Reviews (157)

Great toy
My son recieved this toy for christmas when he was 2 years only. I was amazed to see how much he learned from the songs that the toy plays with each letter. He also learned to sing his abc's from this toy. I would recommend this toy to anyone who wants to give their child a head start in learning

Great Educational Toy
My niece learned the whole alphabet and all the sounds the letters make before she was two years old with this toy. She absolutely loves it.

Great Gift
Best of all, they're too big to get kicked under the fridge!! Fun songs, great volume control, interesting for many ages.

Great Toy
I bought this for my daughters first birthday,she's 2 now and still playing with it, she learned the alphabet,colors like nothing she runs/walks around the house singing her abc's over and over, this is honestly the best educational fun toy I spent money on and she has fun learning.

Great Educational Toy
I bought this for my daughter for her 2nd birthday. She plays with it all the time. It has really helped her learn her alphabet and how the letters are pronounced. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Honk! Honk! It's gridlock and the little red car can't move.The player is a traffic cop in the Rush Hour Traffic Jam Puzzle wherethe objective is to get the red car off the road. To play, pick one of40 challenge cards; solutions are printed on the back of each card.Then set up the cars and buses in a specified pattern on the6-inch-square road grid. Move the vehicles one by one (obey those trafficlaws!) until the red car can escape the traffic jam. There are fourlevels of difficulty. Kids can alternate turns with another player orjust "play in traffic" alone. The game from Binary Arts received anational award from Mensa and is used in elementary school mathclasses. The design includes clear instructions printed on the sturdybox, which can be used both as a playing tray and for storage. The gamecards stow away in a drawer in the road grid. This is a 1999 Parents'Choice recommended toy. --Marcie Bovetz ... Read more

Reviews (89)

Hours of Fun Fun Fun
This is a great puzzle. Since it is a game only one can play at a time, my nieces, ages 6 and 8 and my nephew age 11 took turns getting the red car out of the traffic jams. They even enjoyed watching each other find the solution to each "jam". Incidently the 6 year old is almost through solving the "Advanced" puzzles and I am about to buy both additional card packs. Kids and adults will love this game.

Great "toy"
Add us to the host of folks who love this puzzle toy. I generally consult Amazon ratings before purchasing new items and any item that has this many positive ratings always catches my attention. And it lives up to the promise. My almost 7 year-old son is ADHD and I was AMAZED at the way this toy captured his attention. I expected him to become quickly frustrated and give up. But after a few successes, he was hooked. I coached him a little bit at first (and then I was hooked too!) and before I knew it, he was solving puzzles by himself and doing a better job than me! He did the first 20 in one sitting. I was amazed as I watched him begin understanding which cars had to be where in order for him to get the red car out, then he started working out his plan to get there. You have to think ahead to be successful and he was doing it!

His persistence and concentration surprised me, so if your child is having any problems sitting and concentrating on a task, don't be afraid of this toy! But, alas, as with many ADHD kids, he's also been tested as gifted, so he's already run through the first 3 levels and is now nearly done with the expert level - solving puzzles that I can't do! I have to wait until he goes to bed to even get a chance to play! There's 40 cards in the first pack. The beginning levels are pretty easy to remember the solutions, but as you go higher in difficulty, you could probably do the puzzles more than once and still be challenged. But do be prepared to buy the 2, 3, and 4 Gift Pack (a great deal for $12 on Amazon)

I LOVE the fact that you store the cards right in the bottom of the tray. However,I wish that they would put a more permanent kind of cover on the tray. Also, you cannot replace the cover when you are in the middle of a puzzle, the cars have to be in the tray in a certain way in order for the cover to fit properly. But those are extremely minor drawbacks considering the hours of entertainment my son and I have gotten.

grate!!!
I love this game and so do my familly from ages 6 - 35. you will enjoy playing this game alone at home. the greate part is that even once youv memorized this toy and all the levels (wich you will.) you can buy more cards! it is a grate present for anyone not too lazy to think a bit. everyone has their own level. Also other games such as the one croosing the river from this manufacturer are fantastic! really worth the money!

GREAT GIFT IDEA
We just got this game today and we were all instantly addicted! My 7 year old loved the challenge of the game, didn't get frustrated at all, and wouldn't even think of giving up on trying to solve the puzzles! This is a great gift idea for birthday parties, as it's inexpensive and parents will appreciate the educational value of this puzzle game.

