Editorial Review

This LeapPad book and cartridge brings to life the heroic adventures of The Incredibles. An interactive reading experience that allows second-grade readers to practice reading comprehension, spelling, vocabulary, synonyms and antonyms, and compound words, all to a musical accompaniment, The Incredibles (the booklet) fits into most LeapPad portable units. Youngsters use the "magic pen" to point to words and pictures to make them come to life, or to initiate games and activities. Kids will have so much fun, they won’t even realize they’re learning a thing or two! --Emilie Coulter ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Great for learning preschoolers!
All I must say is that these letters are soooo durable. The back of the letters are all magnetic where as the plastic ones only have a little piece of magnet to hold them to the refrigerator, so everytime the fridge closes one always seems to fall off, but NOT these they hold on and I really like that. The colors are very bright and they have helped my 2 year old learn her colors. I only wish they made more differnt colors than just 4. Another thing I love is that these come in upper case and lower case so you have more letters to make into words. They do cost more than the other ones but well worth it.

Every kid should have these
My kids have both kinds of magnets, these and the plastic letters with the little magnets in them. They love to play with all of them, but they get frustrated when the plastic ones just slide down the fridge, or when the magnets fall off. The plastic ones end up under the fridge; their thicker profile and poor magnets are a bad combination. This kind is MUCH better; they're lightweight and completely covered with magnetic material on the back. They don't fall apart and they stay put! Less frustration for the kids, less hassle for me: It's all good!

The best set of ABC magnets out there!
Like a lot of people, I grew up with those plastic alphabet letters on my fridge. So when my son was around 2 years old, I figured it was about time to get a set for our home. We were fortunate enough to get this set as a gift. I was truly impressed! This set is by far superior to any others I've seen on the market. They're large and colorful, and the entire back of the letter is a magnet. Not just one little square. They really stay put on the fridge! I also like that they're wood. Sure, bite marks would probably show up more on the wood than on plastic. But overall, I think the wood is far more sturdy and durable. All the letters come in a nice wood box with a sliding clear lid, making it easy to keep everything together. You really couldn't ask for more!

not pleased
My son got these when he was about 2. Right out of the box, some letters were de-magnatized. He enjoyed playing with them on the fridge for a while, but some of the affected letters were in his name - the first things kids usually spell. He has learned some of his letters, but I wish we had the old fashioned plastic letters.

CAN'T CLEAN THESE LETTERS IN WATER
The letters are large, the whole backside is magnetic, they are made of two pieces of wood stuck together. One piece is magnetic while the other has a piece of shiny paper stuck on it. Unfortunately, you can't wash them because the paper slowly detaches from the wood and they end up looking very ugly. I decided to remove the paper, and remained with the brown wood. If they were washable they would have been the best letters out there. My kid prefers the plastic letters because we get to clean them when they are dirty and still look attractive.
I am buying another set of letters and it won't be these ones. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Most painters have to clean up after they're done, but with this set of five bright finger-paintsoaps, you can paint and get clean at the same time.Squeeze a dab of each color into the enclosedhand-shaped artist's palette and you're all set to turn your tub into an impressionistic masterpiece.When it's toweltime, wipe the pigment away using the included fish-shaped sponge. Don't forget to wear a beret in the tubfor the right effect. Paints are orange, blue, yellow, green, and purple.They are not heavily scented, and thepigments are child friendly. --Richard Farr ... Read more

Reviews (31)

Great idea, but you can't really see the paint
Well, my daughter LOVED the thought of painting in the tub. This product looked like just the ticket. Cute colors, sponge to clean up, what more could you ask? Well, the only problem is that you can't really see the colors! I'm sure if she used half of the small bottles of paint, it might show up as a darker color, however with the small amount of paint used to fill the holder, you can barely make a mark. Cute idea, but disappointing in reality.

