This Grandma was at Learning Express with the older grandchildren letting them pick out items for the holidays and their camp packages. Yes, I plan in advance. It did not matter that it was before holiday time. I try to always multitask and why not plan for two events at one time. They were the ones to find the cutest and most inexpensive watch I have seen for children. It is great as a stocking stuffer and more. When they came home with it the next youngest grandchild wanted his too. Fortunately, they each picked different colors. Your grandchildren will love these LED Colored Touch Screen Watch that shows date and time in colorful digital letters.
Then, the Today Show invited the Oppenheimer Toy Award people to show some digital watches that do more. Of course, they cost much more than $3 or so each that the LED watches above cost, but they do so much more. They are listed on www.toyportfolio as high tech toys.
Here is the one recommended as the best:
Highlight comments: “This is a great, high quality watch, the materials that it’s made of are soft and comfortable.” Some thought the camera and voice recording aspect was super cool. However most parents found the watch to be bulky and would probably not have lasting play value. Marked 3-9, our reviewers found some aspects to hard for 3s and thought it was too young for the upper range.
Though they look similar, this is nothing like the LeapFrog LeapBand. It is not an activity tracker, but more like a camera and recording machine. Kids can take photos and videos with fun effects. It also has a voice recorder with voice-changing effects as well as games and a touch screen. Finally, it is also a watch with analog and digital displays. Although parents liked the learning games they could down load, kids and parents found it annoyingly huge and bulky for kid-sized wrists. Testers seemed to like the voice changer recorder the best. Available in pink, blue and gender-free green. Marked 3-9, testers felt it too complex for very young and too babyish for the upper range listed. We think the sweet spot for novelty this is more like 6-7.
Age: Early School Years. Award Year: 2014.
They also reviewed the LeapFrog LeapBand which did not get good reviews.
Then there are the low tech toys that actually do teach time. This Grandma’s two favorites are:
Telly The Teaching Time Clock at Amazon.
This is brightly colored and inexpensive. It is described on Amazon as:
Let Telly The Teaching Time Clock help your child learn to tell both analog and digital time using two quiz modes. In the learning mode, Telly teaches time in five minute increments when his hands are moved, updating his LCD screen. In the quiz mode, Telly asks your child to move the hands on his face to match the time displayed on his screen. Telly is also a real working clock. Learning to tell time has never been so much fun. Requires three ‘AA’ batteries (included). Ages 3+ years.
This Grandma loves all Melissa and Doug toys. Like this Grandma, they multitask and created a clock combined with a sorting toy:
Melissa & Doug Shape Sorting Clock at Amazon.
Here is how this inexpensive great learning toy is described:
Introduces telling-time concepts and communication skills.
Telling time has its own vocabulary, with terms such as “half past” and “quarter of,” and concepts of “before,” “after,” “early,” and “late.” This colorful clock is a playful way to share this language with children. As children sort the pieces, push the hands, and explore visual cues on the clock face, caregivers can help them understand and talk through it all. The clock can also be a unique way to talk through the events of the day, talking about what happened in the morning, at midday, and in the evening, as the clock hands move around the clock to show breakfast time, lunchtime, and bedtime.
Great skill-builder for color recognition, shape recognition, counting, and fine motor skills.
Each solid-wood, removable shape piece has a distinct shape, offering a hands-on tool for learning about the different types of edges and corners that make up a geometric form. Thanks to a shape-guide on the back of the clock, caregivers can help children learn each shape name too–from triangle to octagon, and even a quatrefoil. Each also features a bright color–and with two shapes in each shade, opens up possibilities for matching and sorting activities. The numbered shapes can be placed in sequential order, used to illustrate simple math concepts, stacked high as a motor challenge, and of course placed in the matching wells to complete the clock face. This classic set offers countless ways to play and learn!
We grandmas know how quickly time goes by. It is wonderful to see our grandchildren appreciate the knowledge of telling time and using time to their advantage. And, of course, these are wonderful presents at any time of the year.
Joy,
Mema
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