1.SPACE BOOK AND TOYS

This is my most favorite book. When Mom asked me to name one book for the gift guide section about space, I knew right away it had to be this one. National Geographic Kids: Little Kids First Big Book of Space is filled with fun facts and amazing images. I know so much about space now that mom and dad have to frantically flip through the book to look things up, only to say: huh, yes, that’s true. They really should pay more attention, I mean… they are the ones reading it. Photo credit: National Geographic Kids

 

This Solar System Planetarium is so much fun! It comes with all eight planets (plus the sun!) to pop out, sand, paint, then put together. I needed mom to help me put it together as the pieces are very small and a bit tricky. Once the planets dried, I put a coat of a special glow in the dark paint that came in the box. If your child loves space and arts and crafts, I think he or she will really love this. Photo credit: Toysmith.com

 

This Solar System Floor Puzzle is 48-pieces of pure space fun. My favorite part is looking at the craters in the moon along the bottom. The whole thing measures 2×3 feet. It features all eight planets, the moon ( of course), the sun, and the asteroid belt. Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

This little Polly Pocket Saturn Space Explorer Compact is so cute and so much fun! In true Polly Pocket form it’s small with tiny pieces and packed with lots to do! It’s shaped like Saturn. It has a removable lunar vehicle and an alien friend, as well as micro Polly and Shani dolls. There’s a star to spin and a rocky area that makes crystals pop up. I love the colors. It reminds me a little of the sensory bins that mom and I make, except that when I’m done playing I can wear it as a purse or wristlet. Photo credit: Mattel

 

I keep asking for a telescope. I want to see the stars up close and learn much more about them. This Educational Insights GeoSafari Jr. My First Telescope STEM Toy for Kids looks sooooo perfect. It has two extra-large eyepieces and focus free, 10x magnification. Just point and look! Photo credit: Educational Insights

 

This Space Adventure Sensory Playdough Bin is out of this world. I love these little sensory kits. Mom loves ordering them and also making her own. This one is from an Etsy seller called @littlehappytoys

 

Sometimes at night I like to lie in my bed and light up my very own Moon in My Room. It stays on for 30-minutes and has a remote and different moon phases. I have a book about the moon called Moon! Earth’s Best Friend I keep in a bin my bed and I Iike to open it up to the page with the moon phases and match the phases to the book. I can also use the remote to click my way to the moon phase I’m most interested in.

 

2.ALPHABET BOOK AND TOYS

This fun-filled pop, pull, and peek book makes learning your ABCs a lot of fun! I’m a big fan of Alpha Bugs by David A. Carter. W is my favorite – it’s for the “witty wacky Waffle Bug” and has a waffle maker that opens and closes. There’s a buggy surprise on every page. I don’t like bugs in real life but they’re super silly in this book and make me laugh.

 

If you like the alphabet and you love robots, you’re going to looooove Alpha-Bots! It’s the WHOLE alphabet with a secret — the letters turn into robots! I love playing with these and mom likes to hide some around the house for me to find throughout the day. Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

This Alphabet Puzzle – Crocodile is super cool. It has the whole alphabet in colorful lowercase letters. I love rainbows, letters, and puzzles, so when mom saw this she knew I had to have it. I know my letters but I’m better at upper case, so this is a fun way for me to practice. And, well, the 3D aspect is really fun. Photo credit: New Classic Toys

 

These Spelling Puzzle Cards are interesting to put together. I started with the ones that have three letters and once I got good at those mom gave me the ones with four letters. At first I wasn’t sure what to do but mom gave me a few clues: line up the letters on the bottom, find the “edge” pieces, and look at the picture. After that, I quickly got the hang of it. I really like putting these together. After, I tell mom each letter and she sounds out the word. Photo credit: Learning Resources

 

 

This Playfoam Shape & Learn the Alphabet set feels really good between my fingers. The way it works is you pick a card and then sculpt the squishy playfoam into the upper case letter that’s on the card. This set comes with eight different colors that don’t dry out (though mom has us put them in plastic bags just in case). I also like to use the playfoam to make pretend cars and furniture for my toy figurines. Mom likes how good it is for sensory learning, that it’s not sticky, and that it’s super easy to clean up. Photo credit: Educational Insights

 

These AlphaPops are colorful and fun! They’re also like a puzzle. So, first I separate all the popsicles and then I match the upper case letter to its lower case letter and push the popsicles together. They interlock on the sides. There are 13 pairs. Half the alphabet is on one side and the other half in on the other. Photo credit: Learning Resources

 

3.ROBOT BOOK AND TOYS

I love BOY + BOT! It was super easy to pick my favorite robot book. I’ll be writing a feature review on this soon as I was disappointed I hadn’t done it already. It’s a book about a boy and a robot who become best buddies. When the Bot accidentally gets switched off, Boy things he’s sick and tries to help him. Then when Bot powers on and finds Boy asleep, he tries to fix him too — but with oil and by reading an instruction manual! It’s a very very good book and silly, but in a way that makes a lot of sense.

