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'!
Spore
This much-anticipated computer game will give your teen exactly what he's been hankering for--the chance to control his own universe! With a few clicks, your child is on his way to creating a civilization, starting from a single-celled organism and moving all the way up to a galactic super power.
Spring Trampoline
Talk about a workout! Not only do trampolines burn calories like crazy, but they increase endurance, strength, spatial awareness, and balance. And they're so much fun to use that exercise feels like play, not work.
Bobo and the New Neighbor
Bobo tries his best to be a good dog. He walks himself. He welcomes the mailman (even if he does knock him down sometimes with his enthusiasm). He shares his food. So when a new neighbor moves next door, he's determined to make her feel welcome.
A Practical Guide to Dragon Riding
A follow up to the runaway hit, "A Practical Guide to Dragons", this delightful tome details everything your child needs to know in order to find, train, and raise a dragon, including in-depth directions for diet and exercise. Enter a fantastical world and set your child's imagination soaring!
240 Piece Puzzleball
Wondering how to assemble a 3D globe out of 240 pieces? It's a puzzler, all right. But this puzzleball has all the components needed to make a spherical globe, including a display stand to show off your child's prize once it's been pieced together. A fun and educational activity for all seasons.
Meerkat Manor
Meerkats have one of the most cooperative and tightly-knit societies in the animal kingdom, and Animal Planet's documentary camera work, expert narration, and a few fun names to keep the animals all straight, add up to equal terrific drama in the animal kingdom!
Spill and Spell
This letter game works like a movable crossword puzzle, with players all scouting for letters to join together into words. The tiles are in a "face-up" pool for all to see. When a player spots a word sitting in the pool, he scoops its letters out and lines them up.
BBC Knowledge Magazine
With this science-forward magazine, teens can learn how cheetahs take care of their cubs, what scientists know about the nature of consciousness, or how online worlds will be used in the 21st century as virtual science labs. This is one glossy you'll be glad to catch your child reading.
Tamar
Layered, exciting, and packed with secrets that unravel one by one, this award-winning book is the tale of two Allied spies who parachute into Nazi-occupied Holland during the winter of 1944, to help organize the Dutch Resistance movement.
Lego Creator Beach House
This beach house packs everything we love about those little plastic bricks into an incredibly appealing package. The set has three cool projects stuffed into one box-- a beach bungalow, a cozy cafe, and a chic little apartment building.
The Mousehunter
Emiline dreams of becoming a famous mousehunter. One day fate intervenes, when she's given the chance to hunt down the infamous pirate Mousebeard. What follows is a high sea adventure full of mythical creatures, double-crossing pirates, and of course, incredibly interesting mice!
Audible Kids
Fourth graders are pros when it comes to downloading songs for an iPod. This year, give your child something a little different to tickle his ears, and his brain! Audible, a popular service for adults, recently introduced a special site just for kids, jam-packed with amazing titles.
Art Time Easel
Parents, unhand the toolbox! This super-swank easel makes that screwdriver completely unnecessary. Made of just three pieces of earth-friendly wood, it helps your kid get up and at it in no time, whether she's making a finger-paint masterpiece, or working on a Picasso-esque self portrait.
You Mix It: Secret Formula Lab
Smart Lab's Secret Formula Lab has projects that let kids create "alien blood," grow their very own fungus, and make invisible ink - all from simple, nontoxic materials. Just beware that instant play may not be possible without a pantry stocked with baking soda and vinegar!
FlapDoodle
FlapDoodle involves lots of ridiculous trivia and even sillier tasks. Play involves moving through a beautifully illustrated “factory” using one of the deliciously absurd character game pieces. Quick, creative, and endlessly amusing, this is an absolute must for any family's board game ...
Emily Windsnap: 3 Swishy Mermaid Tales
This boxed set of three mermaid adventures has a sweet innocence missing from so many of the books written for this age group. While it's not exactly fine literature, Emily's journey to the deep, full of danger and adventure, is a fun and frothy escape, especially for reluctant readers.
