It’s tempting to get your kid every shiny new toy they ask for. But some toys are better than others when it comes to actually stimulating your child’s brain while also keeping them entertained. The parents on the Engadget staff know this well, and we’ve tried out a bunch of educational toys with our kids, with various results. These are some of the ones that have had staying power with our children — and even we adults have to admit we found them pretty fun, too.Magna-TilesEngadgetThere are tons of building toys out there, from LEGO, to Tegu, to the classic wooden block. But one of my favorites (and my kid’s) are Magna-Tiles. These large, colorful construction toys come in a variety of sizes and shapes and click together, or to other surfaces, with the aid of powerful magnets. They can be combined to form simple shapes like cubes and pyramids, or arranged to make magnetic art on a garage door. Plus there are themed packs that can add windows, staircases or even functional cranes to the playsets.These are open-ended building toys that don’t have set instructions for making a particular scene or item. They’re safe for a three-year-old, and fun for much older kids, too. Honestly, as a nearly 40-year-old man, even I have a blast finding new and interesting ways to create ever more elaborate structures with my son. We’ve built castles, spaceships, racecars and even a ferry terminal complete with a moveable boarding ramp.At $120 for a 100 piece set, Magna-Tiles certainly... Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2022-07-20 13:30:09 UTC ]
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Jeff Kinney's comic tale beats 10 bestselling titles to be named best children's book of the last 10 years. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2012-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Printed book sales slumped 11% last week as children returned to school and adults to work... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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TV host Stephen Colbert has written a children's book about a flag pole trying to find out who it really is. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-02-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The approximately 30 publishers exhibiting at the 2012 New York International Toy Fair, held at the Javits Center, February 11–15, saw full aisles and strong orders for the first time in several years. The Toy Industry Association’s preliminary figures estimated attendance was up 4%, to 34,000.... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The marketing campaign for Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney has won the latest... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After seeing Samsung's spirited swing at Apple users, Amazon's continuing anti-Apple pandering just feels weak. The new ad for the Kindle Fire pits a dorky, single iPad user against a Kindle-reading mom in a bikini—the same ice queen from the 2010 spot, though now she's warmed up a bit and seems... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Crime and thriller authors, almost all American, make up every one of the top 10 most borrowed... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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McGraw-Hill is exploring a possible sale of its $2.5bn-plus education business, according to a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-02-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Last Monday, the American Library Association announced its annual Youth Media Awards at its Midwinter conference, held this year in Dallas. The 2012 John Newbery Medal went to author Jack Gantos for Dead End in Norvelt (FSG), a semiautobiographical story set in the town of Norvelt, Pa. The... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Two months ago, I argued here on BetaNews that despite the ever-increasing chorus of negativity surrounding Apple, its best days are ahead. One of my reasons for my belief is the young consumer, where the Cupertino company is building a considerable amount of brand equity. Today's... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2012-01-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At a private event at the Guggenheim Museum in New York City on Thursday, Apple unveiled its multi-pronged approach for cracking the higher education market with iBooks 2, iBooks Author, and iTunes U. The result is an environment for creating, distributing, and consuming learning materials that... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Apple will today lift the lid on a hotly anticipated education announcement which many... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-01-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The parody of the classic children's book "Goodnight Moon," which got a hilarious analog update for the digital generation is a holiday hit. Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2011-12-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The £2,000 Educational Writers' Award 2011 has gone to Moon: Apollo 11 and Beyond... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-12-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Four titles that bring "the natural world to life for 5-11 year-olds" are represented... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sainsbury's is advertising Jeff Kinney's latest book in The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 24/10/2011 - 09:25 Educational publishers have been accused of not providing enough support to help independent bookshops stay on the high street, as owners call for more discounts. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishing and educational tools company Pearson on Thursday launched the beta version of OpenClass, a free, cloud-based learning management system (LMS) that is integrated with Google Apps for Education, and will be available in the Google Apps Marketplace. Earlier today, techie Ryan Tyler... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2011-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 29/09/2011 - 08:15 Ebury Press and Random House Children's Books have signed two separate three-book deals with crime writer Jane Casey. Editorial director for fiction at Ebury Gillian Green acquired UK rights, including Europe and British... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 09:10 This years Bookseller Childrens Conference will focus on the range of digital opportunities now available to publishers for developing book brands into online spaces and for engaging with readers online. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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