Author Archives: Parents@Play Team

Piecing Together Memories

Puzzles are a battle-tested, fun, and often educational way for families to spend time together. This week we review a series of traditional puzzles, one that combines elements of a puzzle and a Rubik’s Cube, and one that tells a story as it’s put together. While they’re all very different, they share a trait that’s an essential part of the Parents@Play mission: They’re a wonderful way for dads and moms to spend time with their kids—boys and girls. Oh, and did we mention that they’re fun?

Pieces of History Puzzles (Find It Games)
If you haven’t seen them, we recommend that you check out some Find-It games, an assortment of transparent canisters containing objects hidden in a sea of plastic pellets (they’re a lot cooler than they sound). Now, the folks at Find It have gone old-school and introduced the “Pieces of History” series of traditional puzzles, which include Pharaoh’s Egypt, Parade of Animals, and Dry Ground. Each has 300 pieces, and within the final image you can search for “hidden” objects that are also found in the border of the puzzle. In Pharaoh’s Egypt, for example, you’ll discover a leopard in a tree, a blue hippo in a market basket, and 38 more hidden objects and animals. Played together, these puzzles can spark wonderful conversations about history, geography, and discovery. Ages 6+. www.finditgames.com

Codee Scorpion (Techno Source)
Okay, take a look at the scorpion. Pretty hard to believe that it’s made from a single strand of 64 small blocks. But it is. Every Codee kit (in addition to the scorpion, there’s a penguin, pig, flamingo, gator, and others) comes with detailed instructions on how to twist, cajole, rotate, and prod the blocks into submission. Assembling it takes a lot of hand-eye coordination and even more patience, since each block has to be turned in exactly the right way. But it’s a ton of fun. The one drawback is that Codee isn’t really something you can do with a child–except to help with the explanations (although when I was giving it a try on my own, my 9-year old stood over my shoulder correcting my every move). The solution is to get two of them and race or build something unique. You can also connect two or more Codees to create bigger and more complicated works. Ages 8 and up. www.technosourceusa.com

The City of New York time puzzle (4D Cityscape)
This is an absolutely masterful puzzle. You start off by putting together the 500+ piece 2D puzzle of the island of Manhattan. Once that’s done–it’s going to take a while–you add the 3D element by inserting over 100 plastic models of actual New York buildings into the 2D puzzle (which, by the way, features glow-in-the-dark streets). Now the 4D part comes in. The buildings range from ones that would have dominated the skyline as far back as 1812 and move forward through time all the way to 2013, when the Freedom Tower (which will replace the World Trade Centers) will be completed. The box itself includes a poster with a brief history of the city peppered with fascinating trivia. An online education feature adds even more education—and entertainment—to the mix. Thirteen other 4D puzzles include London, San Francisco, Hong Kong, Paris, Chicago, and the entire US. An absolute blast for patient dads and kids 9 and up. www.4dcityscape.com

Building Blocks of Success

There’s a reason blocks have been a part of just about every child’s toy box for hundreds of years: Building things with blocks (and in my house, knocking them down) is just plain fun. But fun is just the beginning. Blocks teach children about colors, shapes, proportions, patterns, spatial relationships, physics, experimentation, and design. They also build hand-eye coordination and stimulate creative thinking—and they have the remarkable ability to adapt to your child’s physical and intellectual age—the older the child, the more complex her block play will be. Best of all, playing with blocks is a great opportunity for parents and kids to hang out together, learn from each other, and strengthen their relationship. Here are some of our favorites.

