December 2012 New Specialty Toys — All

Blossom Cottage is a wooden doll house that comes complete with a family of dolls, cat, dog and all the furniture kids need. It has a convenient carry handle in the roof so that it is easily transportable and the front folds down to make the garden.

Zingo! Sight Words is a fun, interactive game that teaches reading skills through fast-paced play. Designed for players ages 4-6, this game teaches early readers to recognize and read some of the most common words in the English language. The sight words featured in this game were identified by leading educators as the most fundamental. Learning and mastering them is key to becoming a successful, fluent reader - doing it through play makes learning fun. Launch date: September 2012.
Awards: 2013 TDmonthly Seal of Approval, Play On Words (PAL) Award
— As of 11/15/2012 this product had 4.9 out of 5 stars from 17 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Helps kids learn to read; Easy to learn, but still challenging and fun.

PathWords Jr. is a clever word search puzzle with a twist. To complete each themed challenge, place colorful Tetris-style puzzle pieces over letters to spell a word forward or backwards. With its unique design and tactile appeal, PathWords Jr. builds spatial reasoning and strengthens vocabulary with clever graphic hints and funny word play. An ideal game for children ages 6 and  up, PathWords Jr. instills a lifelong love of word puzzles and logic games.
Awards: Dr. Toy Best Vacation Children's Product Award; ASTRA Best Toys winner in 2011; Creative Child Puzzle of the Year; Parents' Choice (Gold); Oppenheim Toy Portfolio (Platinum); Teachers' Choice; National Parenting Publications Award (NAPPA).
— As of 11/15/2012 this product had 4.9 out of 5 stars from 17 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Helps build logic and spacial skills; helps kids develop literacy skills.

Featuring cool transparent cards, Swish is an innovative spatial game for children ages 8 and up that challenges mental muscles to the extreme. Players must examine cards, mentally flipping & rotating to make matches, or “Swishes.” Swishes are made by layering cards so that every ball swishes into a hoop of the same color. Players must prepare their brain for a seriously fun workout during this fast-paced challenge that’s fun for the whole family.
Awards: Parents’ Choice Silver Honors award; TOTY Nominee for Educational Toy of the Year 2012.
— As of 11/15/2012 this product had 4.7 out of 5 stars from 56 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Helps develop spatial relation skills; Well designed; innovative gameplay. Cons: Might be difficult for younger kids.

The Hot Dots pen works with dozens of Hot Dots card sets, providing instantaneous visual and audio feedback. Simply press the pen to choose an answer on any Hot Dots or Hot Dots Jr. card for an immediate response—cool, kid-friendly phrases for correct answers and gentle redirection for incorrect responses.

First Grade Activities Homework Helper provides children in first grade with extra help in learning important skills. Packed full of fun-to-do activities and appealing art, children will have fun completing the reproducible pages while learning first grade skills at the same time. Answer keys are also included where needed. These workbooks provide help for students who need extra practice with basic skills, for the accelerated student who enjoys an extra challenge, and for the young learner who is developing basic concepts and readiness skills. They also help boost self-confidence and reinforce basic skills with activities that are geared to the specific grade level.
— 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 Homework Helpers each month, making them a top-2 best selling educational products.

A rich vocabulary is critical for successful test-taking, particularly in reading comprehension. Hot Dots Laugh It Up! Vocabulary Card sets are a fun and interactive way to grow kids’ vocabularies. Includes 6 Interactive vocabulary card sets in all, including synonyms (2730), antonyms (2731), multiple-meaning words (shown here), prefixes and suffixes (2735), context clues (2733), and homophones (2732). 50 double-sided, illustrated cards per set (100 questions), featuring jokes, riddles, cartoons, and kid-friendly questions.
— In a Fall 2012 survey, two out of 12 retailers told TDmonthly that Hot Dots were their best selling educational toy.

Men of Iron relates the thrilling adventures of a young man seeking justice for himself and his family in fifteenth-century England. With his father unfairly outlawed by King Henry IV, Myles Falworth faces enormous odds before he can become a knight and champion his family’s cause against powerful foes. With the help of loyal friends, Myles demonstrates courage and persistence as he confronts his opponents one by one, winning self-understanding and love along the way. In addition to being a classic adventure, Men of Iron offers fascinating details of castle life and of the long road to knighthood. This book is sure to become a favorite of any boy or girl who loves adventure, and will turn anyone new to the medieval era into a lifelong devotee. Written by Howard Pyle, unabridged reading by Jim Weiss.

Award winning! The start  of many a story begins right here!

Robin Hood, Magician, Royalty, Wizard, Superhero - All need a great cape like this! Fairy Finery believes capes are the versatile start of imaginative playtime. Made of washable, soft poly suede, closes with Velcro at neck for easy wear and safety. The full hood has a tassel to finish it in style.
Colors: Forest Green, Brown, Black, Red.

With five favorite mini microbes dressed up for Christmas: a Stomach Ache Gingerbread Man, a caroling Sore Throat, Frosty the White Blood Cell Snowman, an angelic Nerve Cell, and an exclusive Amoeba in sparkly gold lamé, only available in this set.

The kazoo measures 4.75” in overall length and comes individually boxed in a pegable four-color window gift box. The kazoos are sold as a 24-piece, four-color point-of-purchase display. The kazoo is handmade in a small Western New York factory which has made kazoos since 1916 and uses similar tools from that time. The packaging, also produced in the Western New York area, proudly features the U.S. Flag on the box and display.

The littleBits Extended Kit is the third and biggest kit by littleBits. We hand picked all of the most fun, mechanical Bits and crammed them into one double-decker kit. This kit contains all the Bits one needs to make littleBits creations. It features a dc motor, motion trigger, buzzer, 2 wires, and more.

The Classic set consists of 36 varieties of maple blocks. Painted with non-toxic water based acrylic paints and sealed with organic beewax.
Awards: 2013 TDmonthly Seal of Approval

In this fun game, kids create an endless cast of characters as leaves, ribbons, coins, seashells, paper clips and a variety of found objects combine to make millions of faces. 160 object images. Made from 90% recycled materials.
Awards: 2013 TDmonthly Seal of Approval

Each glitter glue pack contains four different tubes. Each tube has two glittering colors swirled together.

With Xyloba mezzo kids can create a great variety of melodic marble runs, using the 8 interchangeable sound modules to produce complex melodies. Made in Switzerland.

Focusing on the number 10, Pig 10 is an exciting card game for children. As in "MAU MAU", players take turns in placing cards in the middle of the table while adding the number of the card to the value of the card pile. A player reaching 10 exactly wins all played cards, whereas a player exceeding the 10 has to give the reward to his right neighbor. In this easy and popular game, players must make decisions with every turn: do I have the right cards in my hand, can I put my left neighbor under pressure, or will I step into the trap my right neighbors have set for me?

"Mord im Arosa" is a three-dimensional mystery game. The totally new game concept brings a thrilling and tense atmosphere to the gaming table. Somewhere on the eight levels of the hotel tower, two crime victims are found one after another. Any player could be the murderer. However, players cannot see where the tracks of the suspects go - they can only hear it. A unique and smartly arranged interplay of suspicion and forensics guarantees astonishing and mysterious twists and turns: tracks disappear and reappear in other places. A player who is caught too often at the wrong time and place will be found guilty through the burden of proof.

Green Toys' Flatbed Truck and Race Car lets kids ages one and up enjoy two cars, either apart for racing or stacked together for hauling. These eco-conscious vehicles are made in the USA from 100 percent recycled plastic milk containers. The recycled products in this set help to save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Parents can feel confident giving this toy to their little one as it contains no BPA, PVC, phthalates, or external coatings.
— As of 10/26/2012 this product had 4.6 out of 5 stars from 51 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Durable; BPA and pthalate free; made in the USA. Cons: Several users mentioned that the wheels had difficulty turning.

This wooden play castle features hand-painted pink accents to keep any princess happy in her castle, plus two removable turrets, balconies, flying buttress, flag and a working drawbridge. Castle opens fully for hours of engaging play. Measures 17.5"L x 27"W x 15.25"H.
— As of 10/26/2012 this product had 4.8 out of 5 stars from 207 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: Aesthetically pleasing; durable. Cons: Several reviewers said that the openings to the castle were extremely small, making it difficult to get furniture in and out; some reviewers mentioned the wood splintering.

This handcrafted wood set includes seven pieces: A bucket drum with a natural skin head, a pair of drum sticks, a single jingle stick, a handled castanet and a pair of mini maracas. Fun for the whole family or class! Includes a parent/teacher friendly activity guide for ideas on using the items to encourage child development.
— As of 10/30/2012 this product had 4.6 out of 5 stars from 26 reviews on Amazon.com. Pros: The drum makes a nice noise; fun for kids on their own or in groups.
Awards: 2015 TDmonthly Top Toy Award

This handcrafted 8 in 1 game includes Backgammon, Checkers, Chess, Chinese Checkers, Cribbage, Dominoes, Magnetic Darts and Poker. The pieces for each game are individually wrapped in black drawstring pouches and stored inside the beautiful black wooden box for safekeeping. Instruction guide included. Dimensions: 10 ½" square x 3". Launch date: December 2012.

Toxic is a venomous little snake with her number 1 goal to win at everything. The other zombies are her best buddies but she will constantly challenge them at any contest. Don’t ever tell Toxic that she’s not cool. She is 12 in high, and made in super soft velboa fabric, very cuddly and comes with a personality tag. Launch date: 2012.