstarter, and developers created this game to teach kids the basics of programming logic. Kids must guide a turtle to reach a target location. Children accomplish this goal by giving instructions to the robot turtle. The instructions are on the cards, such as turn or move forward.

32. Sequence for Kids

• The classic game of SEQUENCE made just for kids!
• Play a card from your hand, and place your chip on the corresponding character on the board – the first with four chips in a row wins!
• Exciting strategy game helps develop logical thinking skills

The name of the game is to create a row (or sequence) of chips on the board. Kids play a card with a picture of an animal on it. The child then places the chip on the matching animal on the board to create a sequence of four chips.

33. Shopping List

• Race to collect your groceries and fill your shopping cart in this fun game.
• Develops matching and memory and literacy skills.
• Features fun and engaging gameplay.
• Skills Learned: Matching, Memory, Literacy

Each player gets a shopping cart and a shopping list. Each player flips over face-down cars to reveal a grocery item. If the item is on the list, the player gets to put it in their cart. Whoever completes their list first wins!

34. Spot It! Jr. Animals

• EXCLUSIVE ANIMAL THEME: Dive into an exclusive animal-themed version of Spot It! designed to captivate and entertain younger players.
• MULTI-VARIANT GAME: With 55 cards, each featuring 8 symbols, enjoy 5 exciting variants of the game that can be played in any order or repeatedly.
• QUICK AND ENERGETIC: Spot It! is a fast-paced family card game that sharpens reflexes and observation skills.
• Skills Learned: Develops attention, Visual perception, Motor skills
• Number of Players:   2-5 players

This game offers various modes, such as “Hide and Seek” and “The Tower.” Depending on the rules, kids have to match animals that are found commonly between the cards.

35. The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel

• SPARK MORE TOGETHERNESS! Perfect for spending quality, unplugged time together as a family, The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game also builds key early learning skills and develops social emotional skills including taking turns, sharing, and winning and losing gracefully
• BEST-SELLING PRESCHOOL GAME 5 YEARS RUNNING! Reinforce color learning, develop matching skills (a key early math skill!), encourage strategic thinking, and build hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills with this engaging, quick-play board game for kids
• A SWEET STRATEGY GAME FOR PRESCHOOLERS: Easy to set up, understand—no reading required!, play, and clean up (box doubles as game board and storage!)
• Skills Learned: Motor skills, Hand-eye coordination.

In The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game, kids spin the spinner to find out which colored acorn they pick up. The fun part is getting to use a Squirrel Squeezer to pick up the acorns and store them in their log.

36. Stack Up!

• Skills Learned: Balance, Color matching

The premise of the game is to stack 12 blocks. However, this game includes challenges that kids have to perform. Also, part of the game is intentionally knocking down. Once you finish the stack, a smasher comes to knock down the tower.

37. The Yoga Garden

• Parent’s Choice Award winning game, YogaKids style!
• For ages 4 +
• A fun learning tool designed to help children play and learn yoga.
• Playtime:  
• Skills Learned: Yoga

A yoga teacher created this game to help teach children yoga. The game encourages cooperative play versus competition. Depending on the space where a player lands, the player will have to imitate a yoga pose or even invent one.

38. Uno Moo

• Hooray, it’s UNO MOO!, a preschool version of the beloved UNO game!
• Farm animals come out of their barn to play, and younger players round them up by matching their colors or types.
• Kids will have a blast playing with cows, pigs, skunks, chicken, dogs, sheep or farmer figures and putting them on the barn door and pushing others into the barn.
• Skills Learned: Matching colors, Learning animals

This game takes the basics of Uno and puts a Pre-School spin on it using farm animals. The player with one more critter remaining yells, “Uno Moo!”

39. Yeti in my Spaghetti

• OODLES OF NOODLES—Lay out the noodles over the bowl with the Yeti on top!
• PULL THE NOODLES—Remove the strands of noodles from the bowl, but don’t let the yeti fall!
• ADORABLE GAME—Fun concept and adorable Yeti character make this game extra fun!
• Number of Players: 2+

Players carefully remove spaghetti noodles from under a Yeti. Watch your kids go crazy as they remove a noodle one by one. However, all it takes is one noodle to let the Yeti in your spaghetti.

• PRE-READING BOOSTER: Engage pre-readers with this fun, fast-paced game that develops language and matching skills, perfect for early learners
• AWARD-WINNING GAME: Zingo has garnered multiple accolades, including an Oppenheim Gold and Parents’ Choice Award, making it an ideal gift for kids age 4 and up
• AMAZON EXCLUSIVE: This exclusive version of the beloved Zingo game includes an extra Zingo card, allowing up to 7 players for more fun
• Skills Learned: Language, Reading, Matching

This award-winning game is beloved by parents and teachers, which is a twist on the game Bingo, is the perfect board gaThis award-winning game is beloved by parents and teachers, which is a twist on the game Bingo. Players slide a Zinger that shows two different cards. When a player first correctly identifies the picture on the card, they can pick up the card and match it to their board’s image. The first person to cover all the squares on their board wins. Zingo!

