healthykids THE SMART TOY BOX


20 Brain-Building Toys Under $20 by Michelle Hecker Davis


I


t’s Christmas, and that means your kids are about to hand you a wish list on a roll of toilet paper. Yes, it’s that


long. There will be requests for video


games, an oven that cooks pink mini- cakes using 24 nine-volt batteries, and some kind of gun that will have the cat hiding under the couch. And they’re all expensive.


But there are fun toys that won’t rot


your kiddos’ brains or break your bud- get. In fact, we found 20 toys that will actually strengthen their brain skills. The first 10 were taken from Dr. Toy’s “100 Best Toys of 2013” (DrToy.com), and all 20 toys cost less than $20. We chose these not only for their


low cost, but also because they help develop complex learning skills like memory, logic and reasoning; process- ing speed; attention; and auditory and visual processing.


Since parents are often the first


to notice when their children have learning struggles, we’ve noted which cognitive skills each toy strengthens. Just skim through the list and look for skill sets based on your child’s age and abilities. Do you have a 10-year-old with ADHD? Look for toys that strengthen selective, divided and sustained atten- tion.


Prepping your kindergartner to read? Choose toys that strengthen phonemic awareness through rhyming, segmenting and sound blending. Does your seven-year-old struggle to remember basic math facts? Select games that include numerical fluency


24 Chattanooga


1. Deluxe Puzzle Wheel by Mudpup- py ($14.99)


Includes a sorting pegboard, five wooden pegs and 25 shapes in various colors. Ages: 24 months+ Cognitive skills: visual processing, logic & reasoning, attention


2. Toddler Build and Play Cubes by LEGO ($11.59) Colorful, extra-large cubes perfect for toddlers just learning to build. Ages: 18 months+ Cognitive skills: visual processing, attention


3. Chain Letters by Patch Products ($18.88) Build words by hooking the letters together—but don’t drop the chain! Ages: 8+ Cognitive skills: sound blending, sound segmenting, attention


4. Spot it! Party by Blue Orange ($19.99) Find the symbol that each of two cards has in common. A fun, fast game for the entire family. Ages: 10+ Cognitive skills: attention, process- ing speed, visual processing


5. My First Math Ball – Numbers & Shapes by Exploracise ($14.95)


TNNaturalAwakenings.com or memory challenges.


Here are some of the best brain- building games under $20 (all prices from Amazon.com):


Toss this soft ball indoors or out while you practice counting, basic math or learning shapes. Ages: 1-5 years Cognitive skills: numerical fluency, attention


6. Show Me the Kwan by Griddly Games ($19.99)


Roll a die and then compete to match a letter to a category and then call out words corresponding to the letter that was rolled. Ages: 8+ Cognitive skills: auditory pro- cessing, visual processing, atten- tion, processing speed


7. Match It! Spelling by The Learning Journey International ($10) Learn to spell three- and four-letter words by assembling the puzzle cards. Ages: 4+ Cognitive skills: auditory process- ing, sound blending, planning


8. Clubs by North Star Games ($11.34)


Get rid of all your cards as quickly as possible while taking tricks with clubs in them to gather points. Ages: 8+ Cognitive skills: planning, logic & reasoning, attention, memory, strategy


9. Pluckin’ Pears by R & R Games ($13.96) Beat the clock as you try to predict what pairs of random images other players will choose. Ages: 12+ Cognitive skills: processing speed, logic & reasoning, visual process- ing


10. Candy Puzzle by B. Dazzle ($9.61) Arrange nine colorful squares by matching their edges to form a com- pleted picture in every direction. Ages: 4+ Cognitive skills: visual processing, attention


11. Rhyming Words Dominoes by Trend Enterprises ($5.48)


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