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The Few, The Proud...The Award-Winning Toys!
Who Made the Cut This Year?
By Alison Marek and Julie L. Jones
Thousands
of products are introduced to the toy industry every year, but only a
limited number are good enough, playable enough and innovative enough
to garner an award.
In addition to issuing
TDmonthly
Awards, TDmonthly
Magazine regularly asks manufacturers
to present their award winners to our readers so that retailers can quickly
identify products with great potential and manufacturers can learn and
be inspired by others' successes. Here are the most recent responses:
“Debate in Sign Language” from the LifeStories for Kids™ Series by SELMEDIA INC.
 A smart but arrogant king challenges the commoners to a debate in sign language. Can a lowly chicken farmer beat the king and save his fellow townsmen’s homes? Nationally renowned storyteller Donna Washington has her audience roaring as she tells a story about assumptions and biases. “Debate in Sign Language” is a storybook/DVD from the LifeStories for Kids™ Storybook Series. This series helps children understand complex character traits (such as integrity, perseverance and courage) through the engaging and ancient art of storytelling. This product won a 2007 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: July 1, 2007.
12/14/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 8 to 11) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
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“Anansi and the Turtle” from the LifeStories for Kids™ Series by SELMEDIA INC.
 Anansi the spider is selfish. His first and only thought is of himself. Can Turtle get Anansi to change? Nationally renowned storyteller Donna Washington retells this classic African tale about respect.
“Anansi and the Turtle” is a storybook and DVD from the LifeStories for Kids™ Storybook Series. The LifeStories for Kids ™ Series helps children understand complex character traits (such as integrity, perseverance and courage) through the engaging and ancient art of storytelling. It won a 2007 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: July 1, 2007.
12/14/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 8 to 11) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
“The Ghost House” from the LifeStories for Kids™ Series by SELMEDIA INC.
 Ghosts are running rampant in the dilapidated house down the street. Or are they? Nationally acclaimed storyteller Olga Loya tells of her own encounter with a “haunted house” in this story about how appearances can sometimes be deceiving. “The Ghost House” is a storybook and DVD from the LifeStories for Kids™ Storybook Series, which helps children understand complex character traits (such as integrity, perseverance and courage) through the engaging and ancient art of storytelling. It won a 2007 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: July 1, 2007.
12/14/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 8 to 11) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
“Growing Up in East LA” from the LifeStories for Kids™ Series by SELMEDIA INC.
 How do you fit in a new culture and still keep your heritage alive? Nationally acclaimed storyteller Olga Loya tells how she navigated the cross-cultural challenges of growing up in a Mexican-American family. “Growing Up in East LA” is a storybook and DVD from the LifeStories for Kids™ Storybook Series, which helps children understand complex character traits (such as integrity, perseverance and courage) through the engaging and ancient art of storytelling. It won a 2007 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: July 1, 2007.
12/14/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 8 to 11) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Banana Split Card Game by U.S. GAMES SYSTEMS, INC.
 Two to four players collect Topping cards to create mouth-watering Ice Cream treats. All players get their own Ice Cream Stands to hide their Topping cards, and the Play Mat makes game play fun and easy. Wild cards, Scoop cards and other special cards make Banana Split Card Game even more exciting. Completed Ice Cream cards earn points and extra cards. The player with the most points wins. “The charming artwork and all the delightful little extras tucked inside make Banana Split Card Game special,” Director of Marketing Communications Lynn Araujo of U.S. Games Systems told TDmonthly. This product won a 2007 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: December 2007.
12/14/2007 (Price: $15.95; Age: 6 and up) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Funny Bone Logic by LIVING FOLKLORE INC.
Funny Bone Logic is an interactive DVD that teaches games and skills that open the heart and encourage children to explore the wisdom that resides in their bodies, emotions and imagination. Endorsed by teachers, moms, The Coalition for Quality Children's Entertainment, Dr. Toy, Patch Adams and others, Funny Bone Logic weaves a magic that begs taking part. “Funny Bone Logic was developed out of 10 years of successful school programs across the United States,” Jacob Devaney of Living Folklore told TDmonthly. This product was named to Dr. Toy's 100 Best Products List for 2007. Launch date: April 4, 2007.
12/11/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 3 to 8) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
The T-Shirt Game by BUFFALO GAMES INC.
 This fashionable party game allows players to create their own T-shirts by matching ridiculous slogans to outrageous images. Points are awarded using “Hot or Not” cards, which also entertain with clever references to popular culture. The game is intended for three to six players. Each game set includes 70 T-Shirt Cards, 209 Slogan Cards, 77 Hot or Not Cards and instructions. This product is an iParenting Media Greatest Product of 2007 Award winner. Launch date: January 1, 2007. Read Review
12/11/2007 (Price: $19.95; Age: 14 and up) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Xeko Mission: China by MATTER GROUP LLC
 The animal trading card game stimulates kids’ interest in math, science and nature. Players use cards to match wits against opponents, casting actual animal species as the heroes and basing game play on fragile ecosystem relationships. The starter-set game includes 130 cards, an oversized game mat, a rule book and play guides, all packaged in a heavy-duty storage box decorated with imagery reflective of ancient Chinese culture. This product received a 2008 iParenting Media Award. Launch date: July 2008.
12/11/2007 (Price: $24.99; Age: 8 to 12) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Tylz! by ENGINUITY GAMES
 The game sharpens abstract thinking and spatial-relations skills by asking players to place magnetic tiles on a board, matching as many color edges as possible. As the game progresses, the board becomes a colorful mosaic and scoring points becomes more challenging. The game includes 80 magnetic tiles. The game is “fully magnetic, including the scoring markers - no paper or pencil needed,” Andy Daniel, president of Enginuity Games LLC, told TDmonthly. This product is a 2007 Parent’s Choice Award winner. Launch date: September 15, 2007.
12/7/2007 (Price: $24.95; Age: 5 and up) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Travel Tylz! by ENGINUITY GAMES
 Eighty different tiles fit together in countless ways, and a player places one magnetic tile to match as many color edges as possible. Each color matched scores a point, and stars score double. When a player matches three edges, he or she gets to take an extra turn. As the game progresses, the board becomes a colorful mosaic, offering ever more challenging ways to score. Everything, even the on-the-board scoring markers, is magnetic for travel. This product won a 2007 iParenting Media HOT Award.
12/7/2007 (Price: $12.50) [Add to my Inquiry Basket][?]
Related Video:
Following are some of the programs represented in TDmonthly.com's section of award winners: Dr.
Toy, iParenting
Media Awards, TIA
T.O.T.Y., Oppenheim
Toy Portfolio, The
National Parenting Center, and Parents'
Choice Awards.
You may also access TDmonthly's review
section to see which products earned 5 TD stars.
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