Weak colors make it frustrating for toddlers
My daughter likes to play with this, but she often gets frustrated that the colors don't show up well. As other reviewers have said, the colors are runny and very soapy, so they don't stick well to the wall unless it is totally dry, and they don't show up as bright colors. The palatte idea is nice because the child has a place to store the colors while she's painting, but the space to put the colors is so small, that there's a need to refill often. My daughter usually ends up painting on herself more than on the wall, which I guess is ok, but she's not really drawing, just smearing colors all over herself. This means there's a lot of rinsing off time needed. If the colors were brighter and stuck on better, she could actually draw a picture and get into the pretend play more. This was a gift that came with extra paints, and I'm just happy to use it up so I can try something else. The bath crayons, for example, are much more satisfying for a child to use.

Paint is lightly colored shampoo- Don't Buy!
Good idea, but it doesn't work. The "paint" was lightly tinted shampoo, it didn't show up at all. Don't these people test this stuff before they sell it. Another big waste of $$.

Concept sounded good....
but the quality is lacking on this product.
Spending a little time browsing for interesting tub toys to entice my then15 mo into the tub, I found this set. Unfortunately, this toy wasn't a winner. The "paint" is more like slightly-tinted shampoo (same consistency and level of opaqueness) which makes "painting" very unsatisfying. My son spent a few minutes playing with the fish sponge-- that's been the extent of it. A better alternative has been the foam alphabet letters (several months playing and still going strong) and plastic containers for pouring water-- who knew?

Falls below expectations
Pass on this one - it's a great idea but the colors are runny and not very vibrant. The soap also stings when it gets in the eyes and gave my child a rash. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Makes a great gift
I think this is a great product. It supports my son when he is sitting up and he loves to play with it. I have noticed older children like to curl up with it while watching television. I think this would make a nice gift because it is unique. Unlike most baby toys and products, we will get years of use out of the Activity Dino.

Expensive rubbish - waste of money !
We recently ordered Dino for our 6 month old son, thinking we could use it initially to help him sit up and then later as a fun rough-and-tumble toy. What arrived was a small overstuffed sock with a few "crinkly" spines. The quality of the material was cheap and nasty and the construction is appauling. As for the "roar" of the nose - we could barely hear a squeak. Needless to say, we returned this "toy" immediately. Don't waste your money - a pillow with a decorative face would be just as good and at least the cover would be washable ! AWFUL !!!!!

My son loves this!!!
My mother-in-law bought this for my son when he was a few months old. I never imagined he would love it as much as he does. When he was 3 or 4 months old it helped prop him up and he would look at it and pat it. Now, at 7 months he wrestles with it and plays with the spines on the back to hear the different noises. He loves the crinkly and shiny fabric. He tries to squeeze the nose which makes a great roaring sound. His eyes light up every time he sees dino!!!

my little one has had a grate time with it
My daughter Nicole got this from her godmother, she was about six months, so anyway... she liked it because of the color and stuff and we mostly used it for support -since she kept falling backwards- then when she was a couple of months older she would used it as a pillow (a rather tall one) to rest her head on while watching t.v, and when it was time to take a nap she loved to curl into a fetal position and place her back against it (she still does this, while sucking her thumb)she liked it so much we tried to put it in her crib, but found it too big. Now we've had it for some time and kept it in a corner of the living room, so she could get it when she wanted to watched t.v. One of these days I heard her giggle through the baby monitor and went to check on her, I found her rolling around the floor with it hugged tightly against her, then she placed herself on top of it and sit back and rode it as a horsie... a few days after I found her asleep on top of it, with her thumb in her mouth and her legs streched back and crossed together. She likes this thing so much she won't use anything else to watch t.v or take a nap with, almost everytime we get home the first thing she does is run to it, pull it to the middle of the room and just have fun.It's really amazing -to me anyway- how she hasn't ger tired of it.
The only thing is that sometimes when it's time to go to bed at night she wants to sleep either on top or with it, and she's always saying "no, mama, no!" when I trie to take her upstairs for bedtime OR she says "no, daddy, no" in the most sweetest of voices, with her big blue eyes puppy-stile and a pout and my husband gives right up and lets her have it her way.
But I don't think that's such a bad thing cause she's a heavy sleeper and she doesn't wake up when we take her to her room. Nothing more to say except... I ADORE THIS FREAKING TOY, and more important, SHE ADORES IT EVEN MORE. ... Read more

Reviews (15)

No Sun No Solar System!
You can't very well have a solar system without a sun and this product does not have one. Ridiculous!