Nanoblocks
Parents and kids can spend time together building a variety of animals and architectural sites from around the world. Since many of the nanoblock sets represent well-know buildings, dads who enjoy architecture will enjoy the process and teaching kids about the original buildings. The one caveat is that these blocks truly are “nano” in size compared to the common Lego-style blocks. Nanoblocks require good eyesight and nimble fingers to control, but they’re great for building attention span, focus, and fine motor skills. We also like the “nano-sized” price point that makes these easily a tenth the cost of the architecture collection of the major competitor. Ages 6+,www.mynannoblock.com

Building Blocks Technics
We love Haba’s wooden toys, and this set of blocks and wheels is no exception. What makes this kit extra special, though, is that it introduces young builders to the concept of adding motion to their block creations. More and more research points to the value of using basic toys to stimulate a child’s imagination. And for dad and mom, playing imagination games is a great way to connect with the kids on their level. Ages 3+, www.habausa.com

Makedo Freeplay Kit
What a cool concept. The Makedo (pronounced Make Doo—as in, “we’ll have to make do with what we have around the house”), is a container filled with reusable connectors that can help dads and kids turn even the most useless pile of recycling into a great project. Got a few scraps of fabric, an old oatmeal can, an empty tissue box, and a few toilet paper tubes? You can build a robot. Or a plane. Or anything else you can think of. As overused as the expression is, this truly is one of those cases where the only limit is your (and your children’s—assuming you’ll let them play too) imagination. Ages 4+,www.makedo.com.au

Lite Brix Building System: Extreme City Lights.
When you take the Lite Brix out of the box, they look kind of boring. Almost all the bricks (which, in shape, look a lot like Lego) are the same color—kind of a translucent white. But once you and your child have built the first skyscraper and turn on the battery-powered LEDs, wow! And when you finally get all three up and running, wowie wow! The buildings seem almost alive. Detailed directions make it pretty easy for parents and kids to assemble cooperatively—better yet, let your child read the instructions and show how well you can follow orders. The three buildings that are part of this kit can be rebuilt into a single structure, and can be combined with other Lite Brix kits. But don’t feel limited by the instructions. Lite Brix also combine with Lego, so you can build even bigger and even more amazing structures. Ages 6+, http://www.cra-z-art.com/

The Art of Childhood

If you’re like most parents, your refrigerator and walls are covered with your children’s art. But their creative play does a lot more than just make you proud. Kids who are involved in the arts are often more self-confident and self-reliant. Whether it be playing pretend with a childrens wagon in the garden, or drawing or painting, art helps kids improve fine-motor skills, follow directions better, and get along with peers. Various studies have shown that kids who are involved with the arts are more likely to excel academically, participate in math and science fairs, and win awards for writing. Here are some great sets that will help your child find his or her inner Picasso. So roll up your sleeves and get ready to have some fun. Also if you are like most parents and have a house full of walls covered in random paints and markings due to your child, you may want to see here for paint supplies that you can apply to a wall so any markings can become dry-erase, meaning your children can enjoy their creative freedom without your property being damaged!

Crayola’s Ultimate Art Case (www.crayolastore.com) is perfect for the young artist on the go. It comes pre-loaded with all the basic supplies to keep your little Rembrandt busy for hours-pencils, markers, watercolors, brushes, stencils, and more. With lots of internal compartments, organization is easy. And there’s plenty of extra space to store paper, glue, scissors, or anything else that might spark creativity. $15.99. Ages 4 and up.

Melissa and Doug easels come in two sizes. If you have a larger room or space, the Deluxe Standing Wooden Art Easel($79.99) is ideal. It includes a dry-erase board, chalkboard, locking paper-roll holder, child-safe paper cutter, easy-to-use clips to keep the paper steady, and a good-sized plastic tray for holding supplies. The easel is adjustable, so it can keep growing right along with your child.

If you have less space or want something a bit more portable, try the Tabletop Art Easel ($39.99). Like it’s standing cousin, this one includes chalk- and dry-erase boards. But it’s also magnetic and comes with markers, chalk, and magnets. There are two supplies trays, one of which has cup-sized holes to hold paint or brush-washing water. If your young artist is especially prolific, you can also buy a separate supply and accessory kit ($34.99) that works with either easel or on its own. Comes with poster paint, spill-proof paint cups, brushes, jumbo rainbow chalk, a roll of paper, and more. Ages 3 and up.

