Stock up on Stocking Stuffers!

Christmas is less than two weeks away! The items enumerated in that letter you received c/o Mr. Clause are all accounted for. (Or, at least, they will be tomorrow… or the next day). But, there’s still work to be done, before you turn in for that long winter’s nap. I’m speaking, of course, of stocking up on stocking stuffers!

Here are some incredABLE suggestions for the children on you list!

Infants

NogginStik™ – SmartNoggin™: The NogginStik™ is a developmental rattle that grows with your child, but can be used from day one! The head of the rattle lights up and changes colors, when shaken, introducing infants to the principal of cause-and-effect. This stimulation also promotes visual tracking, which will later become critical to the development of early reading skills. The handle is thin and textured, making it easy to grasp; and, the base contains a small mirror. An illustrated parent-guide, included in the package, explains the features that earned NogginStik™ a five-star rating from AblePlay, in the category of “cognitive benefits for children with special needs.”

Baby Band – Hohner®: Get into the grove of musical expression! It’s easy with this set of four musical instruments, featuring a mini tube shaker, rattle, maraca, and cage bell. Recipient of the Creative Child Magazine Top Toy of the Year award.

Linkets – EduShape®: Linkets make motor development a snap! These textured rings are made of flexible plastic, and come in an assortment of bright colors. Their multi-functional “clips” are as convenient for parents as they are for infants-serving the double purpose of attaching plush toys, and other small items, to strollers or car seats.

Toddlers

Plui™ – Moluk™: Pour out some bath-time fun! This simple “rain ball” introduces children to basic physical phenomena and inspires discovery. Immerse Plui™ to fill it will water. Then, alternately cover and release the top hole, with your finger, to control the stream.

Scented Fruit Flash Cards: Toddlers are in for a treat, with this set of ten scratch-and-sniff flash cards on a plastic key ring. Each fruit features a silly face to suit the tastes of young children; and, as a whole, this scent-sational experience will help little minds grow big and strong!

Putumayo CDs – Putumayo: Songs that excite children and are more than tolerable for adults… now, that’s music to a parent’s ears! Putumayo provides a large selection of world music for children, including the Acoustic Christmas, Celtic Christmas, New Orleans Christmas, A Jazz and Blues Christmas, and Christmas Around the World albums. From the Playground series to the Dreamland series, Putumayo CDs are ideal for both peppy dancing and soothing relaxation.

Preschoolers

Cozy Plush™ Heatable Juniors – Intelex Group USA: These super soft, microwavable plush toys will warm not only a child’s heart, but their whole body! When heated, a soothing lavender scent will fill the air, and whisk your young one off to sleep.

Twinkles to Go Octo™ – Cloud B®: This portable octopus nightlight is designed to help children feel at home on the road. Twinkles projects stars and images to brighten the night, and comfort children as they travel around the world, or around the corner to dreamland.

Holiday Pig Popper – Hogwild®: This swine-shaped Santa is a jolly fellow who will have the whole family squealing with laughter. Simply place a foam ball in his mouth, and give his belly a squeeze to send it soaring faster than a flying sleigh.

Younger Children

Shoe Tying Tool – EZLeaps: Wouldn’t it be easier to tie your shoes if the strings didn’t shake “like a bowl full of jelly”? The Shoe Tying Tool is designed to hold laces in place, so children can (quite literally) get a grip on shoe tying. The back of the card includes the code for an online video that guides learners through the simple step-by-step process, as well as a line on which to write the child’s name and the date they mastered shoe tying, so it becomes a keepsake. (For more information, see the previous post; or, visit http://www.ezleaps.com).

Sip ‘n Swirl Glasses – Play Visions®: Children are sure to see the glass half full with this unique straw accessory. Simply place one end of the straw in a cup full of liquid, secure the glasses, and sip from the other end. Watch your child’s drink disappear before your eyes (and theirs)!

