Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

2 HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE " Children On Your Holiday U^gfll Here are some suggestions to help you make the right toy se lection for your child. Babies (0-18 months) • Amazing Animals® • Sing & Go Choo-Choo® Encourages developing motor skills, enhances language skills, enhances learning through discovery • Baby Gymtastics® Bounce & Spin Zebra® Encourages developing motor skills, enhances learning through discovery stimulates senses Toddlers (18-36 months) • Little People® Animal Sounds Farm® Discovering how things work, imitating, imagining a pretend world; Interacting with others, early role play • Dora’s Talking Kitchen® Social play, discovering how things work, role play, imagination, developing language skills Preschool (3 years+) • Kid-Tough® Digital Camera Fun and sharing, accomplishment, creativity • I Can Play Piano® Game play to encourage early love for music • Dora’s Talking Cash Register Role-play, imagination Did You Know? WKHtKtM one-size-fits-all, there’s little chance that someone will need J| IT iC h I: ■j£g/7Ttf to exchange or return a gift card. Gift cards are now available jm rM |l I jkg j^ rom most retailers and are even available for purchase at / f g ™ M f\ if \ area malls, to be used at many of the stores in that shopping / |j| g 1 /f / \ center. Not sure how much to give? According to Thomas Net. ( I# 1 / 'wp / * n et Industrial Market Trends, the most popular denomina- Jf'- ■ I / (MS) - Sometimes the perfect holiday gift for your children doesn’t come all wrapped up in pretty paper. Long after the children have put away their new toys, the real gift your children will continue to cherish for years will be the memory of the time spent with fam ily and friends, says Dr. Kathleen Alfano, Director of Child Research at the Fisher- Price. It’s important to balance the pres ents from Santa or the Three Kings with activities that help children understand the true emphasis of the season should be on giving 3nd not receiving. To help your children understand the meaning of the season, treat your holiday activities like games. Let them make paper ornaments in the kitchen as you prepare the traditional holiday meals. Ask your children to help Grandma set up the nativity scene. Give Jjraf them the best gift of all: your s fMr time and your love. y-w #■ When you do go shopping to find the right gift for the little 1 ones, Dr. Alfano reminds you to keep three important factors gWf j in mind: age-appropriateness, l|j| interests and play needs. AGE-APPROPRIATE NESS fe. 1 Children need toys that HH are matched to their de- f velopmental abilities so they can achieve fT gs ' success. When children * Ip have an age-appropriate toy t * i - both safety and enjoyment Jgjj* & m. increases! Be K sure to pay f, MkJm attention ~ to the age ’ > ||fy ranges - age a push-a-long, and put one block on |L top of another as well as enjoy playing 111 with simple playsets about familiar ||P themes such as a home or a farm. A By 3, introduce toys that help refine i eye-hand coordination, grow-with-me ride-on toys, construction and build ing playsets and toys that encourage learning things such as numbers, let ters, colors and shapes. Toy dinosaurs, action hero fig- J|gLsgrj& ures and playsets encourage older children (4-5) to com- Ey#§fl jl bine their imaginative and problem-solving skills in * " “What-if?” play. “Choosing the right toys at the right time will enrich your child’s play experience j/ and provide the foundation for v m learning,” Dr. Alfano says. « > otn INTERESTS | Children are more en gaged, curious, enter tained and iTv. willing to keep play ing when they are interested in some thing. Observe your child playing alone and with other children to see where his or her interests lie. If your child stays with Grandma or another caregiver during the day, or goes to a day care center, ask what toys the child is playing with when he or she is away from home. The answer may help guide your buying decision. PLAY NEEDS Provide your children with a variety of toys that serve various play needs: toys for playing with alone; ones that promote sharing and interaction; those that encour age imaginative play or promote physical activity or constructive play. Think about the kinds of toys your children already have and look for items that fill any of the areas that are lacking. For more gift-giving suggestions and fun ideas for holiday activities you can share with your children, visit Fisher-Price’s Web site at www.fisher-price.com. NOVEMBER 2007