Kiwi Crate is a subscription service that delivers a new art project-in-a-box. Each one is designed around a certain theme such as science, dinosaurs, gardening, colors, animals, superheroes, etc and includes three related project ideas and all the materials you need. So far, we have only tested the colors project, but it was so much fun! After all, there is no denying that colors impact child development and can make learning fun. Just add inspiration and you’re ready to go. There’s additional, related material online. Kits are reviewed by experts and tested by kids and cover a range of developmental areas including creating, discovering, communication, gross- and fine-motor skills. $19.95/month. Ages 3-7.

For older kids or those who may want a bit of a challenge, EK Success Crafts (www.eksuccessbrands.com) has kits and individual supplies for scrapbooking, needlecraft, jewelry making, embossing, painting, creating personalized thank-you notes, and more. Perfect for family projects. Prices vary depending on the product.

Paper Punk (www.paperpunk.com) is an interesting combination of origami and building blocks. Start by folding paper into geometric shapes, which you then connect using adhesive dots (included) to create a variety of cool things that are a cross between an art project and a toy. You can buy individual kits for snakes, cars, snowmen, robots, dogs, cats, and birthday cakes, or use your paper blocks to build anything you want. Then customize to your heart’s content. $18.95 each. Ages 6 and up.

Educational Board Games Kids Will Want to Play

As parents, we’re supposed to always be on the lookout for “teachable moments”—those golden opportunities to ruin nearly any fun activity by clumsily inserting some educational content. Kids can smell teachable moments a mile away and their eyes start to roll long before the words ever leave our mouth. But some games find the golden ratio, that perfect balance between fun and educational. Here are five games that parents and kids will love to play—and learn—together.

Space It!
This is a simple, yet very clever numbers game. Players create sequences of numbered tiles that follow a pattern that they make up. For example if the sequence is 2-7-12, the next player would have to play 17 (adding five) or create a completely new sequence utilizing at least one of the numbers that’s already there. For example, a 5 above the 7 and a 9 below. Although the rules say to create sequences only by adding, you can can add a degree of difficulty by allowing for multiplication, subtraction, or division. Ages 8 and up. simplyfun.com

Let’s Drive
Another low-stress-yet-entertaining game for the whole family. Players collect points as they “travel” through the United States and Canada. It’s a great way for the kids to learn state capitals, scenic locations, and trivia about every state. It’s also a good way for moms and dads to brush up on geography—I have to admit that as a west-coaster, the east coast has always been something of a blur. Ages 8 and up. simplyfun.com

Blunders
Who would have guessed that learning manners could actually be fun—fun enough that a 9-year old would pull the game out from a shelf of a dozen of her favorites and ask to play it? True story. Players move through the board by rolling dice and answering questions from several categories: Dining, Home, Play. Questions can be fill-in-the-blank (“What’s the right thing to do if you’re sitting on a crowded bus and an elderly lady gets on?”), multiple choice, or true/false (“Billy love to zoom around the street and across everyone’s lawn on their bikes. This is okay to do because they are having fun”). Or, they may have to do things like create a proper place setting (honestly, does anyone really know where the dessert fork goes?) Ages 5-10. blundersmania.com

Eat to Win
Designed by a concerned mom whose child struggled with weight issues, Eat to Win tests players’ knowledge of nutrition and exercise in a fun, engaging way. Players answer multiple choice (“How many calories do you burn jumping rope for 30 minutes?), or true/false questions (“You should eat Greek yogurt instead of regular yogurt”). Plus, there’s a physical activity component, things like “Hop on one foot across the room and back” or “Everyone get up and run around the room and flapping your arms like a duck.” Players earn money for reaching certain milestones (or if they don’t want to hop, they can pay a laziness penalty). Ages 6 and up. Eattowingame.com

Jishaku
Jishaku (the Japanese word for magnet), is a neat combination of strategy game and science lesson. Played with a set of different-sized magnetic stones of varying strengths on a surface that looks like a foam egg carton, it matters not only where you place each stone, but also howyou place it. A fascinating way to spend some quality time exploring the laws of magnetism with boys or girls 8 and up. playjishaku.com

Electronic Toys That Aren’t Video Games

With the constant barrage of ads for video games and game consoles (Xbox, Wii, and the like, as well as the myriad of games and options for PC like league of legends boosting to name just one), it’s sometimes easy to forget that there are a ton of other cool, imagination-capturing electronic toys that don’t have a screen at all-and don’t need one either. Here are a few of our favorites.