41. Thinkfun Heads Talk Tails Walk Game

• ENGAGING AND EDUCATIONAL: ThinkFun’s Heads Talk Tails Walk is a fun and silly matching game that enhances visual perception and reasoning skills while keeping kids entertained
• HIGH QUALITY COMPONENTS: The game includes 10 large body tiles and 10 small head tiles depicting different animals- ensuring endless fun and variety in gameplay
• FAMILY FUN: Not just a game for kids, it’s a hilarious family activity that parents will enjoy too- making it a perfect gift for both kids and adults
• Skills Learned: Visual perception, Reasoning

This game is entertaining and lets kids be silly. Kids take turns flipping over a card to see if it matches with the body of an animal. If the card does not match, then everyone imitates the animal. Whoever gets the most matches wins!

When Can a Child Start to Play Board Games?

Board games provide a minimum age or age range for children to play. However, not all kids are the same. I take the recommended age as a general suggestion . Kids are like sponges, constantly absorbing the world around them. 

So, don’t sell your kids short . They may be more intelligent than you think. You won’t know unless you try new games. The best toddler board games may work well for one family and differ for another.

As always, with all parenting, what worked one week doesn’t necessarily mean it will work next week. So, if one board game doesn’t work one day, maybe give it another try a few months later . 

You will know your child best and understand what does and doesn’t work. You’ll soon find which is the best game for your next family game night.

What Makes a Good Board Game for a 3 Year Old?

The term “good” is relative, but there are common attributes in board games for 3 year olds: the time it takes to play, skills learned, number of players, minimum age, and any reading requirement.

• Playtime: A toddler’s attention span around this age is limited. A good length of time for a game is no more than 15 minutes . The less complex a game is, the higher chance your little one will enjoy it, and the time will be a breeze. However, when they start to show frustration, there is always “ next time. ”
• Skills Learned: One of the motivations of board games for 3 years olds is that they help toddlers learn a new skill. These learned skills can be motor skills, counting, matching pictures, identifying shapes and colors, discover new animals, etc .
• Number of Players: The number of players will let you know how flexible a game can be with more or fewer players. 
• Minimum Age: The minimum age on the box is a recommendation. Each kid may learn how to play sooner rather than later. 

Final Thoughts

Did you find your best board game in this long list of best family games? Each game offers a new skill level to learn or improve. Also, at least one family board game offers three different levels, such as cooperative game play.

The essential thing is to enjoy the time with your little ones helping them grow along the way with a fun game. Whether it’s just the two of your or four players, everyone, from younger kids to adults, can have a great time!

So, are you ready to play?

Jacqueline is a wife and a loving mother to two lively kids. Alongside taking care of her family and working full-time in healthcare, she is a real estate investor and a personal finance blogger. She manages the finances for her household and her small real estate business. Also, she has been featured in Grow from Acorns + CNBC, CNET, Business Insider, USA Today, and Ladders.

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Home » Recommendations » Toys » 9 Best Educational Toys for 3-year-olds to Promote Development

9 Best Educational Toys for 3-year-olds to Promote Development

Preschool-aged children learn through discovery and exploration in their daily surroundings. Providing access to educational toys for 3-year-olds crates a natural teaching environment. This fosters developmentally appropriate situations where children encounter learning and discovery that promotes the development of cognitive, motor, social and emotional skills.

1. Bath Letters and Numbers by Munchkin

Turn bath time into learning time with Bath Letters and Numbers by Munchkin . Incorporate learning into your 3-year-old’s bath routine with colorful foam letters and numbers.

These foam toys float in the bath and cling to tub walls when wet. Then they come off easily when dry and leave no residue. With 26 letters and 10 numerals in six fun colors, there is plenty of opportunities for children to learn names of the colors, letters, and numbers.

Why We Recommend:

• 36 colorful, floating letters and numbers
• Sticks to bathtub walls when wet
• Made of soft, durable, non-toxic foam
• Introduce colors, letters, and numbers
• Incorporates learning into daily activity

2. Dado Cube by Fat Brain Toys

These educational toys for 3-year-olds and up are an exciting twist on classic building blocks. Dado Cubes are a set of 10 cubes scaled from 1 inch to 5 inches that nest, stack, and connect along slits in their edges. These unique blocks teach kids proportion, balance, structure, and color in a naturalistic teaching environment. Young imaginations engage with the slits in each block that interlock to create 3-dimensional structures.

You can construct vertically, horizontally, diagonally, or nest them together. Dado Cubes promote visual-spacial awareness and problem-solving skills through experimentation and play. These innovative blocks inspire art and STEM as kids explore architectural principals.

• Great STEM toy for preschool classrooms and home
• Open-ended play for individual or cooperative learning
• Improves fine motor skills, hand strength, finger dexterity, and coordination
• Encourages visual-spatial skills, creativity, experimentation, planning, self-esteem
• Nests for easy storage
• Made of durable, BPA-free plastic
• Developed, manufactured, and assembled in the U.S.A.

No products found.

3. MightyMind by LeisureLearning

The innovation of Mighty Mind makes it a singularly amazing toy for 3-year-olds at home or school. This toy promotes the development of essential skills such as creativity, spacial awareness, logic, problem-solving, fine motor, and self-confidence.

Children can learn to solve these mind boosting puzzles before they ever learn to read. The brightly colored shapes can fit onto the shape card in various ways. These educational toys for 3-year-olds and up has received many awards, including Parents Choice Honor Toy, Teachers Choice Award, Dr Toys Best Vacation Toy, and more.

