March 2010 New Specialty Toys — Educational

This colorful outdoor thermometer has temperature-appropriate clothing pictures next to the numbers. It is designed to: empower kids to independently choose the right outfit to wear in various temperatures; teach kids to read numbers and to understand the concept of measuring the outdoor temperature as they continue using their thermometer; relieve parents of the struggle with children over appropriate clothing to wear for the day, making morning routines faster and easier; help teachers to teach kids reading and understanding of the outside temperature and seasonal changes; and help schools to get kids appropriately dressed for school recess. Launch date: May 30, 2009.

This soft-sculpture, children’s mass kit is designed for play at home or church. This colorful, high-quality toy, when used in conjunction with the included companion booklet, is designed to be an ideal manipulative for instruction in the classroom or playroom. It includes 12 pieces and a booklet in a durable nylon carrying case that's created "to educate, entertain and enrich faith," Stephen Abdalla, President, Wee Believers, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 5, 2010.

See how much you know with hundreds of interesting questions on dozens of different topics. Have fun competing with the invisible opponent as you play games by yourself. Each book includes 48 pages of fun and a special pen.

Revisit the story of how Tiana and Neveen meet. Magic Pen® Painting is a fun and easy way to paint - but with no mess! Use the Special Pen to paint each picture and watch the colors instantly appear. Each book includes 24 pages of fun and a special pen.

Buzz Lightyear and Woody are two great friends on one big adventure. The activities include Magic Pen® Painting, and Invisible Ink with Stickers. The Special Pen also produces a rainbow of colors instantly. The Special Pen reveals the invisibly printed pictures. Then match your stickers to the appropriate spot.
Book 1: Each book includes 24 pages of fun and a special pen.
Book 2: Each book includes 24 pages of fun, a special pen and stickers.

Biffle is fun-loving and cheerful. Biffle shares his "Smarts" of Friendship. Shoulder Buddies are unique to their Feather color, so no two are alike. They come with a collectible Shoulder Buddies Coin and a Backpack clip. Please be advised that Shoulder Buddies are an accessory, NOT a toy. They are not recommended for children under 4 years of age.

Entertain and teach baby by creating scenes made of fabric covered foam. House scene includes a Square, Triangle, Circle, Rectangle, Car, Bus, Door, Window, Chimney, Flower Garden, and Dog.

Child can learn about construction with this fabric covered foam product. Easy assembly using color-coded Velcro. Children 2 and up can enjoy learning to build this barn and play farm games with it. There are 15 sections to put in place with picture steps provided. A self-confidence building product with creative play value.

Inchimals is a set of 12 wooden blocks with animal images that measure from 1” in height (ladybug) to 12” high (giraffe).  They can be combined with the 100 write on/wipe off math puzzles for kids to practice counting, number values and recognition, fine motor skills, language and more. Launch date: Spring 2010.

In this gravity-defying, 3-D word-building game, two to four players are challenged to add stacking letters to a tower to form words up, down or sideways to earn points. They must be careful, though, as any new letter could send the Konexi into a full collapse. The game comes with 26 red letters, a die, a mover, a pad and pencil, and a rules manual. Launch date: Fall 2010 (specialty and mass retailers).

Written by Keltie Thomas and illustrated by Stephen MacEachern, this book delves into the history of science of figure skating as a sport, a lineup of the most creative moves, info about partnerships and rivalries, and much more.

TDmonthly Review:

Please click here to read TDmonthly´s Toy Expert review of this product.

Written by Mary Wallace, this tale of Alaska's Inuit people illustrates each letter of "Inuksuk" in acrostic poem, connecting the meaning of each word to the people and their surroundings. Launch date: September 2009.

These jaguars are part of a plush collection featuring stuffed animals and puppets that share characteristics of their real animal in the wild. A hangtag explains each animal's distinctive qualities. Retail price ranges from $16 to $36, depending on size. Launch date: January 2010.
— Kate Tanner, owner of Kidstop in Scottsdale, Ariz., was impressed with this plush line at Toy Fair 2010.

Complete with an illustrated guidebook, this developmental kit comes with 10 multi-sensory games and craft activities to let preschoolers practice early cutting and fine motor skills.

This game for two to six players pairs the concept of four suits with the letters of the alphabet, challenging each player to create one or more words using all of his cards. A hand can require from 1 to 10 minutes.

