I was first introduced to Lauri products back when my oldest daughter, Savannah, entered preschool. Every time I would pick her up from her morning session, I would find her playing with the same fish puzzle. I asked her teacher about the puzzle so that I could pick it up and she and her little sister could play with it at home. That is when her preschool teacher shared about Lauri, and how she loved their products, which are geared towards preschoolers and early learning. What she loved about Lauri products was how they were developed for all abilities and were a product that would grow with your child. I told her how I kept finding Savannah playing with the puzzle, and how this got her excited to do more puzzles at home. She wasn't surprised to hear this as she had other parents over the years share similar comments. She said the fish puzzle from Lauri was popular with the preschoolers, and one that helps with their hand-eye coordination and challenges little ones (either by using the pattern provided, or doing it without). My daughter started by using the pattern as a guide, but then loved the challenge of trying to solve the rubber puzzle on her own. She, like many of her new preschool friends, gravitated towards this crepe rubber puzzle because of its bright pieces. And, unlike other wooden or cardboard puzzles they were used to putting together, this fun puzzle from Lauri was made with soft, durable and washable pieces, that will not curl, crease or tear. As a parent I loved this, as I was not a fan of the girls other puzzles as the pieces would bend and break. And, being able to wash the pieces when the girls were sick, was a big plus in my eyes.
"Lauri products began with the creation of Fit-A-Space in 1961 by a retired school
teacher. The product line provides Montessori style, educationally sound
learning activities available at affordable prices. Fans of Lauri are fans for life
and often preschool teachers, grandparents and parents of children with all
abilities, share stories of passing Lauri toys onto the next generation. Other
benefits unique to the line:
• Durable
• Tactile
• Multi-functional
• Affordable
• Educational
• Enjoyable
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Over the years I have purchased an assortment of Lauri products for my girls to play with, as well as to give as gifts to family and friends, as I know how important independent play is, as well as making learning fun with fun and engaging toys and products. Just like my daughter's preschool teacher, I have become a fan of Lauri and recommend it to everyone who asks for recommendations for products for preschoolers. I find myself getting excited talking about the different Lauri products we own and that my girls love and continue to use to this day, just like I saw my daughter's preschool teacher get when she told me about Lauri and the fish puzzle my daughter loved.
Recently, I had the opportunity to meet up with one of my mom's groups, which has many homeschool families in it. We met up at a local library to discuss the upcoming school year, and products and curriculum that would be great to add to our teaching. I brought along a sampling of Lauri products I was sent thanks to the kind folks at Tryazon. I set up the different Lauri products for everyone to demo and see just how well made these toys, games, etc. were. I was surprised to find that not many people knew about Lauri, but that by the end of our meetup, it was on the top of everyone's must-buy list.
These are the Lauri products I brought to our recent meetup with moms and their children, who ranged in ages from 6 months through 9 years old.
"This set is perfect for young hands and minds. The 8" square Lauri crepe rubber pegboard has 36 holes, so kids can make lots of designs. And they will love to see how high they can stack the pegs."
"We took Tall-Stackers and added some fun action to them! With new connectors that allow children to build in new directions, and wheels that allow movement, this set is both fun and educational! Build one awesome creation at a time, guide included. No batteries required!"
"These 1¾" tall magnets show full-color pictures of a variety of objects from A to Z. They are great for phonemic use, especially with soundletter relationships when used with our Letter foam magnets. The set includes at least 2 objects for each initial letter sound."
"This set is great to help kids develop an understanding of action verbs in addition to increasing their vocabulary using real photographs."
"Children will exercise their imaginations for hours with this magnetic playset that encourages storytelling, promotes problem-solving skills and builds skills in sequencing. The 18" x 14" play board folds in half and is sealed with a clear, resilient coating to make cleanup easier. The vinyl, waterproof magnetic playing pieces provide extra hold."
"Original Lauri Crepe Rubber Puzzles have soft, bright, durable and washable pieces that won't curl, crease or tear. The 8 ¼ " x 11 ½ " puzzles have 2 skill levels. Kids first follow the pattern, and then they can take it away to increase the challenge. Kids feel special achievement when each piece fits snugly. These puzzles will challenge and entertain for years."
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Even though my girls are no longer preschoolers, they, along with some of their friends found themselves having fun with the Lauri Crepe Rubber Fish Puzzle, Create-A-Scene Magentic Farm, Tall-Stackers Pegs and Pegbaord set, and Action-Stackers Little Builder Set. The building sets were a big hit at our meetup, and had kids of all ages working together to build awesome creations. The ability to add moving wheels to their creations was the talk of the meetup. :-) And, with no batteries required, this is a great building set to gift to a child for at-home and on-the-go building fun.
The younger group of kids had fun playing with the Objects magnetic set and the Actions language cards. I found a couple of the mommies were asking their little ones what each of the magnets and language cards were. I even saw one mom use the action language cards to reinforce verbs she was teaching her 5 year old. She thought these cards were perfect as they showed action verbs that her child could relate and pick up on. For example, one card showed a boy kicking a soccer ball. She asked her son what the verb and noun was and he responded that the verb was kicking and noun was ball. He even knew that soccer was the adjective. Then, she used the cards with her littlest child and used them to show actions like going down the slide, jumping, etc. I was amazed at how the Actions Language cards could be used for all ages and learning abilities, and in so many different ways.
At the end of our meetup, I had many of the moms coming up to me and personally thanking me for introducing them to Lauri, and how they were excited to go home and order a collection of Lauri toys and products for their family for the new school year. I was happy to be able to share Lauri with so many moms and caregivers, and see them get excited about a trust brand like I did a few years ago at my daughter's preschool. I even found myself putting together a list of Lauri products I wanted to pick up for my girls for our upcoming homeschool year, as my girls are hands on learners and these products would be great in reinforcing things we would be learning, and to help them with developmental skills.
If you have little ones at home and want to add new toys and products to your child's toy bin, or learning/activity centers, why not consider checking out Lauri. Or, if you want to gift your child's preschool or elementary teacher with great learning products for their classroom, why not consider some of the great Lauri products I mentioned above. These durable learning toys/products will be well received by your child's teacher, and are durable and will last for years to come.
You can learn more about Lauri, and browse their 100+ product offering here: https://www.playmonster.com/brands/lauri/. You can also shop for Lauri on Amazon.com
Disclosure: I was provided with samples from the vendor in exchange for an honest review. All views shared are mine and mine alone.
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