January 2011 Notable Toys — Educational

The new Magic Window Talking Farm features a color LCD display that brings farm animals to life with smooth animation. Featuring three levels of play, eight nursery rhymes, and five songs, the Magic Window Farm engages children with its bilingual play option, teaching children numbers and letters in English and Spanish. Children learn by listening, watching, and interacting with the animals on the farm through naming, matching, answering, and sequencing games.
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products - 2010

Ready2Learn™ Paint & Clay Texture Rollers is a roll with paint and clay craft activity that is as easy as using a rolling pin with a set of 4 designs. The clever styles include a dot pattern of various sizes in a random array, a wave pattern, zigzag squiggles, and parallel multi-width rollers are 7” long and made of very durable plastic and hard rubber. Soap and water are all that is needed for an easy clean-up.
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products - 2010

The play mat, Talk of the Farm, is designed for children to learn while they play, reinforcing the concepts of counting, learning colors, and animal sounds and helps children learn to follow directions.
Awards: Dr. Toy 100 Best Children's Products - 2010

Tie Buddies were created by a mom to help fellow parents teach their children how to tie their shoes. The bright plastic Tie Buddies feature princesses or race cars and attach to shoelaces to make tying a snap. The characters on Tie Buddies help build the motor skills and confidence kids need to tie their own shoes.
— Christin of the ABCD Diaries gave Tie Buddies an “A+” and her “Cool For School Seal of Approval.” Her daughter “loves the way they match her shoes and the pink fairy theme matches her personality perfectly.”
— After trying the product with her daughters, Deb from Just a Mom’s Take on Things declared that “the best gift any parent can give their child’s teacher is to put a pair of Tie Buddies on their child’s shoes.” According to Deb, “Tie Buddies are so quick and easy – and effective, they should be on every kid’s laces.”
— Angela, The Freebie Junkie, was amazed when her husband taught their five-year-old son to tie his shoes in minutes thanks to Tie Buddies.