Slot car sets
If you haven’t driven a slot car since you were about 10, you’re long overdue. Today’s cars are made with digital switches, meaning you can have more than two on a 2-lane track. Our set from Carrera (carrera-toys.com) accommodated up to six, each with its own controller. With digital, the cars move from lane to lane at different switching points allowing for passing and intense action while speeding around the track. Expect to pay around $300 for a good set that includes two cars. But you and your kids will have so much fun that on an hourly basis, the purchase price isn’t all that bad. Be prepared for some serious squabbles over who gets the “best” cars.

Pinball
When bowling became cool again a few years ago, it was only a matter of time before pinball followed. For about $500 you can pick up a vintage game that’s fun to play and makes a great piece of modern art. Games that might have lasted only a few years in a smoky bar (or bowling alley), can last a lifetime in your rec room. Pinballs aren’t maintenance free, but they won’t break you, since the games themselves are simple collections of wires, switches, and cheap bulbs-simple enough to also provide years of lessons in basic circuitry and great joint, dad-kid projects.

>Remote control helicopters
These have been on the market for five or six years and boy, has the technology evolved. The earliest ones had rotors that usually snapped during the first flight, ruining any hope for quality time-and making parents wince every time junior took the controls because of the repair costs. New choppers, like the Military Thunder by Swann (swann.com/helicopters), use multiple flexible rotors that make flying a breeze, right out of the box. Apparently, it’s all about the “twin counter-rotating coaxial rotors.” You’d never find that technology in a real helicopter, but it makes the scale models a lot more stable and increases lift. The only downside that we can see (aside from knocking Ming vases off shelves), is that you get only 5-10 minutes of flight time per charge.

Remote-control boats
If you’re near a toy-boat-friendly lake or pond, remote-control boats, like the Balaenoptera Musculus, are great fun. But be sure to spend time researching battery life. You don’t want to schlepp all the way to the park for a 5-minute boat ride and then have to head home to recharge. Want to discover all the different types of RC toys? You can find out more at myrctopia.com.

Lazer Stunt Chasers (lazerstuntchaser.com)
A new-and very unique-entry in the burgeoning remote-control toy market is the Lazer Stunt Chaser, which you can steer by pointing a laser beam where you want the car to go. The cars are two-sided so, with the included flip ramp, they’re up and moving whichever way they land-at scale speeds up to 300 MPH. At a 1:32 scale, Stunt Chasers are a comfortable size. Unfortunately, at about $65, they’re a little pricey, but still a ton of fun for dads and kids.

Interactive Toys for Toddlers

The holidays may be behind us, but that doesn’t mean the end of the gift-giving season… There are birthdays, equinoxes, rainy days, and plenty of duplicate gifts to return. But what to get for the discerning tot in your home? It’s a well known fact that younger children especially two year olds can be tricky to buy for.
Here are some of the top interactive toys for the toddler set that will keep kids entertained-and are fun for mom and dad too.
Furreal Friends Baby Butterscotch, My Magical Show Pony (Hasbro). This new addition to Hasbro’s Furreal Friends line is the most animated and responsive yet. Scratch Butterscotch’s head and she’ll nuzzle your hand, talk to her, and she’ll respond with the pony equivalent of cooing. Feed her a carrot and she’ll make happy crunching sounds. Brush her fur, and she’ll love you forever. Baby Butterscotch is a fun intro to owning a real pet-she even snores at the end of a long day of play. Carrot and brush included. Search for “personalised gifts for dog lovers” and buy something really cute for your dog or dog lovers at home. Ages 4 and up.