Chewy Items from Fun and Function®: Fun and Function® carries a wide variety of items to provide oral stimulation. My personal favorites are the Pencil Jaws (latex-free pencil toppers that protect both teeth and pencils), the Junior Robot Pendant (a chewable necklace for boys with a cool sense of style), and the Spaghetti Chewy Fidget (brightly-colored strands of tubing knotted together that provides tactile, as well as oral, stimulation, and features a durable clip for easy attachment to clothing).

Older Children

Energy Stick – Be Amazing Toys: Children will be shocked to discover that their skin can conduct electricity! When two people grab either end of the energy stick, and join hands, the result is truly energizing! By completing the circuit, you and a friend can produce both light and sound from this brilliantly simple toy!

Floating Ball Game – Schylling: If you want to get scientific, this toy demonstrates Bernoulli’s Law of Pressure Differential. But, if that’s too much of a mouthful, suffice it to say that this is a perfect toy for friendly competition, or (literally) blowing off steam. Simply blow into the 6-inch wooden pipe and watch the foam ball hover in the air! Who can make it float highest and longest?

Tangle – Tangle Creations®: Busy hands promote quiet minds. As the Tangle fidget toy twists and turns in their fingers, children’s bodies will become still. The large variety of colors and textures are sure to satisfy any taste, and all are under $5.00! Tangle has received accolades from both AblePlay™ and Dr. Toy.

Pre-teens and Teenagers

Thinking Putty – Crazy Aaron’s Putty Wolrd: Made in the United States by individuals with physical and intellectual disabilities, Thinking Putty is a fabulous product from an equally fabulous company! The putty comes in a wide assortment of styles including hypercolors (that change color with temperature), glow-in-the-dark, and magnetic. This year’s holiday features are the Candy Cane hypercolor, which changes from red to white, and a glowing green concoction with red glitter called Holiday Lights. You can mold it, pull it, tear it, bounce it, pop it – it’s as unlimited as the children (and adults) who love it!

Wacky Tracks – Toysmith: This flexible fidget toy has 48 pivoting links that can be manipulated to form numbers, shapes, and artistic designs. Each link can lock into five different positions, meaning these Whacky Tracks could take you anywhere!

Christmas Smencils®: Made from 100% recycled newspaper and corn-based biodegradable plastic tubes, these scented pencils are as friendly to the environment as they are to kids! The Christmas pack includes five scents-Candy Cane, Sugar Plum, Gingerbread, Cinna-What?!, and Holiday Cheer-which are sure to inspire a masterpiece!

Merry Christmas!

Shoe Tying Made EZ: Founder of EZLeaps talks about her innovative new product

We have all heard the adage “Necessity is the mother of invention;” but, Eileen Sloan, founder of EZLeaps, has experienced it first-hand. As a mother and first-grade teacher, she sought resources to simplify children’s acquisition of important life skills. And, often not finding any, took it upon herself to create solutions.

EZLeaps’ debut product, the Shoe Tying Tool, facilitates shoe tying by “freezing” the laces at pause points so learners can-quite literally-get a grip on the process.

It’s a comprehensive product, with a step-by-step guide that culminates in a tangible reward. “It turns frustration into celebration,” said Sloan. “My product sets the child up for success, engages them, and teaches them with the [online] video. It pops off the shoe to [symbolize the child’s] independence, and has a spot to write in the date they learned how to tie their shoes.”

By preventing the laces from turning to “spaghetti noodles,” Sloan found that she could break a seemingly impossible task into manageable steps. “It’s like putting starch in the laces,” she said.

The EZLeaps Shoe Tying Tool holds laces in place, and pops off when shoes are tied.
(Photos Courtesy of EZLeaps.)

A Nordstrom store in Chicago recently held a hugely successful shoe tying class for teens with Special Needs, using the EZLeaps product. “I wish there were a video, or something,” said Sloan. “Some of them were tying their shoes for the first time, and tearing up [from the sense of accomplishment]!

“For children with Special Needs, I start at the point with two loops, beginning with the hard part-pinching the ‘X’ and transferring the laces from two hands to one hand.”

Usually, children learn how to tie their shoes after using the tool just four or five times.

