November 2008 Notable Toys — Educational

This healthy feeding guide for infants 0 to 12 months discusses nutritional needs, how to feed baby, recipes, shopping tips and safety guidelines. "This set represents an innovative organization of complete information into easy-to-use cards," said Christina Schmidt M.S., N.E., president of Baby Bistro Brands. Launch date: 09/01/2001.

Children record their favorite holiday traditions by describing the people they share the holiday with and the colors, decorations, food, and stories they use to celebrate it. Completing this book with their own words, drawings, and photos helps children learn the meaning of holiday, cultural, and family customs and traditions. Creating a personal story motivates kids to read and write. "More educational than a scrapbook, more personal than a picture book, each copy of this book will capture an individual story that its young owner will return to read and enjoy many times," promised Barbara Lonnborg, director of Boys Town Press. Launch date: 08/01/2008

"Colorful Garden - A Feelings Coloring Book" takes the reader through several garden scenes with bugs and flowers displaying a variety of emotions to which children can relate. The rhyming verse and fun illustrations make the coloring book an entertaining product, but it also has great value in its ability to increase emotional intelligence and enhance a child's ability to express different feelings. It is ideal for developing communication skills, emotional vocabulary, creative expression, self esteem, and social skills in a fun and child-friendly manner. "This fun and engaging coloring book will help children recognize, identify, and talk about their feelings," said Lisa-Marie Arneson, Owner and Creator of Bright Spots. This product is a Dr Toy Best Vacation Children's Products Winner. Launch date: 09/18/2005

This kit includes a 40 page science book and enough contents to participate in 18 activities. All materials are included except for a D-cell battery. The kit has step-by-step, highly visual instructions and child appropriate materials designed for young children to work independently.
— John Blair, owner of Science Safari in Cary, N.C., told TDmonthly in a September 2011 survey that they sell 6-8 of these kits each month. "We really like them and we push them,” he said. 

An unassuming colored dome a little bit larger than an egg, the zOrb packs powerful magnification once plugged in by simple USB connection. This tiny microscope zooms the viewer in from 35 to 53x magnification depending on the size of the computer screen. Focus can be refined by twisting the top half of the zOrb one way or the other, and pictures can be easily captured for later use. Also takes video footage. Includes software on CD, two base adaptors, and instruction manual. USB cable attached.

Trampoline®’s colorful posters featuring theme-based Spanish vocabulary and phonetic pronunciations can be used to complement a Spanish program. Posters come in 23 themes, including Alphabet, Days of the Week, Months of the Year, Shapes, The House, Transportation, Numbers 1-20, Numbers 21-100, Opposites 1 and 2, Colors, Parts of the Classroom, School Supplies, Family, Food, Fruit, Vegetables, My Body (1) – The Face, My Body (2) – The Body, Clothing, Weather, Animals (1) – Farm/Pets and Animals (2) – Zoo. "Spanish words with phonetic spellings make second language acquisition a possibility in ANY classroom," Angelica J. Menefee, president of Trampoline Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: May 30, 2008.

This hand-tufted wool rug was created by artist Donna Ingemanson. "The intricacy and uniqueness of the design and quality of the hand-tufted wool," set it apart, Product Designer Carly Gray of Oopsy Daisy told TDmonthly. Launch date: August 2008.

Through engaging and practical exercises, this guide teaches young girls valuable lessons to help them lead financially secure and independent lives. It is "written by The Women's Foundation of California with an introduction by Kathleen Brown, former Treasurer of the State of California," Cathleen Brady, senior manager of children's publicity for Chronicle Books, told TDmonthly. Launch date: May 2008.

Much more than an atlas, this book is a virtual travel experience. It includes more than 40 maps, 30 feature articles on impressive places, more than 50 eye-popping 3-D photos of the world's most interesting sights, and two pairs of 3-D glasses. It "brings geography to life," Cathleen Brady, senior manager of children's publicity for Chronicle Books, told TDmonthly. Launch date: October 2008.

The No. 1-selling kids' almanac becomes a fun educational tool in this trivia deck series for kids. Coded by age range and subject, each deck includes 75 fun and educational brainteasers that build skills in science, math, reading and vocabulary. "The World Almanac brand is widely recognized and trusted," pointed out Cathleen Brady, senior manager of children's publicity at Chronicle Books. This product received a 2008 Parents' Choice Recommended Award and a 2006 National Parenting Publications Toy Award, Gold Honor. Launch date: May 2008.

With this craft, children can have fun cutting, pasting and assembling their own personal pet (potty training not required). "Kumon 3-D Paper Craft workbooks are designed to help children develop problem-solving and spatial reasoning abilities, as well as fine motor skills," Adam Hennessy, in marketing and account management for Kumon Publishing, told TDmonthly. "Their extra-thick paper and colorful, engaging illustrations ensure that children will be able to create a sturdy and engaging paper toy that will provide an educational and entertaining experience." Launch date: January 10, 2006.

This workbook covers repeated addition, skip counting, multiplication facts to 10 x 10, the inverse relationship of multiplication and division, commutative property of multiplication, identity property of multiplication, zero property of multiplication, and patterns and sequencing. "Just like our popular pre-school workbooks, Kumon Math Workbooks are based on the Kumon Method, a learning system designed to help each child reach his or her full learning potential. These workbooks are also correlated to state and national standards in order to ensure that the content is appropriate for your child," Adam Hennessy, in marketing and account management for Kumon Publishing, told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 14, 2008.
— Though educational books are not a top seller in his store (he only sells about 12 per month), Kumon is the top line, said  Steven Levy, owner of Toy City in Keene, N.H.
— Gregory Sahagian, owner of Learning Express of Beverly in Beverly, Mass., told TDmonthly in a Fall 2012 survey that they sell 4-5 dozen Kumon books each month, making them one of their top-2 best selling educational products.