The sequence of numbered patterns gets increasingly difficult as children manipulate 32 geometric shapes and build pictures. The first 20 puzzles provide prompt and clues in the picture to assist a child in selecting the correct shapes, but the last 10 are without clues and are the most challenging of them all. Children can also get creative with their own designs using the 32 vibrant Mighty Mind colored shape tiles.

• Teaches kids how to build and solve puzzles.
• Unique program designed to build a child’s confidence
• No reading or language required
• Distributed worldwide in 26 countries
• Develops essential critical analytical thinking skills
• Structured or open-play for individual or cooperative learning

4. Inchimals by Fat Brain Toys

Inchimals by Fat Brain Toys take children on a mathematical safari adventure. These precisely-sized animal blocks help with learning math concepts such as measurement, numbers, addition, subtraction, and pre-algebra. These 12 beautifully crafted wooden blocks range from 1 to 12 inches in hight. Each features a different animal, inch line segments, written numerals, and representative dots corresponding to the actual hight of the block.

These fun, colorful blocks allow for measurement exploration and visual representations of addition and subtraction. The set comes with a write-on, wipe-off puzzle book to introduce pre-algebra concepts and balancing equations. Great for use in schools or at home for early math education.

• Multiple ways to learn and explore – structured and open-play
• Introduce vocabulary – shorter, taller, hight, length, distance
• Teaches addition and subtraction concepts
• Stacking blocks promotes motor control
• Encourages creative thinking, spacial reasoning, and dramatic play
• 12 animal blocks and a write-on, wipe-off puzzle book
• Use in home or classrooms

5.Robot Engineer (Level 1) by Kids First

Level 1 Robot Engineer Kit by Kids First includes a storybook and 51 large, colorful plastic building pieces that are easy for small hands to manipulate. Children can construct robots with arms that spin while they learn about simple machines. Kids can have a blast constructing the simple, non-motorized robot models based on the robots in the included storybook.

Little Engineers can follow along with Ty and Karlie in the silly storybook as they build and repair robots and solve problems in a candy factory. The book and construction kit are a fun way to introduce simple engineering concepts to 3-year-olds.

• Introduces simple machines and gears
• Develops STEM-related skills – science, math, visual-spacial, reasoning, and problem-solving
• Engages children with simple engineering concepts
• 53-piece building set
• Durable Storage Case
• 32-page storybook

6. Rhyming Words Match & Learn Puzzle

This box set of Rhyming Words Match & Learn Puzzles make great educational toys for 3-year-olds. The self-correcting puzzles have real-life pictures with the associated word underneath. Flip the pieces over and the associated word only is on the back for more advanced gameplay for 2 games in one.

The rhyming part of each word pair is highlighted in matching colors to help early learners identify correct rhymes. Children improve fine motor skills through manipulating the puzzle pieces. Pieces are large enough for little hands to grip and manipulate.

• Introduces rhyming words
• Self-correcting puzzles
• Fine motor skills
• Real-life pictures and associated words
• 2-in-1 game

7. 2-in-1 LeapTop Touch by LeapFrog

The 2-in-1 LeapTop Touch by LeapFrog is a touch-screen learning toy for preschoolers that transforms from a laptop-style device to a tablet. The screen flips to convert from keyboard to tablet mode. This computerized toy comes loaded with 26 fun animals that teach letter recognition and letter sounds. Five learning modes include ABCs, numbers, games, music, and messages.

Children can also have a blast pretending to be mom or dad sending emails on the computer. The 2-in-1 LeapTop Touch introduces basic computer literacy skills to young children in an age-appropriate and entertaining way. Children role-play typing on a laptop and tapping on a tablet to play fun games and activities that teach letter sounds, counting, and animals.

• Teaches Letters and Numbers
• Encourages Social Skills
• Makes learning fun with music and rhyme
• Boosts basic computer literacy
• Dramatic play and role-playing

8. Wooden Latches Board by Melissa and Doug

Keep your 3-year-old busy and entertained with the Wooden Latches Board for Melissa and Doug. Children can undo locks and latches to swing open the numbered doors. Fun pictures hide behind each door. Build fine motor skills while learning colors, numbers, animals and more with this educational toy.

• Promotes fine motor development
• Introduces colors and numbers
• Encourages problem-solving
• Learning to open latches promotes self-help and daily living skills
• Promotes independence and self-confidence

9. My Magnetic Daily Calendar by Melissa and Doug

Maintaining their own calendar gives children a greater sense of independence, self-reliance, responsibility, and control. Each day your 3-year-old can help post on My Magnetic Daily Calendar by Melissa and Doug. This calendar provides a visual facilitation to talk to your child daily about the day of the week, date, weather, and special events.

There’s even a space to post their moon which encourages open communication and emotional awareness. Preprinted magnets make updating the calendar simple and fun. There are even two dry-erase magnets to make your own custom tiles.

• Promotes independence and responsibility
• Teaches calendar skills — days, dates, months
• Teaches weather, seasons, and holidays
• Promotes social-emotional wellness
• Practice fine motor skills daily by moving the calendar pieces
• Solid wood construction

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12 Awesome Board Games for 3 Year Olds

If you’re looking for some great board games for 3 year olds, you’re in the right place! 

Board games are a fun way to engage young children while helping them to learn new skills.

And in this article we’ll highlight some of the best board games out there for 3 year olds that are both kid and parent approved. 

To be clear, these are games that are actually designed to be at the level of a 3 year old, not just games for older kids that 3 year olds can muddle through as well. That being said, many of these games are ones that you can play as a family and everyone can enjoy together.