“But,” Sloan said, “it’s not about numbers, it’s about learning. And, some may benefit from using the tool longer.”

The Shoe Tying Tool is a small card that can easily be attached to a backpack, or (for older individuals) slipped into a wallet, so it is handy whenever needed.

“I had some mainstreamed students with Special Needs [in my first grade class], and they were a large part of the reason I wanted to make tools for things like shoe tying-I wanted something that could help them,” said Sloan. “Shoe tying wasn’t in the curriculum, which meant I couldn’t dedicate any class time to it. So, what I did was go out at recess and ask, ‘Who wants to learn how to tie their shoes?’ Well, of course they all ran, because it was hard and nobody wanted to learn.”

The Shoe Tying Tool intrigues and motivates children with its variety of bright designs, featuring everything form animals, to cupcakes, to footballs and motorcycles.

Sloan began her teaching career by working as a part-time reading specialist, at a school in the same district where she was later hired to teach first-grade. After she quit teaching, to pursue the EZLeaps business, she returned to the school she had initial served in order to scout out her product designers.

“I asked the kindergarten, first and second grade students [there] to draw two designs they would like to see on the EZLeaps tools,” said Sloan. “I told them, ‘You have two opportunities to show me how you would like the EZLeaps tools to look. And, your second design should be totally different than the first. For example, if your first design is a football, your second design shouldn’t have anything to do with sports.’ We ended up with about 200 designs that we categorized and tallied. So, really, it was kids who decided how the product would appear.”

But, that wasn’t the only input Sloan sought, and received, from children. “I tested the product at local schools,” she said. “I personally worked with over 250 kids to figure out the material and shape of the holes. We could have hired a research team to collect that information; but I was so closely connected to the project that I wanted to do the work, and make those decisions, myself.”

One of the first prototypes was made from a coffee can lid. “A friend came to visit and his son needed to learn to tie his shoes,” said Sloan. So, she got out her scissors and her hole-puncher and started experimenting. “I messed around a bit with my own shoes and realized that the tool needed to pop off. I didn’t want children to have to wear it around, after their shoes were tied.” A coffee can lid with slits cut in it did the trick.

“I got a bunch of the round stickers you can find at hardware stores, and used those to decorate them,” said Sloan. “Suddenly [shoe tying] became interesting and fun. Within three minutes, a few students were doing it independently and teaching their peers-that’s how easy it is! And, kids pay it forward! Soon, my students were asking me, ‘Do you have more? My friend wants one.’ After my second year teaching first-grade in Colorado, [and] manufacturing these tools on the kitchen table, my husband said, ‘I think you may really have something here!’” That was the beginning of EZLeaps.

The daughter of a friend asked Sloan, “Can I have [a tool] to keep?” Sloan responded, “Sure, you can take whichever one you want.”

Then, the girl said, “Can I have two? If you give me two, I can help you with your business.”

“Well, what are you going to do?” asked Sloan.

“I’m going to give one to my friend.”

“That won’t help the business, though,” Sloan explained. “We need to sell the tools.”

A few days later, Sloan had a local sale for three of the cupcake-design Tying Tools. The girl had started a shoe tying club, and told her friends they would need their own tools. The mother of one of the girls had purchased Tying Tools for all three members.

“I really ought to have first-graders sell the product,” said Sloan. But, although she appreciates the help, she seems to be doing well on her own.

“There are other products out there [for shoe tying]. And, I think it’s good to have a variety, so parents can pick and choose according to their child’s needs,” said Sloan. “But, what makes my product different is that it’s comprehensive-it encompasses the whole celebration of learning.  I have developed an educational curriculum [to accompany the Shoe Tying Tool] that is available to schools. And, by scanning the QR code, people can watch the [instructional] video on our website.”

The video is fabulous for visual learners; but, for those who prefer to learn first-hand, Sloan teaches classes at Colorado schools and stores. “We try to get our product into places where people want to create a buzz,” said Sloan. “When I teach classes, I bring Converse® shoes, because they’re unisex and the laces are perfect. I also let the children choose which tool they use, [according to which design appeals to them the most].”

