Melissa & DougMagnetic Wand Number Maze - Wooden Puzzle Activity

Magnetic learning is all fun! Easy to use for all ages and no pieces to pick up. Fits easily on lap but sturdy for years of use.would be great classroom tool for counting but loads of learning at home.

My kids first used these toys in a local community center playroom - they loved being able to use the magnetic magic wand to move the balls to different compartments of the board. This version is great to learn counting and to practice fine motor skills. The board shows the number and then you use the wand to move the correct number of balls to the slot. For the car it can be tricky for little ones, since the magnet works best on a flat surface, and in the car they tended to be at a bit of an angle. When at an angle the magnetic hold doesn't grab that well and little ones may get frustrated. Overall I love this for use as a puzzle game that you can't lose the small pieces for! If yur kids like hungry hungry hippos they will like the concept of this game as well, just have the bonus of not losing all the little balls that come included with the game!

I was racking my brain for another Christmas present for my toddler (she's 2-yrs, almost 8 months)...and I saw this magnetic puzzle game. We've always loved Melissa & Doug products, and I thought this seemed a great value, and a good educational opportunity for her.It is, indeed, very cute & well-made. The magnetic wand controls the balls well IF it is held flat against the acrylic cover plate. Another important requirement is that the board be laid down completely flat (as in, NOT held on the child's lap) or the balls just roll right out of the number areas. (This was a frustration expressed somewhere by someone, I believe). It has the potential to be good counting practice, IF a child is at that level.All this to say that this is a fun toy, but is not exactly fitting for my toddler. She can play around with it, making the little balls move around, enjoying doing that for a short time, but I would say that it doesn't really become a great educational toy until the child is around 3-1/2 to 4 years old and really starts to grasp counting. My older daughter (just turned 6) can play with it and fully appreciate the learning potential: hand-eye coordination & counting (though she's definitely beyond learning how to count at this age, it's fun for her to manipulate the correct number of balls to their corresponding number area).

Our toddler loves this maze by Melissa and Doug. Counting the balls is so much fun and the illustrations are adorable too.We introduced this maze during her potty training and it helped keep her attention and seated on the potty. She actually had her first go while playing this game!! We were all thrilled! Thank you Melissa and Doug and Amazon Prime!!

Teaches counting

I bought this for my granddaughter and, maybe when she's a bit older she'll like it, but it seems odd that there is no holding place for the magnetic balls. You would have to be able to think through where to get the balls (spots that have too may) to fill spots that have less than they need. I may update this later if she plays with it more. I do love most of Melissa and Doug's stuff!

Great for babies and toddlers

It is wonderful to expect a good product and know that a Melissa & Doug product won't let you down. My 19-mo old grandson is a little young for this product because he had trouble holding the wand at the angle it needs to be to move the "marbles". However, the board is made sturdy enough that I know it will still be functional when my grandson is better able to manipulate the wand.