Barbie™ Sleepover Party Pups, KIDdesigns, Inc., $21.99; www.kiddesigns.com; ages 3 and up.

 

A perfect companion for an overnight! This electronic plush pup wakes up with a gentle squeeze to its paw. It yawns, bops to its own music and lets out occasional yaps. It has soft, pet-able fur and seems eager to please with its responsive panting and yelping. When bedtime rolls around, however, squeeze the other paw and listen to your pup’s quiet lullaby. Outfit it for bed using the puppy-sized sleep mask and sleeping bag (included). Once asleep, Party Pup snores the cutest sounds you’ve ever heard! 

S’Match, Thinkfun, $19.99; www.thinkfun.com; ages 5 to 7.

 

In this game, you lay out cards as in classic memory games, but the spinner is the centerpiece and runs the show. The great big plastic spring-loaded, fun-to-crank-on, clicking spinner indicates what to find and match on the cards: color, category or the number of items. Turn over cards to try and match what the spinner dictates and then keep the cards to score.

S’Match is a very cool way to learn concentration, sorting, categorizing and matching.
 

Rainbow River Stones; Wee Blossom; $159; www.weeblossom.com or www.munchkinfield.com; ages 3 and up.

 

This brightly colored set of six large plastic molded river stones mimic the shapes of natural ones. Their top surfaces have non-skid patterns to add interest and grip. When children walk barefoot on the stones, they can imagine themselves outdoors, walking on the stones formed by water and earth. Hopping from one stone to the next helps children gain confidence in movement and practice balance and coordination.

 

The stones are lightweight and easy for children to move, carry and stack themselves. The set includes two river stones each of three colors/sizes that can be placed individually to make a path or stacked up to three high for more challenge.  The stones nest together and come in a durable nylon carry bag.

“It’s fun to pretend there are sharks and alligators and yucky seaweed in the river and we have to jump across without falling in and getting eaten. But if you do fall in, you have to eat the seaweed!”
- 6-year-old boy
 

$350; www.zinkotek.com; for ages 3 and up. Made of recyclable EVA foam material, this oversized building set inspires children to stretch their imaginations indoors and out. Kids connect multishaped pieces to create tabletop structures or life-size playhouses, rockets, lemonade stands and puppet theaters. The sturdy construction lets kids play inside their masterpieces and the set is large enough for several children to play together. This toy can grow with a child for years and years, and the complexity of the structures will increase as the child’s logistical thinking matures.

 

For more big building for little hands, check out:

Color Me House ($39.95),
Color Me Rocket ($49.95),
Color Me House, Inc.; www.colormehouse.com; ages 3 and up.

 

Crayons are acceptable on these walls! Color Me House is a white cardboard house that assembles easily and securely, in simple slot and tab fashion. The room is 27.5” x 35” and the peaked roof is 48” at its tallest point, giving plenty of room for play inside. Children can decorate the scored door and peek out the windows that open and close in the same manner. Several die-cut shapes sprinkle the house with flair that can be embellished with a child’s creative touch. Once built, the house is a great fort or hideout, but when the real house needs to be tidied, it can be folded flat for storage. Color Me Rocket has the same durable construction and play value, both deserving the NAPPA award.
 

 

Make Your Own Animal Puppets, Creativity for Kids, $17.99, www.creativityforkids.com; ages 3 and up.

 

Three chenille-soft socks are waiting to be dressed in accoutrements of self-adhesive felt shapes, wiggly eyes and fuzzy fur. The animal body parts, including ears, snouts, and other accessories all stick extraordinarily well and don’t fall off during the puppet show that’s sure to follow. Just peel and stick, but make sure the destination of the pieces is your final decision because they cannot be repositioned once placed. The kit supplies enough materials to make a cow, pig, and elephant, or to create your own animal menagerie. Parents will appreciate that his art kit leaves little mess to clean up and sparks imaginative play even after the activity of creating is done.
 

Kidizoom™ Digital Camera Plus, VTech Electronics, $59.99; www.vtechkids.com; ages 3 and up.

 

Kids can capture a moment 2000 times over! This rugged camera can take up to 2000 pictures and 10 minutes of video. On-camera features offer zoom and slideshow options, as well as photo embellishments including stamps, frames, special effects, voice messages and animation. Additional photo editing is available via software downloaded to your PC or MAC. 

 

Photos can be viewed on the LCD screen, on the computer via USB cable or on a television with the included AV cord. The 2.0 megapixel resolution is adequate for this age level and keeps file sizes manageable. Built-in games reinforce use of directional buttons on the camera. 

 

 

"My daughter LOVES it. She's been taking pictures of just about everything. She looks so cute when she squats down to take pictures of our dogs! CHEESE. The dogs aren't as amused but she's running around yelling I TAKE PICTURES!"

- mom of a child tester

Scribble & Write, LeapFrog, $21.99; www.leapfrog.com; ages 3 and up.

 

LeapFrog has created a hand-held, on-the-go electronic writing pad that helps children with the natural progression from scribbling to real writing. The alphabet touch pad has four play modes to keep children’s hands busy and minds engaged. The retraceable pad and chunky stylus are just the tools children need to write, accompanied by the friendly kid voice of Scout, who partners in the activity.

 

An instructional adult voice leads the fun exercises, stroke-by-stroke, to assure the child’s success. The pad has a grid of LED lights that illuminate one stroke or light at a time to help children follow along. Children learn how to write upper and lower case letters and draw simple shapes and pictures by tracing the lights on the pad. 

$39.99; www.idbids.com; for ages 3 and up. Choose among three adorable, 9-inch plush Idbid characters with green feet – each shaped like a cloud, flower or water drop. Each comes with its own storybook and field guide in a cinch backpack to build awareness of air, nature or water issues. Fun daily activities inspire kids to take “iddy biddy” steps toward creating an eco-friendly environment.

For more environmentally conscious fun, check out:

Music For A Green Planet

Uberstix Scavenger Series
How We Know What We Know About Our Changing Climate
Generation Green
Globe Hugger Diaper Bag

$14.99; www.knex.com; for ages 2 and up. Oversized K’NEX pieces easily connect to form the newest neighbor on Sesame Street. Pictorial instructions and activities help broaden the set’s building scope and developmental potential.

For more Sesame Street fun, check out:
Abby in Wonderland
Elmo's World: Summer Vacation