While, sales-wise, the most popular style is the Unicorn, Sloan says her personal favorite is the Cupcake. Plus, there’s a florescent green style-which is often used for adults who have Special Needs, or have lost manual dexterity-and a plain white style, which children (or adults) can color themselves.

“[The Shoe Tying Tool] is tangible, and personal,” said Sloan. “It has the date they learned to tie their shoes written on it, and it becomes a keepsake.”

You can visit the EZLeaps website at: http://www.ezleaps.com/

Support Your Cause with Rainbow Loom®!

The Rainbow Loom®, formerly known as Twist Bandz, is a rubber band bracelet making kit in position to become the most popular toy this holiday season! With all the hype, it’s hard to believe there could be anything we toy aficionados haven’t heard about this item. But, I recently learned of a use for Rainbow Loom® that is as unique and innovative as the product itself!

Special Needs advocates have been using Rainbow Loom® to make bracelets (not unlike the LIVESTRONG™ bracelets) in support of particular causes. Awareness walk coordinators have begun with bracelet-making marathons to produce mass amounts of bracelets in the colors of their foundation. These bracelets can be sold or distributed to raise both awareness and funds!

For creative pattern ideas, check out Suzanne M. Peterson’s book The Loomatic’s Interactive Guide to the Rainbow Loom®, which includes detailed instructions, complete with full-color diagrams and photos, for making 50 stylish designs!

And, here’s another secret – You don’t have to be making jewelry to take advantage of all Rainbow Loom® has to offer! The kit comes with a plastic peg loom and wooden hook. Using the hook to stretch bands from one one peg to another provides excellent fine motor practice, and enhances dexterity. The rubber bands are brightly-colored and latex-free! You can find them in almost any color imaginable, as well as tye dye, and glow-in-the-dark.

Bring out your child’s creativity, support developmental milestones, and support a cause, all with this fabulous toy that has earned its rank!

Fun with Food

With the holidays approaching (they’ll be here sooner than we know it, folks!), I thought this would be a good time to offer some strategies for simplifying meals. The focus of most holiday gatherings is food. And, while I say, “Thank goodness!”, children have a tendency to say, “Yuck!” To help you avoid situations where your child could throw a tantrum – and their mashed potatoes – here are some toys to make eating fun!

Constructive Eating® Sets:

If the prospect of getting your child to eat feels like getting hit by  a bulldozer, you should know about Constructive Eating® sets. The original set includes utensils in the shape of construction vehicles, while the more recent fairy set features utensils in the shape of garden tools, all designed to load and rake your child’s food into manageable bites. Instead of knives, the sets, respectively, contain a bulldozer and garden hoe “pusher,” teaching children to carefully transfer food from plate to fork and spoon. And, speaking of plates, each set also includes a plate with special, labeled grooves in which children can rest their utensils. Plates and utensils can be purchased separately or as part of a combination pack, contained in a lunch tote that unzips to form a play mat and eating surface. The transforming lunch tote provides not only fun, but also convenience, in that its portability allows for use at school, at restaurants, on vacation, or while visiting friends and family. (It’s the perfect companion to a Thanksgiving or Christmas feast!) Finally, while grooves show children where on their plate to rest utensils, during the meal, colorful polypropylene placemats-with silhouettes of fork, spoon, and “pusher”- guide them towards proper placement when preparing table setting, before the meal. The three fairies on the placemat-Allo, Charlie, and Willow-are the same fairies that grace the handles of the Garden Fairy utensils. Children will love the work site and fairyland scenes, depicting trucks hauling vegetables and fairies tending their gardens or resting by a peaceful stream. Parents will love that the placemats are durable and easy to clean. Constructive Eating® sets are free of lead, Bisplenol A (BPA), PVC, and Phthalates!