Read on for engaging, entertaining games that your child will want to play over and over again.

Be sure to also check out our list of board games for 2 year olds !

Board Games for 3 Year Olds

The sneaky snacky squirrel.

Number of players: 2-4

Up first is one of our 3 year old’s very favorite games, The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel. 

This game combines elements of strategy, fine motor skills, and color recognition in a fun and interactive setting. The game’s premise revolves around a hungry squirrel on a quest to collect acorns of various colors.

Players take turns spinning the spinner and using a set of squirrel-shaped tweezers to pick up acorns of the corresponding color. The objective is to fill their respective logs with an acorn of each color. While you play you have to watch out for the “lose an acorn” and “steal an acorn” spaces on the spinner. Whoever collects each color of acorn first wins!

Not only is this game entertaining, but also introduces basic concepts like color recognition and matching.

Our family loves playing this game. It’s engaging enough that our older kids like playing it but simple enough that our 3 year old can be right there in the mix!

Friends and Neighbors

Number of players: 1-4

Peaceable Kingdom’s “Friends and Neighbors” is a cooperative board game designed specifically for young children. The game focuses on social-emotional development, empathy, and teamwork.

In the game, each player gets a board with nine characters on it, each character having a different problem. Then they draw a token from the bag and match the token to the character their token could help. For example, a ladder for a cat stuck in a tree and a bottle for a crying baby.

The objective is for players to identify and understand what the characters are feeling and what they need, fostering empathy and emotional intelligence.

The cooperative nature of the game encourages players to collaborate rather than compete. This not only promotes teamwork but also helps young children develop important social skills such as communication and cooperation. 

Friends and Neighbors is often praised for its educational value in introducing emotional awareness and social skills in a playful and interactive way, making it a popular choice among parents and educators.

Feed the Woozle

Number of players: 2-5

Feed the Woozle is a cooperative Peaceable Kingdom board game designed for young children.

In this game players work together to feed a hungry creature called the Woozle. The game has a few different variations so you can make it more challenging as your child gets older.  

At the basic level, you roll the die to determine how many snacks to put on your spoon and then try to balance the snacks as you place them in the Woozle’s mouth. You can move the Woozle further away as your child gets better at balancing the snacks so that they have further to walk.

After they’ve mastered that aspect, you can add in the spinner, which provides a special way to get to the Woozle, such as “walk backwards”  or “bunny hop”.

The cooperative aspect of the game encourages teamwork and helps young children develop social skills.

This is a cute and silly game that young kids will be dying to play over and over again!

Snug as a Bug in a Rug

In Snug as a Bug in a Rug, players work together to help a variety of cute and colorful bugs get snug under the rug before the pesky stink bugs take over. 

The game includes different levels of play, allowing it to be adjusted based on the developmental stage of the children.

At the beginning of the game, the die is rolled to determine if you will be matching based on color, shape, or number. 

Players then take turns spinning the spinner and then trying to find a bug of the matching shape, number, or color. If you can’t find a match, a stink bug comes out! 

The goal is to get all of the bugs under the rug before the three stink bugs arrive. This is a cooperative game, so everyone either wins together or loses together. 

The cooperative nature of the game encourages teamwork and social interaction, making it an excellent choice for young children who are still developing these skills. 

SEQUENCE for Kids

SEQUENCE for Kids is a children’s version of the popular family card and board game SEQUENCE. This kids version retains the essence of the original game but simplifies it to suit younger players.

Players take turns playing an animal from their hand and placing a chip on a corresponding  animal on the board. Unicorns act as a wildcard and dragons allow you to remove another player’s chip. The goal is to form a sequence of four of your chips in a row on the game board.

The game promotes strategic thinking as children decide where to place their chips and try to block opponents from forming their sequences. It also encourages pattern recognition, counting, and planning—all in a format that is engaging and entertaining for younger players.

And because it uses pictures instead of words, this is a great game to include pre-readers. 

SEQUENCE for Kids is a family-friendly game that bridges the gap between preschoolers and older siblings or adults, providing a shared gaming experience for the whole family. We love this game because all three of our kids (ages 3 to 7) can play this game together and have a great time! And it’s a game that’s actually fun for adults to play too!

Ants in the Pants

Ants in the Pants is a classic children’s dexterity game that has been updated for the next generation.

The game features a plastic “pants” container, shaped like a pair of trousers. The objective of the game is for players to launch colorful ant-shaped game pieces into the pants. The winner is the first player to successfully get all of their ants into the pants.

Ants in the Pants is a game that combines elements of fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and a touch of luck. 

Kids will get a kick out of the concept of launching ants into the panda’s pants and parents will enjoy playing too! It’s a game that not only entertains but also helps develop basic motor skills in a fun and interactive way.

Shelby’s Snack Shack

In Shelby’s Snack Shack, players join a cute dog named Shelby as they help her find and collect bones on the beach. 

Spin the spinner to find out how many bones Shelby needs to collect and then use the adorable Shelby tongs to place that many bones in your bowl. Whoever collects the most bones wins.

The primary focus of the game is on early math skills, including counting, addition, and subtraction. 

The pieces are sturdy and hefty, making them durable and perfect for little hands.

This board game not only provides an entertaining experience but also serves as a valuable tool for introducing and reinforcing early math skills and promoting fine motor skills and dexterity. 

