Sa-Wheet! (long post - grab coffee)

I was asked by Learning Resources, a leading manufacturer of innovative, hands-on educational toys and materials for use by parents and in the classroom, if I wanted to review one of their products. I of course, jumped at the chance. Yesterday I got not one, but three cleverly designed teaching devices disguised like toys in the mail.


First up is the educational game Spill Your Guts. With 90 true and false questions, a body operating tray and eleven cleverly crafted organs, What eight year old boy wouldn't want to learn more about how his body works?




Aside from the traditional game, played with the true and false cards,on the back page of the instruction pamphlet are three more game ideas.

The best part about this game is that parents can join in and not be board out of their tree becuase they know all of the answers. You can also play in teams so that younger siblings can join in the fun! Just be careful they don't chomp down on the jelly bean looking Kidneys!

Opening the next box we found the GEARS!GEARS!GEARS! Motorized lights & Action bucket.
First. A bit of background on my five year old son. He takes things apart - Bathroom sinks, chairs, doors, my radio - He is able to put them all back together in the right order, but seldom does. GEARS! offers him the chance to make all sorts of things - without breaking my things!

With 121 pieces, including glow in the dark stickers, a power motor and lights, he is limited only by his imagination! When he is done, the bucket makes a handy storage container!

And last of all, For the three year old set, The interactive Jump `N' Jam Jungle - Electronic Talking Play Mat. First let me say this - it HAS a volume control. (One of the first things I check when it comes to noise making toys is if i can turn it down when I need too.) The Jump `N' Jam operates on 4 AA batteries, but don't worry! If there has been no movement for five minutes, it powers down automatically.

My three year old went wild over this one. The Jump '`N' Jam can be played on the floor (with feet) or on the table top (with hands), and has FIVE games; Guess Me, Follow Me, Sound Safari, Memory Match and What's Next? to choose which game you want to play you push the GAME button. Each time you hit the button it will say the name of the game, making it easy for a child of three to pick without asking mommy to help over and over and over.

The Jump `N' Jam, besides being insanely fun - yes even I tried it out - teaches the pre-school set colors and sounds, sharpens reflexes and follow simple instructions.


After looking over and playing with three different toys from three different age groups I feel confidant in saying that Learning resources offers high quality educational toys. I made a point of checking the toys for durability. There is nothing worse than a toy that gets broken a week after it is bought. The Toys from Learning Resources are made to last and my boys had no idea they were learning as they played!!

Learning Resources: Mom's Grade A+