Top Gifts
for Kids Ages 5-8

10+ TOP PICKS

2008 EDITION

 

1 Hyper Dash - Wild Planet There's nothing quite like a toy that gets kids moving while they learn. Hyper Dash by Wild Planet looks simple but actually includes multiple game modes and levels to appeal to a wide variety of children's ages and skill levels. Kids hold on to the electronic "tagger" and listen for instructions--as simple as finding a certain color or number or as challenging as solving a subtraction exercise. Then it's a mad dash to find the correct target. The game can be played outdoors or indoors in a spacious room. Fun and educational! [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Wild Planet Hyper Dash]   2 Quadrilla This fabulous marble run is built by little hands. Quadrilla Basic Set contains 49 pieces--wooden tracks and ramps, two-way chutes, an incredible spiral/funnel, as well as marbles. Children love marble runs, and with Quadrilla, they get the satisfaction of building their own runs. This is high quality wood, and the play value of the set is strong. This is intelligent, hands-on fun. There are plenty of add-on marble runs and extensions. Exceptional! [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Quadrilla Marble Railway, Basic Set]   EyeClops (Bionic Eye by Jakks) This educational toy acts as a microscope with images that appear in their full magnified glory on the television screen. Kids will be actively searching for things to magnify -- coins, fabric, their own skin. The toy is battery-powered, and set-up is easy -- it plugs into the A/V jack on your TV. It's tricky for little ones (they'll need help focusing), but great fun nevertheless! [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Jakks EyeClops Bionic Eye]   3 Webkinz are all the rage, and probably rightfully so. These collectible stuffed animals hold a code to unlock games on the Webkinz site. Kids use the plush animal's secret code to care for their virtual pet and play games (at a variety of skill/age levels). Quizzes do contain educational content. As well, as children earn "money" (KinzCash) in the Webkinz world, they learn about saving and spending it wisely (they buy furniture, food, and things for the pets' rooms). Daily news, contests, and events keep the experience fresh. KinzChat allows kids to safely chat with their friends. Be aware that kids will definitely want more than one pet, although owning more than one doesn't make game play much richer. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy Webkinz toys]   Children's Playmate magazine is a fantastic publication just right for this age group. It features stories kids can actually read, activities, puzzles, and more. A one-year subscription offers 8 magazines through the year—that means a child gets something special in the mail, just for him or her, 8 times! This makes a cute and educational gift.   [Sign up for a subscription to Children's Playmate magazine at Amazon.com]  4 Balloon Lagoon Balloon Lagoon, by the makers of Cranium, is a carnival "board game" (without the traditional board) that is truly exciting and educational at once. Best for kids ages 4-7, this game involves spelling simple words, unscrambling pictures, and more, all to the sounds of the merry-go-round musical timer. The object of the game is to collect the most plastic balloons the quickest. The game is battery-operated. Very fun!  [For more information, user reviews, or to buy Cranium Balloon Lagoon]   5 Geomag Young children are wild about magnets and about free-play building. This set combines these two kid-friendly activities. Geomag with Panels sets contain rods (one color per set), nickel-plated magnetic spheres (that never tarnish!), and colorful panels of different shapes for unlimited play ideas. Kids can make unique and imaginative structures of all kinds, including such things as spinning tops and simple shapes. It's an educational and fun activity for kids over 3 (small parts), and the possibilities are only limited by a child's imagination, and the number of pieces in the set! It comes in sets with different numbers of pieces. Although the sets with less pieces are fun, most kids will want more pieces. We recommend the 125-piece set. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: 125 Piece Geomag with Panels at Amazon.com] Geomag Pastels New this year are Geomag Pastels sets. They're the same educationally rich sets, but the colors are multi and soft--much more pleasing to the eye. Kids will build interesting structures for hours with the colorful rods and tarnish-free magnetic spheres in the Geomags sets. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: 42 Piece Geomag Pastel Set or 96 Piece Geomag Pastel Set at Amazon.com]   6 KnockDown BlockTown Knocking down dominoes is always a fun activity for young children. KnockDown BlockTown takes this activity a step further. A motorized dump truck does the job of laying the dominoes...and your child gets to tap the first domino and watch them all tumble down. Re-load the truck, and begin again. Fun stuff!   [For user reviews, or to pre-order/buy: Knockdown Blocktown Domino Building Set - Construction Site at Amazon.com]     7 Activity Kits: Groovy Ceramic Lamp, Butterfly Bedroom, and Two Glasses For You to Paint An art project that becomes a functional part of the house is always satisfying. With Groovy Ceramic Lamp, kids can admire their hand-painted and decorated lamp whenever they want. This kit is attractive and quite complete. It comes with a 10-inch plain ceramic lamp and shade, bulb, a palette of paints, paintbrush, as well as a pom-pom fringe and glue. Ideas are given, but kids will likely have their own designs in mind!  Butterfly Bedroom is another kit that is best for children ages 5-7 (because of its simplicity) who love butterflies! The kit comes with gorgeous tuile butterflies that are ready to decorate with the included glitter paint and rhinestones, as well as a swag. The completed creations can be hung as a mobile or individually -- kids will be proud to decorate their bedrooms with these pretty butterflies. Also from Creativity for Kids is a simple set that allows children to enjoy the fun and rewards of reverse glass painting. Two Glass Plates For You to Paint contains two glass plates (6 and 8 inches), a set of glass paints, a fine point art brush, and illustrations and instructions to get kids started. Kids paint designs on the back of the plates, get their parents to bake the plates, let the plates "cure" for six days, and voila! Beautiful and unique decorative plates that kids can actually use for their snacks, or proudly display. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Groovy Ceramic Lamp, Butterfly Bedroom, or Two Glass Plates for You to Paint at Amazon.com]     8 Nintendo DS Lite The new Nintendo DS Lite is a super improvement on the DS. This lighter, brighter, and more compact edition of a fabulous portable gaming system drew ooh's and ah's from our kid testers. It comes in Coral Pink, Polar White, and Onyx Black. Of course, many girls love the pink version. Like the DS, the DS Lite features dual screens, wireless features, a touch screen, stylus, and microphone. It's more interactive than the GameBoys (for example, with one game, kids can blow into the unit to create bubbles onscreen; in another (Nintendogs), they can speak commands to their virtual puppies). To buy, or for more information: Nintendo DS Lite Coral Pink, Nintendo DS Lite Onyx Black, or Nintendo DS Lite - Polar White.   9 Zingo! The classic game of Bingo has been made a little zippier and more child-friendly. Zingo! features a dispenser filled with tiles, called a Zinger. When kids slide the dispenser, out pops two tiles with images on them. The first child to shout out the object (as long as it matches with a picture on their card) gets the tile. The zingo cards are two-sided—the yellow side makes for a less competitive game than the red side! This is a great feature that allows families to decide whether they want to have a more relaxing or a competitive game. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Zingo at Amazon.com]   10  Get-Up Fancy Fairy This set of fairy wings is special. Sure, there are plenty of fairy wings available for your child's imaginative play, but Get-Up Fancy Fairy features action-triggered sound effects that augment the experience many times over. When kids "cast a spell" by waving their magic wand, the sound of harps adds punch to the action. As children run and flutter about, the wings emit a sweet fluttering sound. This latter feature truly inspires kids to move about. This set is fantastic! The only problem you'll have is trying to get your fairy-loving child to take the wings off. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy Get-Up Fancy Fairy]   More Excellent Choices:
	Coin Count-y This book offers a uniquely educational and practical activity for kids. Coin Count-y allows children to sort their coins, slip them directly into the slots of the pages, and accumulate over twenty dollars in the process. The book offers children an educational experience as they learn to attach value to coins. Kids sort coins into the appropriate slots, learning as they do the difference between pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. The book lets kids know how much they have saved when they have filled up a page. Slots are found in the book's paths and jars, and a "store" helps children learn how to sort coins to make enough money to "buy" something fun. Pair this book with a little bag of coins to get kids started, and you have a truly unique gift. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Coin County: A Bank in a Book at Amazon.com]
	Leapster L-Max Last year's Leapster has already been updated. The Leapster L-Max is a handheld portable unit that mimics Nintendo's GameBoy, but with important differences that make it not only more kid-friendly, but exceptionally more educational as well. The comparatively large screen is also a touch screen, and kids interact with the games by using a directional pad and an attached stylus. Game cartridges, available separately, offer children "edutaining" games that support learning. What's the main difference between the Leapster and the Leapster L-Max? Besides a slightly less bulky unit, the L-Max can be played as a portable or can be plugged into the TV and played on both the little and "big" screens. The unit is backwards compatible -- the original Leapster game cartridges can be played on the new unit. Most of the original games play on both the portable and TV screens, while some only play on the handheld. Read our full review of the L-Max here. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Leapster L-Max]
	The Shrinky Dinks Book We love Shrinky Dinks! But we weren't impressed with the Shrinky Dinks oven that we tested. A more economical way to make shrinky dinks--a delightfully fun art activity for kids--is to get the book, The Shrinky Dinks Book. You may want to purchase a refill kit at the same time (it contains 8 plastic sheets). You will have to bake the artwork in the "big" oven, but baking is brief and accurate this way. Excellent activity! Children trace objects onto the included special plastic sheets (this book is brimming with great things to trace), and then fill them in with color. Once baked, they magically shrink and harden. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: The Shrinky Dinks Book or Shrinky Dinks Refill Pack at Amazon.com]
	Window Art and Christmas Window Art Whether it's the Christmas-themed book-activity set or the original version, children love Window Art. These books provide children with both the inspiration and the tools to create beautiful stick-on decorations for the window (or any glass surface, for that matter). Window Art is a fun and easy art activity the whole family can enjoy. The premise is simple, but the results are nothing short of fabulous: slip an included plastic sheet over one of the templates found in the book's pages, use a black squirt-bottle to trace the outline of a design, then fill with more "squirtable" colors. Each design—whether it's a family of colorful bugs, an ice cream sundae, or a collection of underwater creatures—takes about 24 hours to dry. Once set, the design becomes "clingable"—ready to display on any window of the house. The results are positively vibrant—your windows (and view) will never look better.  The Christmas edition contains designs featuring Santa, stockings, icicles, whimsical animals, angels, and more. They range in difficulty from basic to intricate. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Klutz Window Art or Christmas Window Art at Amazon.com]
