This fast-paced, fun game gets kids' mental wheels turning at high speed, the air crackling with the energy of quick calculations and a multitude of simple math equations. The simplicity of those equations makes their formation easily doable. The fact that every tile must interconnect while also making mathematical sense (much in the way horizontal and vertical words intersect in a crossword puzzle) leaves players constan...Read more

Pretend play, role play, make-believe, imaginative play - regardless of what we call it, play in which kids assume a variety of often grown-up roles is a key way in which children learn about themselves and the world. This Robotic Engineer shirt from Aeromax goes a long way towards facilitating such play by enhancing the experience with cool looking dress-up that takes things in a nicely brainy direction. A 'Robotic Engin...Read more

My Fairy Garden Magical Cottage is an enchanting, imagination-spurring play environment within which children plant, grow, and nurture a real, live garden with their very own hands. The adorable, multi-level flower pot is also a cottage in which Freya the fairy and Hazel the chipmunk minifigures reside, and includes elegant doors that open, a terrace, tiki torches, chairs, an umbrella table, and more! Everything kids ne...Read more

This is great creative fun for toddlers and up, a portable, self-contained unit that lets young ones draw in the sand without ever touching it. The mess-free Sand Scribbler Board has a surface window through which the white sand inside is seen. Pressing the unit's light button illuminates the interior, either one color selection at a time or by launching a light show that automatically cycles through all 12 colors. The fu...Read more

My First Grab It! Animal Match amply demonstrates the joys of finding a really good game suitable for young children. This exciting matching game has simple rules that take no time at all to learn, and colorfully illustrated components that are sized and themed just right for young minds and hands. The action includes everyone in on the fun from start to finish (no players fidgeting on the sidelines awaiting their turn be...Read more

Kids smile, play, and learn with this 24-inch by 18-inch puzzle whose bold, cheerful illustrations include the Itsy Bitsy Spider by the water spout amidst a colorful garden scene. Once the 12 large pieces have been assembled into a whole, the puzzle transforms into a sing-along playtime. A circular sound module (included) nestles perfectly in a space in the upper left corner of the puzzle where the lyrics to the Itsy Bits...Read more

In addition to being loads of fun, Myland Car is many things - educational toy, creative stimulus, audiovisual treat, technological wonder. Brilliantly simple (1 car, 2 figures, no buttons or switches), no instructions are necessary. Myland Car's intuitive functionality arouses in kids a great deal of curiosity and inquisitiveness as they play and explore. Some youngsters start by giving the car a push and watching it rol...Read more

Like Myland Car (see separate review above), Myland Horse's remarkable effectiveness as a learning toy stems from a clever simplicity that spurs kids to explore and discover. The look and feel of the horse (and the character that accompanies it) are at once charming and perfectly suited to the young age level at which the toy is targeted. Children take great delight in the interactive nature of Myland Horse. They quickly ...Read more

Any and all of the chalk sets available from Crayola provide great outdoor fun, but the 3D feature of this set makes for a particularly exciting time. After kids lay on the colors in whatever artistic direction inspiration has taken them, it's time to put on the 3D glasses (included) and experience the eye-popping effects of the chalk's fluorescent pigments. The already highly energized colors (Shocking Pink, Super Purple...Read more

'Wow!' is the first thing most children (and more than a few adults) say when they lay eyes on Nikko VelociTrax, and that's before they've even seen it in action. That powerful impression stems, in part, from this radio-controlled vehicle's sleek, futuristic appearance and design. Dual motors and tank-like treads make dazzling maneuvers near effortless - dizzying 360-degree spins, swift swerves and turns, quick reversals,...Read more

Lego has added another exciting installment to their popular Ninjago building series with this delightful 350-piece set. Children enjoy hours of fun intently piecing together exciting characters and high tech vehicles and weaponry, the formidable dragon foremost among them. As the set steadily takes shape under nimble fingers and focused young minds, anticipation for the next phase of play mounts. Once assembled, the ente...Read more

Not Parent Approved is a deliriously funny game that is well-suited to family and party play. Non-stop humor and social interaction flow freely from the moment the first cards are dealt. Each round, one player asks a fill-in-the-blank question (The teacher bent over and we saw . . .) from a question card and each of the other players responds with the funniest answer card from the hand they were dealt. The round's designa...Read more

The Official Elf Kit is a welcome addition to year-end holiday fun, a warmly embraced tradition to be revisited year after year as kids grow up. One of the many delightful things about this holiday activity kit is the air of magic and of family togetherness it generates. So much care has been put into each of the items in the package that children take wide-eyed delight in exploring its contents. A finely embellished meta...Read more

In the realm of building toys, YOXO ('yock-so') construction kits stand apart, both for their originality and for the excitement they incite in those who partake of their creative possibilities. That extraordinariness stems, in part, from the unique design of YOXO's interconnecting links and the wildly original artwork that graces some of the components. As kids explore the contents, whether building according to the easy...Read more