Monthly Archives: June 2014

Summer Brain Drain? Not Around Here

Now that summer’s here and the kids are home, parents are looking for ways to keep their little ones’ minds sharp over break. Old standbys like activity books, worksheets, and reading are great at keeping those brains busy. But there are also a lot of fun reading are all important to keep learning locked in, there are fun toys you can add into the mix that kids will enjoy playing–and learning—with.

telly teaching clockTelly the Teaching Time Clock (The Learning Journal International)
This little guy is perfect for kids who are learning to tell time—and yes, that’s important even in an era where clocks with hands seem to be going the way of the ichthyosaurus. Actually, with Telly, you can teach the kids both analog and digital, a feature you rarely find on the same teaching clock. There’s also a “quiz mode,” where Telly asks the child to match the digital time shown on his face by moving the hands on his (literal) face. Bonus: Among his many talents, Telly is a real, working clock, making him a nice addition to a child’s bedroom. Comes with three AA batteries. Retails for $28 on http://www.tlji.com/

magnetic spell and learn boardMagnetic Spell and Learn Board (The Learning Journal International)
This is a great way to teach your kids letters, sounds, and spelling. Some of the magnets have short words and pictures of the words on them. They can then “write” out the spelled words with the magnet letters. This type of hands-on learning is a great way to build phonics, vocabulary, spelling skills, and early reading skills. The board and interlocking magnets make putting words together into sentences or poetry a breeze. And the handy storage compartment makes clean-up easy and minimizes missing pieces. Retails for $20 on http://www.tlji.com

turbo land rocketTurbo Land Rocket (Scientific Explorer)
This toy offers a different type of hands-on experience that’s a lot of fun for a one-on-one parent-child adventure or a whole brood of kiddies. As you might assume from the name, you’re going to be building a rocket—a really fast one. The kit comes with almost everything you need (and easy-to-follow directions). The only thing you’re missing is the rocket’s fuel, which consists of vinegar and baking soda. It’s a real blast and you’ll want to do it again and again. Unlike so many science-based kits, you’ll actually be able to. The manufacturer claims the rocket can go more than 200 feet. Ours didn’t go quite that far but it definitely attracted a lot of neighborhood kids. $26 on http://poof-slinky.com

root vueRootVue (HSP Nature Toys)
If you want to see science literally come to life, this indoor garden is for you. It’s kind of like an ant farm, where clear plastic windows gave you a chance to see how ants build tunnels. But instead of insects, you and the kids get a chance to see how root vegetables grow—the leafy tops up, and the roots down. RootVue comes with “eight super-expanding grow mix wafers, three packets of seeds, identification labels, water wicks for self-watering system” It also has a simple water basin and drainage system, so it’s pretty much mess-free, and a 16-page booklet that has easy-to-follow instructions for doing a variety of experiments. Aside from the science part, there’s also a nutritional component: when kids grow their own veggies, they’ll be a lot more likely to eat them. $35 on http://www.hspnaturetoys.com

Seek and Maybe Ye Shall Find

What’s more fun than a good, old-fashioned game of Hide and Seek? This week we take a look at three fun, new twists on that timeless classic.

education outdoors snipe huntSnipe Hunt (Education Outdoors, Inc.)
If you’ve ever been to an outdoors camp, you probably spent some time hunting for snipe. Counselors and experienced campers would talk about the elusive creature, hand out sacs, and take newbie campers out into the woods to hunt. We’re not completely sure what the purpose of snipe hunts is, except to give the older campers a chance to laugh at the wide-eyed naiveté of the younger ones who, of course never catch anything. But now there’s a way to make snipe hunts a reality. The Snipe Hunt kit comes with two snipes (named Biela and Smartin) and a “nest.” If you play with teams, each team hides their snipe, and the first team to find the other’s and get it back to the nest wins. Alternatively, one person could hide one or two snipes and everyone else hunts. If they haven’t been found 2.5 minutes after being activated, the snipes start beeping. After five minutes, the eyes start to blink.  Can be played inside or outside, day or night. A fantastic family activity. Retails for under $25, batteries inlcuded. Ages 6 and up. http://www.educationoutdoors.net/

