Fractiles-7 Review and Giveaway from Toys and Games Online

When my friend Sara said she could use some extra help to write reviews for Sara's Toy Box, I jumped at the opportunity. I have been a huge fan of her blog for a few years now and my boys and I absolutely love toys. The boys are a bit less particular than I am, but that does not stop me from trying to find beautiful, useful, educational, and safe toys for them to play with.

For my family’s first review, I selected Fractiles-7 from Toys and Games Online.com. I actually selected the large Fractiles-7 set($39.95) and the Fridge Fractiles set (only an additional $10.95) since I have two little boys and I knew there would be some fighting over this toy once they figured out how cool it was.

Fractiles-7 is basically a magnetic puzzle. But it is also more than a puzzle. Fractiles consists of versatile flexible diamond shaped tiles that can be combined and recombined into an infinite number of designs. The large Fractiles set has 192 tiles and a 12”x12” textured black steel board to easily create your geometric designs. Fridge Fractiles has 48 magnetic tiles and does not come with an activity board as it is meant for your kitchen refrigerator. This is great for my family since my boys love spending time with me in the kitchen while I prepare dinner and I am always scrambling to find activities to keep them occupied so I have the time and space to properly prepare said dinner.

Toys and Games Online.com shipped my order very quickly, and I was very pleased when I found my package on the front porch. I loved the minimal packaging of my Fractiles sets. The large set is packaged in what is basically an old-fashioned album cover which makes clean-up and storage of the set very easy. There are tons of colorful examples of Fractiles designs as well as some information on symmetry and the basic geometry behind the diamond shapes that make them fit together into endless combinations.

I love the educational aspect of this information even though I feel the concept is a bit above where my boys currently are in their math comprehension. After all, one is only in kindergarten and the other is in his first year of pre-school. Even though I may not share the information with them explicitly, they really are learning the concepts by simply playing around, copying or making their own designs with this toy. I couldn’t wait to take a closer look at the new toy and decided to open it while the boys were still in school. I have to admit, once I opened it and discovered that the tiles were all stuck together in a large piece, I was a bit disappointed. I examined the pieces and it didn’t appear to me that they were pre-cut, so I pulled out the scissors and began cutting.

Luckily, it did not take me long to discover that the pieces actually do easily bend and pull apart and I was able to put away the scissors and decided to save even the taking apart of the tiles as a project to work on with the boys. Pulling the Fractiles tiles apart is a great work for developing fine motor activity in little hands and my boys happily helped me pull apart and sort the tiny magnetic tiles.

The boys were immediately engaged with the Fractiles sets. Both the large set and the fridge set come with a lot of images showing so many creations you can make with the tiles. This is a great way to build confidence in using the set for younger children who aren’t sure where to start with the Fractiles. I encouraged the boys to choose something they liked from the pictures on the sleeve and try to copy it. It wasn’t long before both my boys were trying out their own creations with the tiles and this is where the real fun began. My younger son will make something new and can’t wait to show me. Once I take a look, I get an explanation of what his creation represents and it almost always ends with the question, “Am I the coolest artist-invention ever?” (By the way, "artist-invention" was not a typo. This is his actual quote). I am especially enjoying Fridge Fractiles in this aspect. I come into the kitchen and frequently find a new design. It is fun trying to guess which of my little “artist-inventors” created the new masterpiece.

We are very happy with our newest toy! Both boys will sit and play with Fractiles with dedicated concentration for quite a while and feel a sense of pride when they have created something. I feel happy because they are subtly being education on patterns and symmetry which are two important concepts for geometry. Fractiles are also made in the U.S.A. and are lead and phthalate free. We love this toy so much, we are definitely planning on getting a few of the Travel Fractiles sets from Toys and Games Online ($24.95) to give as birthday gifts for classmates of my kindergartner.

Now, the really fun part! Sara's Toy Box is giving you an opportunity to win a $25 gift card (perfect for Travel Fractiles) from Toys and Games Online. Simply go to toysandgamesonline.com to view their great selection of educational toys and games. Then come back here to Sara's Toy Box and leave us a comment about which toy you would select along with your contact information. You can also enter by sending us the toy selection in an e-mail or a message on Facebook.

Science Kit Review and Giveaway from Toys and Games Online

Hello all! My name is Donna, and my crew and I are looking forward to helping out here at Sara's Toy Box with reviews and fun -- I have four little girls who are all curious and creative ladies.

Recently we had the pleasure to review the Space Exploration Kit ($31.40) from Thames and Kosmos that was sent to us from Toys and Games Online


As a homeschooling family we're always on the look out for interesting, fun and easily accessible science kits that are also reasonably priced! The prices at Toys and Games Online for this science kit were similar to what I'd found elsewhere.

We are already familiar with the brand Thames and Kosmos and their science kits because we ordered their Chem 2000 kit for our oldest daughter's chemistry lab this year. She's starting 6th grade and she needed some serious science – that science kit is going to work out GREAT for her and for her sisters as they get older. I can tell already that it's well worth it.

