It's rare to find a game that so strongly appeals to young children and plays as well across a broad range of ages as Silly Street does. Plentiful social interaction and abundant laughter begin flowing as soon as Silly Street gets under way, resulting in a deeply satisfying and highly contagious good time. Kids love it, and parents enjoy both watching and participating. The game board, across which players move pieces on ...Read more

Sleepy Seas Turtle Soother pleases and appeases young children on two distinct fronts - as a captivatingly cute plush animal toy, and as a portable relaxation device that plays soothing, ambient music at the touch of a button. The exceptionally pleasing audio is a blend of ocean waves, bubbling water, and spa-like music that typically calms everyone within earshot. Adults tend to find these sounds to be as relaxing as chi...Read more

Kids have some serious building power at their fingertips with this robust, 1,000 piece set. Of course, the power actually comes from those highly active young brains and hands. The set, with its colorful, wide-ranging pieces and multitude of shapes and functionalities, is the catalyst that unleashes all that creative energy. In addition to a seemingly endless supply of building bricks in various shapes, sizes, and colors...Read more

Each of the 20 figures included in this set is a colorful character in and of itself. Designed to be fully compatible with other major building block brands, these human figures are sized just right for the play needs of children ages 2 and up. Each has a distinctly defined look that reflects that character's position or occupation within the community. There's a Train Conductor, Grandmother, Doctor, Firefighter, Pilot, a...Read more

This set of family and community workers figures triggers in kids all kinds of imaginative explorations. The multitude of occupations reflected here - fireman, police officer, teacher, astronaut, . . . 30 figures in all - allows kids to try many roles on for size, feeding their hunger for self-knowledge and of the grownup world around them. Similar in concept to Smart Builder Toys 20 piece figure set for ages 2+ (reviewed...Read more

This 500 piece set offers up truly abundant fun in the form of large, colorful building bricks and a host of other creative play components. Young hands and minds explore endlessly - building, problem-solving, engaging in group and solo imaginative play. In addition to variously shaped and colored building bricks, the set includes 4 vehicles, 8 figures, 4 baseplates, 24 fences, and 4 windows, enough to fuel endless creati...Read more

A primary distinction between this building set and its equally impressive 500 piece counterpart (reviewed above) is one of scale. While both contain a copious 500 piece count, the colorful construction bricks and other components of the set being reviewed here are smaller, geared for the increasingly nimble fingers of kids aged 4 to adult. The same play opportunities abound - building, exploring, problem-solving, play-ac...Read more

In the hands of young children, this assortment of wild, farm, and domestic animals (with a dinosaur thrown in for good measure) acts as a springboard for endless creative exploits. The two dozen or so animals are accompanied by a farmer and zookeeper figure, a safari car, and an array of accessories that fuel the imagination to no end. Components are sized large enough to make them well-suited to smaller hands (the set i...Read more

The large, easily-manipulable pieces and action-inspiring vehicles and figures in this 40+ piece construction play set are well-suited to the hands and minds of children age 2 and up. Some of the vehicles arrive already assembled, while others can be mixed and matched by snapping auto bodies into place on the four-wheeled platforms. The set's 8 vehicles include a fire engine, ambulance, police car, police helicopter, and ...Read more

Fans of logical brain teasers and newcomers alike find SmartGames IQ Puzzler Pro to be a near-perpetual source of pleasure. That's due, in part, to the wide range of puzzles (120 challenges from easy to expert) in the accompanying booklet and the satisfaction that comes from feeling your brain make connections in new and different ways. The pocket-sized game board functions as a carrying case for the dozen variously shape...Read more

Jungle Hide & Seek is exciting, mind-boggling fun wrapped in a deceptively simple challenge: place 4 different-shaped puzzle pieces on the game board in such a way as to hide images of all animals except the ones shown on the challenge selected. With 80 challenges to choose from, ranging in difficulty from easy to expert, that's a lot of tasty brain food. There are many ways the pieces can fit on the board, but just one s...Read more

At first glance, Smarty Shake & Tell could almost pass for a traditional children's rattle. But as kids quickly discover (to their immense delight), this cute, colorful critter is much more than that. Smarty reacts to children's manipulations by playing over 15 different rattle sounds - bubbles popping, a cow mooing, a kitty meowing, a saxophone playing, and a host of other surprising and captivating responses. And that's...Read more

Like Robotic Run (see separate review above), Solar Chopper is a thoroughly enjoyable build-it-yourself solar science kit that offers a simple approach to learning about the environment. Illustrated step-by-step instructions make it easy to assemble the chopper and solar power station. When finished, directing the adjustable solar panel towards the sun and switching it on produces immediate and gratifying results. The cho...Read more

Sort & Discover Activity Cube is a unique, interactive learning toy with an abundance of activities built into five of its sides. It's a remarkable blend of electronic features and colorful physical elements that get babies' hands and minds going non-stop. The cube's manipulative features get pressed, spun, rolled and flipped. 4 differently shaped sorter blocks get put through matching openings in the side of the cube. El...Read more