Tech Savvy Mama

Parenting in the Digital Age

Holiday Gift Guide: Elementary Ages (grades K-2) w. Giveaways

By

Zipfy Mini Luge (Garnet Hill, $40)- Last year during the record DC snowstorm we saw kids zipping down the sledding hill on these and I’ve been thinking of them ever since!  These mini luges are lightweight, easy to steer, and hold up to 250 lbs making them strong enough for mom, dad, or a parent plus a kid!  Although we haven’t gotten enough snow to try ours yet, I (I mean the kids!) can’t wait to try it!  And in case you are wondering, the name is pronounced Zip-Fee.  Ages 5+
 
GIVEAWAY: Its Christmas, David by David Shannon ($16.99)- This book will remind readers of all ages of peeking at hidden gift packages, writing wish lists to Santa, and struggling to behave during the month of December while Santa Claus is watching. From playing with delicate ornaments to standing in an endlessly long line for Santa, readers will learn if naughty David be the recipient of a shiny new fire truck or a lump of coal under the tree.  Ages 4-8
 
LeapFrog Explorer (LeapFrog, $69.99)- If you are considering the purchase of a handheld gaming system for fun learning opportunities, get LeapFrog’s Explorer.  It is still my favorite despite having played with all competing devices currently on the market for the same age demographic.  Why do I love the Explorer so much?  The variety of content is highly educational and provides different learning experiences that can grow with your child. Downloadable Leaplet Learning Apps include eBooks, video, games, and flash cards feature favorite characters that can help motivate a child to learn. Kids can also practice skills through a myriad of cartridge games and there’s an add-on device that turns the Explorer into a camera and video recorder ($24.99). Just as with other LeapFrog devices, parents can track their child’s play and progress on the Explorer through the LeapFrog Learning Path.  To read my full review, click over to LeapFrog’s Leapster Explorer Promotes Learning on the Go. Ages 4+  Personally purchased additional games and Leaplet download cards for apps.
 
GIVEAWAY: Enchanted Storybook (Creativity for Kids, $17.99)- Princesses who love to write will enjoy this castle-shaped hardback storybook that has plenty of pages for them to create their own story of happily ever after. Markers, glitter stickers, color-in-stickers and rhinestones allow for the ultimate customization and will keep her busy for hours!  Little Miss Techie spent an entire day writing, illustrating and decorating when she was home sick from school!  Ages 5+
 
GIVEAWAY: Captain Sky Blue by Richard Egielski ($17.95)- This charming story is about Jack, a boy who gets a beloved toy pilot named Sky and an airplane as a Christmas gift.   Throughout the year, Jack and Sky have numerous adventures but are eventually separated.  Sky finds himself back in Santa’s Workshop where he has to help St. Nick fly his sleigh in order to get home to Jack in time for Christmas.  This action packed adventure is full of pilot terminology, making it perfect for young aviators. Ages 4-8
 
The Odious Ogre by Norton Jester and Jule Feiffer (Scholastic, $17.95)–  Imagine a large, ugly, angry, hungry Ogre who terrorizes the countryside all the surrounding towns, wreaking havoc, sowing confusion, and dining happily on the hapless citizens. He’s unstoppable until he takes a wrong turn and meets a kind friendly young lady who does her best to help him–with a surprising result. Ages 4+  Enter to win a handpicked set of age appropriate books courtesy of Scholastic!  1 winner will be chosen among the entrants from all the gift guides!
 
GIVEAWAY: Order’s Up (Gamewright, $15.99)- This hilarious game designed for 2-6 players has everyone scrambling to feed hungry diners during the dinner rush by rolling the dice in hopes that the right order comes up so they can fill their tray before everyone else.  While the winner may get to ring the bell when all their orders are in, everyone wins since this fast-paced game teaches visual discrimination, hand-eye coordination, and matching.  Ages 6+
 
Slamwich Collector’s Edition (Gamewright, $12.99)- Ask Little Miss Techie about her favorite game and she will enthusiastically declare “Slamwich!”  She spent the summer flipping and stacking cards to build sandwiches before the muncher could steal the deck of cards and repeatedly thwarted our high school babysitter and her brother.  She has been crowned the household Slamwich champion and earns the distinction of being far better at the game than friends of our teenage sitter.  For 2-6 players, ages 6+
 
GIVEAWAY: Diva Puppies (Creativity for Kids, $17.99)- Future fashion designers and pet lovers will enjoy adorning 3 adorable little dogs with paint, sequins, flowers, ribbons, heart charm collars, fur, boas and tutus. And after all the fussing over these diva pups, each can take a nap on their posh bed. Ages 6+
 
GIVEAWAY: Bob Books Sight Words ($16.99)- The popular Bob Books that have helped so many kids learn to read, have released Sight Words sets for kindergarten and first grade.  These series follow the same Bob Books’ principles of being great first books for emergent readers.  Start with Bob Books Set 1 and then move into the Sight Words-Kindergarten set which will introduce 30 sight words and 3-4 letter decodable words.  Sight Words- First Grade continues to help beginning readers with their decoding skills thanks to more complex sight words with 3-5 letters.  Win a set of both Bob Books Sight Words-Kindergarten and Sight Words- First Grade by commenting below. Ages 5+
 
