The Gift that Keeps Giving - The Gift of Fun Learning!

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

As a preschool teacher and mother, I know there is absolutely no better gift that keeps giving than the gift of education and educational toys! They are my favorite gifts to give to my nieces and nephews and my favorite gifts that my children receive! I know they will play with them for years and learn so much as they play!

Two of my favorite educational toy companies are Learning Resources and Educational Resources! My children have LOVED every single item we have ever used or played with and I love watching learning become fun thanks to their innovative and fun educational toys!

Check out some of my favorite educational gift ideas below:

Learning Resources:

Mini Motor Math Activity Set

Count your way to the finish line! These colorful cars are ready to rev their engines for early math learning fun. Attach the finish line to the track numbered 1–10 for a high-octane counting race up to 10, or push it into overdrive by racing to 20! Start your engines to learn counting 1–20, early addition, number sequencing, patterning, and more! Set includes 25 mini motor cars in 5 colors, 2 pieces of connectable track, 1 color die, 2 number dice, and Activity Guide featuring multiple activities to boost early math skills. Track pieces measure 12"L; cars measure 1"L.

Available for $19.99

Counterpillar

Count on this friendly caterpillar to invite early learning exploration! Slide the colorful beads––sized perfectly for little fingers––to learn counting, more or less, and early addition. Includes two rows of 10 beads, with numbers 1–10 printed on the base. Measures 11½"L x 8"H.

Grades: PreK+

Available for $19.99

STEM Magnets Activity Set

Attract early learners to the wonders of magnetism! STEM lessons are irresistible when you add the excitement of fun, colorful tools to scientific exploration. Durable, playful magnets in a variety of shapes engage children as they explore magnetism, polarity, and magnetic attraction & repulsion.

Includes 2 bar magnets, 2 magnetic bugs, 4 ring magnets, horseshoe magnet, magnetic post, 2 snap-on cars, tray with maze, string, and 10 double-sided Activity Cards. Comprehensive Activity Guide with reproducible materials is also included. Largest piece (maze tray) measures 11"L x 8½"H x ½"W.

Available for $34.99

Educational Insights:

Nancy B's Science Club® Garbage to Gardens Compost Kit & Decomposition Book

Which decays faster—a banana peel or a Styrofoam cup? Find out with the only transparent composting kit designed just for kids!

This set introduces life cycles and composting, promotes environmentalism and journaling activities encourage creativity!

This set is the only transparent composting kit designed just for kids and includes:

• Clear compost container with 2 compartments includes removable divider
• two 3x magnifiers
• 2 write-on/wipe-off boards
• lid with air holes
• 22-Page activity journal

It's such a Fun introduction to life cycles and environmental science!

Available for $24.99

Hot Dots® Jr. Famous Fables Interactive Storybook Set

Turn story time into an interactive learning experience with four timeless tales and Ollie—The Talking, Teaching Owl™ pen! Each fable teaches an important life lesson and features interactive activities to help children master important skills.

This set:

• Introduces important life lessons
• Supports the understanding of numbers and counting; making comparisons; understanding patterns and rhyme; and other early learning skills crucial for school success
• Helps children master reading comprehension and encourages an early love of reading
• Encourages independent, self-paced learning

It includes:

• Set of four 24-page storybooks—The Tortoise and the Hare, The Lion and the Mouse, The Ant and the Grasshopper, and The City Mouse and the Country Mouse—each with 11 early learning activities
• Includes Ollie—the Talking, Teaching Owl pen, which lights up and has 17 speech and sound-effect responses
• Pen requires 2 AAA batteries (not included)

Available for $24.99

Design & Drill® Power Play Vehicles™ Race Car

Kids can zoom into build ‘n’ play fun with Design & Drill® Power Play Vehicles™! Your junior pit crew can build their vehicle by snapping the pieces together. Then, they can use the motorized mini-drill to add the bolts. Finally, it’s time to add artistic flair and customize their creation with colorful stickers, and zoom into creative STEM play! Once their racer is ready to hit the road, they can use kid-power to send their car speeding!

