PLAY ALL DAY with Mudpuppy Puzzles & Games

- December 13, 2018

When my kids were little, we traveled to Chicago once a year to visit their great-grandmother, and I always filled their backpacks with new games, puzzles, activity books and toys to keep them engaged on the five hour flight. During those years, I also worked as a bookseller at a store where Mudpuppy products were in plentiful supply. Not only can I vouch for the quality and creativity of Mudpuppy products personally, I can now speak to them professionally! I took all the puzzles and games reviewed here into my library and let the (sometimes grubby) little hands of my students all over them! Two recesses a day, about twenty to thirty kids each recess, and these toys have stood up to the wear and tear of kids! Also, my students absolutely love every puzzle and game and are completely engaged with every one.

Mini Memory Match: Transportation. With twenty-four pieces and twelve matching pairs, this game is great for little kids. The pieces, which are marvelously illustrated, are thick and easy to grab. I have had other memory match games in the library and they have not held up to the frequent handling as well as these do. Best of all, this little box of fun comes in a huge variety of themes and is only $4.99!

PUZZLES!!!

My students love puzzles. I love puzzles. And, as much as I want them to have that learning experience, sometimes I can't keep my hands off their puzzles. Mudpuppy puzzles definitely fall into that category! While they make a handful of 1,000 piece puzzles and several superb 500 piece puzzles, today I am focusing on 100 pieces or less. That said, I bought the Little Feminists 500 piece puzzle for my library and it is a huge success. The colors and patterns of the illustrations make it more accessible than a 500 piece puzzle of a photograph. And, I get to sneak in a little learning while the kids puzzle, pulling all the biographies off the shelf of the women featured in the puzzle!

Another great thing to take on a trip is any of the Puzzles To Go, thirty-six piece puzzles that come with a drawstring bag! There are thirteen puzzles to choose from and the pieces are thick and the perfect size for a new puzzler who is ready for a challenge.

There are five habitats to explore in Search & Find series of puzzles. Each puzzle has sixty-four pieces and comes with a field guide to the forty plus creatures to seek and find in each puzzle. These same animals are seen on the border of the puzzle. Another great way to learn as you play!

GLOW IN THE DARK PUZZLES!

Finally, the most fun but probably the most fragile of all puzzles is the 100 piece glow in the dark puzzle. The pieces are not quite as thick as the other puzzles and the glow in the dark coating adds a texture to them. However, turning off the lights and seeing the hidden images is SO FUN! And there are nine different puzzles to choose from, each with a theme perfectly suited to glow in the dark.