One-piece Chopsticks – Hog Wild®:

Parents who feel as though there’s never enough time for those fine motor exercises can help their children practice the pincer grasp while eating dinner! The chopsticks have two plastic “prongs,” attached at the top by a piece resembling an animal. Children can choose from farm animals, zoo animals, sea animals, and dinosaurs. My personal favorites are the “Fish Sticks,” because of their bright, transparent colors (not to mention their clever name); but, with such a large assortment, you’re sure to find a chopstick to satisfy any taste!

Play with Your Food® Sets – Daydream Toy™:

Eliminate mealtime tantrums with this combination plate… cup, and game! Start by placing a different food in each section of the plate. Then, have your child spin the spinner. The spinner determines how many bites the child will take, and from which section. The sense of agency this gives your child will deflect their anger at being told-by a parent-what to do, and free you from power-struggles. The set comes in two styles – dinosaur and princess. The plates and mugs are dishwasher safe, and the spinners can be easily cleaned with a damp cloth.

Twirling Spaghetti Fork – Hog Wild®:

Wrangling pasta is a problem that has plagued children since… well, since the invention of pasta, I suppose. But, now there’s a solution! The Twirling Spaghetti Fork! The child simply sticks the battery-operated fork in their food, presses the button, and lets the fork do the work! The bright read handle is thick and easy to grasp, and the metal prong end is dishwasher safe!

Beetle Spoon – Hog Wild®:

Picky eaters will fly through their meal! The beetle spoon has wings that extend to form a handle and collapse for simple storage. Plus, it is dishwasher safe and comes with a travel case that is the perfect fit for backpacks and lunch boxes!

Halloween Games to Scream About

Looking for hot activities to fill your cold Autumn days?  These Halloween games are so fun it’s scary!

Spot It!™ Halloween – Blue Orange™:

This matching game is both simple for children, and entertaining for adults. There is just one match, between any two cards, and your challenge is to spot it first! Before you can collect the cards, you must identify and name the matching symbols. This encourages verbal proficiency, while simultaneously fostering visual perception and information processing skills. Many images appear similar, in size and color, but are nonetheless different.  All players search at once, eliminating the antsiness that can accompany turn-taking. And, with four variations of game play, Spot It! is always new and exciting!

(Tip: You can eliminate the competitive component of Spot It! and simply use it as a tool for teaching recognition/discrimination skills. Also check out Spot It! Alphabet, Spot It! Numbers and Shapes, Spot It! Basic English, and Spot It! Junior Animals.)

Bowling Zombies – University Games:

A hoard of zombies has captured the dazzling damsel in distress! Your mission is to obliterate the zombies without toppling the damsel.  The set includes ten hand-painted, four-inch bowling pins and and a ball labeled “Bomb.” The high-quality wooden pieces and portable carrying tube are designed for versatility, meaning that your child can go bowling just about anywhere there’s a hard surface… and a zombie escape plan!

Monster Bowling – Melissa and Doug®:

Don’t be fooled, these fuzzy monsters won’t go soft on you! They may, however, make you fall over laughing.  So, try not to lose your focus as you knock them down!
The set includes six textured bowling pins with bright fur and funny faces, along with a soft ball, in a zippered carrying case.
Supports hand-eye coordination, gross-motor skills, and independent play.

Scooby Doo!™ Haunted House Game – Pressman® Toy Corporation:

Dodge the traps and unveil the ghost! This 3-dimential game board is reminiscent of Mouse Trap, and is sure to enthrall children with its perils and secrets. Spin to determine your fate! If the spinner lands on a tomb stone, move the number of spaces indicated. If it lands on a ghost, press the button and prepare for some frightful fun! This trigger activates traps placed throughout the mansion. If one happens to catch you, you must move backward. The first player to reach the top of the mansion, and unveil the ghost, is the winner!
In addition to teaching the concept of cause and effect, this game promotes patience and social skills.

Knife-free Pumpkin “Carving”

Children are often adamant about “doing it myself!”; and parents equally adamant about ensuring their safety.

Here’s a knife-free pumpkin decoration method sure to satisfy both parent and child:

Carve with Halloween-shaped cookie-cutters!

Simply hold a metal cookie-cutter against the pumpkin, and tap it with a mallet to form an indentation. Tap firmly, but gently, so as not to collapse the pumpkin wall.