Vincent 's favorite Night time activitie
I purchased this for my son (He just turned 2) after he was totally taken with Baby Einstein's Baby Galileo's Dvd. It's a bit of a pain with the installation (fishing wire, and those very tiny star tac's ). But other than that its a great way for children to learn about the solar system.

A must have!!!!!!!!

I want one too
My daughter got one of these but never showed much interest, so we hung it in my 4-yo son's room. It was so cool, the planets glow really brightly and in different colors....Jupiter is kind of red and neptune is blueish. I take every opportunity to go in his room and watch these, I want my own set. Now all I need to do is convince my wife.
Very cool toy.

Educational Room Decorations
The educational value of having the planets hang from our son's room is great. At 4 years-old, he could name the nine planets thanks in large part to this "toy". So I give it the highest marks in educational value. A little tid-bit about each of the planets is provided on a panthlet in this set and I read it to our son as my husband hung the set. Our son actually memorized much of what I read to him and when the set was new he asked me to reread the panthlet to him several times to fill in the pieces of information that he had forgotten.

It's also fun in that our son enjoys showing it to our guests and telling them about the planets. However, I rate the set as 4 out of 5 stars in the fun category simply because it is more like decoration. This set hangs from the ceiling, so you never play with it or even touch it once it is hung. You simply enjoy looking at it and talking about it.

The downside of this set is that the stars are really small stickers so you will want to purchase some larger glow-in-the-dark stars. Also it is a pain to hang this set since you have to tie fishing line to each of the planets and then use tack-like objects to connect them to the ceiling. But once you have it all set up your child will probably be pleased.

The Case of the Missing Sun
I am currently considering purchasing this toy for my 7 year old nephew. From the reviews, it sounds pretty neat. However, for all those reviewers who were mourning the lack of a sun, allow me to point out that this set seems to be scientifically to scale. Since that is the case, a 3d model of the sun would be thousands of times larger than the model of the earth, hence you would have about a 6 foot wide sun model to hang from your ceiling! That might just be a little too awkward.

Still think I'm going to purchase it, though. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent Combination of Supplies for Creating Art for Kids
This is an excellent collection of easy-to-use art supplies for children. It includes the drawing "tools" my daughters like to use most. This collection empowers children to be creative.

I suggest you buy this Crayola set, a case of cheap paper, a couple rolls of invisible tape, a pencil sharpener, a bottle of Elmer's school glue, and a stapler (for sure). Then give your child frequent access to the supplies to draw pictures and design things. Your child's creativity will emerge on its own.

Highly recommended! ... Read more

Reviews (18)

If She is a Princess, she'll love it
Like most 4 year old girls my daughter has been swept into the world of the Disney Princess. This book was a great start to teach her how to use her new leapfrog. It was full of different songs as well as different activities and questions at the end of the book based on the stories inside.

Princess Stories
Its a nice book for a little girl who likes all the Disney Princess stories. But if your looking for an educational book I'd suggest a different book.

Got a lemon!
We have had our Leap Pad for over a year and love it. My 3 1/2 yr old daughter just started using it and wanted a "girl book" so Santa brought her this one. It will not work, and says "whoops, that's not a leap pad cartridge!" We'll be going back to the store for an exchange to try again. Bummer, she was really disappointed. All our other cartridges still work fine - never had a problem!

A good book for a child wanting to read
My 3 1/2 year old has several LeapPad books and likes this one because of the princesses. I think this book would be best for a child who is ready to start reading. My daughter likes to play the games in the book, but isn't really interested in reading the story yet. If your child is ready to focus on the story and read words, this would be a good book. If your child is still learning letters and sounds, I recommend the Phonics Lesson 1 book first, or the other LeapStart books like the math ones (ie. Lots and Lots of Honey Pots).

