Thousand Hills Productions, 2008; 107 min.; $19.99; www.thousandhillsmovie.com; for ages 9 to 12. Faith and prayer play an important role in this feature film about a 13-year-old boy who tries to save his family’s farm from an evil land developer. A series of incidents – both uplifting and painful – teach him who to trust.

Active Life™: Extreme Challenge, NAMCO BANDAI Games America, 2009; $59.99; www.namcobandaigames.com; ages 9 to 11.

 

Requires: Wii console. In the spirit of Dance Dance Revolution, Extreme Challenges promotes vigorous activity using the Wii, including running, jumping, and such “extreme sports” as wakeboarding, rock climbing, base jumping and jump roping. There’s even a full-body street luge challenge. Our kid testers had a blast with this one, which ultimately makes Wii Fit and Wii Sports look downright sedentary. 

As You Drift Away – Lullabies On Guitar, Alex DeGrassi, Musical Kidz, 2008; $11.98; www.musicforlittlepeople.com; for all ages. The clean and serene guitar lullabies from around the world are mostly instrumental. “Mamá Papá” is a highlight, with otherworldly vocals and shimmering instrumentation.

Adorable Kinders Rag Doll Alise, Granza, Inc., $59.99; www.adorablekinders.com; ages 3 and up.

 

Cuddly, high quality rag dolls come packed with learning potential. Each doll includes a key-code to access online fun and games. The lessons are introduced by grade level: once a child passes kindergarten, she graduates to first grade. The lessons advance to 12th grade and follow school standards. The company is continually adding to the games, and all levels will be complete by December 2009. Lessons for younger children include as reading readiness and beginning math. For older children, lessons are progressively harder, but are still presented in a play session format so that children enjoy the time spent and the content presented.   

Judge's Top Pick! 

Fablevision, 2008; $59.95; www.animationish.com; for ages 10 and up. Requires: Web browser. “Make your mark; see where it takes you” is the invitation that opens this cool application that enables kids of all ages to create their own animations. The “ish” in the name lets kids know that they don’t have to be Pixar animators to experiment, make art and have fun. Three levels span from the very simple Wiggledoodle-ish, to the intermediate Flip Book-ish, and to the full-blown tools of Advanced-ish so users experiment with different elements that make animation so fun to make and watch. The “Project Vault” contains sample art that users can use and edit. “Inspire Me” video segments featuring award-winning children’s author Peter Reynolds offer a layer of humanity to an already well-designed application that doesn’t look or act like the usual productivity or creativity software. There is also a classroom edition for teachers that includes curriculum activities.

 

For more animation fun, check out:

by Matthew Van Fleet; Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, 2008; $19.99; www.simonsays.com. Join the safari in this tactile, interactive alphabet book with 26 pop-ups, moveable parts and an ABC poster.

Animals Rock with Lucas Miller, Volume 1: Monarchs, Metamorphosis and More!, BioRhythms Publishing, 2009; 43 minutes; www.lucasmiller.net; ages 4 to 10.

 

Lucas Miller provides the most information you’ve ever received during a children’s concert! Beautiful photography of monarch butterflies and their migration, funny songs and a stinky skunk make this video a treat. As a zoologist, Miller shares his expertise with an excited audience who are just as involved in his concert as viewers will become.

“What a fun guy! We’d love to have Mr. Miller come to our community and do a program.”
– Adult Juror, mother and teacher

“The stinky skunk song was the best! I loved the songs and I learned things about animals, too.” – Child Juror, age 5
 

A Pop-Up Book of Nursery Rhymes, by Matthew Reinhart; Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing, 2009; $26.99; www.simonandschuster.com. 

Charming scenes pop up right off the pages to dramatize “Hey Diddle Diddle,” “Humpty Dumpty,” “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” and several other Mother Goose rhymes. Clever pockets on each page pop up for additional rhymes. This book is a delightful way to teach the first poems all kids need to know.
 

Alphabet Train Floor Puzzle & CD, Twin Sisters Productions, $14.99; www.twinsisters.com; ages 4 and up.

 

All aboard this train for a ride of fun and learning! The lateral puzzle helps children learn the alphabet with self-correcting order pieces. Each puzzle piece is a separate train car that is occupied by an animal friend depicting that letter. Separate pieces help children learn at their own pace and can be used a few at a time. 

 

An included CD provides many songs relating to the alphabet and has 52 well-designed print-out pages full of activities to help children practice writing letters. Each page includes activity ideas that families can try at to emphasize each letter.