Archive for the ‘Construction Toys for Kids’ Category
Monday, February 7th, 2011
For me it was clearly a combo of hating practicing asbestos litigation and my mother having a really great time writing about toys and play. I left her after a segment she did at the Today Show to go back to my office and thought–that just seems like a better way to spend the day. I’m always curious how other people find their way to the toy industry. It is a business — and not all warm and fuzzy as you might think–but still it is different.
So I started a series called Meet the Toymakers. This gave me an opportunity to find out how other people joined the ranks of toy industry insiders. And since most people seem to have a desire to also be in toys, I thought it would be interesting to hear how other people fulfilled their dreams.
This week- we have an interview with Robert Pasin of Radio Flyer. Unlike most of the people I’ve interviewed, Robert is third generation in his family’s toy business. That’s hard core and brings it’s own set of challenges even when you are in charge of an established and iconic American brand.
I also interview Chris and Will Haughey of TEGU. These brothers both left their Wall Street jobs to start TEGU. Besides making a lovely product (wooden blocks with built in magnets) they are also finding a way for their business to give back to the people of Honduras by creating jobs. 
Both interviews are posted on our website at www.toyportfolio.com
Tags: Asbestos Litigation, Chris Haughey, Construction Toys, Honduras, Joanne Oppenheim, Radio Flyer, Robert Pasin, Tegu, Today Show, Toymakers, Wall Street, Wheel Toys, Will Haughey
Posted in classic toys, Construction Toys for Kids, Outdoor toys, Play Time, toys, Uncategorized, Wooden Toys | No Comments »
Monday, November 22nd, 2010
Here’s my semi-annual plea to buy building sets for girls. While I don’t 
really see the need to color code such building sets, if pink is what will do it for you or the girls in your life…go for it. You can buy CitiBlocs new Hot Colors set. LEGO also offers a bucket of pink bricks (read our review here). If we want our girls to excel in math and on their standardized math tests…part of that comes from playing with blocks. Spatial relations, visual discrimination and other essential skills that are key to success in math, engineering and architecture all begin with being exposed to construction toys as kids. Not to mention that such open-ended sets are great for developing your child’s sense of what can be. For a full review of CitiBlocs, click here.
Posted in Best Toys for Preschoolers, Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Gender Specific Toys, Lego, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award Winners, Play Time, toy trends, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 10th, 2010
One of my new favorite construction sets comes from TEGU. These are beautifully crafted wooden magnetic blocks. If I were going to buy a toy that I know everyone would play with if I put it out on the coffee table for the holidays–it would be these blocks. (Except of course if you have very small kids in the house).
Starting today, you can challenge their builder to build something specific. Right now I’m watching them put together a Chilean Miner! Take a look and tweet in your own requests at TEGU.com
Read our review.
Tags: Best Constructions Toys, live demostration of tegu blocks, Tegu, www.toyportfolio.com
Posted in Best Toys for Kids with Special Needs, Best Toys for Tweens, Construction Toys for Kids, Gender Free Toys, Green toys, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award Winners, Play Time, Wooden Toys | No Comments »
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
We received this update on Guidecraft’s Magneatos from one of our imaginative testers! In this picture he has created a garage with Magneatos- one of our all time favorite open-ended building sets for preschoolers. If you’re looking for something fun and not structured, we highly recommend these sets. 
For a full review of this Platinum Award winning toy, click here. Our suggestion, put one of these sets in a basket in your family room…building with them is really fun, no matter how old you are! Because there is no right or wrong way to play with these over-sized colorful magnetized pieces–they are also a great choice for kids with ADHD.
Tags: Guidecraft, Magenatos
Posted in Best Toys for Kids with ADHD, Best Toys for Kids with Special Needs, Best Toys for Preschoolers, Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Gender Free Toys, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award Winners, Play Time, toys, Toys for Kids with ADHD, Toys for Kids with Special Needs, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, May 24th, 2010
Citibloc Hot Colors
Last year CitiBlocs rolled out with basic sets of naturally colored wooden slate pieces- no Star Wars themes here or intricate step-by-step instructions– just wonderfully open-ended building supplies to create whatever is on your child’s mind on any particular day. Citiblocs got a lot of credit in our book for delivering a quality product at a much lower price than their more pricey competitors and they were rewarded by shelf space in major stores and a boat load of awards (including ours).
New for this year, they have brought out new colored sets–Cool Colors (blues and greens) and Hot Colors (pinks and yellows).