GREAT ENTERTAINMENT
MY GRANDAUGHTER LOVES THIS TOY AND I HAVE JUST ORDERED SEVERAL MORE BOOKS TO GO WITH IT, I DO WISH WHEN LEAP FROG ITEMS ARE SOLD THOUGH THAT WHAT THEY ARE COMPATIBLE WITH WAS LISTED. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fun play rug
We bought this rug for our 17-month old daughter, who is the recipient of many of the toys we wish *we* had. Right now, she's more enamored of having her own play space than she is interested in the neighborhood aspect. But, the rug is quite fun, with houses, a duck pond, zoo, park, school, etc.--all in slightly "off" perspective. The lanes on the streets are the perfect size for matchbox-sized cars, for when your little one is older, but toddler-sized cars work just as well.

All in all, I'm very happy with this purchase. It seems a durable, colorful rug. It's long, providing lots of play space. Its no-slip backing should provide safety on tile or wood floors (though we have it on the carpeted floor of our living room). The best aspect? Our daughter keeps her blocks and cars on the rug--instead of everywhere else underfoot. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Presto, change-o! Children can transform themselves intomagicians with this ultimate prestidigitator's prop. The velvety blacktop hat comes equipped with a secret interior compartment and a soft,plush white rabbit that hides easily inside. Aspiring magicians can showspectators a seemingly empty hat and then proudly pull the small rabbitout of the well-concealed pocket. Great looking and a cinch to maneuver,this hat will truly set the stage for a terrific magic act. --JaneSnyder ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Great toy!
My daughter received this magician's hat for her birthday, and has truly enjoyed performing magic tricks for all her friends, classmates, and visitors. She's really learned some showmanship with it, and even adults are at first amazed that her items seem to vanish from the hat. The hat itself is soft and well made. The bunny is a cute stuffed animal, but the best thing about the hat is that is works equally well with all smallish items. A great toy!

Well made and fun!
I bought this for my 4-year-old son and he is thrilled with it. The hat is very well made... soft and sturdy, so it's comfortable on his head and doesn't lose its shape.

He doesn't seem to tire of showing off his magician skills, and he has already experimented with putting different things in the hat to make them appear and disappear.

This is one of those simple toys that allows kids to really use their imagination. Best of all, no tiny little parts to lose. Even if the rabbit gets misplaced, kids can still use any small toy in the hat.

Buy this item it is wonderful
I bought this gift for my sisters toddler and he loved it!! I had read a review and was trying to decide whether it would be worth it or not. Well it was, and I am very happy that I bought him this toy. It was totally worth every cent to see his face light up when I showed him this magic trick for the first time. I showed him the hidden space inside the hat and within about two minutes he was off showing everyone his new magic hat. He told his grandma see theres nothing in there and then waved his hand over the hat and said abera cadabera and pulled out the bunny. He was about 3 1/2 at the time and I was worried that he would be too young for the trick but he wasn't. He is now almost 5 and I just visited him a month ago and he still enjoyed showing me the hat trick. He even loved wearing the hat on his head and he was laughing the the whole time he played with the hat. I think it also helps with abstract thinking and the concept that something is still there even if you can't see it. It also is very impressive to friends when your child (or in my case my nephew) shows them the trick. It is adorable. I am now pregnant and plan to get one for my baby also :)

Great fun
I purchased this product for my five year old son. It was a hit. He was able to perform the trick instantly. He really dazzled them at daycare! I teach kindergarten and borrowed it to dazzle my students when we studied the letter R. Pulling a Rabbit from a hat really impressed them. It is a great product and I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This talking book comes with an interactive "magic pen" that works like a hand-held computer mouse pointer. Children can opt to turn the paper pages and listen to the story read with different voices for each character. Or they can interrupt the read-aloud session to play with the magic pen (permanently attached with a wire). They can point the pen tip to any word on a page and hear it pronounced, or touch a picture and hear a sound effect (such as "Strike one!" for the baseball bat). Very similar to the popular Living Books computer games, this 10-by-11-inch book is more portable than a home computer. Stories in this set include Lil's Loose Tooth, Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever, and Winnie the Pooh in A Sweet Good Morning. The set also includes a paper piano keyboard and map and human anatomy games.--Gail Hudson ... Read more

