January 2011 Notable Toys — All

The Cooks in the Kitchen Set is sure to bring new life to your favorite play kitchen. With pots, pans and two spatulas all colorfully designed, cooking up something fun has never been easier. Launch date: January 2011.

This colorful set matches other items in the Groovy Girls collection. Set includes four bowls, flower-shaped plates, forks, knives and spoons. Launch date: January 2011.

This colorful kitchen features pink and green, bright floral designs. Kitchen includes, sink, oven, stove, microwave, refrigerator, cupboard, towel rack and a groovy dish towel. Launch date: January 2011.

Scatter the bug cards all over the table or floor.  Players race to capture the bugs by covering each Bug Card with a matching Leaf Card—It's a wild scramble to find each bug. The first player to cover all of the matching Bug Cards wins. 2-6 players. Launch date: September 2011.

First, a crazy definition is read to the group by the "Wordmeister." Next, players must grab three random word cubes and create a new word to fit the definition. Each new word is read out loud, and the "Wordmeister" picks the best one. The player whose words are chosen the most wins. 3-7 players. Launch date: March 2011.
Awards: TDmonthly Top Toy Award, June 2011
— Why it won: Fauxabulary is a great game for large groups. It's similar to Apples to Apples, but creating new words out of different word-parts encourages kids to think creatively, and have fun with letters. It combines the silly group fun of Apples to Apples with the fast-paced scramble to create and find words like Scrabble or Boggle, and is reasonably priced relative to similar party games.

The LEGO DUPLO ZipBin Legoville Toy Box and Playmat has a colorful city theme and can be used as a fun storage container for DUPLO blocks as well as an easy to clean playmat. Sturdy, strong, stackable, portable. DUPLO Blocks not included.

The LEGO DUPLO ZipBin Toy Box and Playmat has a colorful animal theme and can be used as a fun storage container for DUPLO blocks as well as an easy to clean playmat. Sturdy, strong, stackable, portable. DUPLO Blocks not included.

Unzip the graphic, patch adorned exterior of this backpack into a 2-lane drag strip with a winding cityscape in the background.  The car’s body is integrated into the shape of the backpack – with a sewn on Hot Wheels patch on the hood.

Imagine Darth Vader speeding through the trench of the Death Star after the Rebel fighters, guiding his TIE Fighter in and out of obstacles, Rebel fire, and into space.  Unzip the LEGO Star Wars ZipBin TIE Fighter and you find yourself in that very trench. Dodge other starfighters to land safely in the loading bay before fighting your way to the control room.  Use the ZipBin TIE Fighter as a space-port garage or storage bin for all the pieces. LEGO Blocks not included.

This carry case has vibrant summer colors on the outside and a paradise beach inside. Girls can carry anything from sunglasses and sunscreen to sandwiches and juice.

This beautiful Barbie ZipBin®Clutch is a girly accessory for any outfit.  With Barbie-pink woven designs on the front dressing room on the inside, the Barbie ZipBin Clutch  lets every girl make a statement. Launch date: June 1st, 2011.

This mansion doubles as storage. When fully opened, it is a girly, two story house for Barbie and her friends. When shut, kids can store anything from Barbie to makeup to notes passed in class.

This battle case doubles as both a storage case for the Ninjago masters to be stored in as well as the supreme battle arena. When it’s time to fight, chose between fire and ice for your showdown.  Featuring colorful artwork, the case can be used to store Ninjago figures, spinners, weapons and cards all away neatly. Portable; LEGO Bricks not included.

This double sided playmat and animal figurine set allows children to creatively experience the safari environment. Real Relics Safari-Land includes 4 museum quality animals and a large wipe clean 2-sided playmat.

This dinosaur playset allows children to explore realistic, prehistoric figurines and there environement. Real Relics Dino-Land includes 4 museum quality animals and a large wipe clean 2-sided playmat.

Keep your child neat with ZipBin Fire House PlayPack.  ZipBin Fire House PlayPack is a backpack that looks like a Fire House. Pull the velcro firetruck flap open to see inside the firehouse. It acts as a playset, but is also useful for storing die-cast trucks and other toys. When play is done, the firehouse zips up, capturing the toys inside for easy clean up!  This play set includes 1 - 3" die cast firetruck with ladder. 

