I recently bought this for my 19 month old who absolutely LOVES it! She'll actually sit down and play with it for a good 30 or 40 min, take a break, then come back to it and play with it again for another half hour. The shapes are the perfect size for her little hands. Each shape is also a rattle, so they make fun noises for younger babies.
A parent can easily open the sorter by twisting either the top or bottom, but I think it would be very difficult for a baby or toddler to open. The other thing I like about this sorter is that it has three shapes on either end, so as the baby becomes more confident with the toy, they will learn how to flip it over to find the opening they need rather then mom turning it for them. My daughter started out with a sorter that was a bucket with a flat lid that had 4 different shapes on top. This worked when she was younger (though she still liked all sorters), but has since masteed it and therefore grown tired of it. This new sorter adds a new challenge, so it's still interesting for her. Another nice feature is that each shape and opening is color coded making it easier for the child to find and match the shapes. It's obviously also a great chance to teach colors.
The only negative I can mention is a minor one. The hole for the round shape isn't very tight, so sometimes the circle falls back out. It doesn't bother my daughter (I don't think she notices), she just pops it back in. Some shapes need to pushed a little harder then you'd expect, but that's just helped my daughter to learn the word 'push.'
All in all, I'd say it's an excellent toy that, if bought as early as 8 months, will easily last you for a year if not longer.
This shape sorted was purchased for my oldest child's first birthday. He also has special needs and was in PT and OT at the time. 4 years later and after 3 kids, this toy is still much loved and looks like new.
We have also had/used many shape sorters and this one is by far the best. It is appealing to younger and older children, younger ones may need more help getting the 6 differnt shapes to the right holes, and the older ones like to flip it back and forth getting all the shape in then opening it and starting over.
As far as quality, this sorter is made of a hard plastic. So even during those early Teething years, this toy will show NO teeth marks. And the hard plastic allows for it to easily go in the dishwasher for cleaning.
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This is my 10 month old's daughters favorite toy. She studies it very hard to figure how to put the shapes into the sorter. She had even started putting the shapes in without any help. She will play with this toy for a good 30 minutes before getting bored with it. That is a lot longer than any of her other toys. LOVE LOVE LOVE this toy!
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I searched high and low for a good shape sorter after learning that the Fisher Price one my infant son was given is made with harmful chemicals known to cause cancer and birth defects. I learned this from Amazon's note to CA residents. (Thank you Amazon!) This one from Tolo is terrific in so many ways.
First, I like having 6 different shapes, each of a different color. So many sorters have just 3 or 4 shapes and/or every shape is the same color. Both of those characteristics lessen the educational value of the toy, and the lack of different colors also makes it harder for a young child to distinguish the shapes from one another.
The toy is very well constructed and the quality of the material(s) must be good because my son is constantly banging things on the sorter and there is hardly a scratch. While some may not like that the top and bottom (or sides, depending on your perspective) cannot be removed by a baby/young child, requiring adult intervention, I think this helps force the child to sort the shapes.
My son never tried to sort the shapes with the Fisher Price Brilliant Basics Shape Sorter. He always removed the top, took out the shapes, and banged them together. With the Tolo shape sorter, he immediately tried to fit the shapes into the slots. I felt ecstatic. Finally, he's learning something!
My only complaint is that there is no square included. I can't understand why the company thought it more important to have a couple of flower-type shapes (at least, that's what I assume they are-the dark blue and red pieces) than a square. The square is a fundamental shape that every child will have to recognize in school. It really irks me that it's not included here. If it were,the toy would be perfect. As it is, it's currently the best shape sorter I can find.
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This toy is nice and teaches babies shapes. The shapes themselves rattle and my grandson likes them alot. He is really still a bit young for it yet, but likes to sit in my lap and watch me open and close it and put the shapes in for him. The one negative thing I have found about this toy is that the slats are wide enough for tiny hands and forearms to fit through. My grandson puts his whole hand inside and grabs the rattles. Wich could pose a hazard if your child fell with it like toddlers often do, or tripped while their hand was inside of it that way. It is really thick very hard plastic and designed to roll. If you look at the picture you can kind of picture what I mean. Otherwise is a bright, well made toy that seems designed to last.
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While I semi-agree with other posters that the toy was a little difficult to pull apart to get the shapes out, it didn't deter us from loving the toy. An adult does have to pull apart the ball and get the shapes out for the child. Actually the string inside ours that keeps the two sides attached actually broke after using the toy for about a month, but it was the best thing that happened to the toy. The two sides are now easy to pull apart and still easily stay back together.
