Toddlers should be laughing and learning

It's amazing to watch children move from infancy to toddlerhood and recognize how quickly they learn and absorb knowledge from their ordinary activities. (If only we could preserve that sponge-like ability in our adult years.) Fisher-Price, East Aurora, N.Y., understands this, and has developed the Laugh & Learn collection to delight and teach babies through everyday experiences.

The 2-in-1 Learning Kitchen ($65) reinforces learning concepts through entertaining music, sounds, songs, and activities. The front side of the kitchen offers a refrigerator with a shape sorter, stove with spin numbers, and sink where kids can drop balls in for counting. As they crawl through the doorway, triggering music, sing-along songs, dancing lights, and fun sounds, they discover the back side, with a radio that plays songs, greetings, and fun phrases, a clock with movable arms, and a light switch that turns on and off.

The kitchen offers three interactive modes: Learning Time, which teaches the alphabet, counting, and concepts such as opposites (up/down, on/off, open/shut, in/out); Music Time, with 21 songs; and Imagination, with role-playing and sound effects. There's no doubt youngsters can cook up some fun with this setup.

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For a toy that encourages and rewards a baby's physical development, we were drawn to the Sit-to-Stand Giraffe ($25), from the Go Baby Go! collection. The baby feeds the giraffe three colorful balls and watches them roll down and around the animal before finally popping out below. Sounds simple enough, but it actually helps develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills.

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Younger children can play with the giraffe in the sitting position and then use its ears as handles to help themselves pull up to stand. From this angle, the cause-and-effect concept takes on a whole new meaning. The child is rewarded with flashing lights and fun music and sound.

Visit www.fisher-price.com for more information.

COPYRIGHT 2007 Society for the Advancement of Education
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning