‘Tis the Season for Spoiling Your Grandchildren!

By Maura Keller

As the holidays are quickly approaching, many shoppers turn their attention to their gift buying list, trying to determine the best gifts to purchase for the children and teens in their lives.

The Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, an independent consumer review organization for children’s products recommends grandparents evaluate whether a toy:

Ages 3 to 6

Giraffalaff Limbo
Get kids moving with Hasbro’s new game of “how low can you go?” Preschoolers will love to spin the dial to try one of the six limbo styles: classic limbo, crab walk, crawl, giraffe walk, bend forward or backward. The game’s built-in sound plays encouraging music. The player who passes under Giraffalaff at the lowest level wins.

Scatterpillar Scramble Game
This fast-paced marble game with music keeps kids movin’ and groovin’ as they try to balance marbles in the hands of a very wiggly caterpillar. Kids use tongs to grab their marbles one at a time. The first player to securely place all 8 marbles in Scatterpillar’s hands wins. (Age 4 and up).

Ages 5 to 7

Sight Word Bingo
Parents and teachers can make sight word review fun with Sight Word Bingo from Learning Resources! Through play, children learn sight words, practice listening and following directions and recognizing and reading words in print.

Ogosport Super Sports Disks
OgoSport is a company that develops products that encourage its users to go out and play (Oh Go Outside). With unlimited possibilities for inventive play, Ogosport Super Sports Disks allow users to catch and throw balls up to 150 feet. In addition the disk acts as a throwing disk by itself and can be adapted to many sports activities, such as volleyball, baseball, and tennis.

Floppy Jalopy by Learning Resources
Looking for wacky building fun? This car-building set includes 133 pieces, with a remote-controlled infrared motor. Children can follow the directions or use their imaginations to build a one-of-a-kind vehicle.

Ages 7 and Up

Mini Me Geology’s My Rockin’ Collection! Minerals
Mineral collection just got a whole lot easier. The My Rockin’ Collection! Mineral product is designed to spark the interest in elementary-aged children in Earth Science. Along with fifteen mineral samples, the kit includes white and black streak plates, a hand magnifier and identification cards, which provide information for identifying the mineral samples and basic fun facts for kids.

Music Ace Deluxe
Looking for a fun and affordable way to bring music into children’s lives? Music Ace Deluxe is a home-based software program that provides self-paced lessons that teach the basics of music at home. A game-like atmosphere, with colorful graphics and digitized sound effects entertains children as they lean. Designed by music education professionals, Music Ace Deluxe is a comprehensive series of 36 engaging music lessons that teach music theory, rhythm, pitch, note reading, listening, and the keyboard.

Blokus
This mind-bending strategic family board game has won numerous awards for its challenging structure. Blokus offers ample opportunity for children (and adults!) to learn and exercise strategic and spatial thinking skills

Blurt! The Uproarious Word Race Game
Looking to build your grandchildren’s vocabulary? In Blurt, players take turns reading clues aloud, competing to ‘blurt out’ the correct answer first. As the race for the right word heats up, blurting becomes boisterous and players get tongue-tied! Blurt is a great vocabulary builder for kids, a hilarious addition to adult parties, and a must for family game night.

No Stress Chess
Perfect for children eager to learn this classic game. This game features interactive action cards that clearly identify each player’s next move and the chess piece involved in that move. The two-sided game board offers a ‘teaching’ side and a traditional side for kids who have mastered the basics of the game.

Ages 8 and Up

Monopoly City
The various Monopoly games available can be overwhelming, but this new edition offers a unique 3-D version that will keep kids (and adults) coming back for more. For the first time ever, players can build from the start of the game, creating their own metropolis using 3-D buildings, including industrial blocks, skyscrapers and even parks. But watch out! Real estate tycoons can sabotage your plans, causing your rent values to plummet!

Clue: Secrets & Spies Edition
If the children in your life enjoy text messaging, they’ll love the newest Clue game. As Hasbro’s first game to incorporate text messaging into the game play, players attempt to intercept Agent Black and put an end to his plot which remaining anonymous. In addition to text messaging, the ultraviolet secret decoder will reveal clues that will help players track down Agent Black throughout the game.

Tweens and Teens
Buying gifts for grandchildren who have entered the tween and teen years can be difficult. Here are some unique options that may garner a favorable response from the pre-teens and young adults in your life:

Portable and Home Audio Products
iHome Sound Systems are the designers of audio products for iPod, iPhone and MP3 players. Any one of iHome’s products would make a great gift for a teen who loves their iPod or iPhone. Units retail from $19- $299 so all budgets can be accommodated. Most of their products are available at ihomeaudio.com, the Apple Store, Best Buy, Target and nationwide at major electronics and mass retailers.

Cellphone Accessories
Teens and their cell phones tend to be inseparable. Grandparents can enhance the ease of use for a grandchild, plus offer access to enhanced features with a “hands-free” Bluetooth earpiece, such as TheFirstOne (MSRP $149), which comes with a range of accessories for optimal comfort.

Digital Cameras
While many kids plead for their own digital camera, the price point of many cameras is simply too high for parents and grandparents to consider for their pre-teen or teen. General Electric has created the all-new GE A1050, a $99 digital camera that offers a ten-megapixels resolution, 5X optical zoon lens, and image stabilization—perfect for young teens looking to enhance their photography skills.

Jewelry
Girls of all ages love jewelry, especially unique jewelry that makes a statement! With “going green” a popular adage among the younger set, Ann-Made jewelry is a unique line of jewelry made from soda can tabs. This unique and chic jewelry promotes recycling while illustrating a business can benefit society and the planet. Bracelets, pendants and earrings are available at a variety of price points. www.annmadeart.com
Art of Possiblity Studios, the only art brand representing physically disabled artists, has introduced the new “Phenominoes” Pendants, which feature blind artists’ artwork on real dominoes. These ‘art-you-wear’ pendants are created by the careful transfer of original and licensed art to a new canvas: the face of a real domino. $26.95 www.aopstudios.com.

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