Greatest Game Ever!
I am in the Gifted program in school and it is a lot of fun! I play this everyday. It is very challenging but an awesome game! I would reccomend it to anyone! ... Read more

Editorial Review

A full set of developmental toys that will delight and grow with children from birth to their first year are integrated into this gift set by Sassy Toys. Newborns will reflexively grasp the Mini Polka Dot Rattle but won't let go, captivated by the colors they see. It has a classic baby rattle shape with plastic rings and a nubbed handle for tactile stimulation. An innovation in rattle design, the Pogo rattle is atom-shaped. It has lots of places to hold and is more than a tool for distracting a cranky baby, it's also a teether. Smiley Face Rattle adds more interactivity with a push-button squeak nose, crazy eyes, and a mirror on its backside for when self-awareness dawns. Winner of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award for best toy, Fascination Station has so much to focus on: four spinning delights of sight, feel, and sound mounted on a base that can be hand-held or stand on its own. Each of these toys has won numerous parent association and industry awards for age-appropriate design features and exceptional quality and safety. (Birth to 12 months) --Lynne Sampson ... Read more

Reviews (40)

These are my daughter's favorites!
My daughter just LOVES Sassy toys. Combine that with all babies love of mirrors, and this smiley face rattle is worth the money all on it's own. She immediatley loved the mini polka dot rattle and the smiley face rattle. At around 6.5 months, she really started liking the pogo polka dot rattle and the fascination station. I've never been able to get the suction cup on the fascination station to work on anything (swing, ultrasaucer, stroller) so I just took that part off - and she still enjoys playing with the rest.

I keep an eye out for ANY new Sassy toys!!

Fascinates Baby
These toys are the only ones my 8 week daughter will look at!
The smiley face is adorable and the red nose even squeeks to get baby's attention. I can't wait until she can hold these toys on her own, since she loves to stare at them for a good 15 minutes.

who woulda thought?
My little guy LOVES these toys!!! They are inexspensive and he always gravitates to them I have no idea what he would be learning from them, but he likes to bang them around and they work in the car, highchair, crib, on the floor, everywhere!!! I love inexspensive and versatile!!!! My fav!!!

Great toy for developmental growth
I work with respirator-dependent infants in a hospital setting and these toys are one of their favorites. The Fascination Station is by far their favorite and really encourages our babies to use their hands and arms more. I have found this toy to be a fantastic motor skill developer. We try to provide this particular toy for each new baby that arrives!

One of my daughter's favorite
We bought fascination station and the smiley face rattle for our daughter and she loves both of them. The smiley face rattle has a mirror on the back that she loves looking in and the handles are easy for her to grasp. Sassy also makes slippers with the same smiley face on the feet and those entertain her endlessly even now after she's over the "I discovered my feet" phase. I've never written a review before but she just loves all three of her Sassy toys so much that I can't say enough about what great toys I think these are!! ... Read more

Reviews (5)

great design, great fun
This preschooler variation of the old favorite Bingo is a real winner.

Zingo cards have a 3 by 3 grid that shows pictures and words. Cards have a yellow side (easier, for younger kids) and a red side for the odler ones. The plastic game piece dispenser is well-designed and fun to use. Players shout out to claim a piece, which is then placed over the appropriate square on the player's card. There are several play variations.

Excellent game for the younger set, and fun for older children and adults as well.

Wonderful toy - kids love it!
My son got this for his fourth birthday and still plays with it regularly (he's now over 5). He'd just started to read when he got it, and the game helped him add many new words to his vocabulary - but more importantly, it was fun! His friends loved it so much that several of them asked for their own sets as gifts. We play until everyone wins and gets to shout Zingo!, and the kids help each other get there. And my son even plays it sometimes by himself. It's really wonderful, very very fun, and would be great for kids from about 3 to at least 6.

game enthusiast
my 4 yr old daughter received this game as a gift. she hasn't stopped playing it! Everyone in the family has fun with Zingo! from my 8 yr old daughter to my mother in law! Great family fun!

Let's Zingo!
Our children love this game and it is by far their favorite. Though the recommended ages are 4 and up - my 4 year old and my 2 1/2 year old both enjoy playing this game and it is one that they never seem to tire of. The playing pieces are all very durable and well constructed. I highly recommend Zingo.

Excellent game that even parents enjoy!
This game is great. Since the day we got it, it has been played with all the time. The kids love being able to yell "Zingo" when the win. The design is great since you can keep all the pieces neatly tucked in the dispenser.