Reviews (365)

Not as great as we thought it'd be...
I got this for my son when he was about 4, and it was a great learning tool before it started falling apart. The quality of it was terrible, and it didn't last more than a year after normal wear and tear. This product was definitely a disappointment, especially after spending a lot of money on books and cartridges shortly before it bit the dust.

fun for all ages
I bought a leap frog for my son when he was 4 and he loved it. He liked the pictures and sounds. It is also great for older kids, the leap frog book that came with his had activities for all ages. It is very educational and a great item to take on trips in the car.

great for my preschooler as well as older childern
I purchased a leappad for my 3 1/2 year old about a 1 1/2 years ago for christmas and it was a hit!! She loved the noises it made and she could write with the pen. The book that comes with the system is broken up into different age groups so the first book didn't have much she could do as for learning, but my older children (then 9 & 11) found a few pages that interested them as well. We soon purchased a couple of addition books that were age appropriate for my daughter and she began to learn numbers, letters and shapes. My sons even got a book to help them in the areas such as bones. My daughter turned 5 yesterday and she still carries her leappad where ever we go. She has moved up to learning sounds and sight words and hasn't even started kindergarden yet. She loves the games and the interaction since it will tell you (or beep/buzz you)when you have made a wrong answer. This product allows my husband & I, as well as other family members, to sit down and spend time with my daughter learning and ITS FUN for us all!! She can even entertain herself when we are unable to sit with her because of how user friendly it is.

We have had NO problems with our leappad and believe me it has been around and used.

I highly recommend it for a child that is eager to learn new things. If I had to find a fault with it, it would be that due to so many different books available, we sometimes misplace the cartridges. I have ordered her a backpack to keep them all together to solve this problem.

Beware Of Leap Frog Products
We are a family of 5. Our 3 children are 6, 3 1/2, and 2. You can imagine how many wonderful Leap Frog products we have in our household. We have a lot. We want to provide our children with a great educational start in life and what better way to do it than with these wonderful Leap Pad products right? Give me a break. Educationally they are great. Durable you ask, no way. Leap Frog only warrants their products for 3 months. We had 2 LeapPads. One still works great, we've had it for almost 4 years. The newer one we bought for our 3 year old stopped working in 4 months. It wasn't product misuse, because my son was only allowed to look at it with an adult. We only used it about 3 or 4 times a month, that's about 12-16 total uses, before the right side of the LeapPad stopped working. Several emails to Leap Frog resulted with no reply from them. They make these products but only warrant them for 3 months. Now I know why. Our Explorer globe flopped out after only 6 months. I will admit that the Leap Frog preschool toys we own have held up great, especially with all the banging around that they get, but their expensive products like LeapPad, Explorer Globe and Leapster have not. I'd look into buying educational products from a company who is willing to stand behind them and has the necessary means to make repair work on expensive products that no longer work. Leap Frog is a company I will no longer spend any more of my hard earned money on.

Fantastic even for age 3
My three-year-old received this leappad for his birthday, which he wanted very badly, and just cannot put it down. He carries it with him throughout the day and it's the first thing he looks for when he gets up in the morning. He saw it at toysrus and just absolutely loved it so he was very excited to get one of his own. He loves learning his abc's and numbers, and loves it when his favorite characters talk back to him. This is such a great tool - if you're trying to decide between this one and the Fisher price one, go for this one. The gal at toys rus said that the fisher price one is just for preschoolers whereas the leappad will grow with the child until age 8. Not bad! ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Great "old style" toy.
Thought the toys I had as a child were lost forever, however this one comes very close! Solid tin box with very happy looking clown and the obligatory "pop goes the weasel"! My daughter loves it.

