Customer Reviews

Melissa & Doug World Map Wooden Jigsaw Puzzle

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this for my 4 y/o who is interested in maps and puzzles, and I have to say it's a big bust.

**The puzzle is completely flat so the pieces are hard to get out/get in--knobs would make it so much easier.
**The puzzle pieces are indeed a world map, but only list the continents. When you lift them up there is a black and white map underneath on the board that shows the individual countries, but not on the puzzle pieces themselves. Why not put the countries on the back of the pieces?
**As another reviewer wrote, the continents aren't in one piece, so you can't even isolate them to talk about them and the countries within.

My son likes this puzzle, but I wish I had gotten one with detailed countries, preferable with a handle on each piece.

This wooden world map jigsaw puzzle helps kids learn where continents are located. When the pieces are lifted out, country outlines are found underneath, which helps older children learn specific country locations. The names of all of the countries along with their capitols are listed on the back of the puzzle. A colorful, fun way to get to know about our world. Measures 12" by 18", 32 pieces. Recommended for ages 6 and up.

I purchased this to help home-school our children. The idea was that younger children (6 and under) could become familiar with the shapes of the continents and oceans without doing any formal study of geography. I wanted a wooden puzzle that would also hold up under abuse by smaller children. But the pieces are completely out of line with the geography itself. The kids find the counter-intuitive shapes very frustrating. Heck... I find the shapes frustrating! Invariably, the kids give up after a minute or two, leaving me the chore of putting it back together, which takes some time even for an adult. I finally decided to get rid of the thing to save myself the headache. But my wife insisted I post a review first. In a nutshell, the lack of conformity between the continents and the puzzle pieces makes it useless from an educational view. Melissa and Doug ought to put their heads together and create a replacement for this product, one more in line with the wooden puzzle of the United states, from which my children do in fact learn while enjoying themselves.

I bought this puzzle for my daughter (age 2) after seeing how much she learned from and loved the USA Melissa & Doug puzzle. She knows all of her states and now she is familiar with the different continents in the world. She calls this her "Earth Puzzle". This puzzle has been played with over and over again. Although I would have preferred that the pieces be shaped like each continent, at this stage it's still great! Highly recommended for ALL AGES.

We'd gotten a number of the simpler wooden puzzles and this was the first 'difficult' puzzle we bought. Our kids have enjoyed putting it together and learning about the continents. At first it did pose quite a challenge but once they began to better learn how to do harder puzzles it became fairly quick and simple for my 2 and 4 year olds.

Our 2.5 year old really enjoyed doing this puzzle when we first bought it for him - figured out how to do it by himself after a few weeks of daily fun, and in the process he learnt all the continents and major oceans. he plays with it every week or so now (6 months later) and still enjoys doing the puzzle.

My son is 3 and loves this toy. The pieces are the perfect size for his hands, and the animal pictures help him remember the continents. He still needs help with finishing it, but he can put about half of the pieces in by himself. I love that it's sturdy and has a map on the board underneath -- makes it easier to put together. Fun & affordable way to introduce a little one to geography.

Very nice puzzle with good colors and fun details. However, the map is not accurate and this bothers me. I don't like that South America is skewed so far east. Melissa & Doug maps are well made but they need to pay attention to accuracy. Their US map doesn't show Mexico and Canada so it looks like an island.

I thought I was ordering a map of the US, but instead received a world map. I was naturally disappointed as this was a gift to my grandson. It may have been my fault, but I thought I had stayed with the US selection throughout the ordering procedure. I will be more careful in the future.

The condition of the puzzle was perfect when I got it. I have used this puzzle many times since I got it. I received this puzzle in remarkable time. Great group to buy from!