Once the cookie-cutter has fully penetrated the pumpkin, carefully pull it out, to reveal a perfect opening.

Use cookie-cutters of various shapes and sizes to create a unique design!

(Trisomy) 21 Favorites to Celebrate Down Syndrome Awareness Month!

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month! Down Syndrome is also known as Trisomy 21, because the condition results from having three copies of the 21^st chromosome.

In celebration of Down Syndrome Awareness Month, I thought I would share 21 of my favorite toys for children with Down Syndrome.

(This list, however, is not exclusive to DS.)

If you know, or have, a child with Down Syndrome, please tell us about their favorite toys in the comments!

Communication/Social Skills

1. Hello Sunshine!™ – Thinkfun®: This is an excellent game for parent-child interaction! Cards tell you where to hide Sunshine-the adorable sun-shaped plush toy-and teach children positional words, such as: over, under, behind, on top of, etc. The game is progressive, initially giving specific instructions like, “Under the Pillow” or “Behind the Couch,” then challenging children with cards like, “On top of the ?” or “? the Lamp,” which require them to think creatively.  Hello Sunshimne!™ is a ray of light for all those parents looking for a toys that will grow with their children!

(For parents looking to learn a little Developmental Psychology jargon [and what parent isn’t? 😉 ] : The hide-and-seek component of this game teaches the concept of Object Permanence-the understanding that objects continue to exist, even when they cannot be sensed, or observed, in any way.)

2. Hedbanz – Spin Master Games™: In this guessing game, children must use their heads in more ways than one! Each player wears a headband that holds a picture card. The object is to correctly guess the image on your card by asking questions of the other players. Critical thinking and creative self-expression are required, not only to ask your own questions, but also to answer others’. Plus, Hedbanz also offers practice in impulse-control. If you blurt out what’s on another player’s card, they’ll win! Thus, children will learn when it’s important to talk, and when it’s important to remain quiet.

3. Go Ape!® – Patch Products®: If the name of the game sounds vaguely fishy, that’s only because it’s a simple and silly variation on Go Fish. Rather than verbally asking for a particular card, players perform the action on the card they hope to acquire. Children will have wild fun, while collecting as many matches as possible!

4. Rory’s Story Cubes® – Gamewright® & Tell Tale – Blue Orange™: I couldn’t pick a favorite between these two games, so I cheated. I’m going to tell you about them both! In Rory’s Story Cubes®, players roll the dice and tell a story that incorporates the pictures on which they land. In Tell Tale, players draw cards to guide them through their storytelling with various settings, characters, and emotions. Both games are easily portable, and both can be played cooperatively, eliminating the frustration of losing.

5. Magic Mic – Toysmith®: Simple and low-cost, the Magic Mic amplifies your voice without batteries. It can truly work magic, motivating children who are shy or self-conscious to speak up!

Fine Motor Skills

6. Fastrack™ – Blue Orange™: The AIM of the game is to shoot your wooden discs through the center slot and on to the opposite side of the track. In order to achieve this objective, players may use only one hand, and the elastic band. The first player to get all their discs to the opposite side wins!

7. Gator Grabber Tweezers™ – Learning Resources®: Imagine a giant alligator mouth gobbling up everything in the way of fine motor skill development! Specially designed for little hands, Gator Grabber Tweezers™ are precisely the right tool for practicing the pincer grasp!

8. Twisty Droppers™ – Learning Resources®: These fun-shaped, brightly colored eyedroppers teach children the principle of cause and effect, while simultaneously developing their hand muscles.

9. Pop Beads Critters – Klutz®: This creative building set comes with 167 beads of various sizes and colors that connect by means of knobs and holes. Pop beads are so named because pushing a knob into a hole produces a fun pop noise. While most pop beads sets focus on jewelry making, this one is neither traditionally girl nor boy-oriented. The pieces are shaped like animal body parts, and children can either follow along with the simple instruction booklet or build their own creative critters!

