Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Lacing Beads - Educational Activity With 27 Beads and 2 Laces For Toddlers, Fine Motor Skills Lacing Toys For Toddlers And Kids Ages 3+

This review is of the Melissa and Doug Deluxe Wooden 27-Piece Lacing Beads in a Box.I bought this lacing beads set for my 3 year old son. He currently is enrolled in the Early Childhood Special Education program. I'm constantly looking for activities that will grab his interest as well as assist him in the various areas he struggles in. This does that.Included in this purchase is:-27 beads (blocks numbered 1-10, 4 cylinders, 4 circle blocks, 5 cube blocks, 4 star blocks)-2 lacing strings with plastic tipped ends-small wooden storage crateThe beads are very well constructed and the included laces slide in well. They are very colorful and vibrant, but the color doesn't stay on with normal usage. We've had these for less than 5 months and the paint is rubbing off (only on the edges). To see this, please view the image I included. I read other reviews which indicated that this happens for a lot of people-especially those whose beads were played with on hard surfaces- so I was prepared for it to happen. Although I would love for the beads to maintain their color , I don't find it to be a deal breaker.The strings work well and the plastic covered ends allow for tiny fingers to navigate the lace through the bead.The storage crate is adorable, but not practical for this item. There is no lid so there's nothing to stop the blocks from falling out which, in turn, requires it to be stored right side up. Although this might work well in a more structured setting, it's not the best for free play at home. I decided to ditch the box and instead use a plastic storage container with a latch. It is easy for my child to take out and put back, and it securely keeps all of the pieces together. Please see included image to view my storage solution.We use the lacing beads for both structured and imaginative play. This set allows us to work on fine motor skills (lacing and stacking), colors, matching and sorting, shapes, and patterns. For kids still working up being able to lave with strings, our special Ed teacher recommended using a wooden sticks from a craft store or pipe cleaners.So I just said the paint wears off and the storage box isn't practical...why, do you ask, am I still giving it 5 stars. To start- there's nothing wrong with the storage container it comes in. It's actually very well constructed. This is exactly how the item was advertised and sold and I was aware of this when I bought it. I thought the price was reasonable and would have bought it for that same price even if the storage container wasn't included.Then there's the issue with the paint wearing off. I totally get that this would bug some people. It just doesn't happen to bug me. It seems logical and natural to me that painted wooden blocks would have paint wear off around the edges. And because this item is priced so reasonably, I wouldn't expect the color to stay perfect forever. But even with the color rubbing off on spots, enough of the paint remains on to keep the item looking cute and attractive to the kids.

Another quality educational toy from Melissa & Doug. I bought dozens of their toys for less fortunate children at Christmas time, and I bought one of these for my grandson - he loves it! I trust the company to sell sturdy, safe toys.

As a mom always on the lookout for educational and engaging toys for my little ones, I was naturally drawn to the Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Lacing Beads set. After several weeks of watching my 2 year-old immerse herself in threading these colorful beads I knew I found a hit. Especially because they have the added benefit of being stacking blocks as well! But there’s a lot to love with this..Firstly, the quality of the beads is impressive. Crafted from solid wood and painted with vibrant, non-toxic colors, the 27 beads have proven to be enduring through my child's energetic play. The variety of shapes and numbers printed on the beads provides an excellent opportunity for us to work on pattern recognition, color identification, and counting.Moreover, the set includes two sturdy laces that are just the right thickness for small hands to grasp and manipulate.I would recommend this set to any parent who values toys that not only entertain but educate. Overall, it’s an excellent investment for fostering essential motor skills and creativity in toddlers.

I thought this would be a perfect introduction to beading for my three year olds, but they got frustrated really quickly. It was too hard for them to push the lace all the way through the big beads and coordinate grabbing it on the other side. The beads are also pretty chunky and heavy. They’re definitely big enough that I wouldn’t worry about them being a choking hazard. They lost interest really quickly. I ended up giving them smaller beads and pipe cleaners and they were more successful with that.However, these are well made and really cleverly designed and I do plan on using them when my kids are older and in my kindergarten classroom for a math center, I feel like there are lots of educational possibilities here but they were just too tricky for little kids.The tray that they come in is really nice but note that there’s no lid so unless you have shelf space to lay it flat, it’s actually pretty useless for long term storage and is therefore kind of a waste.

My daughter is not a huge fan of lacing, but she took to this set. She loves numbers and the fact that there were blocks with numbers and number quantity helped her warm up to this set. The block are good quality and we are able to work on shape recognition, number recognition, number quantity and fine motor skills all at once. Another great Melissa and Doug set. I just wish it had a lid.