	I Spy Fantasy The latest I Spy CD-ROM is fantasy-fantastic. Packed with riddles to solve, items to find, and treasures to uncover, this software is just right for children ages 8-10. As fun as it is, parents will be happy to know that I Spy Fantasy has a strong educational component--children use their thinking caps as they play, and the whole experience boosts language arts skills as well. Fortunately, the developers added enough content and levels to keep kids busy for some time. Makes a great gift! (See our full review and screenshots from the game for more information). [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: I Spy Fantasy at Amazon.com]
	Pet Hunt This excellent card-match game really gets kids thinking! With Pet Hunt, children draw a number of cards, each featuring pictures of 4 animals. Smaller cards depicting 2 animals are drawn and players determine whether they have a match. The trick--which makes the game much more educational than simple matching games-- is in the smaller cards. Players might draw a card with a cat and a turtle and then decide whether they have a larger card depicting both--if they do, it's a match. If the turtle, for example, has a large red X over it, then they need to determine whether they have a card that has a cat, but NOT a turtle. If both animals are crossed off, a match occurs only if they have a card that has neither a cat nor a turtle. We love this game! It's best for Kindergarten-age children through second-grade level kids who can handle the extra thinking required.  [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Pet Hunt ]
	The Treasure Hunt Book Kids love treasure hunts! This book features ready-to-use, tear-out clues with instructions on where to hide the cards. Some of the hunts are appropriate for pre-readers, and the more advanced hunts that include riddles can be attempted with older siblings or adults. There are 11 hunts in all, and their originality will inspire you to make up more of your own. Very fun book. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: The Treasure Hunt Book at Amazon.com]
	Talking Clever Clock Learning to tell time can be rather complicated. A learning aid that helps make the lessons fun is always welcome. This battery-operated toy clock helps reinforce and teach time, both analog and digital. Time-telling drills are included.  [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Talking Clever Clock at Amazon.com]
Hot Trends:
	Webkinz are all the rage, and probably rightfully so. These collectible stuffed animals hold a code to unlock games on the Webkinz site. Kids use the plush animal's secret code to care for their virtual pet and play games (at a variety of skill/age levels). Quizzes do contain educational content. As well, as children earn "money" (KinzCash) in the Webkinz world, they learn about saving and spending it wisely (they buy furniture, food, and things for the pets' rooms). Daily news, contests, and events keep the experience fresh. KinzChat allows kids to safely chat with their friends. Be aware that kids will definitely want more than one pet, although owning more than one doesn't make game play much richer. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy Webkinz toys]
	Littlest Pet Shop They're adorable and most little girls love to collect them - Littlest Pet Shop figurine sets are unquestionably cute and unquestionably collectible. The smaller sets include two adorable pets and little accessories. The larger sets are playsets. Accessories include such things as a tiny hairbrush or cool sunglasses. [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: Littlest Pet Shop Toys at Amazon.com]
	Cabbage Patch Dolls: Kids & Babies A blast from the past! The original Cabbage Patch doll frenzy occurred in the early 1980's. Many parents of today's children took part in the thrill of the dolls: each doll is entirely unique and comes with adoption papers that include a name and a birthdate. Kids loved them then, and they love them today. Many parents will be happy to know that today's Cabbage Patch dolls have not been "updated" with technology or anything of the sort.  Cabbage Patch dolls were re-released last year. This season, they introduced Cabbage Patch Kids Babies, such as the one at right. These adorable dolls come with a kit of baby accessories (including a diaper), and they smell like baby powder! Note that you can order these dolls through Toys R Us (see link directly below this description) by choosing a general description of the doll, such as "Blonde Hair Girl, Pink Sweatsuit", but because each doll is one-of-a-kind, the eyes, hair styles, and faces will be different than those shown.  [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: All Cabbage Patch Dolls at Amazon.com]
	Neopets! The fantastic online "virtual pet" community, Neopets at neopets.com, is so popular that a merchandise line is now available. Even Hasbro and Thinkway Toys are producing Neopet toys. There's plenty to do at the site, and best of all, it's free! NeoPets are virtual pets that kids access online. Children feed their pets, offer them toys, collect Neopoints (the Neopia currency), trade with others in the community, play games, and more. The basic idea is to keep your Neopets happy and healthy, but there are many "other" things to do at the site. Kids can spend hours at the site, and now they can play with their pets offline with Neopets Plushies, interactive Neopets (the purple Shoyru is pictured here), and even a board game (pictured at right). [For more information, user reviews, or to buy: All Neopets Toys & Plushies or Neopets Shoyru and Neopets Game at Amazon.com]
	Need more gift ideas? See the current top sellers at Toys R Us today (updated daily): Top Sellers in Toys

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