Busy Town Eye Found It

One of our very favorite board games for 3 year olds is Busytown Seek and Find!

Based on the beloved children’s book series by Richard Scarry, Busytown Seek and Find Game brings the Busytown world to life in a seek-and-find adventure.

The game features a jumbo-sized colorful game board depicting the bustling and vibrant Busytown.

Players spin the spinner to determine if they’ll move forward, draw a card, or if the pigs will eat an item of food. The cards have different items on them and you have until the sand timer runs out to find as many on the game board as possible (eg. balloon, shovel, traffic cone). When you find an item, you place a miniature magnifying glass over it (my kids love this part!)

If the pigs eat all the food before all of the players make it to the end of the board, everyone loses. If you make it there first, everyone wins together!

My kids absolutely love this game and it’s one of my favorite games to play with them because I actually enjoy playing it too! It’s a fun game combined with the lovable characters and illustrations from the beloved book series.

Raccoon Rumpus

Raccoon Rumpus is a fun and engaging matching game designed for preschoolers.

The objective of the game is for players to collect costumes for their raccoons by rolling two dice, a color die and a clothing die, and then picking a costume that has the corresponding piece. The first player to collect five costume wins.

Raccoon Rumpus is designed to be accessible to young children, with simple rules and engaging components. 

The colorful and whimsical illustrations, along with the tactile nature of the game, make Raccoon Rumpus an enjoyable and educational experience for preschoolers. It provides a fun introduction to early math skills while incorporating elements of imaginative play and creativity.

Pete the Cat Missing Cupcakes Board Game

Based on the popular book series, Pete the Cat Missing Cupcakes Board Game allows kids to immerse themselves in the world of Pete the Cat! 

In this game, players work together to help Pete and his friends get the missing cupcakes back from Grumpy Toad. 

Spin the spinner to determine how many spaces to move, then complete a task to get a cupcake back from Grumpy Toad! Tasks include activities such as singing a song, identifying a letter or animal, or acting something out. 

This is a fun cooperative game that fans of Pete will love playing!

Hi Ho Cherry Oh!

Hi Ho! Cherry-O is a classic children’s board game that has been enjoyed for generations. 

The objective of “Hi Ho! Cherry-O” is for players to pick the fruit from their trees and place them in their baskets. Players take turns spinning a spinner, and the number indicated on the spinner determines how many pieces of fruit they can pick. 

If you land on an animal, the animal eats the fruit and you have to put it back on the tree. If you land on the spilled bucket you have to put all of the fruit that you’ve picked back on the tree. The first person to get ten pieces of fruit wins!

The simplicity of the rules and the colorful design make “Hi Ho! Cherry-O” accessible and entertaining for young children, helping them develop counting and basic math skills in a fun and interactive way.

Sunny and Stormy Day

Number of players: 1-3

Sunny and Story Day is a cooperative game that helps children gain emotional intelligence as they talk about the ups and downs that can happen in a given day.

The game comes with a book where you can read about Max the Hedgehog’s sunny and stormy day. After reading, play a matching game to pair up the sunny and stormy events of Max’s day before the moon comes up. 

Also included is a sharing game, where you draw a token from the pouch and take turns sharing the stormy and sunny parts of your own day. 

This game is a great way to teach children to identify their emotions and talk about their feelings.

What to look for in a board game for a 3 year old

When selecting board games for 3-year-olds, it’s important to consider their developmental stage and choose games that align with their abilities and interests. Here are some key factors to look for:

• Simple Rules: Opt for games with straightforward and easy-to-understand rules. 3-year-olds are still developing their cognitive abilities, so games with minimal and uncomplicated instructions will keep them engaged without overwhelming them.
• Large and Durable Pieces: Toddlers can be a bit rough on their belongings, so choose games made from durable materials that can withstand some wear and tear. Choose games with large, durable pieces that are easy for little hands to grasp and manipulate.
• Short Playtime: Attention spans are still developing at this age, so look for games with relatively short play durations. Quick rounds maintain the child’s interest and allow them to experience the satisfaction of completing a game.
• Engaging Themes: Select games with themes that resonate with a 3-year-old’s interests. Whether it’s animals, colors, shapes, or familiar characters, a captivating theme enhances the appeal of the game.
• Interactive Elements: Board games that involve movement, sound, or tactile interactions can be particularly engaging for toddlers. Games with spinning dials, buttons to press, or pieces to place on a board provide a sensory-rich experience.
• Cooperative Play: Consider games that encourage cooperative play rather than competitive play. This fosters a sense of teamwork and reduces potential frustration associated with winning or losing.
• Educational Value: Look for games that incorporate educational elements, such as basic counting, color recognition, or shape matching. These games can contribute to early learning in a fun and interactive way.

By considering these factors, you can find a board game that not only entertains a 3-year-old but also supports their development in a safe and age-appropriate manner.

Benefits of board games for 3 year olds

Since you’re here looking for a board game for a 3 year old I’m probably preaching to the choir here, but there are so many reasons why playing board games is not only fun for 3 year olds, it’s actually good for them! Here’s just a few of the benefits of playing board games with your 3 year old.