This book covers, counting, reading, writing and ordering numbers to 120, addition sums beyond 30, and patterns and sequencing, helping children to understand the whole number system. "While other workbooks try to cover a wide range of topics in each book, Kumon Math Workbooks tackle one skill set per book. We believe having one specific goal helps children focus on mastering one skill completely," Adam Hennessy, in marketing and account management for Kumon Publishing, told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 15, 2008.

These write and wipe flash cards will help children learn to write their uppercase ABCs. Each card features the outline of a letter on one side with proper stroke order noted, and a picture and word illustrating the letter on the other. A dry-erase marker is included so children can write and erase letters over and over. "There are very few, if any, dry-erase flash cards on the market. The thick cardboard and their re-usability makes them a very solid investment for parents, as a single set can be used for multiple children," Adam Hennessy, in marketing and account management for Kumon Publishing, told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 14, 2006.

These extra large and thick write and wipe flash cards allow children to count abstract objects (dots) and identify them with a numeral. Using a dry-erase marker and following the strokes in order as they are outlined on the card, children will learn not only how to count, but also how to write the numbers 1-30. "There are very few, if any, dry-erase flash cards on the market. The thick cardboard and their re-usability makes them a very solid investment for parents, as a single set can be used for multiple children," Adam Hennessy, in marketing and account management for Kumon Publishing, told TDmonthly. Launch date: July 14, 2006.

Children can learn and demonstrate fascinating and educational experiments with amazing plants with this kit that covers phototropism, photosynthesis, photoperiodism and more. The Botanical Discoveries Kit demonstrates, for example, how humidity affects germination and growth rates of plants, and how plants react to touch and temperature changes. Students can compare moving plants, fast plants and water conservation plants. "This educational, experimental and fun science fair kit contains everything needed to conduct dozens of projects and experiments for a reasonable cost," PR Specialist Alicia Borley of Dunecraft told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2008.

Silly Squares provide hours of silly, wiggly, jiggly, educational fun. Place Silly Squares in a cup or bowl of water and watch in amazement as they grow to epic proportions. Silly Squares will grow to hundreds of times their size. They are available in different colors. Kids can test their skill and try to stack them, build with them, and watch them slip away. Launch date: February 2008.

The Zillionz Deluxe ATM Machine works just like a real ATM and gives kids all of their up-to-date account information. It features incredible sounds and a large screen, and even knows their name. Plus, it can only be accessed with a secret PIN that they choose. The electronic bill feeder and coin recognition works with real money. Kids can insert the ATM credit card to get the exact balance. Launch date: 2007.

This habitat provides a lifelike environment and works great with frogs or insects. The large water area allows for healthy tadpole development. The capture core lets one easily transfer tadpoles into the habitat. The Backyard Safari Bug Vacuum (sold separately) can be used to safely capture and view insects in this two-in-one habitat. Launch date: 2007.

Kids can sprout sunflowers in the included terrarium and then plant them outside to enjoy. Sunflowers are very easy to sprout and can soar to amazing heights outdoors. This kit comes with a 3.25” four-color printed planter, a unique sprouting dome, germination medium and seeds. "Kids can now learn a bit of environmental science with products tied to some of Nickelodeon’s most popular properties," PR Specialist Alicia Borley of Dunecraft told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2008.

Children can learn about some of the earth’s most beautiful rocks in this sedimentary rock collection. Each of 10 rocks comes with an identification card that includes a photo and fun rock facts. Kids can try to identify each rock using the hand magnifier and information cards. For a hint, the name of each rock is beneath the foam padding. "All of our rock and mineral kits are supported by our extensive website with free geology information, including special documents and downloads for each kit, articles on geology topics, puzzles, experiments and project ideas. We also encourage children to write in to our staff geologist with their questions, which are answered on our website," President Tracy Barnhart of Mini Me Geology told TDmonthly. Launch date: March 2007.

Kids can watch the leaves of this unusual moving plant quickly fold in as the branches bend down once its leaves are touched. This plant is easy to grow and presents lush green moving foliage within weeks. Sensitive plants will thrive in bright light if they are kept moist and in the terrarium.

The Butterfly Bush is the ultimate plant to attract butterflies, hummingbirds and all sorts of wildlife. This fast-growing plant will flower lilac and purple-colored flowers in its first year, attracting hummingbirds and butterflies. The fragrant flowers also have an orange “eye” that makes this plant attractive to all winged creatures. It is originally native to northwestern China and Japan. "It is a complete, educational, eye-catching kit that has a very low cost," PR Specialist Alicia Borley of Dunecraft told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2008.

The most informative calendar one will ever own, The 2009 Learning Calendar presents 17 full months of history and trivia that make learning fun. Two major themes abound, with Innovations, Inventions & Ideas, plus Best-Loved Toys. Science, geography, landmarks, sports, presidents, weather, music and more are sprinkled throughout. Large-size images, fascinating details, and time-capsule activities keep kids coming back to learn something new every day. "It's the most all-emcompassing collection of history available in one easily-accessible resource. [It] truly provides a 'mini' well-rounded education in every detailed date for more than a full year of excitement in learning," Shannon Wallingford of Fat Brain Toy Co. told TDmonthly. Launch date: August 2008.