ABOUT

The PAL Award

About the PAL Award

The PAL Award recognizes outstanding children’s products that by design, content, quality, and character, engender play that advances language and appeal to all children for lasting play value. To win a PAL Award the toy, game or book must be exciting and engaging to children. It is the only toy award given by a credentialed speech-language pathologist. PAL Award winners are featured on TV, video reviews, and social media.  They are recognized in the industry as leaders in child language development and education that spark fun and creative play in children.

Erika Cardamone, MS, CCC-SLP, has worked with children for over 15 years in the schools and private practice, building language skills through play. Since early language proficiency correlates with later performance in school—reading, writing, and critical thinking—and influences emotional, cognitive and social growth, choosing the best toys and books is critical to practice and develop these skills. 

Parents continuously ask Erika for toy, game and book recommendations. Her unique reviews from an expert’s perspective, provide tips on how to use the product for maximum language building. 

Submission Process

PAL’s selection process is unique in that Erika heads the toy testing teams of parents, educators and kids, based on her expertise working, helping and playing with kids and families.

There is a $495 submission fee* per product. You can apply via the online application form and submit payment online OR download the form and mail-in with your submission fee.

*Winners get free lifetime use of the PAL seal for shows, websites, print and social media, as well as a written product review.

Send one submission form per product along with one sample of your new product (released within the last 18 months) with a $395 fee per product:

PAL Award
Erika Cardamone

313 Hamlet Circle
Berwyn, PA 19312

Playonwords.com will review noteworthy products, publishing reviews on it’s website throughout the year and make a selection of the top toys, games and books to receive the PAL award, to be announced throughout the current calendar year. Samples are not returned and not all products that have been submitted will receive awards. Playonwords.com gives samples to toy tester families and charities that serve mothers and children in need. 

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