A great fun, educational game for game nights and rainy days! ... 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

Reviews (16)

Fun for the entire family!
We bought this for my 6 year old daughter for Christmas and everyone enjoyed it! I was amazed how well she did moving through the easy to more advanced levels. Her enthusiasm was contagious and everyone began trying to do the puzzles. My daughter felt a strong sense of accomplishment when she actually did better than many of the adults! It is a durable, compact, challenging puzzle that is so enjoyable that you will get hooked! In fact, I am looking for additional cards to continue the fun!
This is definitely a 5 star game that has educational value and is also appealing to kids.

A game help children learn to use their minds!
I bought this game for my 5 yr old. She loves it and is challenged by the game. Even some of her older cousins enjoyed playing with it over the holidays.

great toy
We bought this toy for our 3.5 year old son, because he really loved it when he saw it in the store. He's been at it all the time after he got it and needed only minimal instructions to start playing. We really appreciated the fact that the difficulty levels were so appropriately designed. My son simply moved from one level to another with great enthusiasm and would never quit playing the game on his own.

Fun & Educational
I've never played Rush Hour, but the Junior version was a big hit with my 5 and 8 year old kids (and me!) this Christmas. It has 4 levels of difficulty: beginner, intermediate, advanced, and expert, with 10 cards in each level. You pick a card and set up the grid with vehicles as depicted on the card. The object is to get your ice cream truck through the traffic and exit the grid.

The rules are: no moving cars sideways. You have to move them forward or backward based on the direction the vehicles are facing. The beginner cards typically require each vehicle be moved only once before you are able to get the ice cream truck through the traffic. With the advanced cards, you may have to move vehicles a few times as you strategically plan your escape.

This game is not only fun, but helps with organization (setting up the grid) and planning (figuring out how to get your ice cream truck out of a jam). It also gives the kids a sense of accomplishment as they move on to the more difficult cards.

I highly recommend it and we plan on buying the adult version soon!

Great whole family fun!
After reading about Rush Hour, Jr. on this website, I decided to get it for my sons, age 7 and 4. They are both a year older now, and still enjoy it. My oldest is now ready for the "adult" version but the more difficult puzzles of the Jr. game still provide some challenge. An unexpected benefit from this "game" is that my sons love to watch each other play and offer encouragement and sometimes advice, and neither gets discouraged when he gets stuck--how great is it to see that?

It also travels really well, we take it in the car for our frequent long trips and take it on the boat to play during snack time.

Parents--I definitely recommend both Rush Hour versions and the booster cards. ... Read more

Editorial Review

This is a no-nonsense, down-to-earth pegboard set with big, colorful pegs that are ideally sized for small fingers but too big to swallow. Designed to build eye/hand coordination, fine-motor skills, math skills, and color recognition in 2-to-5-year-olds, the Tall-Stacker Pegs & Pegboard Set includes 25 colorful pegs, a crepe rubber pegboard, and suggested activities for parents to help get children started. --Chris Livesay ... Read more

Reviews (8)

mom_of 16month_old
I purchesed this toy from an educational store looking for something to travel with and something without batteries. We bought it 2 months ago when my son was 14 months old and he liked it right away. It only took him several hours to figure out how to stack them. He plays with them every day and his color preferences are showing up while he plays with the pegs (he picks out all the orange ones first). He works both hands on his own when trying to stack the pegs. I think it has helped him in learning how to hold crayons. The only dislikes I have with this toy is the foam mat and the thin plastic wall in the center of the pegs. My son is still at that age were he bites everything and sometimes I think that if he worked at it enough he could chew a corner of the mat. We had one of the center hole walls break the other day and found the piece on the floor. So I would inspect them every so often. Also, try to teach your kids to hold the pegs down low as to not poke themselves in the eye when trying to stack the pegs with out the mat. It happened to our son--nothing severe just alot of crying. Overall it's a great toy and worth the money. I would definately purchase it as a gift for other children as well. Our son gets very excited when I ask him if he wants to play with his pegs. :)

Fun but a little flimsy
My 21-month-old loves stacking things and sticking things into other things. So this toy was perfect for him, except that the base should be made of something a little more sturdy. It's rather flimsy rubberized material. He can't play with it in his crib or on my bed. He has to place it on a table or something else with a hard surface. Other than that, he seems to really like it.

Great toy for the kids
I bought this because my son used to play this in OT sessions. He loved it and it really helps him to concentrate, use both hands (motor skills).

