12 100-piece puzzles to bust kid boredom

Celebrate women throughout history with the engaging and colorful art from eeboo. This 100 piece round puzzle is easy enough for young kiddos to attempt on their own, but a little help (and related conversation!) is always welcome.

Ok, not every puzzle needs to be educational! If space is limited or you’re looking for a puzzle to travel with, the pint-sized cupcake puzzle from Galison is super fun. The realistic image isn’t much larger than a real life cupcake, requiring an extra bit of dexterity to complete.

This oversize beauty may be a bit of a challenge but so worth it in the end! The artwork is an actual photo from the NASA archive that gives kiddos a birds-eye view of the planet we call home. Inspired playtime at its finest.

It’s really hard to pick a favorite from Piecework Puzzles’ new kids collection. Like their regular puzzles, each design is a little kooky and totally frame-worthy with a matte finish that’s both good looking and easy on the eyes. (No glare!) But if I had to choose, the colorful, retro-themed still life of Joy Ride gets the vote. Bonus points for the fact it’s made from high-quality recycled paper.

Even the most puzzle-reluctant will want in on the action when this one comes out. I mean, what kid can’t get excited about potty humor? And in this case, it’s actually educational potty humor. With whimsical art that teaches both animal and poop identification, it’s a guaranteed crowd-pleaser.

We love puzzles that open up bigger conversations and deeper learning–like this educational design from eeboo. Illustrated by Lizzy Rockwell, it showcases 26 kids from around the world, highlighting traditional clothing and flags from various countries.

Sometimes it’s best to appeal to their interests (obsessions?) if they turn their nose up at puzzles. Best-selling Ravensburger puzzles not only come in a wide variety of recognizable scenes like Disney Princesses , Frozen and Thomas the Tank Engine , but they’re also designed so that every individual piece has a completely unique shape, making them less frustrating for little learners. (And this Frozen 2 design has the added appeal of glittery pieces!)

Similarly, the character puzzles from Buffalo Games are always a great option. They’ve got Pokémon and Star Wars along with colorful kid-friendly themes at really great prices. But best of all? They’ll replace missing pieces for puzzles that have been produced in the last four years.

If they don’t yet understand the reference, it’s your job as a parent to fire up the Purple Rain soundtrack and get them up to speed ASAP. Sorry, I don’t make the rules.

The fun is twofold with the clever 101 Things to Spot puzzles from MasterPieces. Assembling the puzzle comes first, but when they’re done, each detailed drawing has a collection of animals, objects and people to find. There are several different versions to choose from and a good chance they’ll be busy for quite some time. (A mom can dream.)

There’s so much learning packed into this geography-based puzzle! Your budding geographer will begin to recognize the shape of each state along with notable landmarks across the country. Cue the wanderlust!

Avian lovers will delight in this colorful puzzle that’s filled with stunning illustrations of 36 birds from all around the world. Once it’s all together, it might stay out awhile! Packed inside the sturdy canister they’ll find a naming sheet to learn about each of the featured species, including how to say their names in four different languages. (Check out the entire best-selling animal series here!)