usaopoly treasure traxTreasure Trax: The All in One Scavenger Hunt Game (USAOpoly)
This is one of the most engaging games for the preschool set we’ve seen. The idea is pretty simple: scatter a series of clues that ultimately lead to some kind of reward (what that means is completely up to you). Treasure Trax comes with 60 brightly colored, illustrated, thick cards: 30 depicting locations, 18 with clues, and 12 with animals. There are several ways to play. One person (most likely an adult) can set up a step-by-step hunt. For example, you might start by giving the hunter(s) a card with a picture of a kitchen table. On the kitchen table, there’s a card with a picture of a bookcase. On the bookcase is another card leading somewhere else. For older kids, you can incorporate the color and animal cards and make a matching game. Start with an orange card and send the child off to find a card with a picture of something orange (a tiger, for example).  Treasure Trax is great for matching, focus, and memory. But we especially loved how flexible it is. You can have as many or as few steps as your child’s attention span will allow—but be warned: this game is so fun that attention spans have a tendency to get longer. It can be played with teams or as a one-on-one parent-child activity. You can play it indoors or out, and it’s a wonderful way to turn rainy days into adventures. For ages 3-5, but slightly older kids will have fun too. Retails for under $20 wherever you buy your toys or at http://usaopoly.com/

r&r games hide and seek safariHide & Seek Safari (R&R Games)
This is a moderately high-tech version of the old hotter-colder game. The box comes with two items: a monkey (or tiger, depending on which package you buy) and a wand. Someone activates the monkey (batteries included) and hides him somewhere. Everyone else activates the wand, which has LED lights that flash when you’re getting warmer and beeps when you’re really hot—like a Geiger counter. Unfortunately, the monkey has to be hidden in sight—the wand won’t work if he’s in the fridge or under the bed. But it’ll give hours of fun for kids 4-6. Retails for under $35. Additional wands are $13.99. http://www.rnrgames.com/

 

 

 

Keeping Kids Occupied in the Kitchen

If you’ve got little kids, you know that making meals can be one of the toughest times of the day. Even if you’re trying to make a tasty and fun peanut butter fudge recipe for them to enjoy, the kids may want all of your attention-right now-and you want to keep them clean and occupied so they don’t become a danger to themselves or anyone else. One of the best ways to keep kids busy in the kitchen is to let them “help” you with meal prep and cooking. You could give them an actual pot full of water, but your toddler or preschooler will turn that into a slippery mess in 30 seconds.

A better (and far less messy) option is to set your child up at the kitchen table or say at your Stone Tech countertops (if you have them installed in your kitchen) with some pretend food to “slice,” “dice,” and “cook”. While you can do the real thing at a nearby counter. You may also have to maintain a set of catering first aid kits on hand because you never know when you’ll need them, especially if you have small children around. Here are some very realistic kids’ cooking sets that will make your little one feel like a real grown-up.

melissa & doug sandwich makingCooking and Kitchen Sets (Melissa & Doug)
Melissa & Doug have a pretty broad selection of cooking and kitchen sets that are made of either wood or felt. The Sandwich Making Sets come with everything your child will need to make a delicious sandwich, including bread, rolls, lunch meat, pickles, hamburgers, and more. If you go for the wood set, the pieces stick together with bits of Velcro; the felt pieces stick together on their own. Both come with a wooden knife (that isn’t sharp, of course). To make sure your child gets the recommended daily allowance of pretend fruits and veggies (and, maybe to encourage him or her to eat the real thing at mealtime), check out the Cutting Fruit Set. You get seven pieces of various fruits and veggies that can be sliced into a total of seventeen pieces, which can be reassembled into some really weird combinations that will get you and the kids giggling. The food makes a fun “crunch” noise when kids “cut” it with the included wooden knife. Comes in a wooden storage crate. $20 on http://www.melissaanddoug.com