My Son's New Favorite Toy
My son LOVES this toy. He is 2 1/2 and it only took him a time or two to figure out how to get Jack back in the box by himself. He plays with it all the time, and never fails to get excited when Jack jumps out at him. You don't have to completely finish the song to get jack back in, you just have to make sure the song finishes the "pop" note. The music is a very traditional music box sound, and not annoying in the least. We suspected he would love a jack in the box, and had trouble finding one that worked well. This one is fantastic.

Love it and leave it
This is a great toy...for a small amount of time. After a minute or two my son gets bored of it because it only does one thing and only plays one tune. Not great for younger kids because jack is hard to get back into the box and I think the young ones will have a hard time (sometimes I have a hard time...lol). Not worth the money I spent on it, but still a fun toy...and a classic.

Great, Old Fashioned Fun!
This toy has a beautiful look and is very sturdy---made of metal, not plastic. The music sounds wonderful and both our sons love it! So do we---Mom and Dad! We are very happy with this toy, there is no other like it. Made the old fashioned way---to last. Bright colors and such a cute clown. I have not seen one like this since I was a little girl---many years ago! Well worth the money spent. Get one!

there is a trick to getting it to "reload" that is too hard
In order to put jack back in the box it must be in between songs. If you try to relatch it once the music has begun it doesn't work. That is clearly stated in the instructions but is very difficult for a one or a two year old to understand.

I feel that the kids who enjoy this the most are babies through age two. The sad thing is that the "reloading" of Jack is nearly impossible for these aged children. Even when they "get" how to push Jack down, hold him there, close the lid and snap the tiny latch, they have difficulty stopping the music at the exact point in which "reloading" is possible. All kids I've seen use it love to continue to wind the crank and make the music continue.

Perhaps they could redesign it so that the music won't play until Jack is back in the box. Then the kids would understand when to put Jack back in the box.

I bought this when my first born was one year old and he loved the toy but became frustrated with putting Jack back in the box.
The challenge with "reloading" extended to my second child and for every child-visitor. Frustration abounds! The only way to successfully use this with the very young to avoid tantrums is for the adult to sit with the child and help them as they need it. When they were very young and most-upset about this, I put it on a high shelf until the next time.

When my first turned three he finally "got it" and was able to play with it by himself.

The beauty of this is that it has a classic look. Other jack in the boxes I've seen have TV characters on them or other non-traditional characters. Also I like the "Pop goes the weasel" tune. I have seen others with different songs and even with electronic sounding music---YUCK!

We've owned this for over 4 years and it has not broken yet. The paint is in very good shape, it is not peeling from some defect (as others have reported). Most times now it is not stuck on a high shelf, so it is played with often. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Abracadabra! Now kids can mystify an audience with MagicRainbows, Rabbit and Rings, Tricky String, Mystery Tube, MagnetizedWand, and more. My First Magic Set holds 12 fun tricks, complete propsand secrets for presenting them, and the carrying case to take the showon the road. All magicians need is the cape and top hat. Actually, the4-to-8-year-olds for whom this set is intended probably also need adulthelp in reading the well-written and illustrated, 16-page "SecretInstruction Booklet." Parents and kids get together doing the lightassembly necessary (such as separating the perforated sheet of cards,folding cardboard to form the magic box, applying a sticker) to four ofthe tricks. Then pore over the step-by-step pictures and instructionsbefore the little magician goes off to perfect the sleight of hand. Forextra help, every trick's instructions are accompanied by a "Secret"that summarizes and explains the key to the trick. (Example: "Thehidden finger hole allows you to secretly reach in and 'untie' thestring.") A sure-fire hit--better start sewing that cape and top hat.--Ava Natov ... Read more

Reviews (4)

AbraCadabra!!
A first Magic set for my 5 year old, he loves it!! He and his friends have created magic acts for each other and have laughed all the way. The tricks are easy enough for their age to try, and remember how to do. The directions come with pictures, so they can figure them out if the wording is too comlplicated. The set itself is durable enough fot most tricks to be done over and over. The blocks take some reshaping and the rabbit ring trick does not really fit right, but overall, a good first set. It definately was the hit of a rainy Sunday!!

