18 month old won't play with toys

[WhyTheHeckMe]

Just after advice really about whether it's normal.
Ds was 18mo yday and he has a whole playroom full of toys as well as a large ottoman toy box in the living room but he just isn't interested. Theres a huge variety and we get things out but he just walks away.
He is very active and isn't interested in TV or technology at all either, he just wants to play with other children, follow them and watch them - likewise with adults. He is very friendly.
He will play with "big" things like his slide, or his little tykes coupe car. Other than that all he wants to do is twist lids off and on or turn keys in doors!
He's the same at nursery too, will play with the big building blocks and lie them out into a big path to walk on. Other than that he wants to just dance around and do messy play.
Is all of this okay developmentally? I can't help but be bothered by it as all of the games the apps suggest he has no Interest in. I can't even encourage him to hold a crayon to paper

Fairly normal I think! (Well if my daughter is anything to go by)
At over 2, she has finally started playing some role play type games but her attention span is 10mins tops!
At 18mths there was nothing toy wise that would really do...

Oh and pens and paper etc only started about 2 as well.
Also a tv hater!

Yeah at this age they pretty much just flit from one thing to another. Their attention span isnt great. Lots of physical activity, climbing and plenty of destruction totally normal.

My 18 month old son is the same. The only thing that can hold is attention for a reasonable amount of time is the sandpit outside. Other than that the only toys he's interested in are his trains. Everything else gets ignored. He runs around all day and never seems to stop. Not interested in painting/drawing/playdoh for more than a few minutes and he just tries to eat them anyway! I actually asked at nursery the other day if they though he had an issues with hyperactivity, but they said he's just a toddler (a very excitable and energetic one!)

It sounds totally normal but one other thing that occurs to me-is he bewildered by the choice? You could try packing everything away save one or two toys (basic ones that don't do much like blocks or a car he can push around). Maybe see if he's more inclined to play with them then? And swap them once a week maybe?

Thanks so much for the reassurance all. It's good to know he doesn't seem to be the only one like this.
Kiwi I know exactly what you mean but we always make sure that he has a small choice, take for instance now. He's just had his lunch and he had an Ellas Smoothy Pouch after. We just went to smyths and bought him a thomas the tank train with a slide on the back to drop cargo down. That's the only toy out but all he wants to do is screw the lid off and on the empay ellas pouch!!
Bought him the new toy as we thought maybe he's just bored of looking at the same things (we rarely buy anything new as he doesn't play with what he has). He can wait till Xmas now lol .

Good idea about only giving a small choice. I'm definitely going to try that! Whytheheck, my son is just the same he'd rather play wlth things that aren't actually toys!

If he wants to play with lids and keys then let him. I think those things are fantastic for their fine motor skills. Putting things into little boxes ( like tupperware or a well washed body cream tub) screwing on lids, turning keys. It's great for his development, he is learning!!
Some toys I think are too advanced for the age suggested on them I think. I got my ds some little people sets for Christmas and he didn't really look at them much until recently.
Not sure what games apps suggest but I tend to just let my ds do his own thing and play with what interests him, he is 2.4 and doesn't like paint or play do but can hold a pen and scribble. He much prefers wee cars and diggers and blocks. He also likes trains but at 18 months he wouldn't have really played with toys for any length of time.

Sounds like my son at the same age. He would play with dishcloths 😂 and I made a cupboard for him where he could take out and arrange tins and empty food boxes. At nursery his favourite area was the water table. He'd recreate it at home by putting the plug in the sink, turning the taps on and playing with the water.

He would put the dishcloth on his head (as a wig? Hat?) and walk around pleased as punch or he'd use it to "wrap" a gift and offer it to me. He'd have 100s of other uses like a blanket for teddy, put it on mums head when she's sat down and run away, use it to hide stuff... Not enjoying toys is fine. Don't worry.