Bao’s Cloudland || Preschool Logic Game Review
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I’ve long been a fan of HABA toys. European made with wood or natural materials, non-toxic paint and durable quality, everything we’ve had over the years by them, from infant rattles to pull toys to dolls, has stood the test of time and lots of use.
Bao’s Cloudland fits the expectation well. The wooden animals are charming and well-made and the booklets are thick and sturdy, ready for hours of play. Designed for children 3 and up, this game appeals to preschoolers in it’s bright colors, cute animals, and adorable little panda character who dreams up the cloud creations.
A special thank you to Timberdoodle for providing us with a complimentary copy of Bao’s Cloudland in exchange for our honest review.
With 60 puzzle challenges that double as stacking challenges, there are 30 “green” (easy) tasks, 20 “orange” (medium) tasks and 10 “red” (hard) tasks. Young children will start with the first task and get their bearings by matching 1 or 2 animal shapes with clear outlines. They can place the animal right on the booklet page for the puzzle, or stand it up on a flat surface for the stacking challenge.
A young child can do the first 10 puzzles without much help, but after that they may need some explanation about looking for defining features like feet, tails, and ears to identify where the shapes of each animal should go.
Once we got to the later orange puzzles, my 4 year old needed more help to figure out the inner animals and I’ll admit, even I was stumped a time or two!
I appreciate the increasing difficulty of the puzzles, and that the harder levels can be appealing for even elementary students, so this isn’t just a preschool puzzle.
The small booklet is the solutions manual and shows you the correct orientation of each puzzle. Bao’s Cloudland encourages visual discrimination, problem solving, spatial reasoning, and determination as young children look closely at the outlines and manually try to fit the animals in the right spots.
The stacking challenges absolutely require a steady hand and sometimes placing two pieces in place at the same time, which is a skill that only an older child or adult will have. I look forward to watching my preschooler’s dexterity grow as he practices these challenges one by one!
My 4 year old has enjoyed doing these puzzles both with me, and on his own. The animals also suit themselves to creative storytelling and independent play. Bao’s Cloudland is great for a solo game, but can also be a great activity for an older sibling to do with a younger child. These are the type of games I really enjoy working with my kids on, but I appreciate the ability for them to be independent as well.
Check out Bao’s Cloudland which is included in the Timberdoodle Preschool Curriculum, and also available individually.