Interactive Story Buddies (Hallmark).
Bigsby, the shy monster, likes to go on big adventures and learn new things with his friends. He-along with the other Story Buddies-speak up when they hear certain words. Those words can be delivered by mom or dad, your child, or even the narrator in the iPod/iPad app. Each Story Buddy comes with a book and a read-along CD, free downloadable apps, and a host of other interactive features on line. You can also buy more books, which continue Bigsby’s adventures. The books gently teach social skills, such as friendship. But what we think is far more important, they encourage parents to snuggle up and read with their children. And that’s priceless. Ages 2 and up.

Super Grover (Playskool)
The Sesame Street Flying Super Grover Plush toy is a lot of fun for fans of Sesame Street. Parents can explore the world with their child as they help Super Grover investigate and solve problems on earth and beyond. He’s not only cute (in that monstery sort of way) and a good playmate, he can also help your child learn empathy and social skills by teaching him or her about different countries and cultures, and how kids can help others and their communities. For high-flying fun, just the right message for your pre-K and K children, delivered by a friendly face they know and love, Super Grover will be a year-round hit. His preloaded songs, motorized motion, cool flying sounds, and vocabulary of absurd Grover-ish phrases will keep your kiddo entertained long after the thank-you notes are written (you do have your kids write thank you notes, right?) Ages 2-5.

FURBY (Hasbro)
Furby, one of the first robotic pets, was born in 1998 and immediately became the must-have toy of that year. Those first Furbys talked to and interacted with their human playmate, “learning” depending on the level of the child’s interaction and time spent together. The newest generation does much the same, but instead of being simply action-reaction (child says something, Furby responds), these Furbys add an emotional component and a touch of attitude. So if your Furby doesn’t like music and you play it anyway, she’ll get aggravated and yell. Continue ignoring her needs and she’ll get even angrier. It’s amazing how much this little fluffy ball of circuits, motors, and screens can mimic an actual pet. Don’t be surprised if next year’s model includes a real litter box. Ages 6 and up.

Great Card Games That Take You Beyond the Standard 52

The standard 52-card deck of playing cards can be used to play literally hundreds of different games. But despite its versatility, there are some limitations. In recent years dozens of new card games—games that have almost nothing in common with standard decks excerpt that they’re generally rectangular and are printed on thick card stock. Here are three really fun—and completely unique—games to play with the whole family.

SoundIt! We first discovered SoundIt! in early 2012, and it definitely triggered a definitely had a why-hadn’t-anyone-thought-of-this-before? moment. The basic premise is pretty simple. Each of the 96 playing cards has two parts. One is the description of a sound, say “The sound of something at an amusement park.” The other is an image, which might simple, like a cuckoo clock, or more abstract, like the sky or goo running down a wall. Players have to either guess what the image is based on sounds other players are making, or they have to make the sound in the written clue. It is absolutely uproarious–and something parents and kids of all ages (although six and up with have the most fun) will enjoy playing together. www.wowopolis.com

Albert’s Insomnia. This is one of the most fun–and most educational–games we’ve seen in years. And not a battery or an LED in sight. There’s a whole backstory to the game, about sheep herding, but the basic idea is to use cards to add one to the previous player’s total. Start with cards numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4 face up on the table (as in the picture). Using at least two cards, you can add, subtract, multiply, or divide but can use any card only once. So the first player might start with 4-3 = 1. The next says 4-2 = 2; the next says 2+1 = 3. It’s very easy at first, but the higher you go, the harder it gets (4×3 is 12, minus 1 is 11, times 2 is 22, for example). Once you max out what you can do with 1, 2, 3, 4 (somewhere around 36: 4×3 = 12, 2+1 is 3, 3×12 = 36), add a 5 and keep on counting, one number at a time, getting more and more challenging as you go. Albert’s Insomnia is great for teaching math skills because all the calculations have to be done in your head. I played this game with a car full of kids and it kept them (and me) busy and entertained for more than an hour. Ages 6 and up. www.rjb3games.com