CitiBlocs Cool Colors
Each color has two sizes. They have the same open-ended concept but with an infusion of color. Many of the wood toys we’ve reviewed this year have been poorly executed–chipped paint or rough edges have been more the norm—so we were especially happy to find that these new Citibloc sets have a high quality level. The colors are saturated into the wood– rather than painted on- so there isn’t the same chipped-paint issue here.
This type of open set is really best suited for older 4s and up. It takes more fine motor skills and dexterity than regular wooden unit blocks. I love the idea of putting these in a basket in the family room and letting everyone dabble while they’re talking, watching tv and hanging out together. Citiblocs is a great parent/child project–and you’ll find yourself taking a turn even after the kids go to sleep.
For hardcore LEGO builders, the open-endedness of these sets may be frustrating and overwhelming at first. There are suggested builds that come with the sets (but not step-by-step instructions)–that may make them settle in and feel more comfortable.
Tags: Citiblocs, www.citiblocs.com
Posted in Best Toys for Preschoolers, Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award Winners, Play Time, toy trends, toys, Uncategorized, Wooden Toys | No Comments »
Saturday, May 22nd, 2010
Even though Disney PIxar Toy Story 3 does not open until June 18th, if you watch any type of TV you know the full court press has already begun. And we know from our testers, that they want their Toy Story 3 toys! So we have been super busy this week taking a look at a range of toys–with more promised to arrive next week.
Here’s what we’ve found so far:
1. Crayola Toy Story 3D Chalk – this is a deluxe set with stencils of the characters. Fun, but if you’re a four year old boy, this isn’t the toy you want. Read our full review. I wrote about this product before as a great product for outside play.
Woody and Buzz from the LEGO DUPLO set
2. LEGO DUPLO Toy Story 3 The Great Train Chaise Duplo Play Set – Love this set. The pieces are big and chunky and there’s something very satisfying about having small versions of your favorite characters–great for on the go play or to incorporate into your block play. This set comes with a train, blocks and four characters. Marked 2 & up–this set will most appeal to 3s and 4s. Your preschooler will need help putting the train together–making this a parent/child toy–but once put together this can be used for independent playtime as well. This would be a fun addition to a basic bucket set of DUPLO. Sometimes bringing home a new novelty set can renew your child’s interest in building– something you definitely want to encourage.
Comparison of LEGO and LEGO DUPLO train sets
LEGO Toy Story 3 Western Train Chase Set
3. LEGO Toy Story 3 Western Train Chase- Super set. This set is designed for kids 8 and up…the pieces in it are not for kids under 3–so even if you think it’s cooler, it really is meant for older kids. Take a look at the size difference in the characters.
Size difference between DUPLO and LEGO Buzz Lightyears
Toy Story 3 Action Links Buzz Saves the Train Stunt Set
4. Toy Story 3 Action Links Buzz Saves the Train Stunt Set - Really a one trick pony–actually there are a couple of ways to set this tracks up but the toy is still pretty limited. Not a lot to do here passed the first three minutes. Your child will probably play with the Buzz figure that comes with the set longer than the train and tracks. Watch our demo.
Buzz's motorized wings in the open position
5. Toy Story Basic Buzz Wing Pack- Here’s a really neat toy that makes us send out a big warning. The toy itself is super cool–you strap on the wings to your back and then there’s a control panel that makes the wings go up and down AND you can also hear Buzz say his favorite lines. All fun and the toy itself does work really well. BUT here’s our serious concern–the toy is design for kids 4 & up – at this stage children are working out the difference between fantasy and reality. While you may poo poo our warning-remember these are the same kids that take the Tooth Fairy as a real magical reality. If you can’t resist this toy–we would high recommend you have many a conversation about this toy with your child. The toy itself has a safety warning on the packaging–not really a deterrent to your preschooler. I also have a sense that this toy will be purchased for even younger kids. Ok, you get our point. Watch our video demo.
6. Fisher-Price Toy Story 3 Character Flash Lights. Pure novelty and great fun for kids that like noise. There’s Rex, Bullseye and Dr. Evil Porkchop. When you squeeze their tails–the flashlight comes on (their mouths open) and you’ll hear a sound or a phrase (they each say one thing and make one sound). Watch our video.
Toy Story 3 Rex Light
Fisher-Price Spiral Speedway
7. Fisher Price Toy Story 3 Spiral Speedway. Perfect toy for your two year old. Older toddlers LOVE making something happen over and over again–and this easy to activate spiral raceway gets it right. This toy has been in the Fisher-Price line before, but now it has Toy Story 3 characters racing (Buzz vs. Lotso)…and sound effects (it is a little noisy). This toy will have a limited time frame–but it will be a true hit when your child is in the zone of “again, again!” Watch our video demo.
