Educational Toys for 2 Year Old Boys – Over 50 Hand-Picked Ideas!

Updated 9/2020.
Looking for the best educational toys for 2 year old boys? You have come to the right place! As a boy mom myself, I have a lot of experience choosing just the right toys to get them learning and keep them engaged.

I thought back to what toys my son enjoyed, researched like crazy to see what was out there now and talked to other boy moms so you can trust that this list is the very best one out there.

I’ve made it super easy for you too! All you have to do is scroll down and pick the top proven learning toys that appeal to your boy. I guarantee I’ve included only the ones boys age two will really enjoy.

Brain Power Boy is all about fun learning! 

Do not think that because a toy is fun that they are not learning from it. Play is one of the very best ways young boys will learn so providing a lot of high quality toys and good play opportunities is key.

There are NO boring toys here, guaranteed!

This post may contain affiliate links which means I may receive a small amount, at no cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. All opinions are my own and I share things I think would be of interest to you and your family.

Best Educational Toys for 2-Year-Old Boys

I suppose you are wondering . . . What are the best educational toys for boys age 2?  I’ll tell you!

They are toys that your boy will want to play with again and again because they are engaging and fun. They are toys that help him develop in an age-appropriate way and ones that really get their minds working.

I list my favorites below. They are the type of toys I bought for my son and for gifts over the years. Many of them are wooden because I like high quality but don’t worry, that doesn’t mean they cost a lot and there are plenty of deals to be had.

Scroll down to discover what we found. They are all wonderful, you just have to decide which ones to get!

LEGO Duplo for Boys Age 2

Duplo is a perfect educational toy for 2-year-old boys, because not only will they learn about building, but the toys will grow with them.

Here are some additional sets that you should consider:

The DUPLO Deluxe box comes with 85 pieces of playtime fun! The little boy and girl figures are adorable and fit right into the car so your child can drive them around! There are plenty of pieces to build a treehouse, a house and even a park because this set includes a swing and a slide! Your boy is going to love it and so will you – come on – you know you are going to build something great as well. There are a lot of building and story-telling opportunities with this set!

The Animal Mix & Match has animal pictures on the DUPLO bricks. Your little one will have a blast with this set. Dump out the blocks and let him match the animal parts then build the animal. Plus, I’m sure he will giggle away when he mixes a giraffe head with a zebra body and flamingo legs or makes other fun creations by mixing them up!

Does your little boy love animals? You have to see the wonderful Duplo Education Wild Animals set! From building animal habitats for a wide variety of included animals (so cute!) to exploring animal families, and learning about animals around the world this set is not only educational but it will grow with your child. The creative open ended play options are endless. Oh, and it comes with a link to online activity videos as well.

TIP!: DUPLO actually connects with regular size LEGO bricks so be sure to keep it and add LEGO to your collection as your boy grows! Read more about deciding on DUPLO here.

Mega Bloks

If you are more of a Mega Bloks kind of family, try one of these sets.

We had both DUPLO and Mega Bloks because, hey – you can never have too many types of blocks and bricks!

They really are different and let kids build different types of things.

The bloks bag has enough pieces to allow for creativity. This Amazon exclusive includes 150 blocks.

The learning table is a hit with reviewers but you will likely want to buy extra bloks if you get it. It is great for fun on the go in case you want to take it along with you when you go to Grandma’s house, travel, or have limited floor space as it folds up and the blocks store inside.

Looking for an ABC toy for learning letters? The alphabet train features all of the letters of the alphabet (they also have a number train here) so if your little one is starting to get interested in letters, this is the one to get!

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The Best Puzzles for 2 Year Old Boys

When I went looking for puzzles for my son, I was super picky. I wanted high quality puzzles that would last AND that would be great for problem solving skills as well as dexterity.

I am highlighting the chunky wooden puzzles and the sound puzzles I found because they were both favorites in our house and I still give these when I have to get a gift for a little guy.