• Cognitive Development: Playing board games helps enhance cognitive skills such as memory, attention, and problem-solving as children learn to follow rules and make decisions.
• Social Skills: Board games promote social interaction, teaching young children how to take turns, share, and cooperate with others. 
• Language Development: Many board games involve verbal communication, which contributes to the development of language skills. Children learn to express themselves, listen to others, and follow instructions.
• Fine Motor Skills: Moving game pieces, rolling dice, or picking up cards can improve fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination in young children.
• Math Skills: Some board games involve counting spaces, recognizing numbers, or understanding basic mathematical concepts, providing an early introduction to math skills.
• Patience and Sportsmanship: Board games teach children the importance of patience and how to handle both winning and losing gracefully, fostering good sportsmanship.
• Creativity: Certain board games encourage imagination and creativity as children engage in imaginative play, storytelling, or strategic thinking.
• Attention Span: Playing board games helps improve attention span and concentration as children focus on the game rules and the actions of other players.
• Family Bonding: Board games provide an excellent opportunity for quality family time, fostering stronger bonds and creating lasting memories.

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Little Kids Games

Catch the ninjalinos.

Global Glitch

Cookie Kart Racing

Big Kids Games

Danger mouse ultimate.

Pop Pop Rush

Mini Race Rush

Muddy Puddles

Sticky Splat Soccer

Battle Fish

Ice Skating

Abby's Smoothie Maker

Cookie's Animal Crackers

Small's Flying Froglets

Dragon Dash

Screen time

These fun, sweet, thoughtful apps make it even easier to get a little break.

Need a second to finish making lunch? Or just one moment to complete a sentence without being interrupted by your energetic 3-year-old looking to you for round-the-clock entertainment? Truth be told, tablet time saves the day for all parents sometimes. The best iPad games for your 3-year-old are ones that will keep them busy and if they reinforce things your child has learned with you or in preschool, like letters or numbers, well, that’s a bonus.

There are so many apps for 3-year-olds, it can be almost overwhelming to try to pick one to download, especially if your kid is hopping around under foot. From a sea of plentiful app options for kids, we love these 13 apps best of all. From amazing, interactive apps for kids like ABC Mouse, for example, that encourages children to complete puzzles, songs, and games to earn points (with over 2,000 activities to choose from) to lighter fare (see Ballon Pop). And of course, most people know of Khan Academy, which is a go-to ‘educational’ app for preschoolers that kids seem to love, regardless of just how much learning they may or may not be really doing. Most of all, though, screen time is screen time, and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) themselves say that about an hour of screen time for kids between the ages of 2 and 5 years old is just fine. So, don’t worry too much about making iPad app-based screen time “educational.” If you need a little break, hand your kid a fun app and take it, guilt-free. Bring on the tablet time!

We only include products that have been independently selected by Romper's editorial team. However, we may receive a portion of sales if you purchase a product through a link in this article.

We love the concept behind this beloved PBS kids app. All of your kids favorite characters, and games for every level of motor skill ability, it’s an easy favorite. Oh, and it’s free. Get it on Apple or in the Google Play store.

Bluey: Let’s Play!

There’s a Bluey app, and your kid loves Bluey. Therefore, your kid will love the Bluey app. It’s simple math, really. Just do it, you won’t regret spending a little more time with Bandit, Chilli, Bluey and Bingo. Available on Google Play and Apple .

Khan Academy Kids

You may be more familiar with the name Khan Academy from your own high school days, but the educational company now offers online learning tools for children, and they're free. Khan Academy Kids (for ages two to five) was designed with the Stanford Graduate School of Education and provides dozens of activities across multiple subjects while kids collect bugs, hats, and toys as rewards.

Metamorphabet

Kids and parents alike seem to adore Metamorphabet , and alphabet-focused app for 3 year olds. What kid wouldn't enjoy poking, prodding, dragging, and spinning each of the 26 letters to "reveal surprising and luminous transformations." It costs $5, but the rumor is that it’s worth way more than that.

Peekaboo Barn Life

Your child is likely already obsessed with farm animals, now they can work on learning their names and sounds by playing Peekaboo Barn. For just $1.99 in the Apple app store, this sweet game as they tap to find out what an animal is called. With darling animation and super easy to navigate format, even the youngest users can take on this app on their own.

LeapFrog Academy

Whether it's math or STEM skills you're wanting your little one to develop, look no further than LeapFrog Academy . This app offers a variety of interactive games for children ages 3 to 6. Yes, it requires a subscription, but this is a tool you'll be able to use for a few years.

Balloon Pop

The concept of Balloon Pop is mind-numbling simple: Pop the floating balloons on the screen. But you might be surprised to find yourself stealing the iPad away from your 3-year-old so you can have a go on the free app. Regardless of your age, this game is wonderfully mesmerizing.

The Platypus' Search

This $3 interactive book is all about diversity and friendship. Children must take Platypus through the woods on an adventure meeting all kinds of unique characters along the way. As the app's YouTube page explains, kids help the main characters find their lost objects using a flashlight "to look even in the darkest corners. Then they can join the party in the wood, creating a real music band, getting all the characters in the story to play, sing and dance together."

Designed for children ages two to eight, ABC Mouse is a free app that some teachers even recommend. Kids create their own kid avatar and then explore the ABC Mouse classroom. If they complete certain games, they can earn points to go shopping. It’s fun, and your kid just might learn a thing or two.

Toca Doctor

For $4 you can help your curious child (ages 3 and up) start to explore and learn about the body with Toca Doctor . This app lets kids see what it’s like to be a doctor without the need for a voluntary patient (ahem, you!). They can apply bandages, erase scratches, and even squirt eye drops into their eyes.