The Space Exploration Kit is recommended for kids aged 8 and up.

We had to do this review over the course of a few days because there are just SO many things to do in this kit. There's still more we need to cover, but we're going to have to wait until it gets dark earlier so we can see some stars before bedtime!

Today you'll get to meet my twin daughters ... they are goofy 8 year olds who aspire to be on Mythbusters when they grow up ... Rachel and Mara -- this was their favorite constellation they learned about ... Gemini, the twins.



We began our cool science kit by reading some directions. They're rather easy to follow but there are a number experiments that require adult supervision. And, if left to their own devices my girls might not actually learn WHY something happens; it's all the better if I'm there to get them to listen to an explanation as well.

We put together a simple telescope and tried it out – learned about how the lenses work …



Then we put together a pretty nifty model of the solar system that now hangs in the girls' room below the ceiling that already had glow in the dark stars all over it … We talked about the phases of the moon and watched it changed in by putting together a little flip book.



A few days later we got some free time to open up the kit again, this time we got to learn about rockets, which I couldn't get a good picture of – that little thing really took off! The girls also loved being able to go check the time on the sundial and learn about some constellations – we've hung the pictures of them in their window and they're hoping when they can have a nice starry night they can find some constellations all on their own!



Want to go back to school with your own space exploration kit? Sara's Toy Box is giving away a $40 gift card to Toys and Games Online. To enter, go to their website and pick which awesome educational games or educational toys you'd get for the little scholar in your life. Then come back here and tell us what you would pick and why; add some contact info in your comment and we'll choose a winner next week! If posting your contact info makes you uncomfortable, you can also enter by sending us an email or a message on Facebook.

Curious about Curiosity Quest

Curiosity Quest is an award winning television series that airs on PBS in some parts of the country. In each episode, host Joel Greene goes on a quest to answer viewers questions. Those of us who don't get Curiosity Quest on TV, can watch it on DVD.

The DVD's are available at the Curiosity Quest Store for $19.95 each + $2.00 shipping. Consider these as a gift for the child who asks a lot of questions or for home schooling.

Our friend Duncan was a guest reviewer, and Mollie, Duncan's mom, wrote the review. Duncan reviewed two videos.

U.S Postal Service
Curiosity Quest Goes Green: Sanitary Landfill



Duncan is five years old, and we already know he will be an engineer or a scientist someday. He needs to know how everything works, from the sink to the ski bindings, from the television to volcanoes. We figure it's only a matter of a year or two before he starts taking things apart to see what's inside. Which is why Sara thought of us when she got some Curiosity Quest DVDs to review. The series attempts to provide answers to real kids' questions, and I think Sara was hoping to help me stave off the time when I come back in the room to find the toaster disassembled.

Curiosity Quest is produced in Southern California for KCVR TV, and is also available on various PBS channels and as a DVD series. The format of the show is that children write to the host, asking questions about things that have sparked their curiosity, and the host, Joel Greene, goes out (with cameras) to find the answers.

Duncan enjoyed the DVDs, which were the "Post Office" and "Curiosity Quest Goes Green" episodes, and asked to watch them several times, so that he "could give the best answers about how good they are."

Duncan especially enjoyed the Post Office episode, because, as he said, he "always wanted to know what they did back there, behind the counter, where we can't see." This is a good episode for small boys who like machines, because we got to see letter sorters that "go really fast. Mommy, do you think they need to be careful of their hands so they don't get hurt and the letters don't get covered in blood?" Perfect fodder for a five year old boy, as was the segment when the host drove the forklift-like vehicle (electric mule) around the sorting facility.



The repetitive nature of the lessons is a bit much for grown-ups, but not for five year olds. By the end, Duncan was shouting, "you can't touch the mail" when the host tried to hold the letters. Duncan said, "even I know that only you get to touch the letters you mail, and the postman can, too. No one else. That's a very important thing about the mail. That's called the sanctity." Lesson learned, young man.

Duncan said, "There's nothing I don't like about this one, except when they ask questions [of people on the street]. Because it's more like news, with a microphone. It would be better, and wouldn't feel like news, if they only asked kids questions, instead of some grown-ups." While none of the interview subjects seemed terribly adult to me, I think he was referring to two young women in their late teens. They seemed much older than the audience of the show, and clearly he felt he couldn't relate to them as well as the younger children.

Duncan was a little less interested in the Recycling/Goes Green DVD, probably because we live in a place where recycling and sustainability are topics of constant conversation. He did like the machines at the dump, though, and was interested to see how many crazy things end up at the landfill. "They even put MATTRESSES there!"



He thought this one would be "good for kids who don't know as much as me about recycling, because then they wouldn't send so much to the landfill. . . they need to sort at home, like with our boxes in the garage. Because it's lots of work to find all those things and get them out before the landfill closes at night and they bury everything." As his mom, I concur that this one was a little less science-y and exciting, but it does teach some good lessons about the way we need to care for the earth, and teaching these things to children is a great way to start.

