Page 33 - Indulge December/January 2017
P. 33
Looking for a great toy? He also recommends “anything by Rubik’s.” The makers of the
original 3x3 puzzle cube now make variations such as 4x4 and 5x5
By Patrick O’Donnell cubes, as well as a game called Rubik’s Race. “They’re really hot, and I
like it because it gets kids away from tablets,” Albanese says.
Holiday toy shopping can be an exercise in frustration that rivals
stringing up the lights. Consider this story our gift to you, then Depending on the child, you may want to consider blurring the line
— a little elf-help for the savvy “Santa.” between boy– and girl-specific gifts, too. “There are so many new toys
that cross gender lines today that I do think people are shying away
While there’s no shortage of flashy gadgets and battery-burning from traditional gifts. We have parents and grandparents who shop for
devices, sometimes simplicity is sublime. Take excavation kits, for trucks for girls and cookingware for boys — both once thought of as
instance. “They include a large rock, and kids can chisel their way very gender specific,” Coulter says.
to discover a shark or a dinosaur. It really teaches them all of the
hard work that goes into making new scientific discoveries,” says If robots and building are more up the child’s alley, Albanese
Alesia Coulter, proprietor of Sweet Pea Children’s Shop on Bath Pike recommends Geckobot, by Thames & Kosmos. “It’s kind of Erector
near Bethlehem. set-ish, but it has a motor and suction cups, so it can walk up
walls and windows.”
Those kits hone in on a relatively recent push for STEM toys:
science, technology, engineering and math. Experts say an early Toys that stimulate the senses, such as water toys, Kinetic Sand,
introduction to STEM-related skills can pay dividends later, because Play Dough and musical instruments, are also a smart choice. Even
graduates with a STEM background are in high demand. STEM toys food-related toys, like those that encourage baking or cooking, can help
often include robot-building kits, toys that help test the boundaries kids learn valuable skills.
of physics and even kits geared toward scientific experiments that
illustrate cause and effect. And finally, don’t forget the tried and true standards: dolls,
puppets, dress-up toys and action figures, all of which stimulate
Along those lines, Coulter says, her shop carries kits that allow kids the imagination. A 2012 Psychology Today article cites studies that
to create lip balm and “perfume lab kits, where children can create show a marked increase in cognitive benefits such as language use,
their own scents, which is always fun.” empathy, emotional expression and more. “Books, puzzles, wood
toys, and dolls — you can never go wrong with classic toys,” Coulter
“I like that the trend in toys is going toward learning, rather than says. “Nothing too trendy.”
‘here’s a gun, now go shoot at something,’ says Vincent Albanese,
who along with his wife, Michell, owns Learning Express Toys in So when you hit the toy aisles this year, remember: It’s all fun and
the Promenade Shops at Saucon Valley. The Albaneses are both games — until they learn something.
former teachers.
Pforegrirflseacntd Toys
Albanese suggests selections from the SmartGames company.
“Little Red Riding Hood Deluxe is a preschool puzzle game for 4-7 boys!
year-olds,” he says. “It’s a logic game: [The child] tries to put pieces
on a grid in the right way to get to grandma’s house … there’s also one
called Three Little Pigs based on the same idea.”
3301 Bath Pike, Bethlehem • 610.866.2505 facebook.com/SweetPeaChildrenBethlehem
