Last Updated on December 11, 2021 by admin
Pictured in photo: A metal tea set that my mom bought, probably at the store Tuesday Morning. I recommend the Green Toys set instead because it’s food safe and durable.
When I was a little kid, I remember having a dainty porcelain tea set decorated with flowers. I liked to admire it more than I liked to actually get it out and play with it.
I’m sure that I didn’t receive this pretty set until I was much older than age 2, but I do think that toddlers are actually more likely to enjoy emulating adult activities like setting the table than older kids. That’s why things like toy lawn mowers and toy vacuum sweepers are such a big hit at age 2.
Related post: The Best Toys for Imaginative 2-Year-Olds
A lot of educational experts would say that this emulation should be more than just play and should be actual helping and independence. For that reason, lot of Montessori classrooms have child-accessible sinks and basins, so that kids can do their own dishes. That’s why I like this tea set from Green Toys — it’s actually suggested for food and drink use.
Many of the cutest tea sets out there are made of lightweight metal painted with fun designs. Unfortunately, probably because the paint can eventually chip off, these aren’t recommended for actual eating and drinking. Other play tea sets, like this beautiful tiny wooden one, could even get ruined if an enterprising toddler decided to make things a little more authentic by adding water.
The Green Toys website states that this set “meets FDA requirements for food contact standards.” All products in the Green Toys brand are made from recycled milk jugs. Although my own kids didn’t have this set, I feel comfortable recommending this set because they have other toys from the Green Toys line that have held up really well over the years.
