John Crane Tidlo Lorry Shape Sorter Review

We were recently sent the Tidlo by John Crane Lorry Shape Sorter to review for Izziwizzikids.co.uk.

The age range on the toy is 24 months plus, which seemed a high age for a shape sorting toy, Mark has been doing shape sorters since he was 8 months old. However opening up the box I realised there was more to this than just a shape sorter.

Included inside the box is the Lorry Cab, the Lorry trailer and 16 different coloured shape pieces. Each shape on the back of the lorry has 4 pieces that will fit it, one in each colour of Yellow, Blue, Green and Red. The trailer easily attaches to the cab and Mark can do it without my assistance. But the great thing is that it fits well, so there is no frustration of it coming apart when he doesn’t want it to.

The Lorry Shape Sorter is great for shape recognition. This is helping Mark find the shape we say, so he can recognise which is the circle. Even better than that though is the colours, I am asking Mark to find me the Blue Circle, which is helping him with both colour and shape recognition. This is a great learning aid while being really fun! When Mark is older I will get him to put the colours on in order of each shape, but that is for an older child, I don’t want to overload his brain with too much at once.

My only niggle is the triangle, it has to be positioned the correct way round to be able to fit. This is frustrating Mark at the moment as he knows its a triangle and is meant to fit, but it isn’t. So he flips it over and it still won’t work, he hasn’t yet worked out that you need to spin it a little.

The Lorry Shape Sorter is typical of Tidlo by John Crane quality, it’s brilliantly well made and is gorgeous. I have a big passion for wooden toys and this did not disappoint one bit! It is sturdy and rigid, and despite Mark bashing it around in true boyish fashion, it hasn’t got a single scratch on it. The shapes have been put in Marks mouth and chewed, but we are yet to find any teeth marks! The little driver inside the cab is stuck firmly inside, there is no way he will escape.

The wheels turn round and allow this to be used as a vehicle instead of just a static shape sorter.
Oh and the pieces are great fun to stack!! 

Here is our video review…

We love the Tidlo by John Crane Lorry Shape Sorter, not only is it a gorgeous wooden toy but it has massive learning scope and play scope too! A welcome addition in our house.