Celebrate reading and Dr. Seuss’ birthday March 2 with Target and the National Education Association for Read Across America Day. On Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012 from 9 to 11 a.m. Target is partying early for Read Across America Day. Visit Target Saturday morning and you’ll receive a reusable Target bag filled with activities for children,... [read more ]

For Valentine’s Day, I contributed a pop-up heart activity to The Heart Project book, a book with over 100 ideas from more than 70 bloggers, all related to hearts. Jamie at hands on : as we grow organized and edited The Heart Project book for a very personal reason, her precious niece. The Heart Project book will ONLY be available in the... [read more ]

Today I invite you to join me in art journaling — and to include your kids in the experience, too. I began to explore art journaling after realizing how much joy I find in creating. Before kids, I used my music and dance to channel my creativity. Now, I found myself missing that creative part of self different than my writing. Beginnings of... [read more ]

I can’t say enough about the importance of building block play. Like me, Learning Materials Workshop knows that children need blocks to explore, invent, represent, design, and imagine. President of Learning Materials Workshop, designer and educator, Karen Hewitt of Vermont, U.S.A., creates play objects for children and designed these most... [read more ]

When I wrote the year-end Best Books of 2011 for Babble, I included the new Peanuts book, Happiness is a Warm Blanket because I’m a huge fan of the Peanut’s philosophy of life. Remember back to the classic TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas and it’s sweet Christmas message? It’s back as an ipad app (review here) and a... [read more ]

Online playful retailer, Chasing Fireflies celebrates childhood’s moments like chasing fireflies, riding bikes, and swimming across the pool  with products for babies, boys, girls, at home, for play, and seasonal fun. (I have to say, since I live in Colorado and grew up in Washington (state) I’ve never seen a firefly before! Isn’t... [read more ]

I love how secret messages and codes get my kids writing! Maybe not paragraphs but the important thing is they are having fun and writing. Which is why I fell in love with this wooden secret decoder disk from The Wooden Toy Shop on Etsy. We’ve been having tons of family fun laughs writing each other weird and silly notes — as you can... [read more ]

Did you see the New York Times article about the math and language benefits of block play? It made me think of my new favorite building toy, Q-Ba-Maze 2.0, which is more than just blocks – it’s also a marble maze. One of my favorite companies, MindWare, brainy toys for kids of all ages, sent it to me to review. The clear and colored... [read more ]

Technology totally amazes me — like the Nomad Brush which works just like a real paint brush on the iPad, only (obviously) without real paint. Originally it was created for professional artists, says Nomad’s PR person, Jen Barth, but the artists soon discovered that their children enjoyed the brushes, too. Now, Nomad is reaching out to... [read more ]

Learning Resources carries a fun, educational game which makes kids listen, count, subtract, and move fast called Pizza Mania. To play, set out the toppings, the pizza chef, and choose your pizza crust. The pizza chef will call out a topping to add to or take off the pizza crust such as “3 pepperonis” or “2 peppers.” Each... [read more ]

I’m impressed with the selection and quality of Newmark Learning early readers books. I know they’re good because they passed the JJ test. JJ, my first grader, especially loved the nursery rhyme books mentioned below – the Around the Clock Fiction Kit.   Around the Clock Fiction Kit There are 8 Nursery Rhyme Books of fun and funny... [read more ]

Yes, you do need a microscope at home. Because the benefits are learning and discovery. Benefits of Owning a Microscope 1. Encourages discovery. 2. Teaches kids about scientific hypothesis. 3. Hones observational skills. 4. Develops a love of the natural world. 5. Helps with a child’s love of science. 6. It’s FUN! 7. It’s real –... [read more ]