Physical development - Fine Motor

• Doing puzzles helps your child develop hand-eye co-ordination (using eyes and hands together);
• Puzzles help your child to develop fine motor skills through using muscles in the thumb and the forefinger to pick up puzzle pieces.

Emotional Development

• Puzzles allow your child to demonstrate pride in accomplishments and a sense of achievement.

Social Development

• Puzzles help your child to learn skills involved in sharing and turn taking – they can work independently, help someone else, or seek adult assistance (these skills will also help your child to develop confidence).

Cognitive Development

• Puzzles help your child to develop skills which will aid them in problem solving (eg. This piece doesn’t fit here but if I turn it around it does!);
• Jigsaw puzzles provide skills for learning to read – the concentration involved in working out what shape fits which holes, while keeping an eye on the complete picture, uses similar skills.
• Puzzles give your child experience in relating parts to the whole – this becomes an important maths concept.
• Puzzles allow for the development of spatial awareness – knowing sizes and where things will fit.

Language Development

• Language is developed through handling puzzles and by using relevant vocabulary;
• By relating to the actual picture and describing or predicting what the picture will become;
• Describing methods needed to complete the puzzle eg. I need a curvy\straight piece;
• Using language by describing the thought processes involved as the puzzle is being completed ("talking themselves through" the problem).

Puzzles for Babies (0-1 years)

• At this stage, shape sorters and/ or 1 piece puzzles are perfect to start encouraging your baby's problem solving skills for puzzles.
• Nesting and Stacking cups are also fantastic for establishing 'what fits'?