Tags: Buzz Lightyear, Disney Pixar Toy Story 3, DUPLO, Lego, Mattel, movie toys, Novelty Toys, Rating Toy Story 3 toys, stephanieoppenheim.com, Toy Story 3 Toy Reviews, toyportfolio.com
Posted in Action Figures, Best Toys for Preschoolers, Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Fisher-Price, hot toys, Mattel, preschoolers, toy trends, toys, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 28th, 2010
Guidecraft's Interlox
I’m big on things that you can put out on the family coffee table that everyone will enjoy. Interlox from Guidecraft is just that kind of toy. If you were in a classroom in the 70s, you probably played with something that looked very similar. The Interlox are pleasingly colorful plastic pieces that have notches on all sides- providing builders with an open-ended building opportunity. They connect with relative ease- making this a good choice for 4s and up. While many kids are happy to follow directions for building LEGO or KNEX models, there’s something to be said about building whatever you heart dictates. There’s room here for trial and error. For younger kids, this can start as a parent/child project–but chances are your kids will be building independently before you know it. The 96 piece set gives you enough pieces to really make something fun. We’re giving this set an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award. For the review of this toy and other building sets, visit www.toyportfolio.com.
Tags: Best Construction toys, Best Toys for Kids with ADHD, Guidecraft, Interlox, Open ended Play, open-ended building toys, toyportfolio.com
Posted in Best Toys for Kids with ADHD, Best Toys for Kids with Special Needs, Best Toys for Preschoolers, Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Gender Free Toys | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 27th, 2010
LEGO CITY FIRE BOAT
The CITY theme sets from LEGO are usually great fun to build. This year is no exception. While all things STAR WARS are big with the LEGO building crowd, we also recommend these more Earth-bound rescue heroes. The LEGO Fire Boat comes with 306 pieces–it has real heft to it and it floats! (Whether a boat floats is always one of our standard questions at toy fair–you’d be surprise by the number of boats that don’t float.)
The large red boat has a moving ladder and several water hoses. The set also includes a little yellow motorboat. Marked 5 -12. Younger builders will need assistance with this one. There is also a very spiffy LEGO Fire Station. Now while the Fire Boat seems big, the Fire Trucks and Station look a bit on the small size to us but the trucks and multi-level stations gives kids a lot to build. Both would make great birthday presents. 
Tags: Great construction toys, LEGO CITY Fire Boat, LEGO CITY Fire Station, toyportfolio.com
Posted in Best Toys for School Aged Kids, Construction Toys for Kids, Lego, toy trends, toys, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 21st, 2010
We just got two new DUPLO sets which are lovely for preschoolers. There is the new Horse Stable that comes with two horses, a stable you build, two vehicles (one is a horse trailer), two play figures. There’s a lot of opportunities here for pretend play and a great introduction to building. This should be a parent/child toy to begin with as you put the set together and talk about the horses and what they need (hay, walking, taking a ride, etc.)
The other set is a basic building set called LEGO DUPLO Learning 
that includes big pieces that also have numbers on them. Again a great chance to talk about numbers, colors and other concepts right on target for preschoolers. How high can you stack the pieces, how many can you fit on the vehicle?
Here’s the continuing problem we have with these otherwise great sets. The age range is marked 2 & up and while all of the pieces fit current federal guidelines for small parts–many of the pieces are very, very close. And if you use a toilet paper roll as the CPSC suggests consumers use if they do not have a choke tube, many of the pieces go straight through. We discussed this issue last year and LEGO stands by their age range, see my earlier post and LEGO’s response.
Our point remains…since there is no educational or developmental advantage to giving toddlers such small pieces–and the downside is so much greater, why take a chance?
So while we would highly recommend these sets for 3 & up, sadly we can not give them an award with the current age labels on the box. And we will continue to lobby that LEGO either up the age label to 3 & up or up the size of the pieces so that they are a better choice for 2′s. Last year we were delighted when Step 2 up sized their toy hot dogs for much the same reason. We hope LEGO will do the same.
Tags: Choke Tube, Construction Toys for Kids, Lego, LEGO DUPLO, Small Pieces, Toy Safety Issues, toyportfolio.com
Posted in classic toys, Construction Toys for Kids, Lego, toy safety, toy trends, toys, Uncategorized | No Comments »