Chunky Puzzles

Click on one of the puzzles above, or click to see all of the different themes of chunky puzzles, which are wonderful for little hands.

Sound Puzzles

Click on one of the puzzles above, or go here to see all of the different sound puzzles, which are a huge hit because they make the sound of the piece.

Matching Puzzles

These matching puzzles are just right developmentally for a 2-year-old and they will enjoy putting them together.

The Heads and Tails puzzle above is has self-correcting puzzle pieces which means that they can’t put them together wrong.

I love the wooden shape puzzle and of course, you never go wrong with Eric Carle Brown Bear items. See more puzzle selections here.

Pounding Toys for Toddler Boys

Here are two additional pounding benches worth taking a look at.

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Musical Instrument Toys for Boys

This is our top pick for musical instrument toys. If this was around when my son was young, I would have made this my first musical toy purchase.

Dolls for 2 Year Old Boys

So many boys love their dolls! I wrote a whole article showcasing the best baby dolls for boys. Please take a look if you are interested in buying a doll for your toddler boy.

See our Baby Dolls for Boys Gift Guide for more doll choices.

Right now I am going to highlight three types of dolls for you. A dress me doll, a bath doll and a doll that you can pop in the washing machine. Your boys will really love these. They often think of dolls as their little buddies.

Don’t you just love this cute learn to dress doll? He is perfect for helping your boy learn how to work buttons, zippers and more. The pieces are nice and chunky so very friendly to little fingers.

The bath doll sweetie was designed in France with plenty of attention to detail, but doesn’t come with a French price tag.

He can go in the water which is super great for helping your boy get into the bathtub I can tell you that. I’ve also used bath dolls out in the wading pool for fun playtime. He even has a tab at the back to hang him for drying. They basically thought of everything and threw in a toy whale too!

If you think your boy is going to want to drag his doll everywhere, you may want to go with a machine washable option such as this adorable doll they call Peanut. If he gets dirty, you can pop the whole doll right into the washer which is rather rare when it comes to dolls. He is just the right size for toddlers.

Activity Cubes and Bead Mazes

Next up is a selection of activity cubes and bead mazes. I had to do a lot of research on these because I wanted to make sure they were age appropriate and could grow with your child.

Some of the cubes I saw are tiny! They look big in the picture but they are only about 6 inches high. Others had activites that were too young.

The ones you see below are perfect and can be used for several years. I’ve seen kids 4 and even 5 messing around with these because, they are calming and fun.

If you just need a classic bead maze to set on a table, get this one. It is big enough and well made. If you want a wonderful upgrade choose of the the ones highlighted below.

Building Block Sets for Boys Age 2

Let me tell you, blocks are one of the best classic toys ever. Until I had my son, I had no idea how many different uses we would find for the block sets I bought for him. We used them SO much.

I will share with you the best types of blocks to get as well as the best ones in each category. You are sure to find a great set (or if you are like me 2 or 3 or 4 building block sets lol) that you and your family will love.

FYI, I looked at over 100 sets of blocks (yes, really) so I hope my research is helpful to you! Whew – that was a lot of block sets!!

After looking at many sets of foam blocks, I finally found one I liked that was rated for age 2 and that was not an easy task.

If you want EVA blocks, this is the set I would buy. They are soft (read quiet when they fall!) but hold their shape well, there plenty of blocks (140!) for him to build with and colors are fabulous. Plus you can use them in the bath or pool and they float!

I love a classic set of alphabet blocks. We has several different ones because I liked the different pictures on them. The set I recommend right now is one the comes with both numbers and letters. For a 50 block set the price is super cheap!

My favorite blocks are made of maple and I found a very similar set for you. I like the hardwood blocks because they last without getting all dinged up. This set is in primary colors and is really nice. Just goes to show you don’t have to spend a lot to get good blocks.

Not Pictured:

I also really like the big cardboard blocks that are so strong kids can stand on them! They had them at a play center I took my son to when he was young and every kids gravitated to them as soon as they were brought out. This set has 52 pieces and is for ages 18+. I know for a fact even older brothers and sisters like to build with these if you have enough of them.

