Lego Duplo - From what age?

[kinggregus]

Hi everyone,

I have a 7 month old daughter who starts to play (or lick) with all kinds of toys. I saw all these lovely Duplo Princess sets and would really like offering one of those for Christmas.

However, the boxes specify that the starting age for the Duplo toys is 2 years old.

Should I be waiting for next Christmas before initiating my daughter to Duplo?

Thanks a lot

[thebrickcollectors]

I really think that decision should be based on your particular child. My daughter was never big on putting things in her mouth and so we would let her play with things that were smaller in size - but even then, when we introduced toys she was always carefully supervised. She's three now, and she's been playing with "regular" LEGOs probably since she was under a year. They're everywhere in our house, so we just took the time to train her not to put them in her mouth and supervised her closely at first until we were sure there was no danger for her. Some kids might not listen well, or may be more curious and that might cause you to be a little more cautious.

I don't see any harm in getting her a small Duplo set, seeing what she does with it, and putting it away on a shelf if you think she can't handle it yet. But always supervise!

Joelle

[gazumpty]

Yeah I agree with Joelle...I have bought my 8 month old niece her first Lego Duplo set (the letters box) so she can begin with colours and shapes and hopefully building :)

[xtremegoogler]

Duplo now also has a few boxes for ages 1 and up now, like 10561 (Toddler Starter Set) and 10554. They have larger blocks which are really great to develop motor skills.

I personally would not start with the princess sets, the minifigs are probably still hard to handle and you will have to rebuild everything all the time.

Also, duplo doors and windows, a one year old child will keep pulling these apart and won't be able to put them back together.

[meyerc13]

Just a tidbit I learned from my wife who has her degree in early childhood education: In the US, at least, anything that is considered a 'choking hazard' must be labelled 'Ages: 3+.' So standard system sets fall into that category due to small parts that can be a choking hazard. Since Duplo is for 'Ages: 2+', the concern isn't choking since the parts are too large to become lodged in the windpipe (although a child may be able to jam a duplo part into their mouth, it would be extremely unlikely to block the windpipe).

The ages for infant/toddler toys (anything for ages under 3), have more to do with development. Children under 2 would struggle to manipulate Duplo bricks in the intended fashion. At that age they are more about throwing, mouthing, or exploring the textures.

In summary, the concern for Duplo (according to the experts), isn't safety but more that a child wouldn't be able to use the toy as intended.

[WaysofSorting]

We did duplo pretty early on with my daughter. They even have a line for toddlers that have more basic shapes and patterns. I think those may be better for a 7 month old and for you at this point (no expectations about putting Ariel in the boat) but I think you'll be surprised at how quickly she figures it out. It wasn't long before she had the train of alphabet letters running around the house, carrying the dog and pig and cat. AND THEN you'll be surprised at how quickly she is done with all that and only wants to play with your lego.

My kid _just_ turned 2 and is playing with only the System-scale lego now. She loves the Friends Minidolls and switching their legs and hair back and forth. They swoosh around the house in space police fighters. Here she is playing with the Jabba's palace. (evidently now Heartlake Hutt Palace*TM)

(sort of a big picture)

Again - always supervised - but I've found nothing but positive correlation between her motor skills, color recognition, and confidence as she plays with LEGO (of all sizes) The only thing to worry about is frustration levels - don't push her and let her figure out what she is able to, and wanting to do.

[Andy D]

We did Duplo early on for our son (first Christmas after he turned 1). However it was just the sets with big pieces that would not break, no small pieces to come apart. All that said, we still watched him, no matter what toys he was playing with. Before age 3 many children learn about the things they interact with by putting it in their mouths, which is another good reason for cleanleaness, not to the extreme, for they have to develop some resistance to everyday life and that cannot be done in n anticeptic world.

Andy D

[kinggregus]

Thanks everyone for these extremely useful parenting advices. They are really appreciated. I'll probably get a simple Duplo set. The letter one mentioned by Gazumpty seems really nice.

[Piratedave84]

There are some really nice zoo and circus themed Duplo sets available. Some of the animals are quite argue and my daughter (3 now but started with Duplo at around 7-8 months) has a lot of fun with them. Like others have said, I found that her color recognition, fine motor and counting skills have increased a lot in part due to using/playing with the blocks.

[Sarah]

My son got a Duplo brick box for his birth-day (IE it came to the hospital the day he was born). We took 8-10 pieces out of it and put it on his toy shelf at about 10 months and he would hand me a piece and I'd put it on the creation... and etc.

My daughter got really interested in playing with Duplo about 20 months. (but we didn't have 8-10 pcs on the toy shelf. just a whole box of her brother's old Duplos)

[Dazmundo]

My sons are 21 months and my daughter is 4 next week. We have a box of Duplo that the boys can access when ever they like and a box of Lego that has a lid so my daughter can get in but the boys can't. However if we get Lego out the boys happily play with it and have done since they were not much more than a year old.

I see the age on the box as a guide only, it is very much down to individuals.

D