I will recommend this to everyone (1+year kids)

Not just for two year olds
My daughter is 6 months old and has Down Syndrome. Her physical therapist introduced us to this toy and it has done wonders for her fine motor skills. She loves the colors and the texture of the mat. Look beyond the original inention of this toy and see its many possibilities. Just a little side note: Our therapist has had the same one for a year now and uses it with 5 or 6 kids a day. So far, it has held up wonderfully. Don't let the foam mat fool you...

Stacking Fun
This is a great educational and fun toy. I bought it when my daughter was 14 months, because at the time she was really into pegs and putting things of the sort into holes, and of course she loves to stack. I thought this would be the perfect toy to keep her busy and her mind expanding while playing and learning. She absolutely loves to stack the pegs and fit them into the holes, even though that part was a little tricky for her at first. She is now 15 months old and pretty much has it down. Soon we will be stacking and sorting the pegs by color. My only gripe on this toy is that the foam bottom is flimsy. It would have made a much nicer item for the money if it were all wood - but of course the pegs are plastic and the bottom is made of foam. One positive note however about the bottom being foam, is that this is a great travel toy! Throw the pegs into a plastic baggy and the foam bottom is thin enough to travel in a tote. It may not look like much, but someone took the time to design a toy/game for busy little minds, and knows what kids love! I wish there were more items of this sort; building, creating, etc. for young children - great job! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

This puzzle is awesome!
I bought this puzzle for Christmas for my two-year old niece. Not only did she learn how to put it together, but she loved it so much she would sleep with it at night! It has counting, colors, left, right, and a puzzle to boot.

The only negative was it arrived with a broken peg. A little super glue and it was as good as new. I would keep a close eye out for those pieces to break off as they would be choking hazards for little ones.

Peg Puzzle with Purpose
Toddlers are facinated by the peg puzzle, which allow for them to easily manipulate pieces. This puzzle has been a great gift providing a quiet and educational opportunity. This very durable puzzle with bright colors easily encourages play that leads to understanding left and right.

A seeker of clever puzzles for young hands and minds
I have two years old bright twins that are into puzzles. They are a little too young for most floor puzzles and too bored with the common stand-along pieces puzzles. This puzzle is an excellent transition to a higher level puzzle solving. The pieces interact together to form a bigger image. There is a built in logic to their interaction my kids love to explore. The add-on values such as colors and numbers in the pictures under the pieces are very useful. I wish I could find more puzzles like this one. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Simple Pattern Blocks
Nice bright, simple patterns for my 2½ yr old to follow, and the cutout of shape makes it easy to place the thick wooden pieces. We're teaching her shapes and color recognition and this is a great teaching tool, and she really feels proud when she finishes each one (there's a pattern on each side of the wood board.) She even helps clean up afterward, made easy with the wood storage box. Can't say enough about the educational value and great quality of this set. I think we have just about all of Melissa & Doug's products! ... 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

Editorial Review

This is a strategy game with a twist--if you lose, you'relunch. You've taken your trusty Safari Rover deep into the bush; nowmaneuver it through the maze of hungry animals and get back to camp inone piece. An 8-by-7.25-inch plastic game tray forms a kind of grid foryour vehicle and the 3-D plastic animal pieces (including elephants,rhinos, and a termite mound). Draw one of 50 cards (10 of which areextra-easy, for younger players) to determine the initial board setup.Then move pieces, according to strict rules, to make your escapethrough the only exit. A cloth bag for all the game pieces is included.--Richard Farr ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Fun but bulky
Our family truly enjoys the Rush Hour game and tried this one as well - it is bigger and bulkly and convenient for travel. I alos find the puzzles to be a bit easier. The pieces don't slide as well as Rush Hour.

Good toy for everyone
I knew this game at a friend's house and love it even I was 30 already at that time. I bought several when I went back to visit my family and they all love it. When I told my mom that I would give my brother's 1st grad boy a set, she told me he won't like it since he doesn't like the brain games. But he loves it soon after my sister explain to him the rules and he enjoys to do it. My little one, almost 23 months old now, likes those animals and loves to put all of those animals to the board one by one and kind of learn the size and arrange the place. It's not only for 8 and up.

Great game; an attention grabber
I bought this for my 6 year old. She played with it for an hour the first time. It is a game she can play solo. After using the Junior cards, she went on to the beginner. She is still progressing. This is a great thinking game. I highly recommend it.

The best Rush Hour game ever!
This game is so much fun!Let me tell you a secret about this game.You can look on the back of the cards to get clues to beat the level that your playing if your stuck.So this game is so fun!