True to form, Duncan ended our DVD-watching session with a question. "Mommy, how does the DVD player read the disc when is only silver?" And he was intently eying that DVD player like he wanted to take it apart.

Hey Curiosity Quest, do you want to explain how a DVD player works?

Birds

I think it was November. Arielle stopped being a girl and turned into a bird - a Rainbow Cockatoo, to be exact. Rainbow Cockatoo's are an imaginary species. They are very rare and are the only cockatoos in the Northern Hemisphere. Most live in Australia.

Arielle has always had an imagination. But, six months later, she is still a bird. I've been trained to refer to her hair as her "feathers" and to tooth-brushing as "beak-brushing". When I ask what she'd like for dinner, she asks for "worms and grubs", so I'm creative with food names. Spaghetti is now "juicy worms".

So, we've been growing our imaginations. But, we've also been learning. In January, we took a trip to Ottawa, where we visited the Canadian Museum of Nature. The museum was being remodeled, but they have a wonderful bird exhibit complete with a tiny lab where children can pretend to be ornithologists (scientists who study birds). Arielle was thrilled. Now she is determined that when she grows up she will be a bird scientist.

Pictures from the museum






When we left the museum, we bought a bird book. This sparked an interest in bird identification. We put up bird feeders in our trees and bought some identification guides. Grandma gave Arielle a pair of binoculars.



When the weather turned warmer, we saw new birds every day. We bought a CD to teach us about bird songs and listened to it in the car. We built a bird house.




And we didn't stop there. Cockatoos are common in Australia, so Arielle wanted to learn about Australia. We found Australia on the globe. We cut out pictures of Australian animals - there are lots at OzAnimals.com - and we decorated our geography area. Arielle practiced writing the names of Australian birds and animals in her notebook. We learned about Aboriginal art and decorated homemade rain sticks. We got stories from the library and from Amazon and learned about Aboriginal myth and about animals.





I have learned a lot, too. Even two-year-old Linnea can identify robins and starlings. Arielle's interest shows no signs of waning and it is both fun and a challenge to find new ways to direct her curiosity and eagerness to learn. Here she is painting an outline of a bird that I drew for her - a homemade coloring book of sorts. The bright water colors and heavy duty paper are from Stubby Pencil, of course.



And here she is playing pet store... finding good homes for those birds and also a chance to learn about money.





Taking advantage of your child's interests seems like such a natural and fun way to learn, doesn't it? There is such a fine line between learning and play, and there are so many more things we can and will learn as long as she is interested.

A few last minute gifts from Petit Baby

Petit Baby sent us three toys to review this week, and I wanted to make sure to get this out in time for holiday shopping.

First up is the Plan Toys Vegetable Set ($17.99)

We love Plan Toys. They provide a great option for safe, environmentally-friendly Wooden toys available at a price that isn't shockingly more expensive than plastic. However, this was the first time that we tried play food toys from Plan. The foods are similar in size to Haba play food, and while they aren't quite as cute, but the felt accents are nice. These are a nice choice if you've bought a play kitchen for Christmas and are looking to stock it with play food on a budget.


We got to test their durability right away as Linnea decided to see how well the vegetables mixed with her cranberry juice. Yuck! While I don't suggest these for toddlers who want to drop things in their juice cups, they did clean up to be good as new and ready for lots of play.

"Eat your carrots, Mom!"









For Arielle's fourth birthday, she received the Haba Sunlight Jewelry Box ($24.99) and a necklace as a special gift from her Daddy who couldn't be there. It looks adorable in her pink princess room. With two little girls who love being pretty, it seems that I always need space for storing hair bows and necklaces. So, I was happy that Petit Baby sent the larger Haba Mia Jewelry House ($31.99).



This very pink and very girly jewelry box. It comes apart into two roomy sections. The top part has a mirror in the lid.



Since it is made of cloth, the jewelry box is manufactured in China in a factory with on-site Haba supervision. All Haba toys and Haba gifts meet European (EN71) and US (ASTM) standards.



Finally, more Djeco toys.
Djeco Color Animals Domino ($16.99)



I just really enjoy the fun, bright illustrations that Djeco uses. Dominoes are a classic picture recognition and number matching game. I remember playing dominoes as a child, although mine were not nearly this cute.

The game starts with each player being given 6 dominoes. The remainder of the dominoes are left in a stack. The first player places a domino on the table. Each player then takes turns putting down a domino by matching 2 identical pictures or 2 identical numbers. If a player can't make a match, she must draw dominoes from the pile until she can. The first player to have no dominoes left is the winner.

Arielle and I played with both with pictures and number dots.




Learning toys and Educational games like dominoes are a great fun way to help preschool-aged children develop pre-reading and early math skill while having fun with mom and dad. Four-year-old, Arielle easily followed the rules and won most of our games.

Don't forget, our readers save 10% off their orders at PetitBaby with code "Sara10" (not valid on sale items).