Playing with farm toys: Learning about animals, work and nature

by Joost Nusselder Updated on: October 25, 2023

A farm or homestead is the home and business of an agricultural enterprise. Often a farm also refers to a farmer's complete business, including a house, yard, pasture, arable land, stables and barns.

This is what makes it so much fun for kids. You learn everything about living, living, working and animals.

From toddler to toddler activity book collection

Educational games and coloring pages for 3 to 6 years

Your toddler and preschooler will love this e-book, along with the accompanying printables. He or she can play with it at every stage of development, together with mom and dad.

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Why is a play farm good for a child's development?

Maybe you think a toy farm is 'just' fun toys is, but make no mistake, your child can really learn a lot 'on the farm'.

Many children have lost contact with nature and they are interested in video games or computer games at home from an early age.

Romping outside or experiences in nature are no longer part of the deal; do our children know that their daily vegetables, milk and fruit do not just come straight from the supermarket, but from the land?

Do they know how fruit and vegetables grow and where milk really comes from?

They learn the names and sounds of this toy farm animals and how to care for them.

What do chickens, cows and horses actually eat? Did they also know that a hen lays eggs, a cow needs to be milked and a horse likes a stable with straw?

Play and development come together; children can their creativity and lose emotions with such a toy farm and can join it role play on the farm.

They learn to animals and do all other farm chores.

In this open-ended farm world, children are challenged to discover more and more in a safe way.

Did you know that farm toys can stimulate the physical and mental development of your child?

After all, we find a lot of books, songs and stories for children about farm animals or about the farm itself.

Like the books Sounds on the farm en Tracking on the farm.

It is wonderful to make sounds and make up farm stories with your little ones.

And how about an afternoon really at the (children's) farm? Children love it and may already know some of the animal names and actions that take place on the farm.

And how nice is it to stay in the farm atmosphere after your visit?

At home, imitate what sound an animal makes or how to use it animals catered. All very educational, even for very little ones.

Children really enjoy visiting the petting zoo. Especially if they have the animals allowed to feed.

Many petting zoos sometimes hold activities, such as petting guinea pigs or bottle-feeding baby goats, just like in the Amsterdam forest at the Goat Farm.

On some farms, kids are allowed to put on clogs and sometimes help with the animals to take care of. How educational is that?

Why buy a toy farm for children?

Farm toys ensure the mental development of your child. Farm animals to learn to care for creates a sense of responsibility in little ones.

Parents and children can play together and make animal sounds and you can make up stories about the inhabitants of the farm.

Furthermore, this is toys good for developing the hand-eye coordination of the smaller farm fans.

Why play with animal figures?

Dieren figures have a timeless charm. Most preschool-aged children love animals as much as they love one pretend play.

They are thus encouraged to take care of, in their development, creativity en imagination.

What do children learn from toy animals?

By telling children stories about farm animals, you teach them how to enjoy the animals to keep in our world.

Playing with toy animals teaches them to understand that animals also need to be fed and cared for and – just like us – need love.

This skill will translate into caring for others as well.

Specific uses for a toy farm

Toy farm with animals and fences

One of the most fun things to play is to play the animals to guide them to their next destination. That's why many people are really specifically looking for it nice toy farms with fences.

I even made a video about it on our channel, one that was very well received:

All the fences are at the large Playmobil farm, you can simply place them in a different way instead of around a cow as stated in the booklet and animals lead straight to a meadow!

A toy farm: indispensable for every child

We think a play farm is an item that should not be missing at home.

And why do we think so?

Well, children of different age groups simply enjoy discovering all there is to do on a farm.

They can do it fantasy use through role playing.

Furthermore, most (wooden) play farms are solid and durable toys, good for multi-generation use.

There are studies showing that playing imaginative games on a regular basis will greatly benefit a child in his development.

A few benefits of playing with a toy farm include:

• it helps build cognitive skills
• the child learns to solve problems through imaginative play
• building vocabulary and language skills
• promote fine motor skills
• develop better coordination
• the child develops an interest in nature

The words of farm animals also allow babies and toddlers to practice the many sounds we use.

Phrases such as 'a piglet grunts' or 'a cow that moos' will also quickly help your child learn new words.

If you practice with your little one every now and then they will develop a greater vocabulary. This is especially true if children are between 9 and 21 months old.

Most kids just love farm animals and often the machines, vehicles and jobs that can be done!

What do children learn from playing with toys?

Playing with toys is crucial for children's development because it helps them learn essential skills and concepts. During the playing with toys children practice physical skills, such as motor coordination and balance. They also develop cognitive skills, such as problem solving and creative thinking, while boosting their imagination and communication skills.

Joost Nusselder, the founder of Speelkeuze.nl is a content marketer, father and loves trying out new toys. As a child he came into contact with everything related to games when his mother started the Tinnen Soldaat in Ede. Now he and his team create helpful blog articles to help loyal readers with fun play ideas.