 

Do you like to build robots? I think this 1-2-3- Build It! Robot Factory Toy looks like so much fun! I have a different toy that I build, also by Learning Resources, and I like playing with it a lot. Mom says this toy has chunky pieces and many bits I can use to build a robot. It’s a STEM toy and I read there’s a propeller that really spins… all I have to do it push the pieces together. Photo credit: Learning Resources

 

If you’d rather snap pieces together to build a robot, take a look at this Snap-Bot toy. It comes with nine different shapes to make a bunch of freestanding robots. The pieces are made of wood and you can make up to six robots at once; there are 36 pieces all together. Mom likes that this helps sharpen fine motor skills. Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

Eek! This Remote-Control Gear-Bot looks so exciting if you like robots and remote controls! So, you build a robot using different gears, claws, heads, etc. and then you get to make it go using a remote control. Make sure you clear the play mat for this one! Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

This Robot Sensory Kit has many fun nuts, bolts, and gizmos. I like the different textures and the cute robots. I love these little sensory kits. Mom loves ordering them and also making her own. We’re fans of homemade playdough too. This one is from an Etsy seller called @haleykateandgarrett

 

4.RAINBOW BOOK AND TOYS

If you love rainbows as much as I do, this book on a special friendship between a girl and a rainbow will brighten your day! AVA and the RAINBOW (who stayed) is a must-read.

 

Grimm’s 12-Piece Wooden Stacking Rainbow Tunnel is colorful and instantly makes me smile. I like building rainbows. Sometimes I like to pretend it’s a slide and have my toys speed down the rainbow. Other times I pretend it’s a bridge, but I always put the colors in order first. I’m a stickler for things like that. Photo credit: Grimm’s GmbH

 

My Yaya bought me this VIKITA dress and I had to get another one since I don’t want to take it off. I LOVE wearing the rainbow. The sleeves have rainbow stripes and the butterflies that go diagonally across are also in different colors of the rainbow. And it has pockets! Mom was worried about washing it but she washes it all the time on cold and tumbles on low and it still looks like new. Photo credit: VIKITA

 

Here’s a unique way to make your own rainbow… with rice! This rainbow rice is from an Etsy seller called @RunWildPlayKits

and she has all sorts of sensory bins — some with rice, some with playdough. Mom likes that she can buy a bin ready-to-use or order parts to boost our own, like this super cheery colored rainbow rice!

 

Sometimes at night I like to lie in m bed and push a button and beam my very own rainbow. It’s the coolest thing! This Rainbow in My Room will last 10-minutes and then automatically shuts off. Sometimes I use the rainbow and other times I light up the Moon in My Room. The moon one stays lit for 30-minutes and has a remote and different moon phases; so I choose the projector based on how long I think I can stay awake!

 

5.DINOSAUR BOOK AND TOYS

I really like to “pop” the bubbles in the Poke-A-Dot! Dinosaurs A to Z book by Melissa and Doug. Mom likes that it has the alphabet. I like hoe fun it is and seeing all the different dinosaurs. If you like dinosaurs, I think you will love this book. Photo credit: Melissa & Doug

 

Do you like to build things from scratch? If so, check out these Build & Play Dinos! It’s a pair of two cool dinos—with built-in wheels! This set comes with a kid-safe drill (that needs batteries) and chunky screwdriver to bolt the pieces together. The dinosaurs measure 8-inches when fully built. Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

 

Sometimes you just want to put things together in ways that only make sense to you. These Mix & Match Magnetic Dinosaurs are magnetic, so you can make a “real” looking dinosaurs all in one color, or mix and match colors and parts, to make a crazy dinosaur however you like! The set comes with four complete dinosaurs that you can easily make into many a different silly-saurus! Photo credit: Lakeshore Learning

 

This Playdough Sensory Kit has everything you need to make your very own dinosaur land! It includes five dinosaurs, tree rounds, rocks, gems, moss, and more; plus three different colors of homemade playdough. It’s from an Etsy seller called @MadeToPlayBins

 

This T-Rex Jumbo Double-Sided Floor Puzzle is made of foam, 20-pieces, and super duper long. It’s 4-feet long by 2-ft tall and it’s three dimensional! One side is a fossil-like dino skeleton and the other is a dinosaur that you choose when you buy it. Choices include: T-Rex (shown here), Stegosaurus and Triceratops. Photo credit: Learning Resources