6 Best Independent Play Toys For 4-Year-Olds (Boys & Girls)
Play is an essential part of a child’s development, fostering creativity, imagination, and crucial skills. But every time your child is playing, you can’t sit with them. Playing individually is so important for both parents and children. It gives parents more time and peace while helping the kids to explore independence, creativity, imagination, and more.
4 is the age when kids start to engage by themselves. Before that, they lack the skills and ability to play independently. At around 4-year-old they begin to use their skills and imaginations to play alone.
Independent play toys for 4-year-olds can be absolutely helpful when you want them to engage by themselves and learn new things.
But before we see the list of toys, let’s discuss what kind of toys a 4-year-old can play with, independently.
What kinds of toys are good for independent play?
- toys that don’t require multiple people to play with them
- sensory toys
- stress relief toys
- pretend-play toys
- Interactive toys
- toys that can be molded into many shapes such as building blocks and legos.
Now here is the list of perfect independent play toys for 4-year-olds:
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1- Kinetic sand play kit:
kinetic sand is my absolute favorite. My daughter stays engaged with it for many many hours. It’s not like it’s a new toy. She has it for months but she can spend a lot of time playing with it independently.
She will keep making figures and cutting them. It’s a stress relief activity that can keep a 4-year-old engaged for a long time.
You can get the set on Amazon. there are plenty of them available there.
- Kinetic Sand, Mermaid Palace Playset, is great for 4-year-old girls.
- Kinetic Sand, Construction Site Folding Sandbox with Toy Truck is perfect for 4-year-old boys.
2- Musical Instruments:
Simple musical instruments such as a little guitar, piano, or drum set can help a 4-year-old play independently. These interactive instruments can help them learn a lot at the same time.
Playing musical instruments can be really fun for 4-year-olds. They can explore different sounds and try making their own music.
When they play instruments, they can feel the vibrations, hear the sounds, and see how their hands move.
It helps them think and remember things, like melodies and rhythms. Music can make them feel different emotions, and they can play with others and share the joy.
By playing instruments, they can have a great time and learn to love music.
Browse some perfect musical instruments for 4-year-olds (on Amazon).
3- Baby Care toys set- Perfect independent play toys for 4-year-old girls:
4-year-old girls, typically start to act more like a mother. Not all the girls will do that but most do.
A baby care toy set can keep them playing independently. They can feed the baby, change the dress and diapers, put them to sleep, sing them a lullaby, bathe them, and a lot more.
While they are playing independently, they can learn a lot about babies and care for them.
This toy set is especially helpful if you are planning to have a baby anytime sooner. Your older child will become familiar with the baby.
Get baby care toys on Amazon here.
4- Hungry T-Rex Feeding Game – Perfect Independent Play toy for a 4-year-old boy:
4-year-olds, especially boys, love dinosaurs. A hungry T-rex feeding game is a perfect toy for a 4-year-old to play independently.
The set comes with a safe air launcher and foam balls that your little one can use to shoot.
This game will keep them engaged for a long time while improving their hand-to-eye coordination and aiming skills.
5- Play food:
Play food is also my 4-year-old’s favorite toy. She keeps playing with them independently.
Cutting and rejoining the play food is also a stress-relieving activity that keeps young children engaged.
You can get the set on Amazon.
6- Magnetic Tiles:
Instead of building blocks and puzzles, try magnetic tiles that your 4-year-old can play with independently.
Kids can be very creative while playing with magnetic tiles. They will stay engaged for a long time as well.
Magnetic toys are great for kids at age 4. Just make sure they don’t have very small parts. Although most 4-year-olds know that they can’t put toys in their mouths, it’s still better to be on the safe side.
A good example is MAGNA-TILES Classic 32-Piece Magnetic Construction Set.
Summary:
While choosing the best independent play toys for 4-year-olds, you need to consider the following things:
- the toys don’t require multiple people to play
- they are stress relieving
- They can be molded into different shapes
- they match the personality and preference of the child.
Here’s the list of the toys I recommended in this article:
