Hot New Toys with a Stage for Every Age

Age-appropriate, educational gadgets that your little ones can play with for years

From the LifeMinute team

Top digital influencers and bloggers nationwide, along with the biggest companies in the toy industry, all gathered at The Big Toy Book's fifth annual Sweet Suite event at Location 05 in New York City to get a sneak peek at this year's hottest toys and gadgets for kids. Attendee and Toy Expert Laurie Schacht shares what to look for when buying for your kids. So, what to look for when toy shopping? Toys that will grow with the child as he or she learns and develops.

Schacht says buying age-appropriate toys is crucial. "You should be looking first at the age on the box," she says, "It's always age-marked appropriately, and it means that it's safe for your child, and it won't frustrate them, or it won't be too easy for them."

There's a whole new line from Fisher-Price called Laugh and Learn and Smart Stages, and Schacht says, "I love it. I love that it grows with children. Each stage gives kids something else. They might be learning to explore, they may be learning basic things like numbers and shapes. The line includes a chair, puppy train and a puppy house."

"I love this house, there's so much play, and play happens on both sides," says Schacht, "So kids can actually crawl through when they're really little; they're crawling, they're touching. As they get older, they're opening the door, they're playing more, they're learning more, and now they're starting to dance around the house [and] play with their friends because obviously there's room for more than one child."

The innovative line enables parents to easily adjust learning content with the flip of a switch to reflect the learning stage of their child, and some toys even allow parents to input their child's age for automatic content updates.

"When parents are spending good money on toys, it's nice that they last more than just a week or two, or even a month or two," says toy expert Schacht.

Sponsored