A Wonderful Way to Play Together or Challenge a Child
My 7-year-old daughter loves this activity. There are so many active toys available, but Binary Toys has the best strategic-play games around. We play together often with this toy; I find it as much fun as she does. But, she would just as soon sit at the kitchen counter playing it by herself. We take it on trips, and all the relatives enjoy it, too. Since the "solution" shown on the back of each card is straightforward to follow for an adult but not for a child, she is never tempted to turn the card over and "cheat." Instead, through trial and error, she eventually escapes the safari and moves to the next card. Having the wide range of skill level cards helps keep everyone interested. Having the handy cloth case for storage is appreciated as well. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Unzip this 10-by-14-inch, bright turquoise, soft cloth book, and you'll find two animal-packedalphabet trains spanning both pages. Each train car is a pocket, and each pocket is embroidered with aletter of the alphabet. Inside the pockets you'll find friendly little pillow animals, each one marked with aletter of the alphabet: the pink elephant rides in the E car, and the green alligator rides in the A car.Your child will love taking the animals out of the pockets and stuffing them back in (a favorite toddleractivity). You'll have fun teaching your child the names of the animals and letters, such as N for newtand X for xenops. When playtime is over, your toddler can zip the whole gang safely inside, grab thesturdy handle, and tote the little animals to their next destination. --Elisabeth Fredrickson ... Read more

Reviews (8)

My favorite toy for my kids!
This was a gift to my newborn boy, but my 2 1/2 year old adores it!
Pros:
1. helps teach letters (each animal has the letter that starts its name on its back)
2. compact, portable
3. cute!
4. animals good for other play (my daughter likes to pretend to "save" them when they are stuck in a tree, or have them ride in her "airplane" (shoe)... and much much more
5. OK for babies (although the animals are smallish, ~ 3inches tall, they never presented a choking hazard for my son -- who likes to chew them)
6. The animals machine wash well (see chewing note above :) )
Cons:
1. Lots of pieces to lose -- we lost the lion for quite a while, but he showed up behind the entertainment center
2. Some of the animals are not so recognizable -- I think "N" is a newt, but it's hard to tell.

Despite the few cons, this is probably my favorite toy that my kids have. Thus, 5 stars all around!

A worthy investment
I bought this for my daughter at 17 months and she loves it. Not only is it beautiful, it's the best quiet time toy ever!!

Just an FYI
We've owned this toy for over 3 years. The manufacturer (Pockets of Learning) replaces missing pieces at no charge, not even shipping!

Great Old MacDonald Cheat Sheet
We love our Animal Train. We sing Old MacDonald Had a Farm and use all of the animals in alphabetical order. Some are a little hard to come up with sounds for (like newt, for example!!!) and some of the animals are hard to recognize, but still, this is a wonderful idea and a nice implementation of it.

My 16 month old loves this learning toy!!
I bought this when my son was 14 months old and it immediately became his favorite toy. Within a month he knew at least 10 of the animals and could point to them when I asked where they were. He even knows exactly where to place his favorite 4 animals when all of the pockets are empty. This toy has helped his dexterity too as he has learned how to slide the animals inside of the pockets. These soft animals are just the right size for little hands and at any point during the day our son can be found carrying 2 or 3 animals all around the house. They have even helped with nap and bedtime!! Putting him down for sleep was a dreaded event as he would always cry. I began to place the entire "book" in his crib, telling him to talk to each of his animals. He becomes so focused on taking them in and out of the book that he forgets about going to sleep and ultimately falls asleep within 15 minutes. When I go in to check on him he is always sound asleep with one still in his hands! I HIGHLY recommend this toy as it teaches colors, letters, animals and helps increase dexterity. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Great Learning Toy!
My kids have this toy. They love making their names or words out of the letters.

I find it totally unexceptable for someone to attack someone else. This is for REVIEWS, not to attack people. Who cares if shes not who she says she is? She wrote a good review. She didn't use "their" instead of "there" anyway, and two exclamations is a common mistake. She was probably in a hurry.

Grow up and get a life.

Amazon Has The Age Recommendation Wrong
I just wanted to let anyone who was thinking about buying this item that Amazon has the age recommendation listed incorrectly. Amazon states in the item description that their age recommendation as well as the manufacturers recommendation is 24+ months. I recently bought this for my son. When I received it I was very surprised and upset to see how small the pieces were. I didn't think it was appropriate for a 24 month old. I looked on the container and it says for ages 3 and up. I emailed amazon and after explaining what happend I was able to return the item and get refunded for my shipping costs as well since I was mislead by Amazon's description. However, I would have assumed that once Amazon knew they incorrectly listed the appropriate age for this item that they would have changed it.

I plan on buying this toy
I have been looking for new bath toys for my daughter and can't wait to buy these letters (and the animals). I found all of these reviews very helpful, especially the one from the teacher! I also believe that it is important for children to learn both upper and lower-case letters.
What I find "inexcusable", however, is the attack made on the teacher that took the time to write an informative review. I would think that someone with a "modicum of intelligence" would understand that these reviews are here for a parents' benefit, and are meant to help all of us buy the best products available for our children. Isn't THAT what is most important"!!!!!!"

Thanks to the teacher for her review!
I have two grandkids who live with me. They are two and three, and they love this toy!
I agree with the teacher who commented on the importance of teaching little ones lower-case letters before upper-case ones. I, too, have had a tough time finding lower-case letters to teach them with.
Co-incidentally, an occasional mispelling on a teacher's part is understandable; it must be trying, having to deal with bored, discontent parents on a regular basis.

also a teacher
Great toy. I have read the other reviews and generally agree with them. I do, however, question the veracity of the reviewer claiming to be a teacher. First of all, she used a double exclamation point, which is never correct. If we excuse that based on the fact that this is an "informal" forum, I suppose that would be okay. What is inexcusable to me, however, and leads me to believe that she must either not be a teacher, or must not be a very good one, is that she used the wrong form of "there" in her review (she used "their" which is incorrect in this instance). By the way, I am not a teacher. Just someone with a modicum of intelligence. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Circles, squares, triangles, hearts, and stars! Little ones will delight in their ability to sort and stack these colorful, spongy shapes on glossy wooden pegs. The Shape and Color Sorter helps preschoolers and kindergartners learn the essential skills of hand-eye coordination, shape and color recognition, and sorting. Brightly colored and fun to touch, the 25 crepe rubber pieces are nearly indestructible. In fact, this set exceeds standards set by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission. Still, the product is not meant for children who may put objects in their mouths. Comes with a 3.75-by-11.5-inch base panel and five removable "punkin-head pegs."--Joan DeClaire ... Read more

Reviews (14)

a fun, educational toy
I bought this toy for my 2 year old son, who is learning colors and shapes. This toy is very educational because it teaches those in addition to sorting by color and by shape. What impresses me about this toy is that you can order replacement pieces from the company, so if you lose a shape, the toy doesn't have to be forgotton!

Great toy, Our boy's favorite
We bought this for our 20 month old and he thought it was wonderful, he plays with it in the car, and even takes the pieces to bed with him. He knows his colors and shapes throughly now and still loves to play with it, the only problem is pieces come up missing easily. That is solved by Lauri's replcaement policy... Directions on the box fifty cents and a stamped envelope and they will replace any missing piece.

A MUST HAVE!
This is the best kind of toy - your child is learning numerous different skills while playing. (fine motor, shape sorting, color sorting...) I purchased it for my 12 month old and wished I had discovered the "Lauri" brand with my older child sooner. They even include an idea sheet to inspire other ways to use the product. It is the perfect item to put on the high chair to buy a little time while making dinner. I'd make this purchase again in a heartbeat! Don't be swayed too much by the suggetsed age - this is a toy that grows with your child.

One of the best!
I bought this toy when my son was 18 months old to help occupy him on our plane trip to Germany. It was quite a hit on our 2 week trip and also 3 years later (he is now 4-1/2). He and his sister (15 months old) love to play with this toy. It is so durable that it looks like new!

Awesome toy idea, cheap material
After I saw a completely wooden version of this toy at a friend's house, I jumped into buying it for my 16 month old without carefully reading what it was made of. I was surprised to receive a package so light for a toy I thought was all wood. I would have preferred the shapes to be made of wood because the foam shapes bend and thus stick to the pegs when my child tries to pull them off. Since the pegs are not attached to the base, which is also very light, they easily come out when a piece is being removed and your child might not be able to put them back securely to continue playing. On the positive side, it is safer to have foam pieces scattered around a toddler who will inadvertently step all over them. My daughter is just as preoccupied with this sorter as she was with the wooden version at my friend's house. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great Learning Toy
Great for teaching the concept of 10's, adding, subtracting - in a fun way! Highly recommend.

Great Value
There are 10 wooden beads which slide across each of the 10 metal rods of the toy. The colors are bright and the frame is thick and durable. As should be expected, there are no instructions included with the abacus. ... Read more