Puzzle pieces should be large enough and sturdy enough to allow for chubby preschool fingers. A simple first puzzle may consist of only one piece that fits into a cut out slot. You can improve such puzzles for use by clumsy little hands by attaching knobs to the puzzle pieces. Another skill that puzzles help perfect, is eye-hand coordination. A preschooler can begin to use visual cues such as patterns and colors to help match pieces together.
Puzzles teach children how parts fit together to form a whole.
For the inexperienced preschooler, choose a puzzle that has a clear single image such as one large puppy or fish. Also look for puzzles that have pieces based on recognizable parts of a single image, such as the tail, nose, eye or fin. Parts of the body are easier to learn when each one can be picked up individually and fit in its proper place. Puzzles help exercise a child s memory. Many children delight in seeing just how fast they can fit puzzle pieces together once they have figured it out.