We've all heard of IQ but do you know your child's PQ or Play Quotient? A child's ability to play does more than provide for fund and diversion; it is critical for his or her emotion and intellectual growth, an teaches everything from social skills to analytical thinking. For the developing mind of a child, learning to play is paramount--but is your child getting the most out of playtime? Stevanne Auerbach, Ph.D., more affectionately known as Dr. Toy has dedicated a lifetime to the importance of play and gives you specific advice on which toys to buy and what kind of games to play to emplower your child's overall development. You'll learn: How to become your child's play Tutor How play can strengthen maturity levels and confidence The pros, cons, and facts of gender specific toys Guideance for the gifted and special-needs child Plus practical advice on Evaluatin a toy's safety, learn which toy manufacturers Dr. Toy recommends Craft supplies you should always have on hand Dr Toy's 100 Best Children's Products And many more invaluable ways to make playtime a growing experience!

This entertaining and informative book--written by Marianne Szymanski, child development and toy expert, and Ellen Neuborne, an award-winning business journalist--is an essential and authoritative guide to toys and play. Based on thirteen years of independent consumer-focused research, Toy Tips offers invaluable advice and practical information about selecting appropriate toys and answers questions such as Why do kids play with toys? What is the true role of toys? Which toys are good and which aren’t? How do toys figure into normal, healthy child development? “Invaluable and specific guidance about how the right toys can help your kids learn, develop, build skills, and have some fun.” --Michele Borba, consultant, educator, and author, Parents Do Make a Difference, Building Moral Intelligence, and No More Misbehavin' “No one is better equipped than Marianne Szymanski to help you make smart choices when purchasing toys for your kids or for the kids in your life.”--Spencer Christian, former host of Szymanski’s guest segments on ABC’s Good Morning America, and author, Is There a Dinosaur in Your Backyard? and many other children’s books “Szymanski’s years of experience and passion for serving children make her a leading voice in the developmental benefits of toys and play.”--From the Foreward by Marvin W. Berkowitz

The goal of this book is to crystallize the emerging mobile computing technologies and trends into positive efforts to focus on the most promising solutions in services computing. Many toys built today are increasingly using these technologies together and it is important to understand the various research and practical issues. The book will provide clear proof that mobile technologies are playing an ever increasing important and critical role in supporting toy computing, which is a new research discipline in computer science. It is also expected that the book will further research new best practices and directions in toy computing. The goal of this book is to bring together academics and practitioners to describe the use and synergy between the above-mentioned technologies. This book is mainly intended for researchers and students working in computer science and engineering, and for toy industry technology providers, having particular interests in mobile services. The wide range of authors of this book will help the various communities understand both specific and common problems. This book facilities software developers and researchers to become more aware of this challenging research opportunity. As well, the book is soliciting shall provide valuable strategic outlook on the emerging toy industry.

The Internet of Toys (IoToys) is a developing market within our Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem. This book examines the rise of internet-connected toys and aims to anticipate the opportunities and risks of IoToys before their widespread diffusion. Contributors to this volume each provide a critical analysis of the design, production, regulation, representation and consumption of internet-connected toys. In order to address the theoretical, methodological and policy questions that arise from the study of these new playthings, and contextualise the diverse opportunities and challenges that IoToys pose to educators, families and children themselves, the chapters engage with notions of mediatization, datafication, robotification, connected and post-digital play. This timely engagement with a key transformation in children’s play will appeal to all readers interested in understanding the social uses and consequences of IoToys, and primarily to researchers and students in children and media, early childhood studies, media and communications, sociology, education, social psychology, law and design.

The book assists parents in navigating toy and play options, offers tips on evaluating toy safety, and suggests innumerable diverse activities. The book identifies educational and age-appropriate toys, important craft supplies for playtime and offers hundreds of useful ways to make play a life-long and nurturing experience. A great addition to the library of anyone who cares about children! This book is a valuable resource for parent, grandparents, teachers, toy store personnel, toy designers and anyone in the toy industry! The book has been published in 12 countries.

If Orfeo is to be king, his mother decides, he must sleep outside. And so Orfeo sleeps in the meadow and becomes friends with the animals, birds, insects and beetles. Then one day, he agrees to help a jackdaw return a ruby ring to a princess... King Beetle Tamer is just one of fifteen magical wonder tales in this collection by master storyteller Isabel Wyatt. The stories are full of magic and unicorns, fairies and palaces, roses and gold, which will transport children to a world of faraway places and heroic deeds._x000D_ Suitable for children aged seven and up, this is a classic collection from the author of The Seven-Year-Old Wonder Book._x000D_ A new revised edition, previously published as King Beetle-Tamer.

Discusses the importance of play for a child's emotional and intellectual growth. Gives "specific advice on which toys to buy and what kind of games to play to empower your child's overall development."--Back cover.

Every mistake is an opportunity to make something beautiful. This is the central idea of Beautiful Oops!, Barney Saltzberg’s beloved bestseller—and now My Book of Beautiful Oops!, an interactive journal for young artists, takes that principle into unexpected new directions. A hands-on journal that’s meant to be personalized—drawn in, painted on, torn up, smudged, or otherwise artistically wrecked—My Book of Beautiful Oops! is filled with folded, crumpled, die-cut, and lift-the-flap pages that will challenge the reader’s sense of play. The friendly green alligator from the first book prompts the reader: Bend a page. Decorate a smudge. Play with splats and spills. Even complete a poem that was accidentally ripped in half. My Beautiful Book of Oops! champions imagination, play, and the courage to express oneself. It’s about self-forgiveness, about turning off that inner critic that clamors for perfection. And it’s about freedom—the freedom to be creative and follow your curiosity wherever it goes. That’s a lesson to celebrate.