Toy Fair Preview 2010: Science & Nature

This frog kit contains 31 parts. It has fine detailed sculpting and hand-painted parts. Organs and body parts detach. Display platform and illustrated guide book are included. Recommended for ages 8+. WARNING: Choking hazard - Small Parts. Not for children under 3 years.

Kids can make their own bouncy balls with this kit that includes 25 packets of ball-making powder, 10 molds and instructions for creating the colorful balls. All it requires is pouring the powder into a mold, dipping it in water, and then waiting four minutes for the finished product.

The Dangerous Book for Boys: Electronics presents information on electronics every child should know through fun, engaging, and impressive experiments and activities. Children ages eight and up learn how to construct simple electronic toys, such as a joy buzzer and insect.  It comes with a 32-page, full-color experiment manual and retails for $35.95. Launch date: Fall 2009.

Stevia is known to produce a sweetener twenty to thirty times sweeter than sugar. The Sweet Leaf Plant is a sub-tropical plant that will grow 2' to 3' tall. "This product contains a plant that actually works! It is made in the United States and is guaranteed to grow," Alicia Borley, PR manager for DuneCraft, told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2009.

The Gyro-discs spin up to 1000 rpm. Just hold the 11" metal ring and strike the smaller, colored discs. As you rotate the ring, the discs begin spinning faster and faster, like mini-gyroscopes. At first, the challenge is to keep all the discs spinning. Once you can do this, there are several tricks and stunts to master.

In this kit built around eco-friendly activities, kids get to shrink plastic, make a compost tube, make paper, decompose food, learn about reducing, reusing and recycling, and more.
— Jeanette Lauture, owner of Aunt Jean’s Toys & Treats in Montclair, N.J., told TDmonthly in August 2009 that her store sold 36 of the Magic School Bus series kits in one month.

Ever wondered if the light in the fridge stays on when you close the door? Fiber optics can light the way. It may sound like some supercomplicated electronic technology, but the basics are quite simple. Author Jim Becker helps kids understand what’s going on as they use the power of light to build 10 high-tech electronic projects, including a burglar alarm, an electronic rooster, and a flexible flashlight. The kit includes two preassembled workbenches (transmitter and receiver), three optical fiber rods and a connector, 26 hookup wires, two LED couplers, 12 activity cards , and a 12-panel fully illustrated booklet. "The retail feedback we have received tells us that there is not a similar product on the market," Darcy Morris, Director of Sales & Marketing, SmartLab Toys, told TDmonthly. Launch date: April 30, 2010.

This kit includes chemicals needed to grow a Rose Quartz crystal cluster of up to 4" in diameter. It comes with the Space Age Crystal Growing chemical, a stirring rod, a display pedestal and instructions. Within just a few hours of transferring the chemical to hot water, pouring the mixture into the vessel and letting it cool, crystals will begin to form and then continue growing for many days.

The Green Science - Soda Can Robug is an imaginative way for children to explore mechanics and electricity. The kit includes a plastic mechanic body, wire wings, wire legs, motor with wires, screws and detailed instructions.
— In a Fall 2013 survey, Gary Green, owner of Toy Box of Asheville Inc in Asheville, N.C., told TDmonthly that the Soda Can Robug from Toysmith was one of their best-selling science toys.

This 9” x 6” living space for ants includes four ports that attach to other ant habitats in the line, an ordering form to send off for receipt of live ants in the mail, and an illustrated “Ant Watcher’s Manual.” The break-resistant, escape-proof habitat is situation on a tip-proof stand.
— Two of 38 retailers named Uncle Milton’s Ant Farms as one of their best-selling science toys in August 2009, citing sales of three to five per month.

Attacking Inch worm has orange, spiky limbs to ward off any predator who seeks to challenge it as a delectable delight. Its initial defensive mechanism may fool intruders for a moment, but still requires a way to heed out of harm’s way. The sun’s rays power this mini solar kit to slither along to safety. The mechanical movements are designed to simulate the movements of its soft-bodied derivative. Because its home is above ground, Attacking Inch Worm has a hard plastic body to protect itself. No batteries or tools are required, and there are less than 50 parts to assemble. Launch date: April 2007.