With this set, your children will explore patterning, matching, and counting, build construction and fine motor skills and encourage creativity and imagination while building confidence.

It includes:

• Build your own race car, complete with moving pieces, using 7 snap-on parts
• 15 Clear bolts
• Motorized, kid-friendly mini-drill with socket bit
• Colorful & decorative stickers
• Multilingual instructional guide
• Drill requires 3 AAA batteries (not included)

Available for $21.99

*Disclosure - This product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.*

Have FUN Learning this Spring with Lakeshore Learning!

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

As a homeschooling mom of my preschoolers and also a future preschool teacher, I have a few favorite learning and educational companies where I could literally browse their website for hours and hours dreaming of how much fun children could have learning with their products!

Lakeshore Learning is one of those amazing learning products websites!

Why?

Well, because Lakeshore Learning products are developed by teachers and they apply real-world classroom experience to every product they develop. That is probably why I love each and every product so much! Also, they have close ties with real classrooms which also helps them stay innovative and develop ground-breaking products.

Plus, they also care about quality! Lakeshore Learning’s in-house Quality Assurance Team test and inspects every item with more rigorous standards than those required by law. Every item they sell meets or exceeds government safety requirements.

Best of all, their products are all FUN! With award-winning products for birth through 6th grade, Lakeshore Learning helps children reach milestones and achieve educational goals while having fun.

Thanks to Lakeshore Learning my children are going to have fun learning this spring with two of their awesome products from their Spring Learning Collection!

No-Fail Froggy Catch 

Children build confidence and coordination as they play no-fail games of catch! Soft, hook & loop “bug balls” stick like magic to the entire surface of our cute froggy mitts—so it’s easy for kids to make a catch every time!

My kids LOVE being active outside and inside and are just starting to work on catching and throwing. My 4 year old daughter hasn't quite mastered the concept of catching and gets frustrated.

These froggy mitts are perfect for helping her learn and practice the hand-eye coordination and motor skills it takes to catch and helps her not get frustrated! Plus, the gloves and "bugs" are so cute! It really makes for a fun game!

They are super easy to slip on and use because they are double-sided! They even have a spot for the thumb so it gets children ready to wear a baseball glove. Plus, I really LOVE that they are machine-washable mitts so I can let the children use them outside and have fun!

The set includes 3 balls and 2 mitts and retails for $24.99 (3-5 yrs.)

The Butterfly Nursery

This fascinating nursery lets kids watch caterpillars grow, spin silk and form chrysalises, then emerge as butterflies!

As I mentioned, I homeschool my daughter for preschool right now and with spring here, there is nothing more fun than watching caterpillars become butterflies! I have always wanted to have a butterfly nursery and this one from Lakeshore Learning doesn't take up much space but is a great way to watch the life cycle of a butterfly!

This 19" nursery was super easy to set up and it lets children observe the butterfly life cycle from every angle—they can even decorate it with leaves and flowers!

We have to send a coupon in for the caterpillars and we did that right away. We should have them in a couple weeks. Meanwhile we set up our butterfly nursery and talked about caterpillars. My daughter loved helping me set up up the nursery and it literally took minutes to set up!

We can't wait to watch the life cycle of a butterfly and use this nursery for years to come to learn and have fun!

The nursery comes with all you need—including a stand for tabletop setup, feeding supplies, a coupon for 3-5 caterpillars! $39.99 (4-9 yrs.)

Buy It:

You can purchase these Spring educational toys and MANY MORE! from the Lakeshore Learning website or Lakeshore Learning retail store near you!

* Thank you to Lakeshore Learning for their product for review! Disclosure - This product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.*

Have Fun Learning with @LakeshoreLM & Giveaway

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

I homeschool my daughter for preschool so I am always looking for new ideas and educational materials to make it fun and exciting for her!

One of my favorite go-to learning companies is Lakeshore!

Lakeshore offers innovative learning materials distinguished by their quality, educational merit and safety. Lakeshore’s new Gifts for Growing Minds collection is a unique and exclusive assortment of educational toys and games designed to help parents get their children excited about learning!

