Features:

  • Ryan's Room classic wooden toys inspire discovery and imagination, fostering valuable developmental skills kids will use for a lifetime.
  • Each puzzle piece is a different state, with that state's major cities, resources and industries labeled on the front.
  • Kids can quiz themselves on state capitals by guessing the capital and then removing the puzzle piece for the answer.
  • Makes learning USA Geography Fun.
  • Small World Toys believes that play is an integral and necessary part of a child's development and education.
Wonderful USA Puzzle

We love this puzzle! It's large enough and very sturdy. It's got all the capitals listed on the pieces and on the map. The only thing that would make it better is if their were outlines of the states on the puzzle board to help them put it together. However, even without it they're learning them quickly!

My 2- and 3-year old love this puzzle

My 2- and 3-year old love this puzzle, and now each can complete the entire puzzle independently. They want to do it over and over and over. At first, it seemed way over their heads. The first several times I brought it out, I pretty much directed them where to put each piece, always saying the state name out loud so they could begin to make shape-name associations. They thought the shape of Texas was neat, and they were reassured by it having an obvious place to go. They built confidence by getting some other large states that bordered the frame in place with my help (California, Florida, Maine, Alaska, Hawaii, and so on). Maybe the third or fourth time we put the puzzle together, something clicked and they started becoming a lot more independent and motivated by recognizing the obvious large pieces and then some of the smaller adjacent pieces that border the wooden frame (an excellent feature, to limit the movement of the pieces). So then I stepped back and let them experiment a lot more, just helping a little if they really needed it, but pretty much letting them do the trial-and-error process. Since I had modeled working our way from outside (closest to the frame) to inside, which is necessary since there are no borders inside the puzzle, they did the same thing but...over time developed their own order - sometimes doing the whole South first, sometimes doing the Western states first, sometimes the whole Atlantic coast. So fascinating to see their mental process develop and become flexible, and their preferences emerge... My 3-year-old always saves West Virginia for last, and my 2-year-old finishes with Kentucky - so random and funny!

Just what we were looking for!

It has honestly been difficult to find a quality USA puzzle map for children at an affordable price. Then I stumbled upon this Ryan's Room version and snatched one up for our homeschool (great for ANY home, no matter how you school). PROS: 1). This is a huge puzzle! It is larger than my laptop lap desk and larger than a typical wooden puzzle. 2). Bright colors that engage everyone! All of my four children, including my 11-month-old son, swarmed around the puzzle and just could not help wanting to touch the pieces and learn. My baby boy was even trying to put the pieces together. 3). Included are the states, state capitals, nation's capital, agricultural symbols, etc. on the graphic of the puzzle. 4). This may be a pro for some and a con for others - there are no borders underneath the pieces to distinguish where each shape might go. It does have the state capital on the board but no outline of the state. However the pieces fit together beautifully and easily so once you get a few of the states on the border put in you can easily work your way across the puzzle. My 5-year-old was able to do the puzzle (with little help from me) without having ever studied a US map or done a US puzzle before. 5). As I said in #4 the pieces all fit together beautifully. You can tell this puzzle was cut with a very precise laser or tool. The pieces themselves are very nicely cut without any jagged or splintery pieces; everything is really smooth! 6). Has a little compass reference on the bottom right corner. I love that! It will be wonderful to refer to when speaking about different sections of our country. 7). My children are EAGER to learn about their country! They are fascinated and asking so many questions. They range in age from baby to 7-years-old. Even *I* enjoy this puzzle and putting it together. I'm really getting an awesome refresher on US geography. CONS 1). The Northeast is really, really crammed. Some of the smaller states are doubled up on a piece in order to reduce the risk of creating a choking hazard or losing a tiny puzzle piece. It's just really confusing for the age group of children I have. Right now they're mostly focused on states in the West and Midwest because the pieces are larger and easier-to-read. For the Northeast states there are lines depicting where they go. I don't know how one might improve on that but that was definitely a bummer. 2). I gave the puzzle 4 stars for durability because I am not sure how durable this will be with lots of hands all over it all the time. The colorful part of the puzzle with the state name is just a graphic added to the wood. If I had more money I'd have probably splurged on one where the graphics were carved or engraved into the pieces. We can dream can't we?! For the price I think what we got was fair but I wanted to be sure to include this to make my review more complete. I still believe this is a well-made puzzle but time will tell on durability! Overall we're all very pleased with our new map puzzle!

