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 Mask Kit
Unleash this little box on a roomful of kindergarteners and prepare for mayhem! The ten corrugated cardboard masks, elastic cord, and small pile of feathers, pom-poms, and fringed paper make for simple creative fun, leaving kids to growl their way around the living room.
Tiki Topple
This game is a blast! Using strategy and more than a little blind luck, players take turns trying to maneuver their given set of "tikis" to the top of the heap. This fast-paced strategy game takes a mere 20 minutes or so to complete, and keeps kids mesmerized as they play Polynesian!
Face Off! Air Hockey
Is it a science lesson or a toy? Kids can usually tell you in no time flat. But this ingenious set actually had our testers fooled. With a little adult assistance, (but not much!), kids can assemble a miniature working air hockey set and learn about the science of air ...and a good hockey game, too.
The Cabinet of Wonders
When Mikal Kronos is hired by the prince of Bohemia to build the world's most amazing astronomical clock, it seems that fame and fortune will follow...until he comes home blind. Can his daughter help? A breakneck fantasy novel with a strong female lead is hard to find. Don't let this one pass you ...
Lightroom 2
This software makes plucking your best digital photographs a breeze, with cool features that let you sort your shoots, view the contenders side-by-side, and then slide your favorites into buckets, much like one might cluster favorite songs into playlists.
Chimalong
Tired of hearing your kindergartener practice his percussion skills on every surface in the house? Replace the ear-splitting banging with the dulcet tones of this sweet-sounding instrument, sure to bring out the musician in any child.
Woodburning Creations Kit
Let's face it: kids are naturally curious about things that burn. Harness your child's curiosity for good with this fun kit, which allows kids to burn and paint designs into a variety of wooden surfaces. He'll make a picture frame, CD case, key chain, and more!
Pocket Posh Puzzle Books
Now that your teen is in high school, toting a word search puzzle in her back pocket may be less than cool. That's why these puzzles are disguised as funky and fashionable notebooks that go with anything. The hipsters version of sudoku, word search, word roundup, and crossword puzzle books.
Mailbox and Mail Set
Adults may take the postal service for granted, but for young kids, the process of sending and receiving mail is a mysterious and incredibly interesting phenomenon. Let them go postal, with this hand-painted wooden play set.
Deluxe Magic Set
From vanishing coins to entrancing illusions, this all-wooden kit is sure to inspire would-be Houdinis. Forget those cheap plastic tricks you see hanging at the local party store - this set has 54 high quality pieces that are built to last. Plus, your child can practice hand-eye coordination, too!
Games to Go
This ingenious collection of six popular games is sure to be a traveling parent's best friend! Games include Checkers, Tic-Tac-Toe, Snakes and Ladders (similar to Hasbro's Chutes and Ladders), Mancala, Backgammon, and Chinese Checkers.
Blik Blok
If you've spent time in an elementary classroom, you've probably seen "tangrams". Teachers use them to introduce geometry and build visual-spatial perception. This puzzle game brings tangrams into three dimensions, challenging kids to configure blocks into arrangements designed by real architects.
Pengoloo
Transport the age-old game of Concentration to the South Pole, make it 3-D, and you'll have some sense of what Pengoloo has to offer. This all-wooden game improves memory and matching skills, plus the pieces make great fodder for Polar imaginings, once the game itself is over.
Safari West
Has your child always dreamed of going on safari? At this wildlife preserve in the California wine country, visitors pile into jeeps and hit the road for close encounters with zebras, rhinos, wildebeests, and more than a dozen varieties of African antelope.
Ivy and Bean Secret Treasure Box
Bean thought playing with her neighbor Ivy would be like taking the next train to Boring. But she quickly learns that bookworm Ivy is just as feisty a troublemaker as herself! The perfect gift for a second-grader, Ivy and Bean's adventures are sure to keep the pages turning.
Kenny and the Dragon
Kenny Rabbit doesn't have too many friends, until he meets a poetry-spouting, creme-brulee-eating, peace-loving dragon. What will Kenny do when Grahame is designated a scourge by the townsfolk and marked for imminent extermination?
