Kids' Product Reviews: Educational Products, Toys, and Curricula/Textbooks

Educational Products

Math-U-See - A set of manipulative, colorful, plastic blocks, with accompanying video and instructional material, that concretize math that may seem abstract to kids. Home schooling parents rave about this program. Many use the blocks alone as a supplement to their own or the school's curriculum, and this link describes how the product is used as an elementary math curriculum. Comprehensive review coming soon.

BrainQuest - The handy-dandy series that can be found in every bookstore in America, sets of fun questions to spur curiosity and culture literacy in toddlers through grade 7. My kids call these their "Quizzes" and they would spend hours at them if we let them. We like this series. We think that it's a wonderful idea for helping kids acquire cultural literacy in a fun way. Our main quibble is the tagline of the BrainQuest company: "It's O.K. to be Smart!" O.K.?!? First of all, not only is being smart not just"O.K." -- it's great. But more important, this tag line suggests to all and sundry that some people don't think it's O.K. to be smart. While this may be true, it's not a fact we need to introduce to our kids; they'll see that on their own soon enough, and, we hope, will quickly dismiss such people.

Curricula/Textbooks

We are constantly bombarded with surveys suggesting that American kids who go through 13 years of public education are nevertheless graduating both without the basic skills they need to survive in our highly technological world, and without the knowledge of American and world culture that they need to make meaning of such a world. Many parents realize that it is their own responsibility to make sure that their children are well educated -- that sending them to school is no longer sufficient. Several book series have sprung up as useful tools to help parents keep their kids on track for what they need to know. We are currently working on a comprehensive review of textbooks, curricula, and workbooks that take your children through the grades, such as E.D. Hirsch's Core Knowledge series (books from preschool through high school), the Summer Bridge Activities series from Rainbow Bridge Publishing, and several others.

Toy Reviews

The 20 Best Toys to Buy for Your Children - 1600 Rochester-area parents were asked what toys their children had played with that lasted the longest and held their child's interest through several developmental stages...toys which, when counting "dollars-invested-per-play-hour," were the best value. Here are the top 20 toys that were recommended.

Great Under-The-Tree Toys An article by Jackie Perrin incorporating her untiring wit and good humor into some very practical suggestions for holiday gifts for kids.

Zome - A great toy that will grow, with your child, into an educational product illustrating fundamental mathematical concepts. A building toy for younger kids, an exploration into complex geometry for older kids, Zome combines two materials that no kid can resist: small plastic bits that fit into each other, and bubbles! Comprehensive review coming soon.

Other products

Tide to Go: A new solution for all of those difficult fresh food stains. Just apply Tide to Go immediately from the handy stick in your purse, and the stain disappears. We tried it out as a Mom's Kitchen Science Experiment with a 6- and 4-year-old to determine the stains on which it works best!

Mr Clean Magic Eraser: A wonderful product that no home with preschoolers should be without!