My 4 year old can put this together

We limit our daughter's screen time to no more than an hour a day. Rather than sitting her inform of an electronic device she has tons of puzzles, games, coloring books, and toys to stimulate her little mind. I bought this thinking it would be a little too old for her, and that she would grow into in, but I was wrong. My husband and I were so impressed with how quickly she learned where all the pieces belong. While she still doesn't remember all the state's names, we are working with her on her reading skills, which is helping. I would highly recommend this puzzle!

An excellent puzzle map to learn the locations of U.S. states

This is an excellent puzzle for children to learn where the states in the United States are located. Except for eight of the nine smallest-in-area states (the ninth being Hawaii), each state is its own puzzle piece. The states of Alaska and Hawaii are not to scale on the puzzle. If they were, Hawaii would be about an inch long and the islands would be indistinguishable, and to have Alaska to scale would require the map to be twice its size. The capital of each state is on the puzzle piece and on the board beneath the puzzle piece. The pieces also have pictograms of information about the state and many of the pieces show more than one city in the state. The map is 5/16th thick and the puzzle pieces are 3/6th inch thick and appear to be made of layers of cardboard, with thin veneer of wood(?) on top. The map arrived flat, but it has since become slightly warped, curling upward on the left and right edges about 1/4", probably for one of two reasons: 1) If was the map was made in a humid climate (I couldn't ascertain where the map was made) and shipped to Utah, which has very low humidity., the cardboard/wood would lose moisture and warp, or 2) I've been keeping it in my car for easy access when I go to the homes of grandnieces and grandnephews, and we've been having 100-degree days--so maybe it's just the heat, or maybe it's a combination of #1 and #2. At any rate, even knowing this, I would buy this puzzle again. The warping hasn't affected the fit of the puzzle pieces.

As wonderful as the one I had as a child!

I purchased this early for a Christmas gift for a 4-year-old going on 5. I had a wooden map of the United States when I was a child, and absolutely LOVED it! Not only is it a fun puzzle, but it is very educational, without being something one "has to study". You learn by using. I was thrilled to find something that closely approximates what I had and cherished as a child. Can't wait 'til Christmas!

Perfect puzzle to learn all of the US states and where they are

I love this puzzle! It’s great to learn all of the states, locations, and capitals. Even mom and dad are brushing up on their learning! If you get stuck the capitals are printed on the lower board to give a hint about the state’s location on the map. Adorable design, and each state is its own piece (except for a few tiny northeastern states which were grouped in 2-3s). Some of the states are quite tiny (maybe the size of a nickel) so it may not be appropriate for younger toddlers that still like to swallow things.

Classic Toy that Teaches Geography

My great grandson lives in Colorado and we live in New York. He is 3 1/2 and came for an early Christmas. The puzzle was an easy way to show him where he lived in comparison to us and before he left after a week he was able to identify many of the states with unique outlines like Florida and Texas where his grandpa was born in addition to his state and ours. The wooden pieces hold up under the maneuvering necessary to fit them together.

Love this puzzle

We got this for our 5 year old a while back, he's now 6 and still loves playing with this puzzle and can now put it together in about a minute after memorizing the states and where they belong. It has held up beautifully and I like the fact that it doesn't have the state outlines on the board because it helps kids really learn the states locations so they're not just plugging in shapes to the outlines. Would highly recommend.

Get this ASAP and start their learning early! 3 year old is perfect!

This puzzle is awesome for kids. I thought this would be for 5 year old kids and up but my 3 year old can do this in minutes all by herself now, it took about 20 or 30 tries before she learned it. At first I thought maybe it was just because I was feeding her pieces in order but, she proved me wrong. She can now place any piece on the puzzle no matter if it is touching or just out in the middle somewhere. So get it sooner than later and let them start learning. I am amazed at how she leaned this puzzle and I am looking for more now. Also I learned the USA as well. So it helps you keep pace with their wild learning curve.

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