Kwizniac Kwizniac is a trivia countdown game. What does that mean? Well, each card in the deck contains an answer and ten clues, which are listed in decreasing order of difficulty. For example, on one card, the first clue (number 10) is “Philip Astley was the first person to put together the elements for it in 1768.” Huh? So we’d move on to the next one (9) “It has been around since the Ancient Romans.” Still huh? The clues get progressively easier until the last one (number 1) is “Clowns are common in this form of entertainment.” Got it? The circus. The object is to get the answer with the fewest number of clues. Ages 10 and up, although Kwizniac Kidz, which has only five clues per card, is good for 6 and up. www.kwizniac.com

Transforming Travel Toys

When traveling with children—especially little ones—it’s important to make them feel comfortable and secure wherever they are. But with checked bag fees going nowhere but up, we don’t want to fill up the suitcases and carry-ons with lots of bulky stuff. So to help make transitions—and packing—easier, here are four space-saving products that do double- or triple-duty.

CuddleUppets are part blanket, part puppet, and a lot of fun for the kids. At 39” x 28”, they’re about the size of a child’s blankie, and they come in seven varieties, including Blue Elephant, Lady Bug, Unicorn, Purple Monkey, and Green Crocodile. Soft, with paws on each corner and a large, stuffed head, children can use them to put on puppet shows for the family or to give their imagination a workout by themselves. If mom or dad has one too, you may find yourself adding a few extra miles to your car trip or hoping your flight is delayed so you can have more time to play together. When you’re done for the day, the kids can snuggle up with their CuddleUppet and drift off to sleep. CuddleUppets are machine washable and recommended for ages 6 months – 15 years, but unless they come out with one that texts or plays Angry Birds, they really aren’t going to interest anyone much over 6—not including parents, of course. Retail price: $19.99, but available only online at www.cuddleuppets.com

Although Zoobies come in wide variety of styles, our favorites for the family-on-the-go are Blanket Pets and Slumber Pets. Blanket Pets are a stuffed animal, blanket, and pillow all rolled into one. With at least 25 animals to choose from, even the pickiest kids will find something to entertain themselves with in the car, plane, hotel, or grandma’s house. At the end of the day, unzip the plush blanket and use the animal’s head as a pillow (it’s stuffed with microbeads for maximum squishability). Machine washable, Blanket Pets retail for $29.99, although the more collectible “retired” models are more. zoobies.com

Zoobies Slumber Pets take Blanket Pets up a notch and come with a lightweight sleeping bag rolled up inside. Available in varieties such as Furbie the Feline, Gumdrop the Golden Retriever, and Eric Carle’s Very Hungry Caterpillar, they’re great for long car rides, hotel stays, and everywhere else—and there’s a good chance your child will want to use it at home too. Made of Zoobies’ soft fleece and topped off with the Slumber Pet’s microbead head, the sleeping bag (which at 43″ x 22”, is roomy enough for most little ones) zips off for easy washing. Children love sleeping on a large stuffed toy pillow, as well as playing with it during waking hours. As your little one gets ready for bed in an unfamiliar place, snuggle up with her for a story featuring the animal of choice, and help her get ready for another exciting day. Blanket Pets retail for $39.99. zoobies.com

Pillow Pets may have been last year’s hot item, but they’re still fun, easy take-alongs that are perfect for family travel. As with CuddleUppets and Zoobies, Pillow Pets can start the day as a plush, huggable, cuddly friend and end up as a plush, huggable, cuddly pillow. There are dozens of Pillow Pets, and even the littlest hands will be able to operate the “transformer” features (but be warned: in a few years, the word “transformer” will take on a whole new meaning). Retail prices vary with size, but average around $30.00. Check ‘em out at mypillowpets.com and let your child make the final selection.

Safe travels!