Stackers and Sorters for Toddler Boys

We couldn’t forget the stackers and sorters! These are such popular educational toys for 2 year old boy toddlers. I found a classic stacker and a classic sorter if you would like one of those.

But, I also wanted to find some that were a little more unusual. Those that offered more play value and learning opportunities for this age and included shapes, colors and problem solving skills.

Just look at that train! Not only will they be learning colors and stacking different blocks depending on the number of wholes but they can use is as a toy train as well. Snag is before it is gone. p.s. my mom got this for my nephew for Christmas and it was a huge hit!

What do you think of the rainbow stacker? I saw it and liked it immediately. The pieces are made from wood. As I was going through it caught my eye for both the unique idea and because I think there is a lot of ways to use your imagination with this set beyond just stacking. What will your boy do with it? Only one way to find out!

Another wood toy (can you tell I like wooden toys best?) that will be used oh so often. If your little one has to watch the garbage truck when it goes by, he will love this. Your boy will have two garbage men to play with and 9 shapes to put into the truck. The back door lifts to dump them back out. This is a clever and fun shape sorter that is perfect for boys.

Magnet Sets and Board for Storytelling

Little boys love stories and using magnets you can help them tell their own. These are an amazing gift choice and I often give the board with a couple of magnet sets so they can jump right in.

Magnetic Easel

Magnet Sets for Boys

There are specific magnet sets that you are going to want to look at. You do not want to get any that have a chocking hazard so be sure they are rated for this age, are big enough and don’t have small magnetic parts (learn more about magnet safety here). All of the ones below are from reputable companies.

Grab the magnet sets that will appeal to the child’s interests because they will really enjoy telling stories and using the magnet board. Let the story-telling begin!

Oh, and I added in three charming sets from French companies. These magnets are split in the middle allowing for mix and match. Kids l.o.v.e. them and they make them laugh.

Best Games for 2 Year Old Boys

Let me tell you, it is not all that easy to find games for kids under age three!

It took me a long time to find some that were good enough to put on this list (I’m picky!) Here are my selections.

They are all great introductions to game play that are age appropriate and packed with both fun and learning opportunities.

Where’s Bear? is super cute. Click through to see the whole game as the box doesn’t do it justice. In this stacking block game hide, and then find, the little bear while learning spacial concepts and problem solving.

Seek a Boo is a seek and find memory game (an easier version of a traditional memory game) with BIG laminated cards which get kids moving around a bit while they play. The will work off a bit of that endless energy with this game. I like that about it – lol.

Here Fishy, Fishy is a magnetic fishing game for toddlers. Isn’t this perfect for little boys?  Time to go fishing and learn about colors while catching the sea creatures that match the color on the dice.

The Roll & Play Board Game is all about action. There is color matching and performing simple tasks based on the card which has both a picture and text, and gross motor involved.

If you have a boy who would just love to Monkey Around you have to check out this game! A great gross motor game that also includes vocabulary, hand-eye coordination and imitation.

First Orchard is a old classic game from Germany. It includes shape and color recognition as well as learning to follow rules. If you don’t want to play with rules there is a free-play option too.

Hand Puppets for Boys Age 2

I found some puppets that are just right for 2 year olds. Thankfully, they are really neat and come in packs of four for extra value and extra play ideas.

Does your boy want to pretend with jolly helpers and be a policeman or fireman or perhaps he would like to talk like a pirate! Maybe he is into knights and dragons or is way into dinosaurs. Simply choose one or more of these puppet sets and he will be happy as can be. They are suprisingly inexpensive for what you get and puppets really help boys with verbal expression and communication as well as storytelling. We had a whole basket full of puppets that got used all the time!

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That wraps up our best educational toys for 2 year old boys post. I hope you found something wonderful to buy for your toddler. I know he will love these!!