Gift Guide2007
From toys that stand the test of time to board games that are anything but boring, we found the best products for each grade that will build your child's brain as well as being chock full of fun. Our list of loot is kid-tested, teacher approved, and full of options for any family, so get wrappin'!
Flip Video Camcorder
Have a budding movie-maker on your hands, but not sure you're ready to shell out big bucks for a camera? This camcorder is an affordable option and it's so easy to use, even a fifth grader can shoot video whenever the spirit moves him. There's no fancy footwork required here-- to record kids simply ...
Celestial Seeker: The Ultimate Star Finder
If you've ever tried to locate the constellations with your child on a pitch black night, fumbling with the guide book and a flashlight, you'll appreciate this great toolkit for stargazers. The Celestial Seeker is a handheld device illuminating twenty constellation transparencies with night vision ...
Gobblet!
Our six-year-old product tester loved it, our nine-year-old product tester loved it, and then many of our elementary-aged product testers were up in arms because they couldn't pry the game away from the grown-ups. The beauty of this game is that it can be relatively easy to play and win, or, bump ...
The Hidden Grail: Sir Percival and the Fisher King
It's unlikely that your kids have ever listened to a bard in action. Enter Odds Bodkin, a world-renowned storyteller equipped with harp and 12-string guitar. This CD, based on the King Arthur legends, is the story of a sheltered boy who grows up in the woods, with only his mother for company. When ...
Cirque du Soleil
Hopefully, your child has been receiving a good helping of the arts at school, along with his reading, writing, and 'rithmatic. More and more, though, it falls to parents to fill in the gaps. Fifth grade is a prime year to wow your child with a live performance, and Cirque du Soleil could be just ...
Bananagrams
If Scrabble's point system and competitiveness gets your little wordsmith down, this funky anagram game is the perfect alternative. Simple and portable, all you need is a flat surface and this set of ceramic tiles which comes in a banana-shaped canvas case. Players take tiles from the "bunch" which ...
The Marvelous and Fabulous Me Quiz Book
Is your daughter a perfectionist? A peacemaker? An introvert? This kit will help her find out. A fun take on the ever-popular personality test, which kids of this age group tend to love, this box packs in more than fifty quizzes to give girls insight into what makes them tick. Some of the quizzes, ...
Blokus
Deceptively simple in appearance, Blokus is an addictive game of strategy and spatial reasoning. Resembling a 3-D game of Tetris, the playing board is a simple grid onto which players fit differently shaped tiles as they spread their pieces towards the center of the board. The catch? Each of your ...
Beginner's Origami: Birds, Beasts, Bugs, and Butterflies
For a fusion of art, math, and pure manual dexterity, it's hard to match Origami. With proper adult guidance, even very small children can make simple shapes. But older kids can still learn a great deal by practicing this ancient art, especially as they move into the increasingly abstract math ...
Fractiles — 7
Symmetry is a beautiful thing, and it's also a great lesson in geometry. That's what makes this magnetic tiling toy such a must-have. This refreshing set of manipulatives includes 96 magnetic tiles in yellow, red and blue, and a steel magnetic activity board. The tiles three shapes are types of ...
