Gift Guide2008
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'!
Make Your Own Sock Puppets
With this kit in hand, kids can transform three fuzzy socks into a trio of colorful friends, ripe for an impromptu show. The box comes flush with wiggly eyes, self-adhesive fur, pom poms, and peel and stick shapes, and it requires no glue. Translation: no goop to clean up when the crafting's done!
Toot and Otto
Sometimes, it's the simple things that give us the most pleasure, and do the most good for our brains! This game is a cross between a three-dimensional word-search puzzle and the classic strategy game Connect Four, with quirky dogs, Toot and Otto, as the game's mascots.
World Vision
Make this year an eye-opener for your child, by teaching her to spread love beyond her own doorstep. Start her out with a "giving budget" and a copy of the World Vision catalog, which contains a smorgasbord of poverty-fighting items to donate, from goats to clean water.
Toy Dance Party
This early chapter book is a delightful look into the secret lives of playthings. Lumphy the buffalo, Stingray the stuffed stingray and Plastic the bouncy ball will capture your child's heart, and their silly antics will have your whole family laughing. Great as a read-aloud or a read-alone.
Wonder Bear
This amazing book begins from humble seeds-- a large stalk shoots up towards the sky and out crawls a polar bear with a magical top hat. What will happen next? The best part of this book is the fact that there are no words, allowing your child to create his own storyline.
How to Be an Explorer of the World: Portable Life Museum
Think of this less as a book and more as a guide to individuality, creativity, self-expression, and positive thinking. This tome teaches that everything around us--from coffee cup rings on notebooks to a crumpled up leaf--is the stuff of great art, and merits closer observation and analysis.
Olympus Stylus SW 850 Digital Camera
If you've ever wished parenting a teenager would be shock-proof, you're in for a disappointment. But, lucky for you, there's the next best thing: a digital camera that can not only survive a drop of five feet, it's also waterproof, dust-proof and freeze-proof.
Brother Sewing Machine
Got a tween who's glued to the tube for every Project Runway episode? Introduce your designer-to-be to the creative possibilities of owning a sewing machine! The practice of sewing ones own clothing may seem like ancient history, but stitching for style is enjoying a well-deserved renaissance.
Stone Soup Magazine
When you imagine your child 10 years from now, do you imagine her reading The New Yorker? Then you've got to get your hands on this magazine! Every story, poem, and illustration is penned by a kid ages 8-13, but it's edited by a professional. Inspiring reading, perfect for a budding author or poet.
Mummy Mystery
With 48 challenges and 4 levels of difficulty, this strategic maze game can be adapted to any child's capability, and occupy them for as little as 5 minutes or as long as a few hours. Kids pick a challenge and arrange tiles to build a "road." Wonderful for cognitive thinking and reasoning skills!
Doodles-n-Art
Kids are crazy about crafts, especially at this age, when skills like drawing, cutting, and gluing are well-established. But it's hard to find the time to get supplies and ideas. Introducing Doodles-n-Art, a subscription service that delivers a new craft kit to your door every month!
Leatherman Juice CS4 Pocket Multi-Tool
Your teen may be able to talk his way out of any situation, but talking won't open cans, saw branches, or furnish four different screwdrivers to get the job done. That's where the Leatherman multi-tool comes in.
Square Up!
This game looks really easy when you see the box, but looks can be deceiving! Shake up the little canister and you'll get a random pattern of colored blocks, which players then race to duplicate on a flat tray of tiles. It's a boon for math and science, and can become addictive.
Buzzword Junior
Based on the popular vocabulary-building game for older children, this is a quick-moving game in which players have just 45 seconds to solve a given set of clues, all of which pertain to a specific "buzzword." Sharpens young minds like an interactive crossword puzzle. Get your buzz on!
Art Shark
Have you ever wanted to be an art dealer or museum cat burglar? In Art Shark, an engaging and beautifully illustrated boardless board game, you can do both! Not only is this a fun family game, it will also get your child acquainted with over 60 classic works of art.
Kiki Magazine
Want to give your daughter something special in the mail? Sign her up for a subscription to this magazine for creative girls. This isn't another glossy fashion mag showing airbrushed bodies; instead, it teaches girls how to nurture their own sense of style, rather than follow the pack.
