Our Top 5 Favourite Grapat Open Ended Toys
- Jul 11, 2024
- 5 min read
Updated: Jun 21
Check out our favourite Grapat wooden toys that are well loved in our house!
Grapat is one of our favourite brands for open ended toys!
We own many of their colourful wooden toys. But, there are some that have been played with so much over the years that they are our absolute favourites, which has put them on our list of top 5 favourite Grapat open-ended toys .
These are the pieces that I would definitely buy again.
If you are just starting your collection, these are the pieces that I would recommend you start with to get the most play.
Have look at our favourites below and see which one/s your child might enjoy too!
*Play ideas using small parts are for children ages 3+. All play was supervised by an adult.
Grapat Nins
These have been a favourite since we bought them when my eldest daughter was 2 and a half. The Grapat Nins were one of our first open ended wooden toy purchases along with the Grimms rainbow!
They have been played with so much over the years. They always remain out in our toy rotations and just change places - e.g. toy shelf, table. We have many of the other Grapat people figurines, but this is the set that has been played with the most out of all of them. Miss 1 loves these, as well as Miss 4 & 8, making them versatile for a range of ages.
The 12 Nins match in colour to lots of the other Grapat pieces e.g. the coins and rings sets, which make them perfect for colour matching too!
The Grapat Together Set is a great option for a more inclusive and diverse set of wooden peg people (not pictured here). The Grapat Nins and baby Nins also come in a dark wood too.
Grapat Baby Nins
The baby Nins are very cute, which makes them a favourite. The pair perfectly with the bigger Nins for lots of imaginative play. My children love to use them to make families. These are for children ages 3+
Grapat Nest Bowls
These beautiful coloured bowls have been used in so many ways over the last 4 years since we bought them! We use them for sensory play trays, for building, in the play kitchen, with loose parts and for colour sorting.
This was a quick play tray using the bowls and some gems. The little bowls are perfect for filling and also colour sorting.
Colour sorting using Grapat mandala pieces and the nest bowls. They work perfect
together! We added in tongs for a fine motor and hand-eye coordination work too.
Sensory play using the nest bowls. They are perfect for filling, scooping and pouring. They add some colour too!
We have removed out the smallest bowls of each colour so that our 1 year old can use them too. She loves to pull them apart, put them back inside each other, fill them and find objects underneath.
There are lots of possibilities for play over the years, which is why I would consider them a worthwhile investment! We have had our set for nearly 4 years now and they are still used often by all three of my children.
Grapat Mandala Pieces
The mandala pieces are wonderful for small world, imaginative play, counting, colour sorting, loose parts play and so much more! They are very versatile and are only limited by your child's imagination.
The mandala pieces work well as part of a loose parts tinker tray. They are also fantastic for small world play, as shown below with some unicorn figurines and cardboard fairy houses.
Unless you have a big class/group of children that you work with, I don’t think you need all the different sets. That would quickly become overwhelming, unless you were to rotate which sets were out.
We don’t have all of the different types of Grapat mandala, but we definitely have more than we need.
From my experience I would suggest you pick a few sets based on your child’s preferences (e.g. colour, shape, play interests) and go from there. More isn’t better and too many choices doesn’t mean more play (it’s probably the opposite effect). It's a good idea to choose a few different colours.
The mandala pieces are also great for exploring patterns, either just by themselves or with printable colour matching strips like these ones below. You can get this free printable + more by joining up to the email list. They are in the FREE VIP Resources tab on the menu.
I have written two other blog posts about using our mandala pieces that you might be interested in:
The FREE printable mindfulness mats pair perfectly with Grapat mandala pieces. The printable includes a rainbow that becomes a beautiful piece of loose parts art when used with the multicoloured mandala pieces! There is also a leaf, cloud and sun design to decorate with loose parts or art materials.
You can get your free printable mindfulness mats here.
The mandala pieces also pair well with playdough, as shown below. We have used them like this many times. Just make sure you take them out before the playdough dries on them.
Grapat Rings and Coins
The rings and coins set are great for open ended play. They can be used as loose parts for imaginative play, such as stepping stones in imaginary worlds, for pretend cooking in the play kitchen or pretend money.
They can be colour sorted and stacked. The rings can be threaded and used on a paper towel holder. They also fit nicely over the Nins.
Some questions to think about when deciding on toys for your child/ren ...
What is my children interested in?
Do they enjoy this type of toy or would they be interested in it?
e.g. If they enjoy playing with dry sensory bases so they might enjoy the nesting bowls. If they enjoy loose parts play - some of the mandala pieces might be perfect
Do we have something similar already?
It can be easy to fall into the trap of wanting to buy all the new pieces as they come out, but often there is some overlap and you may just be creating clutter. Our Nins have been a favourite for years, but I also purchased the fancy nins, which haven't been used as much. Something to think about as you build your open-ended toy collection.
Our Top 5 Favourite Grapat Open Ended Toys
Whilst we have many open-ended wooden Grapat toys in our house, there are some that get played with the most.
Grapat Nins, baby Nins, Grapat Nest Bowls, Grapat Mandala and the rings and coins are all favourites and are the most played with in our house.
I hope you found some play ideas or ideas for which Grapat pieces might work well for your child/ren.
I wonder if any of these Grapat toys are already favourites in your home/classroom too?
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✨Let's create a kinder world: one playful,
mindful and creative moment at a time.✨
Danica 🩷
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