Does anyone have either of these two shape sorters?

[amp]

Jacob has a plastic FP shape sorter that he likes, but I was wondering if there is any benefit to a wooden one w/ more shapes to it. Here are two I am considering.

[link:www.farmgoodsforkids.com/st-5522520.html|Ryan's Room Get A Grip Shape Sorter]

[link:www.mastermindtoys.com/store/product.asp?product_code=51567&cat=0&brand=75&subcat=503&agecat=0&showcat=0|Melissa and Doug Shape Sorter]

The M&D one has more shapes, but the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio rates the Ryan's Room one very well, plus it has a handle, which is neat. But it has fewer shapes, so I don't know if it's worth it when we have a shape shorter that has stars, triangles, circles and squares.

I've heard good things about both brands of toys, so I can't decide if we even need another one of these (we probably don't) or which one. both are at kidsurplus for $11.99 right now, and I don't even know if that's a good price or not since I've just started looking at them.

Opinions?
TIA!

[brittone2]

We have the M&D one, but DS is not quite 12 months yet so he's not really using it yet. In fact, it is a birthday present for him for his birthday in a few days.

I don't know if you really need another one. A lot of kids just aren't that into shape sorters. We have a very simple fisher price plastic one that has only triangle, circle and square on its lid. I got that one very inexpensively 2nd hand.

I worked as a pediatric physical therapist before DS was born, so I had the chance to work w/ a lot of occupational therapists (they work on fine motor skills). I know they often just start w/ introducing one set of shapes at a time. You would give them the sorter, but only the circles in the beginning. This helps minimize frustration until they learn the task better. For that reason, I think the sorters with a ton of different shapes (like the M&D one) can be overwhelming for a little one, at least until they are a bit older. If your child is a sit down and do a puzzle kind of kid, they'd probably enjoy sorting through a bunch of shapes. Otherwise, I think a simpler one is probably just fine.

I haven't seen the Ryan's Room one IRL so I can't comment on that one. Both look nice, so if you want one, go for it, but you could always wait and see if the simple one you already have is "enough."

That said, DS currently enjoys a little shape sorter game he devised on his own LOL. He has an "O-ball" and a set of cheapo ikea stacking cups. The smallest stacking cup is red and dome shaped. It fits perfectly through the larger sized holes on the O-ball, but not the small ones. He likes putting the little cup through the bigger holes and then removing it. So, they find their own ways to explore those concepts even without shape sorters apparently ;)

[ethansmom]

We picked up the M&D cube at TJMaxx for around $10.

DS likes shape sorters, but this one is more advanced. The age rec is 2 and up....I think a 1 yr old could do some of the shapes and a couple would be for about a 3 yr old, perhaps? Anyway, it does amuse DS and I like the fact he'll grow into it and use if for that much longer. He also enjoyed taking the lid off and dropping in the shapes.

The lid itself is sort of advanced....I don't know if a child under 2 would be able to put it on consistently themselves. Also, it doesn't close securely, so you have to hold it on when you want to turn the cube to put the shapes in the sides.

We both also like that the wooden pieces can be stacked like blocks...