Sensory Snap Beads – Edushape®: (We’ll call this 9 A.) For younger children, Sensory Snap Beads are larger plastic pop beads that come in a reusable jar with a handle. Their bright colors and fun textures are so inviting that children won’t even notice they’re working hard to develop crucial motor skills, while spending hours at play!

10. Lace & Trace – Melissa & Doug®: The sturdy wooden lacing boards and color-coordinated laces guide children as they weave their way through fine motor skill development. The three sets feature shapes, farm animals, and pets.

Gross Motor Skills

11. Bilibo – Kid O: The Bilibo is anything a child wants it to be! One of its primary functions, however, in a curved seat that can be used to develop core strength. Children of various ages can have fun spinning, wobbling, and rocking back and forth in this innovative toy, which can also be used as a stool, a car tunnel, a water scoop, a sand mold, or anything else you can imagine!

12. Animal Poppers – Hogwild®: All it takes to operate this simple toy is a hearty squeeze! Place one of the foam balls in the animal’s mouth, then squeeze tight to send it soaring, through the power of super strength and air pressure!

13. Squigz – Fat Brain Toys®: Squigz is a silicone construction system with pieces that stick to each other, and to hard surfaces, via suction cups. The satisfying pop they produce makes pulling them apart just as fun as putting them together! Perfect for exercising both children’s muscles and imaginations!

14. YBIKE Pewi  – YBIKE: Another toy that grows with your child, the YBIKE Pewi can be used as both a walker and riding toy! The sturdy frame supports children as they learn to walk, pushing the Pewi forward. And, the swivel castor wheels ensure a smooth, quiet ride-whether indoors or out-as children begin sitting on the seat and pushing with their feet. My favorite feature: The front handle is shaped like a smiley face!

15. Hop & Squeak Pogo Jumper – Kidoozie™: A more sturdy alternative to pogo sticks, this bouncing toy has a flat bottom that provides both stability and a fun squeaking sound, as you hop around. The fact that it has an adjustable handle and can hold up to 250 pounds will have both children and parents jumping for joy!

Critical Thinking/Learning

16. Roll & Play™ – Thinkfun®: This game introduces young children to basic concepts in six categories: Counting, Colors, Actions, Animals, Body Parts, and Emotions. To play, children simply roll the cube, identify the top color, and perform the action on a card of the corresponding color.

17. Chickyboom™ – Blue Orange™: This balancing game fosters critical thinking skills, while teaching basic addition. The game begins by placing all the chickens, hay bales, and wagon wheels on the perch. This can be accomplished in various ways, presenting children with new challenges every time they play. Players then take turns removing pieces, one at a time. Each piece is assigned a point value, according to its weight-heavier pieces are worth more points. The player who makes the perch fall shouts, “Chickyboom!” and loses 5 points. (Note that making the perch fall does not, necessarily, mean loosing the game.) At the conclusion of the game, players add up number of points on the pieces they have removed, with the player who made the perch fall subtracting 5 points from their total. The player with the most points wins!

18. A-to-Z Magnatab – Kid O: The A-to-Z Magnatab provides a fun and unique way to practice letters! A magnetic stylus pulls beads into the holes along each letter, allowing children to play while they trace!

19. Latches Board – Melissa & Doug®: Bright pictures reward children, as they successfully undo each numbered latch! By counting the animals they find, behind each door, children will develop number recognition, all while honing their fine motor skills, and unlocking a wealth of fun!

20. Zingo!® – Thinkfun®: Just as in Bingo, players must fill their card in order to win. Each card features a series of pictures and corresponding words. Slide the zinger to reveal a tile. If the tile matches a picture on your board, you get to cover that picture. Be the first to cover all your pictures, and you win! By associating words with pictures, children develop reading skills; and, the two levels of play allow this game to grow with your child!

Just for Fun:

21. Smakaball®: This easy-to-catch, inflatable ball comes with two rings that allow players to snatch it right out of the sky! Plus, there’s no throwing required! Simply smack the ball with your hand, knee, elbow, foot, etc., to launch it out of the ring and through the air!