They have great products for all areas of learning - Science, Math and Large & Small Motor Skills. Check out some of my favorite items that help children learn in these areas:

Be a Math Magician

Is it magic? No, it’s math! Amaze friends & family with fascinating illusions you perform yourself.

Each trick comes with easy-to-follow illustrated instructions that explain how to perform the illusion. Then, after you’ve mystified your audience, you can reveal how math is the “magic” behind each trick! Includes everything needed to perform all 8 tricks.

My son LOVES doing "magic" so I love that he can do magic AND practice his math! This is so fun and educational!

($29.99; Ages 8 & up)

Castle Blocks

These enchanting hardwood blocks let kids create medieval fortresses, palaces & more!

These durable, stackable blocks come in 12 unique shapes & are printed on every side with a fun medieval theme—so kids can construct castles from all directions! Set of 60 blocks; largest is 6". Not scaled to unit blocks.

My children LOVE building block towers and castles and now they can really build real castles with these blocks! These are hours and hours of fun and so many types and sizes of castles can be built!

($69.99; Ages 3-6)

How Does Your Body Work? Experiment Kit

Stinky feet…gooey snot… the human body is completely disgusting—and totally cool!

This hands-on experiment kit is perfect for kids who are itching to learn all about how their body works. Five super-engaging experiments explore germs, digestion & more—as kids get totally grossed out and learn about the science that happens inside our own bodies! Includes 19 pieces, plus 5 experiment cards. Digestive system model is 20 1/2" long.

Since I am a medical professional, I love teaching my kids about their amazing body! This kit is so perfect for showing them and experimenting!

($29.99; Age 5-11)

As you can, Lakeshore offers so many fun and unique kits for children to learn, experiment and have fun all day long!

Buy It:

You can purchase all these items and many more from the Lakeshore website.

Win It:

Lakeshore is generously offering (1) Be a Math Magician to a lucky winner!

Enter here for a chance to win:

(1) Be a Math Magician kit 
from Lakeshore
($29.99)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

* Thank you to Lakeshore for their product for review! Disclosure - This product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.*

Funky Monkey Forecast Magnetic Daily Weather Set & Giveaway

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

One thing my son has enjoyed since he was very young is doing "Calendar and Weather Time" every morning with me. A great way to discuss the date and weather for the day is with Funky Monkey Forecast™ Magnetic Daily Weather Set from Learning Resources.

This Weather Set is great for boosting vocabulary and getting children involved in the weather! It is great for ages 3-7 and is so fun for children!

Just set up the Monkey with the calendar and the weather on your whiteboard and get young children actively involved by having them dress the monkey for today’s weather!

This set includes 60 magnetic pieces includes jumbo monkey, 28 accessories, 6 weather icons, 3 weather words, 7 days of the week, 12 months, and 2 blanks along with an Activity Guide.

This Monkey measures 12"H and is great for Grades PreK+.

This monkey is so silly and will definitely get children in engaged and interested in the daily weather and date! This set is different than most calendars because the children get to really get involved because they get to dress the monkey for the weather! However, the downfall is that you must have a magnetic surface for this set to stick.

Overall, this Funky Monkey Forecast Magnetic Daily Weather Set is great for the home or classroom and it really gets the children involved and interested in the weather and calendar year!

Buy It: You can purchase the Funky Monkey Forecast Magnetic Daily Weather Set for $29.99 from Learning Resources.

Win It: Learning Resources is generously offering (1) Funky Monkey Forecast Magnetic Daily Weather Set to a lucky winner!

Enter here for a chance to win:

(1) Funky Monkey Forecast Magnetic Daily Weather Set
from Learning Resources
a Rafflecopter giveaway

* Thank you to Learning Resources for their product for review! Disclosure - This product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.*

"Ready, Set, Read & Write!" LeapReader Party

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

My goal this school year is to teach my son how to read. Since I am not a professional teacher, I am always looking for as much help as I can when it comes to helping him learn!

