Talking Points FOX6 Real Milwaukee Taping 4-1-20
Fun Toys and Games for Smart Family Play During Shelter at Home
Background on Sherry:
Sherry Artemenko, Speech Language Pathologist and Toy Expert is here to share super fun toys to build language skills through creative play and storytelling, keeping brains sharp over Today I am featuring some of the PAL Award’s latest winners that spark smart play. Information on all these toys is on my website, playonwords.com
Turtle Steps by Hapinest, 3 years and up ($49)
- Kids loved immediately, as soon as they saw the box
- Set up play with large and medium sized textured turtle shells
- Whole family can play, kids lead the play, strategically placing shells
- Spin to see what color shell to jump to or read an activity card..switch shells with someone else or balance on 1 foot
- Kids practice listening, following directions, large motor and balancing skills
- Made up their own games and created a pretend play scenario, stimulated their leading the play
Available here.
Just Add Egg by Griddly Games, 5 years and up, ($29.99)
- It’s all about the egg, over 10 activities-science experiments and DIY activities
- Kids can create disappearing eggs, chalk or an egg succulent garden
- Crush egg shells and color to make a mosaic on the box
- experiments are followed with “What did you see?” and “Why?”
- Observing and thinking critically, kids are exercising language skills as they explain conclusions
Available here.
Global Warning by Adventerra Games, 10 years and up, ($24.95)
- So deep in learning while interesting and fun!
- Intergeneration play
- Players understand causes of global warming, prioritize fixes while assessing the cost benefits of their actions
- Each card has a real global example of a specific problem or solution
- Challenges kids to use higher level language and cognitive skills to work collaboratively, think critically, analyze, compare and come up with best solutions
Brio Builder Record and Play Set, 3 years and up ($39.99)
- Wonderful pairing of STEM and language skills
- Make a robot, airplane, animal or ??
- Great attachment system using grey pegs to attach wheels, decoration, accessories, facial expressions and body parts
- Add movement and integrate a little electronics to add recorded message or sounds effects
- Build and pretend play to stimulate language development
Available here.
Story Time Chess, 3 years and up, ($49.99)
- Learn to play chess based on a story whose characters match up with chess pieces and move according to their back story
- Silly King Shaky who lives in a pillow castle who is scared of everything so he tiptoes on square at a time on the game board
- Playing chess can sharpen critical thinking, problem solving, reasoning, and social language.
Available at Story Time Chess. Click here
Toddler Kitchen Set by Hape, 18 months and up, ($24.99)
- Imitating Mommy and Daddy, why not give them their own kitchen?
- Mini stove with spatula and spoon, clicking dials and clean up storage
- Pretend play important to language development
- Kids use higher level of language when role-playing conversing like adults
Available here.
