Puzzles are always a popular activity in our household. Years ago, when my oldest was kindergarten aged, making puzzles was even an item on our daily homeschool schedule. We have a good collection of puzzles these days, everything from simple wooden puzzles with peg handles for the littlest toddlers, all the way to the 2000 piece puzzles that my husband and I used to complete together in the early years of our marriage (when there were no little people keeping us busy or eating pieces).
Since someone is working on a puzzle pretty much daily in our home these days, I jumped at the opportunity to try out the new and innovative Statue of Liberty FlipStir Puzzle by Enlivenze LLC. The puzzles come in two levels of difficulty and five different designs and are geared for ages 7+.
I had a quite a bit of fun exploring the puzzle before setting my kids loose on it, and I found it to be a great, high quality product. The puzzle consists of a clear plastic case containing the 3D puzzle pieces, and a wand coming through the lid with which you manipulate and stack the pieces to complete the image. It looks like it should be so easy — only 10 pieces and a uniform, wavy pattern to assemble — but it is quite a challenge!
I quickly determined the necessary strategy for arranging the pieces and maneuvering the wand and was then able to complete the puzzle. My kids though? Not even close. I was actually disappointed in how quickly my 8 year old was frustrated and gave up on it — she fared much better after I let her in on my secret strategy!
My 5 year old was a complete no-go for the puzzle (as expected) although her and my toddler are always playing with it and shaking it up! Which brings me to another benefit of the FlipStir puzzle — no loose pieces to be lost or eaten by babies and toddlers!
So, who enjoyed the puzzle the most in our family? MY HUSBAND! Yes, that’s right, Daddy was intrigued, figured out the secret strategy, and then took the puzzle with him to work to try out on his co-workers! It took him 7 minutes to complete on his first try, and he then proceeded to time and test his work mates. He just loves puzzles and strategy games.
Overall, we really enjoyed the FlipStir Statue of Liberty puzzle, and I would definitely recommend it as an educational toy that builds hand-eye coordination, patience, problem solving skills, and is fun for the whole family!
FlipStir puzzles are available in Tyrannosaurus Rex, Solar System, Rainbow Pencils, Statue of Liberty, and Periodic Table designs.
