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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When McGraw-Hill Education becomes a stand-alone business some time in 2012 it will look toward global expansion and more digital sales for growth, executives stressed in promoting the plan to divide the current McGraw-Hill Companies into two distinct operations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Wed, 14/09/2011 - 09:28 Waterstones has extended its childrens book prize to include teen fiction and picture books, in addition to books for five to 12 year olds. Waterstones spokesman Jon Howells said: The childrens award had done very well... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Following the call for a break-up and reorganization of McGraw-Hill Cos. by investors last month, McGraw-Hill announced today that it will split into two separate public companies: McGraw-Hill Markets, focused on the capital and commodities markets, and McGraw-Hill Education, focused on... Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Wed, 31/08/2011 - 08:05 Penguin is aiming to bring traditional family storytelling into the digital arena with a new picture book reader app, Me Books, which enables parents and carers to personalise stories by selecting parts they want to record... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publication Date: Tue, 30/08/2011 - 08:40 Puffin is to release an initial print run of half a million copies of the new Wimpy Kid title, Cabin Fever, published on 16th November. The print run is the largest in the history of the children's publisher, and will be Penguin's largest initial UK... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Mon, 15/08/2011 - 15:17 The Way With Words festival is celebrating its 20th year by launching a new family arts and books event in south London this October. Word Up! will take place in South Dulwich at the Alleyn's School theatre space from 22-24th... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 05/08/2011 - 14:23 Publishers have welcomed the news that Amanda Ross, Cactus TV md, may launch a television programme dedicated to childrens books. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Fri, 05/08/2011 - 11:01 Canongate has bought a childrens book written by the lead singer of American indie rock band The Decemberists. Senior editor Francis Bickmore bought UK and Commonwealth rights (excl Canada, Australia and New Zealand) to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 29/07/2011 - 09:20 Macmillan has walked away from its education business in east and west Africa, and is understood to have put all its education publishing companies and interests across the continent (other than in Botswana) on the block.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 25/07/2011 - 08:46 Foyles continues its free book giveaway today (25th July), offering five titles free to children and teen readers. The five Foyles London stores have been giving away the titles free over this weekend and today, the first... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Rachel Bradley Publication Date: Fri, 17/06/2011 - 08:07 A guide to astronomy and a pop-up guide to how the world works are among the shortlisted titles for the first Royal Society Young People's Book Prize in three years. The £10,000 prize was not awarded between 2008 and 2010 due... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 26/05/2011 - 11:17 Titles from Frank Cottrell Boyce, Dick King Smith and Arlene Phillips are among the choices in Richard and Judy's second children's book club. The selected titles are available from today in a 3 for 2 offer through W H Smith.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 26/05/2011 - 14:00 Titles from Frank Cottrell Boyce, Dick King Smith and Arlene Phillips are among the choices in Richard and Judy's second children's book club. The selected titles are available from today in a 3 for 2 offer through W H Smith.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Fri, 13/05/2011 - 10:47 Canongate has bought a foul-mouthed gift book for exhausted parents, which has been the subject of intense hype in the United States. M.d. Jamie Byng and senior editor Francis Bickmore bought UK and Commonwealth rights,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Mon, 09/05/2011 - 09:28 Publishers sales of childrens books fell by almost 7% during 2010, from 190m in 2009 to 177m in 2010, marking a third successive fall for the childrens market since 2007 when publishers sales stood at 212m units. The... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Tue, 03/05/2011 - 15:19 Puffin has revealed that a new Wimpy Kid book, the sixth in Jeff Kinney's series, will be published globally in the autumn. Exact publication date and the title of the book are not yet available and content will be embargoed... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 07/03/2011 - 09:00 Sainsbury's has launched a range of own brand pre-school children's books, publishing eight titles in collaboration with Dorling Kindersley. The titles went on sale on Saturday [5th March] in more than 200 of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Thu, 03/03/2011 - 07:22 Former childrens laureate Michael Morpurgo and Tracy Beaker author Jacqueline Wilson have spoken out in support of the Guardians new book website for children, which launches today [3rd March] on World Book Day. The site,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Stone Publication Date: Tue, 01/03/2011 - 16:09 Kate Atkinson has knocked Jamie Oliver off the top of the charts, thanks largely to a spot in W H Smith's "£2.99 if you buy the Times" link-save promotion, with Started Early, Took My Dog (Black Swan) the new Official UK Top 50... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 18/02/2011 - 08:29 The case for the importance of libraries to children's reading is backed up by the latest library loan figures released by the Public Lending Right (PLR), which show children's authors dominant among the most borrowed... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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