Please come and tell me what your 4 year old DD's favourite toys are ...

[JimmyTarbuck]

My 4 year old DD is asking for the TV a lot at the moment and if it's not TV, she is 'reeeeaaaaallly hungry', probably because she is a bit bored. She is an only child (not our choice) and has a pretty short attention span. I do lots with her like baking, painting, play doh, etc and she likes helping around the house, but she struggles to entertain herself. I have just sold a fair bit of her plastic tat Fisher Price Little People stuff on ebay and told her she could choose a few toys with the money. What do your 4 year old DDs play with for more than 5 mins at a time? All suggestions gratefully received.

My ds is 4 and is obsessed with his Lego and playmobil. He plays with it endlessly-it's expensive but sooooo worth it great for co ordination and imaginative play. Lego series have tie in books as well stickers/writing etc which ds reads all the time.

We have some Lego which I've just moved downstairs as it was sitting in her bedroom and not getting played with. I seriously need to get into the Playmobil thing. I'm slightly scared that it's like a cult and there's no going back once you start! Thanks for the ideas.

Polly pocket, tinkerbell fairies, barbie, in fact anything with tiny shoes that are easy to lose She tends to get obsessed with one toy/doll for a short space of time and will spend ages dressing/undreessing her, making up games with her, badgering me to make a fairy house out of cardboard...

Also books, jigsaws, drawing, practicing writing, the trampoline, dressing up, she has one of those hideous disembodied heads that she practices brushing the hair and putting hairclips in. And to counteract the girliness she also loves her wooden trainset!

I was also wondering about lego for her, as I loved it as a child, however we have duplo and she's never really been into that.

My DD2 is 2 and obsessed with babies and the two of them will often play together quite nicely dressing/undressing the toy babies, putting them to bed etc.

Polly pocket, tinkerbell fairies, barbie, in fact anything with tiny shoes that are easy to lose She tends to get obsessed with one toy/doll for a short space of time and will spend ages dressing/undreessing her, making up games with her, badgering me to make a fairy house out of cardboard...

Also books, jigsaws, drawing, practicing writing, the trampoline, dressing up, she has one of those hideous disembodied heads that she practices brushing the hair and putting hairclips in. And to counteract the girliness she also loves her wooden trainset!

I was also wondering about lego for her, as I loved it as a child, however we have duplo and she's never really been into that.

My DD2 is 2 and obsessed with babies and the two of them will often play together quite nicely dressing/undressing the toy babies, putting them to bed etc.

Sticker books (found in waterstones) with loads of lovely stickers and pages to do them on. She will often sit and do these for a fair while.

Lego as well ...

Any sort of craft activity, pens pencils etc, but i note you do this already!

Dress up - although usually when she has a friend around

Marble run - enjoyed, although once again often with friends!

Comics / CBBeebies mags .... we sit together and do these, but she enjoys doing the games/puzzles etc.

Puzzles

Pepper Pig game was a hit (although you have to play it with her) the one where you spin pepper pig and have to turn up little cards and remember where the matching ones are.

Dolls house / dolls and dressing them up and ripping their clothes off again!

I have an only as well, so understand how difficult it is! My dd when she has friends around, plays happily with them with no involvement.

Sylvanians
Dolls
Lego
Sewing cards
Craft/sticker books

craft/sticker books, lego, action man/barbies, outdoor toys such as trampoline, football, hama beads (they are a huge hit with my dd age 8 as well as my 5yo ds, but he started playign with them when he was 4)

thanks for all the responses. Just been reminded why I love Mumsnet :)

By the way, when asked what she would like to get with her ebay profits she says 'a drum kit' and 'a real hot air balloon'.

Lego, duplo & the proper stuff
Shrinkles
Jigsaws
Disney Princess pocket dress up dolls
Train set

Playmobil - we just chuck all the little bits in a big box with a lid when she is not playing with it or when I need to vacuum.

Lego/duplo any size any style. She still loves the big chunky type.

Cafe/play food etc. She especially loves it if we let her get everything out and spread it out on the rug. She has 2 or 3 cheap teasets plus loads of other bits.

Dollies - to extend the game tell her dolly is hungry and give small amount of cornflakes or similar in clean small bowl. Obviously your daughter will eat it but it takes a while to eat dry cornflakes ;)

Nintendo DS (borrowed from older sister) Let's Draw game or similar.

Plasticine or playdoh. Strict rule in our house to keep it at the table on large wipe clean mat.

Colouring, felt tips and loads of plain scrap paper.

Cleaning/tidying- she is fond of using dustpan and brush. Or emptying washing machine into basket!

Pens + paper
Paint
Sticker books
My shoes
Puppets (+ theatre) - you might have to watch the shows though :o
Jigsaws
Watering her sunflowers
Her various "guys" - teddies, dolls, little figures

Love her ideas of things to buy :) - a real hit air balloon! That would be cool :o

Funnily enough my 4YO DD is going through a bit of a funny 'bored/hungry' phase..
Mine absolutely loves crafty stuff - colouring etc, so in prep for the long summer holidays away from pre-school, we got some of those beads that you can put on special boards and iron. They're called Hama beads - DD is a bit obsessed! It takes quite a while just to do one small board, but thats quite good! Its not always easy as I have other DC's to look after, and 4YO seems to be needing a lot of 'help' with everything at the moment.
Also very into electrical stuff - DS/iPad etc

Yeah, my 4yo DD needs lots of "help" and playing with at the moment.

She can play happily by herself for ages if she gets into something (and her 2yo sister doesn't disrupt it) but she likes to have someone to play with (not DD2) these days.

I'm thinking of trying to organise playdates, but I don't really know how to go about it and at 37 weeks pg I'm not sure I could really manage another child on top of my two.

AThing would it work if you invited another 4 year old to come and play with his/her parent.

At that age (imo) it is flexible if they come alone/with parent.

onepiece - ooh, I hadn't thought of that. Thanks :)

Dressing up and shops with a till etc but most of all, having other children to play these things with.

She's too old for Little People at 4? Blimey.

Dressing up was aal biggie with mine around 4, esp grown up shoes.

Those little tiny Disney princess dolls, Mike the Knight figures and drawing. I'm seriously considering ditching every other one of her other toys. Except for when she lines up all her bears 'in school'.

Come to think of it, she's constantly starving at the moment too.

AThing :)

It can be an added bonus if you find you get on with the other parent, someone to drink tea with while the 4 year olds go and play. (I let mine go upstairs for short periods with a friend and keep a careful ear out. Worst disaster is she likes to invite her friends to play with my make up!)

Any Happyland sets from ELC
Little cooker/food/plates - she sets up a wee cafe and makes us things

She's really into roleplaying at the moment so just sits chatting to herself and making up scenarios with her Happyland folk - it hilarious to sit and listen to her babbling away.

Almost-4yo DD loves:

Toy kitchen and tea set
Pens and paper
Building blocks
Train set (Brio style)
Dressing-up clothes
Dolls house
Doctors kit

Cars...trains...cars....trains.

Not much help then! She is OBSESSED with cars. She has some of dh's old cars & a plain track & she launches the cars down the track from her bed, the dining room table, the cubby house in the garden...you get the idea!