The Best Kids’ Fort

Buying Guide

Kids of all ages enjoy imaginative play. Whether they are pretending to have a tea party with the queen or fighting a battle against a scary monster, they draw from countless creative ideas for their games. You can spur their play with a kids’ fort — a small sanctuary that offers enough space for a couple of children.

Forts can be homemade, simply put together from cardboard boxes leftover from parents’ purchases along with piles of cushions or bedsheets. Or, they can be fancier, constructed from actual building materials that require adult help. You can also buy a fort, or you can purchase kits that help your children create and decorate their own little child-size space.

Kids get many learning and developmental benefits from building forts. To start with, the process can improve cognitive skills such as problem-solving and planning. For example, they may draw up plans but then must figure out what to do when part of the fort crumbles. Kids can also develop personal skills, such as independence and confidence, while learning how to do things on their own instead of relying on a parent.

Another major benefit of playing with forts is that the activity may involve more than one child. Siblings, neighbors or friends may come together to build and play in the fort. This encourages kids to work on their social skills as well as their communication abilities. Younger ones can work on their speech by asking for their friends to pass them a cushion, for example. Older children can hone their negotiation skills, as when a friend wants to follow a different fort design..

• The size of fort your kids will need will depend on a number of factors, such as how big the kids are and how many kids will be playing in the fort at one time. For example, taller kids will need a fort that has higher walls than shorter kids.
• Versatility is important for any kind of toy that is used in imaginative play. Can a fort building set create both a castle or a school? Can it be a bunker or a secret hideout? See how flexible the kids’ fort is and whether it can be used to fashion multiple types of structures.
• Consider any unique features your kids may enjoy. For example, will they prefer solid walls or would they like to have a view with a window? Do they want a door they can walk in or a tunnel entrance? How about a mail slot for letters from mom? These types of features enhance their imaginative play.
• From a parent’s perspective, storage is of the utmost importance. How can the kids’ fort be stored when it is not in use? Is it possible to deconstruct and dismantle it easily or does it need to stay fixed in place? Can it be compressed into a small package and put away on a shelf or is it permanently on display in your living room?
• Consider what types of activities the kids’ fort encourages. For kids that love arts and crafts, get a fort with pictures that can be colored with markers, crayons or even paints. Meanwhile, kids that are engineering-inclined may prefer a fort that requires construction using different parts, like rods and balls.