Perfect for the beginner magician
This is an easy to understand and simple to set-up magic kit for the first time magician. If your child is a reader, then they are capable of presenting most of the tricks independently. A plus! My seven year old enjoys demonstrating his magic tricks for family. His four year old sister loves to watch, and if allowed, to be an assistant. A great buy!

Lots of fun!
My son got this kit as a gift. The durability is as good as that of the next. It must be taken care of. It's not a rough and tough item. We've had many magic shows...and it is still around 3 years later because it is put away in the box and up on the shelf when not being played with. It is magical fun for the little magicians and builds confidence too. In our house one adult helped "learn" the tricks while all others were in the audience at the big show.

Disappointed
This item was not at all what is seems to be. The box was the only durable part of the toy. I unfortuantely purchased 3 of these as Christmas gifts for 3 different boys ages 5 & 6 years old. After seeing them open and what was in the box, I was very disappointed. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This magnetic calendar is undated, so it can be reusedmonth after month, year after year. Use the month magnets to identify themonth, and then stick the magnetic numbers on the appropriate days ofthe week. Hinged panels fold out for hanging--the top half is acalendar, the bottom half is a blank white magnetic surface for storingmonth and year magnets and the colorfully illustrated "reminder"pieces. There's one for every occasion you can think of, so you'llnever miss an important date or activity--Test Day, Mother's Day,Canada Day, Kwanzaa, Go To Dentist, and so on. Consisting of 139pieces, the calendar measures 15.5 by 23 inches unfolded. --AlisonGolder ... Read more

Reviews (9)

We're still using it!
When my son was in kindergarten, my sister purchased this for him for his birthday. He took a lot of pleasure in it. He is now almost twelve and he still likes changing the dates and putting in the special magnets for the special days. This was a great gift. It doesn't make a lot of noise, or sparkle when you play it, but it is the one thing that we all still use after all these years. I'm thinking of purchasing another one to update our old one.

Great teaching tool
This is a magnetic, wooden perpetual calendar for children. The set comes with more than 120 magnets with which to create a customized, plan-ahead monthly calendar. The child who manages the calendar can affix the correct year, season and month and then can go on to show holidays, play dates, library book due dates, etc.

We use this calendar to teach time concepts to our young son. The calendar is colorful and engaging and conveys the meanings of the words year, season, month, week and day far better than any dictionary, book or video.

This is an effective teaching tool, and we were thrilled with the results. However, ours warped severely within three days of purchase. The manufacturer must have used green wood to make a particular batch of calendars. Be careful of shoddy workmanship. The product otherwise is good.

This Calendar Is Actually Fun!
Purchased this calendar for my 10 yr old son and he and his brothers fight over who is going to put the magnets on the calendar for the new month. There are great magnets for appointments, holidays, sports and parties. It also helps them learn about the seasons, months and various state and national holidays. I'm an adult and I enjoy it too!

Great calender, only a couple complaints
My 5yo son picked this calender to spend his birthday money on. It's a great calender. We love how there are not just event magnets but weather magnets. My only complaints are the

1) the grid boxes could be a little bigger. If you have a holiday, a birthday, & an event (or some other combo that would require 3 magnets) all on the same day the magnets cross over into the other day.

2) I really hope the company comes out with an optional pack of more magnets to buy separately. The calender only comes with one magnet for each sport (soccer, football, dance, etc) but when my son was in soccer he had soccer once a week. It'd be nice to have 4 or 5 soccer magnets to put on the calender at the begining of the month rather than moving the one soccer magnet every week. The optional pack could also include a couple more 'dining out' & 'movie' magnets, a 'school event' magnet, a 'family outing' and just 'outing' for hard to classify events. I also agree with the poster who said a 'start vacation' & 'stop vacaton' would be better than just one vacation magnet. Also a stay with sitter magnet would be great.

I'd still buy the calender again though. My son loves putting the magnets on & is learning the concept of time quickly with this visual aide.