Players form words with the letters in their hand. They add a letter, build a new word, and capture their opponent's word, all in one turn. Players score points and earn 'royalties' for words of all one color. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins. "Gameplay allows players to capture cards to build bigger, better words," Lynn Araujo, communications director for U.S. Games Systems, told TDmonthly. Launch date: May 2008.
Awards: A Games 100 Selection (2008, 2009, 2010)

Developed by award-winning artist David Kisor, the songs on this CD help children develop focused attention on experiences in the present moment and focused intention on positive self-talk and self-image. Developing mindfulness helps a child control their reactions to stress, develop self-awareness, and be ready to respond optimally to learning opportunities. "The Here Now Know-How songs promote mindfulness in several ways. First they guide children’s self-talk to positive affirmations about themselves, others and the world. Secondly, they give children the experience of control over their sensations, thoughts and feelings. And thirdly, they help children deal with negative feelings and experiences," Emily Sandul, director of sales & marketing for Growing Sound, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 2011.

Imagination Generation sings fun songs that build imagination and creativity in children. Developed by award-winning composer and performer David Kisor, the songs from this album are designed to help young children realize that the mind is both a toy and a tool. "The music from this album is based on the latest research from the field of Positive Psychology. In these songs, we strive to achieve three creative thinking skills. First, we want to increase the fluency of children’s associations. That is, we want to increase the sheer number of associations they can generate to any given situation or stimulus. Secondly, we want to increase the originality of these associations. We want children to generate associations that typically children would not think of. And finally, we want to increase the adaptability of these associations. We want these associations to lead directly to creative solutions to both every day problems, what we call ingenuity; as well as visions of true artistic masterpieces. Music is a natural vehicle for promoting imagination and creativity in young children. The combination of lyrics and music in self-talk, experiential and story songs provide unique strategies for building the creative mind," Emily Sandul, director of sales & marketing for Growing Sound, told TDmonthly. Launch date: September 2010.

This classic character is a plush animal that turns into a pillow and blanket. Perfect to cuddle up with while reading Norman Bridwell's classic books to your little one. Launch date: June 2011.

Moona Luna is the new musical project brought to you by the Latin-Alternative group Pistolera. Inspired by the birth of her first child—during the making of the last album—Pistolera's lead singer and songwriter Sandra Velasquez now brings us family-friendly songs in Spanish and English that continue the band's tradition of positive messages and toe-tapping beats. Moona Luna's debut album, Piñata Party, features eleven original songs as well as a cover of the Latin American folk song De Colores. Brooklyn based family music hero and Moona Luna fan, Dan Zanes, makes a guest vocal appearance on Brinca, Jump. "This is bilingual party music for the whole family," Beth Blenz-Clucas, PR, told TDmonthly. Launch Date: March 2011.

Among the sand and glitter in the I Spy Wonder Tubes are I Spy pictures. Find the floating pictures in the tube to answer the I Spy riddle/rhymes. There are three different sets of riddles and five different colors to collect. "The I Spy Wonder Tubes are unique because they feature the I Spy images AND I Spy riddles," Carol Comes, senior product manager at Briarpatch Inc., told TDmonthly. Launch date: February 2011.

12 full-color double sided activity work cards provide individual and group practice at 4 levels of difficulty. The Work Cards help students transition their understanding of halves, thirds, fourths, fifths, sixths, eighths, and ninths into Real World Applications. Comes in a folder that opens to a series of Fraction Number Lines. Self-checking for use at a center. "The focus is on Real World Application and helps students transition from concept to daily life," Bruce Brown, president of World Class Learning Materials, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 2011.

In this simulation of a real paleontology fossil dig, children dig for a fossilized shark tooth, brachiopod shell, gastropod shell, and “squid” shell. These real, millions of years old fossils are enclosed in a “brick” and are revealed by using the supplied scraping and brush tools (similar to what real paleontologists use). Young paleontologists then take a closer look at these fossils with the enclosed magnifying glass and learn about each fossil using the provided fun fact cards. "This is a unique fossil dig in that there are 4 real fossils embedded in each brick," Esther Novis, president of The Young Scientists Club, told TDmonthly. Launch date: January 2011.