Bingo ABC is a song-based game app that uses music to teach and entertain kids for free. That means your child will get an introduction to phonics concepts while singing along to classic nursery rhymes and playing games on a colorful animated farm .

Animal Sounds!

With more than 100 animal sounds, this completely free app should give you at least a few minutes to finish writing an email. And you can write it guilt-free, knowing your kid isn't just mooing at a screen, but really learning about animals (critters are divided into farm, Savannah/desert, jungle, insects, ocean, forest, mountain, city/countryside and dinosaurs sections).

Busy Shapes 2

Busy shapes and colors — which is available in both the Apple app store and on Google Play — offers 3D puzzles and 100 colorful levels. We love it as a great distraction for kids during travel, say on a plane or in a car.

Occasional iPad app time truly doesn’t hurt. It’s the same as all other screen time you might use to give yourself, or your kid, a little rest. Enjoy the break, and keep up the great work.

This article was originally published on March 25, 2020

Trump rally shooter Thomas Crooks: Neighbors, classmates, employer speak

A 20-year-old man from Pennsylvania fired multiple shots at former President Donald Trump at a rally on Saturday evening.

A bullet grazed the presumptive Republican presidential nominee's upper right ear , leaving him bloodied but not seriously injured. One rally attendee was killed in the gunfire and two others were "critically injured," authorities later said.

Here's what we know:

Who is the shooter at the rally?

The FBI identified Thomas Matthew Crooks of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the person behind the assassination attempt. Agency officials released little additional information, saying its investigation remains active and ongoing. They did not indicate what Crooks' motive might have been.

Crooks worked at a nearby nursing home. An administrator there told USA TODAY that the company was shocked to learn of the shooting and that Crooks had passed a background check for his job.

What did Thomas Crooks do at the crime scene?

During the shooting Saturday, Trump's right ear was injured, seconds before he was whisked off stage by Secret Service personnel.  One man attending the rally was killed  and two others were injured; Crooks was then killed by Secret Service agents , authorities said.

FBI special agent Kevin Rojek said on a call with media Sunday afternoon that authorities found "a suspicious device" when they searched the shooter's vehicle. Bomb technicians inspected the device and rendered it safe. 

"I'm not in a position to provide any expertise on the specific components of any potential bombs or suspicious packages," Rojek added. 

Rojek said law enforcement is sending the rifle and Crooks' cell phone, along with other evidence, to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia "for processing and exploitation."

"We're in the process of searching his phone," Rojek said.

Maps and graphics: What happened in the Trump assassination attempt

What is Crooks' background?

Crooks is registered to vote as a Republican in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, according to county voter records. His voter registration status has been active since 2021.

Federal Election Commission records show that in January 2021, Crooks made a $15 donation to the Progressive Turnout Project, a group working to increase voter turnout for Democrats.

Born Sept. 20, 2003, Crooks does not have a criminal record in Pennsylvania, nor has he been sued there, according to state court records. There is no record of him in federal court databases, either.

Where did Thomas Crooks work?

Crooks worked as a dietary aid, a job that generally involves food preparation, at Bethel Park Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation, less than a mile from his home. In a statement provided to USA TODAY on Sunday, Marcie Grimm, the facility's administrator, said she was "shocked and saddened to learn of his involvement."

"Thomas Matthew Crooks performed his job without concern and his background check was clean," Grimm said. "We are fully cooperating with law enforcement officials at this time. Due to the ongoing investigation, we cannot comment further on any specifics. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Former President Trump and the victims impacted by this terrible tragedy. We condemn all acts of violence."

The facility is owned by Kennett Square, Pennsylvania-based Genesis Healthcare. A job posting from the company for a dietary aid in the Pittsburgh area puts the pay at $16 an hour.

Thomas Crooks from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania

Crooks' home address is listed in Bethel Park, a suburb in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area, voter records show. That three-bedroom brick house has been owned since 1998 by Matthew and Mary Crooks, who appear to be his parents. Telephone calls to the couple were not returned overnight.

Near the Crooks home, Dean Sierka, 52, said he had known Crooks and his parents for years, as neighbors separated by only a few houses. Sierka’s daughter attended school with Crooks from elementary school through Bethel Park High School, and said she remembers him as quiet and shy.

Dean and his daughter said they would see Crooks at least once a week, often when Crooks was walking to work.

“You wouldn’t have expected this,” Dean Sierka said. “The parents and the family are all really nice people.”

At Bethel Park High School

Thomas Crooks graduated two years ago from Bethel Park High School, the Bethel Park School District confirmed. He was included in a 2022 local news article about recipients of a National Math & Science Initiative Star Award at the public high school, which enrolls about 1,300 students.

Jason Kohler attended Bethel Park High School with Crooks and said he remembers the 20-year-old sat alone at lunch and was “bullied almost every day.” Kids picked on Crooks for wearing camouflage to class and his quiet demeanor, Kohler, 21, said.

Since hearing Crooks has been named as the shooter, Kohler has been speaking with classmates who knew him, most of whom are stunned by the news.“It’s really hard to comprehend,” he said.

Sean Eckert said he went to school with Crooks from 5th through 12th grade. He said Crooks always went by “Tom.“

They shared classes together in elementary and middle school. Eckert said Crooks, though "fairly smart," was quiet and rarely spoke up.