Alex Toys Tea Set Sticker PartyTea Set Sticker Party (Alex Toys)
Here’s one that combines two kids’ favorites: tea and stickers. This 13-piece, ceramic tea set comes with more than 100 stickers that your kiddo can use to decorate and customize. Then, all he or she needs to do is send out the invitations, make sure there are enough chairs for the guests (which may or may not include stuffies), and start pouring tea while you get your Alton Brown on. The Tea Set Sticker Party comes with four cups, four saucers, a sugar bowl, and creamer, and let’s not forget all those stickers. $19 at http://www.alextoys.com

b Toys Let's DishLet’s Dish (B Toys)
A lot of kitchen toys are aimed at girls, but B Toys, makers of all things awesome, has a completely gender-neutral kitchen set made of brightly colored, durable plastic. It comes with a green tray that’s perfect for serving hors d’oeuvres to special real or imaginary guests, breakfast in bed (or on the couch) to mom or dad, or chips and dip on game day. The dishes, cups, and (safe) silverware can be used with pretend foods or real foods, something the kids will get a real kick out of. Best of all, everything in this set can be washed clean with soap and water. This well-made set will last for years. $20 at Target http://www.target.com

My, Aren’t You The Crafty One…

With summer upon us, parents will be looking for fun ways to fill the days when the kids are home from school. If you have a crafty or creative child, you’ll want to check out some of these jewelry making kits.

jewelry1Pop-Arty (B. Toys)
Pop-Arty, from one of our favorite companies, comes in two sizes: 300 pieces and 500 pieces. Either way, that’s a lot of pieces, and you get an assortment of beads, bracelets, rings, and more. The beads come in a wide range of colors, textures, shapes, sizes, and with different end, others have only holes, some have two “nubs” for connecting, some with one hole and one connector. Build one design, wear it, then disassemble it and make a new one to match your next outfit. No mess with this project, as it has no glue or glitter. Comes in its own storage unit. For kids three years and up, $15-$30 at major retailers.

i heart charm alex toysI Heart Charm Bracelet (Alex Toys)
This kit is great for slightly older kids who are able to use molds and more complex patterns. Children can make their own beads in one or more colors, even accent them with glitter or included gems, and set them to dry. When they do, they can add them to the included silver bracelet, add charms, and have a very personalized bracelet. They can also take inspiration from brands like Rastaclat (https://rastaclat.com/) that sells such handmade and personalized bracelets or check out tutorials on how to make them. In this kit, two bracelets are included, so are charms, and the dough for molds. A fantastic project for best friends or sisters to do on a rainy day. About $22 at your favorite toy seller.

bling bangles alex toysBling Bangles (Alex Toys)
Aimed at kids 6 and up (although tweens will like it too), the Bling Bangles kit comes with six metal bangle bracelets (just like mom’s!), six floss colors, and six gemstone strips in different sizes. Children can easily add the desired “bling” of gems to the bangle and wrap the colored floss around the bracelet, and voila! Available for $14.99 and up on http://www.alextoys.com

me & you b. toysOur Generation Me & You Jewelry Set (B. Toys)
The Me & You Jewelry Set lets children create matching accessories that they and their dolls can wear together. Let the kids run wild with a variety of colors, ribbons, styling options, and more. Comes with three large (kid size) wooden bangles in different widths, and two smaller ones for her favorite doll. Produced by a company with a conscience, B. Toys donates 10 cents from each purchase to the Free the Children’s Power of a Girl Initiative, which helps fund girls education. They also print everything with soy-based inks and use recycled materials for packaging. About $20 at http://ogdolls.com or and at Target.

pick-n-mix Craft Scene Pick-N Mix Jewelry Kit (International Playthings)
One of the most complete kits we’ve ever seen, you get enough supplies to make at least eight jewelry pieces: 200 felt strips and squares in assorted colors, yards of lilac organza ribbon, plastic stretch cord, plastic coated jewelry wire, jump rings, clasps, clamshell clasps, and ear hooks. Kids can get some ideas from the 16-page illustrated activity guide, or let their imagination take over and create whatever they want. The convenient plastic storage box helps keep creations safe and easy-to-find for the next time. Aimed at kids eight and up, and individuality-seeking tweens will love it. Retails for about $14.99 at http://shop.intplay.com