Schleich Dinosaurs

Bud loves Dinosaurs. At four and a half he knows endless facts about them and his dinosaur books and toys occupy a fair amount of his playtime. When the opportunity came for us to review some amazing dinosaurs from Schleich's new range we were very excited!


We received seven dinosaurs from the range and they arrived on Bud's first day of school! He was so happy to see them, they were the icing on the cake that day. As he pulled each dinosaur from the parcel he was able to name most of them straight away. The box contained:


Bud recognised all of the dinosaurs apart from Therizinosaurus and Quetzalcoatlus (he just called this one a Pterodactyl, which allowed us to talk about pterasaurs being the name for flying lizards, not dinosaurs, again). He was slightly confused by the presence of two T-Rex dinosaurs but quickly decided that one was the Mummy and the other was the Daddy. We went to look up the 'new' dinosaurs in his big book and find out whether they are meat-eaters or plant-eaters which is always Bud's first question about an unfamiliar dinosaur. We found out that Therizinosaurus is thought to have been omniverous and Quetzalcoatlus ate fish, in case you are wondering!


I loved the opportunity to expand Bud's dino knowledge with the inclusion of less well known dinosaurs into the range. We probably would never have come across Therizinosaurus and Quetzalcoatlus without Schleich making models of them and it's always exciting to discover a new dinosaur (or pterasaur) together.


Since the dinosaurs arrived they have been used in the sand pit, water table and inside the house. Using them in sand gives the opportunity to make great dinoaur footprints! They are sturdy and up to small hands exploring them and playing actively with them. These are great, some have moving jaws and limbs. They are incredibly tactile and Bud has really enjoyed exploring them and talking about the sharp teeth, claws, colour of the skin and the size of the dinosaurs. They are a great toy to support a child's interest in dinosaurs and one that really helps them to learn. Bud has great fun making up stories featuring his dinosaurs and they lend themselves brilliantly to imaginative play.


Schleich make amazing models and these dinosaurs are no exception. They are exceptionally detailed and beautifully coloured. Those that Bud knew were easy to recognise as the models are so good. They are more expensive than a lot of the dinosaur toys you will see in the shops but, for a dinosaur enthusiast, I think it is well worth paying for them. They are available for pocket money prices though, it's just that pocket money will buy one dinosaur, rather than a bag of lesser lizards. These are real heirloom toys. I can imagine putting them away in the attic and getting them out for my grandchildren in the future. Dinosaurs are a timeless toy and these definitely match that.