With the EQUALS game, kids can practice their basic math facts while they play a challenging game with their friends. Every child can be a winner. It does not matter if they are fast or slow with their facts, every child will have a chance to win. Kids can play addition, subtraction, multiplication or division. The game adjusts to fit each child. As they play EQUALS, kids will practice over 280 basic facts.
— "Great game for promoting logical thinking and spacial relations," Jennifer Shuman, owner of 1SmartNoodle, told TDmonthly at Toy Fair 2010.

The DVD contains five-minute shorts starring a lovable, animated panda named Little Pim who, along with live-action kids, teaches very young kids themed vocabulary in a foreign language. Little Pim the Panda is now joined by Lola the Elephant and Bob the Bobcat in Disc 6: I Can Count! The DVD is specially designed for babies, toddlers and preschoolers, and is available in Spanish, French and Mandarin Chinese. Launch date: early 2010

The DVD contains five-minute shorts starring a lovable, animated panda named Little Pim who, along with live-action kids, teaches very young kids themed vocabulary in a foreign language. Little Pim the Panda is now joined by Lola the Elephant and Bob the Bobcat in Disc 4: In My Home. The DVD is specially designed for babies, toddlers and preschoolers, and is available in Spanish, French and Mandarin Chinese. Launch date: early 2010

The Little Pim: Fun with Language series has added another 3-pak of DVDs to its line. Little Pim the Panda is now joined by Lola the Elephant and Bob the Bobcat in Disc 4: In My Home; Disc 5: Happy, Sad and Silly; and Disc 6: I Can Count! The Little Pim series uses a combination of live-action segments showing real children eating, playing and engaging in everyday activities, as well as animated segments of Little Pim and friends, to create an engaging and fun-to-watch language learning experience. Available in Spanish, French and Mandarin Chinese. Launch date: early 2010

In this two-player game, each participant starts with 12 cubes and proceeds to make a crossword. The first to finish with no cubes remaining yells "Zip!" and, on the bag that holds the pieces, moves his zipper to indicate a point. Players exchange six cubes at the end of each round, to keep their letter hands unpredictable. It can be played in as little as 20 seconds and is designed for take-along play on a plane. The game comes with the Weords mini dictionary. Launch date: spring/summer 2010.

Using the two captivating books included in CHESS: Once A Pawn A Time, this kit is designed to help children enjoy learning and playing chess. The endearing chess characters and story-book style are created to engage them in the game. "This imaginative approach to teaching chess was developed by author Patzi Stewart over her 20 years as a chess teacher in the San Francisco Bay Area. The box opens so that customers can examine the books and understand the uniqueness of this chess product prior to purchase," Rachael Norman, Sales, Norman & Globus, Inc., told TDmonthly. Awards: 2010 Dr. Toy Best Toys Award. Launch date: February 15, 2010.

TimeBuddy is designed as a fun, interactive toy that teaches children the concept of time and time management. It connects children’s activities to specific times during the day, helping them develop routines and the understanding that activities are done during certain intervals. Fully customizable, TimeBuddy helps parents tackle the challenging task of managing their children's daily activities against their own. "There are no other products on the market that teach the skill of time management. This unique approach at teaching children schedules and routines will help them become successful adults in a busy society driven by time," Amanda Vasil, Account Executive, AKHIA, told TDmonthly. Launch date: March 2010.
— As of 05/13/2011 this product had 5 out of 5 stars from 3 reviews on Amazon.com.
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products - 2010

Individuals can stomp this rocket up to 400' high and, in some cases, out of sight. It's available in a new color with flame decals. "We're the original creator of Stomp Rockets. We started the stompin' revolution. We are known for our name, quality, and excellent customer service. We ARE the one the customer asks for," Cynthia Peeks, Marketing Manager, D&L Company, told TDmonthly. Launch date: June 2010.
— “Stomp Rockets are still a huge seller,” Marc Slotin, owner of Imagination Station in Spartanburg, S.C., told TDmonthly in June 2010. The same month, Sherry Phipps, owner of School Crossing in Williamsburg, Va., cited sales of 40 Stomp Rockets per month.
—  Eighteen percent of 40 retailers named Stomp Rockets a best-selling toy for boys in early summer 2010.