Melissa & DougBasic Skills Board | Developmental Toy | Motor Skills | Problem Solving | 3+ | Gift for Boy or Girl

Brilliant toy

I first came across this item at a preschool/school meeting - staff brought in various items they have in their particular setting that would be relevant to physical literacy. I saw this latches board, and (pardon the pun) I was hooked! Not only is it great for little fingers to develop hand/eye coordination and fine motor skills, but it enhances the imagination. I ordered one for my setting, and also one for my home for my children and grandchildren to enjoy. It is used daily by many children, and stands the test of time - not to mention abuse!What a brilliant, colourful, hands-on puzzle.You (and your children, if they get a look in) won't be disappointed!

I was concerned by the other reviews about the quality issues but decided to buy it anyway and was glad I did. The jigsaw is well made with no rough edges and all the doors and locks work perfectly. I bought this for a one year old who constantly goes to it and can open all of the doors independently. Good for fine motor control of the locks and the different ways to open the doors, only slight disappointment is that 2 of the pictures, behind the doors, are of characters, fish and rabbits, that don’t make a noise. As she’s learning to make her animal noises we get a bit stuck particularly with the fish.Would recommend this jigsaw and feel it was good value for money.

I thought I had made a mistake buying this for my 2 year old granddaughter because it is heavy and the clips on the puzzle are made of heavy brass. I thought she might injure herself. However, I decided to keep it at our house so that we can supervise her playing with it. So far she hasn’t hurt herself at all, and four months later is still trying to work out how to fasten and unfasten the most difficult fastenings. It’s been great for helping to teach her colours, numbers and the names of animals. The bolts etc help to develop hand-eye coordination and strength. She still enjoys it and hasn’t got bored. We make sure we’re with her while she’s playing with it.

The media could not be loaded. Even though it’s recommended for 3+ my 16 month old absolutely loves this and will explore/play with it for 20 mins at a time.The product is well made. Very sturdy as my daughter is quiet rough with it. Highly recommended.

Greta value for money my nephew will love

My boy starts to play it soon when I opened the package, he is 1yr and half but he manage to open all locks already, the toy says suitable above 3yrs old, but I think it is safe enough for younger baby. There is no damages on the product, exactly same as the picture, very good finished product, actually it is bigger than I though which is a bonus, there was once my son dropped some water on it and I thought it will leave water mark on the board after I dried it, but it looks prefectly fine after ward. I have recommended it to my friends too, now my son is trying to figure how to lock them up after he opens them all.

Melissa & Doug wooden puzzles are always generally what I would consider on the expensive side, but you truly do get what you pay for!Firstly, this is of quite a substantial size - it was a lot bigger than I was expecting it to be! (Really should have reviewed all the pictures!) But I think the size just adds to the quality of it. It's not overly heavy, so my little one can still slide/cart it around the lounge/her bedroom.It has a number of animals hiding behind the doors, so your child can begin counting how many animals, can work on their memory abilities and can fiddle and learn how to lock and unlock all the latches.My daughter was 2 when she received this and 6 months later, is still playing with it and gets just as excited when I get involved with her playing with it.(It is worth noting that we went through a month of her getting incredibly frustrated over the number 6 latch getting caught against the chain on number 5 when opening it, but again it was a learning curve for her).Would highly recommend this to any parent or anyone looking to purchase a gift for a little one!