Eckert said Crooks did not seem to have many friends. He didn't recall Crooks being playing any sports, being involved in any clubs or student groups or going to popular campus events. He often wore hunting clothes, so Eckert assumed he hunted.

No one in Eckert's group text from high school seemed to know Crooks very well, he said. They were shocked that someone from their town had done this. They were even more surprised that it was Tom Crooks.

Nursing aide turned sniper: Thomas Crooks' mysterious plot to kill Trump

The gaming-oriented online site Discord said Sunday that it had found an account that appeared to be linked to the shooting suspect. The site removed the account, which “was rarely utilized, has not been used in months, and we have found no evidence that it was used to plan this incident, promote violence, or discuss his political views,“ according to a statement from a Discord spokesperson, adding that the company will coordinate closely with law enforcement.

Crooks was a member of the Clairton Sportsmen’s Club, a shooting club about 8 miles from his home. It is a sprawling complex of 180 acres with rifle, pistol and archery ranges, an area for dog training and a clubhouse, according to the club website.An attorney for the club, Robert Bootay III, confirmed Crooks' membership in an email to USA TODAY, but would not offer additional details.

Where is Bethel Park, Pennsylvania?

Bethel Park is a suburb of Pittsburgh and home to more than 32,000 people – about one thousand fewer than four years ago, according to the latest Census estimates. 

The majority-white, mostly college-educated community has a median household income of $102,177. 

Described as a charming retreat from the hustle and bustle of the big city to its north, Bethel Park boasts tree-line streets, friendly neighborhoods and a low crime rate.

Bethel Park is about 42 miles south of Butler, where the Trump rally was held. The leafy suburban street was alive with law enforcement overnight amid a multi-agency response to the shooting. A member of the Allegheny County bomb squad told reporters his team was headed into the house around midnight, but did not say why.

For hours afterward, the scene remained quiet, with deer passing under the police tape and an occasional neighbor stepping out of their house to see what was happening.

John Wolf, a local construction superintendent who lives down the road, said he’d talked with several worried neighbors.

“People are scared,” Wolf said.

How did Crooks shoot at Trump?

Crooks had been positioned on a rooftop more than 100 yards from the rally site, Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said. Law enforcement recovered an AR-style rifle from the scene.

Joseph Price, special agent in charge of the ATF in Pittsburgh, said the weapon used by the shooter was a rifle.“It was nothing special,” he said in an interview in the parking lot of the Butler Township Municipal Building.

Law enforcement is following up on a “number of suspicious occurrences,” said Lt. Col. George Bivens of the Pennsylvania State Police, including accounts from witnesses who said they tried to flag police about the activity of a person outside the rally moments before the shooting.

The FBI said in a news release that the situation “remains an active and ongoing investigation, and anyone with information that may assist with the investigation is encouraged to submit photos or videos online at  FBI.gov/butler  or call 1-800-CALL-FBI.”

Contributing: Stephanie Warsmith, Tim Evans, Aysha Bagchi, Jessica Guynn, Bryce Buyakie

Suspect came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why

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Reporting by Nathan Layne and Gabriella Borter in Bethel Park, Jasper Ward and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Additional reporting by Aaron Josefczyk in Bethel Park, Brendan O'Brien in Chicago, Tyler Clifford in New York, and Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, California; Editing by Paul Thomasch, Lisa Shumaker and Lincoln Feast.

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Gabriella Borter is a reporter on the U.S. National Affairs team, covering cultural and political issues as well as breaking news. She has won two Front Page Awards from the Newswomen’s Club of New York - in 2020 for her beat reporting on healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2019 for her spot story on the firing of the police officer who killed Eric Garner. The latter was also a Deadline Club Awards finalist. She holds a B.A. in English from Yale University and joined Reuters in 2017.

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Here’s What Is Known About the Suspect Who Tried to Assassinate Trump

Authorities identified the gunman as a 20-year-old man from Bethel Park, Pa., a town about an hour’s drive from the site of the shooting.

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By Campbell Robertson ,  Jack Healy ,  Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs and Glenn Thrush

• Published July 14, 2024 Updated July 15, 2024

He was interested in chess and coding, and had recently received an associate’s degree in engineering science. High school classmates remembered him as an intelligent student who had few friends, but who never exhibited any glaring red flags. The nursing home where he had a job helping with meals said his work gave its staff no reason for “concern.”

And in an era when other people his age put troves of personal information online, Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, left few clues about who he was, what he believed, or why he decided to drive to a Trump rally in western Pennsylvania on Saturday and try to assassinate the former president.

On Sunday, federal investigators said a gunman they identified as Mr. Crooks had used an AR-15 style rifle purchased by his father to open fire from a rooftop outside the rally where the former president, Donald J. Trump, was speaking. In a series of new details, F.B.I. officials said they were investigating the incident as a possible case of domestic terrorism, and that the gunman had left behind explosives materials in the vehicle he drove to the event.

But many other details of Mr. Crooks’s life and motives were still unclear. Federal authorities said he had no apparent history of mental health issues or previous threats, and had not been on the radar of federal law enforcement.

Investigators were scouring his online presence and working to gain access to his phone, but so far had not found indications of strongly held political beliefs. In fact, the clues he left behind were confusing: He was a registered Republican but had also donated to a progressive cause in 2021; his parents were registered as a Democrat and Libertarian.

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