So what is my new helper this school year? LeapFrog and their awesome LeapReader, the complete learn to read and write system for children!!!

I recently got to host a "Ready, Set, Read & Write!" Party with all my son's friends who are also in the reading and writing stage and I was so excited to try out these LeapReader products...and my son was more excited than I was!

For our party we received so many awesome LeapReader products that gave us a great idea of all the great resources out there to help children learn to read and write:

• LeapReader™- LeapReader engages kids in imaginative stories with lively character voices while building vocabulary skills and growing reading comprehension skills. Interactive handwriting guidance helps children learn to write stroke-by-stroke on mess-free, no ink LeapFrog® Learning Paper. Plus Leap Reader helps develop listening comprehension skills on-the-go with a growing library of 100+ audio books and more featuring classic and popular children's books that encourage a love of reading.
• LeapReader™ Book: Learn to Write Letters with Mr Pencil- Join Dot, Dash and Mr. Pencil on a musical learning adventure featuring interactive stroke guidance, exciting sound effects and engaging activities. Practice writing the alphabet with the LeapReader, and learn about upper- and lowercase letters and letter sounds.
• LeapReader™ 3D Book: Disney•Pixar Monsters University- LeapReader brings the story of Monsters University to life with exciting 3D effects and helps build reading comprehension and vocabulary skills! (3D glasses included.)
• LeapReader™/Tag™ Interactive Talking Words Factory Flash Cards- This Early Reading flash card set helps develop core phonics skills by letting children actively play with word sounds and recognize how they come together to create words . Mix and match letters to build more than 100 words featuring short vowel sounds. More than 400 interactive responses and 5 spelling, rhyming and singing games reinforce word-building fun.
• Two LeapReader Sampler Books

We soon found out that the LeapReader is the complete learn-to-read-and-write solution. LeapReader engages kids in imaginative stories with lively character voices while building vocabulary skills and growing reading comprehension skills. Interactive handwriting guidance helps children learn to write on special mess-free paper. Plus, LeapReader helps develop listening comprehension skills with audio books.

My son and his friends broke into the box of LeapReader products and immediately began writing in the Writing Workbook. They loved how it told them how to trace the letters

The other parents and I loved how the LeapReader told them what letter they were tracing, how to trace it and gave them constructive and positive feedback!

I have to say though that the hit of the party was the LeapReader Talking Words Factory Flash Cards.

These cards feature mix and match letters on interactive flash cards than can build more than 100 words with short vowel sounds.

Features:

• Turn letters into words at the Talking Words Factory by playing 5 rhyming, spelling and singing games.
• Touch letters to hear them pronounced.
• Enjoy 400+ audio responses and sing-along songs that reinforce the learning.
• Identify spelling patterns and swap out beginning letters and ending letters to create new words. Includes storage box.

They were so versatile and I loved how many different ways children can learn with these cards! They can practice their alphabet and their sounds, they can rhyme, make words, sound out words and SO MUCH MORE! Such a great way to learn and so fun!

So, overall the party was a success, we had a ton of fun learning, writing and reading and I can't wait to continue to use these LeapReader resources and educational products throughout the school year!

* I received free LeapFrog products in order to host the LeapFrog sponsored MommyParty. The opinions expressed here are my own.*

New Education Opportunities from The Minnesota Historical Society

A product was given for review for my honest opinion. No other compensation was given.

If you are a fellow Minnesotan, I have some great and exciting news and opportunities from the Minnesota Historical Society! Historical sites are something I have been visiting with my family on summer vacations my whole life and I absolutely love to transport back to a different era and time in history every time I visit a historical site!

I am so excited to share that with the kids back to school, the Minnesota Historical Society is bringing some new education opportunities! New “Northern Lights” textbook, History Live lessons, field trip lessons and more make history fun and help students hone important skills! With education at the heart of its mission, the Minnesota Historical Society this fall will connect students and teachers statewide to Minnesota history like never before.