Great for teaching young children to use a calendar
My recently turned 5 year old has begun asking about days, weeks, "how many days until X" type of questions. We are homeschooling so no other person or school had yet introduced the teaching of days, months, etc. to him. Seeing he was curious and ready to learn, I quickly purchased this calendar to use as a perpetual calendar to help teach him the concepts. He loves the calendar.

It is more fun than a paper calendar because it has the magnets with the activity notations on them. If you are looking for a consumable version you could just use paper and buy stickers. I prefer this magnetic version. It is more functional than a wooden perpetual calendar that uses blocks for the dates because it allows customization of activities, holidays and events that take place on that day.

I give the manufacturer credit for coming up with many creative ideas for the activities. There are Christian and Jewish religious holiday magnets. There are American federal holidays such as Veteran's Day and the big kid holidays like Halloween. There is one for Canada Day and one for Victoria Day. There is one for Cinqo De Mayo. There are activity holidays such as the popular sports for young kids, dance, soccer, martial arts, etc. There are school related magnets such as "school play", etc.

If you take the extras that don't apply to your family, you can customize them by writing on paper and gluing it on top of the magnets you don't think you'll ever use.

There are magnets for the years 2002 through 2007 and season and month magnets. It would not be a big deal to continue to use it beyond those years and simply omit the year magnet.

To make more room to select the magnets on the extra magnet board side, I took away all the magnets that we would never use for our family such as sports my child does not play. I also took away the future year magnets for fear of them being lost. I put them away for future use.

I hope in the future the manufacturer makes a supplemental kit for us to custom design our own magnets, perhaps by giving us loads of pre-printed stickers with a smaller number of magnets and allowing us to choose which apply to our family. This kit could also be used to replace any that may have become lost over time. Some blank stickers in the proper shape to fit the magnets could be for us to truly make unique magnets for our family. I'd like to have "vacation start" and "vacation end" rather than just one "vacation".

The cons: this is quite heavy so make sure you use the proper hanging hook and anchor it well. The pieces are choking size, so it must be hung high enough so children under age 3 cannot reach it (including guests and visitors). Placing it that high does not allow for eye-level viewing by a five-year old. I would have preferred the folding go in the reverse manner, that is, when not being hung it would fold inward so the magnets are protected inside it rather than having them on the outside because as it is moved, the magnets fall off. If it folded inward we could keep it folded up and open it to use it and then put it away again, if we didn't want to hang it on the wall. Another idea would be that I could hang it low for our family but when I have babies and toddlers visiting I could quickly put it away while they are visiting. Lastly, the size of the day-grid cubes for each day are too small to fit both the date magnet and 2 other activity or holiday magnets. I think it should have been designed slightly bigger so that 2 magnets easily fit on the grid.

Despite my complaints I am giving this a high rating. It is a one-of-a-kind product so there are presently no brand alternatives. Lights, Camera, Interaction makes high quality durable and educational products and this one fits that bill. The good things about this calendar outweigh my complaints! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A great way to learn!
This toy is great! My son, Drew, loves playing with it. He gets so excited everytime he pushes one of the buttons & another letter, number, shape, or song is said or sang (also, appears on the screen). Drew is learning the basics really well with this toy. I recommend this to anyone since it teaches in such a fun way! ... Read more

Features

• Wide selection of art supplies
• Open-ended set promotes creativity
• Sturdy, waterproof portfolio with carrying handle
• Includes materials for drawing, painting, and collage

Reviews (1)

Just wonderful!
This has to be one of the best possible art case available for the budding artist. The supplies and the case are of extremely high quality (no cheap vinyl here -- but that's why the price is, unfortunately, nearly forty dollars). The case is also very roomy and versatile. There's enough space to slip an additional book or two (or other small toys) inside at the last minute, so the contents always seem "fresh". We take this case with us everywhere (without the paints, of course), and it keeps our four-year-old daughter very contented while waiting in restaurants, airports, etc.

One problem, however, is the lack of a pencil sharpener to accompany the colored pencils. Granted, this is a minor fault, but, since Alex Toys has a reputation for creating excellent products, this omission seems somewhat inexplicable. ... Read more