E is for Ethics ($22)- Teaching children ethics, values, and morals can be a real challenge for families but dad and author, Ian James Corlett, presents topics like honesty, courage, tact, perseverance, loyalty, empathy, charity, and acceptance as individual chapters in E is for Ethics that are perfect as read alouds.  I also like the questions at the end of each chapter that ask kids to think more about the topic presented in the chapter by putting themselves in the place of characters Elliot and Lucy.  Ages 5+
 
GIVEAWAY: Mastermind Towers (Pressman Toy, $12.99)
Secretly slide the animal tiles in their towers and take turns guessing to figure out the order of your opponent’s tiles. Turns involve asking a yes/no question like “Is the lion below the giraffe.”  Players have to use reasoning skills to determine the correct order.  First one to guess the correct order wins!  I love that this game can be simplified by choosing to use only 3 different animals or more difficult by adding more to the mix. Ages 6+
 
Encyclopedia Brown Box Set by Donald Sobol (Puffin, $19.99)- Encyclopedia Brown is a crime solving detective who helps preserve justice in the small town of Idaville  for a nominal fee of a quarter.  He has great adventures with his partner, Sally Kimball, and is always up against Bugs Meany and his Tiger clan.  Encyclopedia Brown books were a favorite of mine growing up and now Little Miss Techie and love reading these books together at bedtime to see if we can solve each chapter’s crime using clues in the stories before turning to the back to find the answers.  It’s a classic set that every family should have!  Ages 6+ Personally purchased this set.
 
GIVEAWAY: Zhu Zhu Pets (Cepia LLC, $9.99 and up)- Last year’s hottest hard to find holiday toy is still a huge hit in our house thanks to the addition of more motorized hamsters such as the Rockstars and Wild Bunch.  Kung Zhus also came on the scene with accessories where the critters can engage in battle in an arena or hang out in places like the Ninja Base or Special Forces HQs.  With so many accessories for the Zhu Zhus, there’s an endless ability to add on to your child’s Zhu-niverse. Or not.  Zhu Zhus are great affordable gift options just on their own since they are $9.99 each.   I have a set of 2 Zhu Zhu pets to give away from having hosted a MomSelect Wild Bunch party earlier this year.  They would love to come to your home! Ages 4+ 

GIVEAWAYS: To enter to win any of the above items marked as giveaways, take a trip down memory lane and leave a comment the toy you loved most as a kid!  Include your email address or Twitter handle in your comment!

 

For extra entries, first leave a comment answering the above question before doing any of the following:
  • Daily Tweet: @TechSavvyMama has published her Elementary Gift Guide w/ gift ideas & giveaways! Enter here: http://bit.ly/alrIoa Leave a link to your Tweet on the Google Form.
  • Write a blog post about my gift guides and include the words “Tech Savvy Mama’s Holiday Gift Guides” and link to this post: Then provide the permalink through your entry on the form.




All products were provided for review purposes except where noted that items were personally purchased. Images provided courtesy of the companies. No compensation was received for this post.


 

Fine print: Eligible entries through the comments must include an email address or Twitter handle. E-mails must be valid and addresses must be within the United States. Companies will not ship outside the U.S. nor will they ship to P.O. boxes.

All information collected is solely for Tech Savvy Mama to ensure efficient delivery of your prize and will not be shared with anyone else but the marketing/PR company who is shipping the prize. Leticia- Tech Savvy Mama is not responsible for lost prizes or shipping delays.

Please note that there will be one customized selection of books provided by Scholastic to a single winner and entries from all published gift guides will be used to select the recipient.

Giveaway closes on Wednesday, December 8 and winners will be notified via email.

Thanks for reading Tech Savvy Mama through your feed!

Original post by Tech Savvy Mama
©2012

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Carissa(GoodNCrazy) says

    You have the David Christmas book!! We totally need that book around here! Hmmm okay.. my fave toy as a kid, Probably my dolls. I have a lot of sisters and we played dolls and ‘house’ a LOT. And all my dolls were named.. wait for it… Cindy. My favorite name of all time. 🙂

  4. Heather says

    I had a Speak and Math that I received when I was about 8. It was my favorite thing – and yes, I still like to do math games for fun.

  5. all.things.fadra says

    Ooh. This is a tough one. I loved so many of my toys and I’m soooo nostalgic. One that stands out in my mind was a McDonald’s playset. It was used for little people that looked like the Fisher Price people except they were square. I have no idea what they were but it was so cool!

  6. Anonymous says

    My favorite toy as a child was the Teddy Ruxpin Bear. He could talk, which immediately made him a favorite with my sister and I!

    -Heidi

    writeme at heidimail dot com

  24. melanie says

    we had a park playset with a mat, all the animals and park rangers that could ride around in a jeep and look after all the animals. i still remember opening it at christmas. it was so cool!

  34. Michelle says

    Oh I was such a Cabbage Patch Kid freak. I played EVERYthing with them. For a long time. I still own a few. And the toys you mentioned above here? Oh, I know some children in this house who would be thrilled with any of them!

  35. Miss_Lori says

    I remember I had a Holly Hobby record player that I played singles on. It was AWESOME. Loved being in control over my own music at a young age.

    SMILE!

    ML
    @misslori