New, Revised Second Edition of “Northern Lights” Shines
“Northern Lights,” a high-quality, comprehensive social studies textbook and curriculum for Minnesota sixth graders, has been revised to meet all new sixth grade state social studies standards. The student textbook and digital version will debut in Minnesota classrooms in September.

“Northern Lights” features hundreds of primary sources and colorful images and engages students with a friendly narrative, interactive activities and stories told from multiple perspectives.

“Northern Lights” is designed to help meet the new requirement that sixth graders complete a full year of study of Minnesota history, civics, geography and economics.

The new “Northern Lights” features enriched American Indian content and new content highlighting precontact Minnesota, World War I and late 20th Century history. All content has been vetted by educators, historians and cultural experts. For more information please see the "Northern Lights" fact sheet.

16 New Field Trip Lessons at Historic Sites and Museums
Standing where history happened is a powerful experience. The Minnesota Historical Society makes history come alive for students with fun and engaging programs at 18 MHS sites and museums statewide. Sixteen new lessons will launch at sites this fall including the Oliver H. Kelley Farm, Jeffers Petroglyphs and the Alexander Ramsey House, offering hands-on activities, guided tours, games and new resources.

Grants are available to help with schools’ transportation costs to the Society’s sites and museums.

New History Live Lessons Launch
Minnesota Historical Society educators will deliver new, dynamic history lessons live to students across Minnesota and the nation this fall via video conferencing technology. Ten award-winning History Live lessons are available for students in grades 2-12, meeting academic standards from social studies to science.

History Live will introduce two new lessons this fall: “Messages Through Time: American Indian Culture Preserved in Stone” explores archaeology, history, geology and science for grades 4-6. The second, “The Dred Scott Family & the National Debate Over Slavery,” examines the quest for freedom by a famous family with Minnesota ties and is designed for high school students. For more information please see the History Live fact sheet.

Professional Development for Teachers
The Minnesota Historical Society supports hundreds of teachers every year with workshops, seminars and online courses. From instructional seminars about the new Revised Second Edition of “Northern Lights” to three day Historic Site Immersion workshops, teachers can access a wealth of resources.

New in 2013 is a self-paced online course, “A History of Minnesota.” Online courses include downloadable primary-source activities for the classroom, video clips and a comprehensive list of resources. For more information please see the Teacher Professional Development fact sheet.

“Then Now Wow” Minnesota History Exhibit
“Then Now Wow” is a hands-on, interactive exhibit at the Minnesota History Center designed specifically for students and families. It covers Minnesota history from lumbering and fur trading to contemporary immigration and suburban expansion while supporting state social studies standards and complementing the new “Northern Lights” textbook and curriculum.

Input from Minnesota teachers, parents and students played a major role in the development of “Then Now Wow.”

History is Creative with Curriculum Kits
Teachers and students explore American Indian culture, history and arts with a hands-on Ojibwe Shoulder Bag Activity Kit based on stories from the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe in Central Minnesota. The kit includes pre-printed bags which can be designed, colored and decorated in one day. The bags are based on authentic beaded Ojibwe bandolier bags.

History Day
National History Day in Minnesota, a partnership of the Minnesota Historical Society and the University of Minnesota, challenges students in grades 6-12 to conduct in-depth research relating to a national theme, then create and present their findings through papers, exhibits, performances, documentaries and websites.

Projects can be entered into competitions at the school, regional, state and national levels. Minnesota students are consistently top finishers in the National History Day competition held annually in Washington, D.C.

History Player in the Classroom
Teachers can bring fascinating historical figures right to their classroom with 11 different History Players ranging from Harriet Bishop, St. Paul’s first public school teacher, to Frederick McKinley Jones, an African-American inventor and engineer. History Player visits are a great alternative to field trips. In a 2011 study by the Society, 100 percent of teachers surveyed said that the History Players held students’ interest and kept them engaged.

Coming Soon
The Minnesota Historical Society has several exciting education programs now in development including a new mobile application that will revolutionize the field trip.

* I received MHS passes in exchange for this post. No other compensation was given.*