1. Wooden Puzzles

Wooden puzzles from Judy Instructo are the best; they are indestructible and will last forever in any classroom.  In the beginning of the year I suggest only putting out a few of the simplest puzzles until the students learn how to put them together and take care of them properly, then you can gradually add more puzzles.

2. ABC House

From Lakeshore this wooden ABC house is great for the beginning of the year.  The roof comes off and foam ABC letters are stored inside.  Students select letters and put them through the appropriate openings in the house. 

3 & 5 Floor Puzzles

Available from almost any teacher store floor puzzles are a huge hit with my students.  The secret to floor puzzles is always introduce each one to your class and demonstrate how to put it together with your students at least one time.  Because the boxes that the floor puzzles come in are not very sturdy and will fall apart rather quickly, I searched and searched until I found plastic containers at the Dollar Store that were the perfect size to hold floor puzzles. 

4. ABC, Color, Number, & Shape Puzzles

These puzzles are small and have only 6-7 pieces each so they are great for young children.  I have so many that I have to store the overflow on the top shelf. 

6 & 7 Games

Once again, I found plastic containers at the dollar store to hold all of our games since the original boxes do not hold up well.  We have ABC, Number, and Shape Bingo in addition to two different memory games.