The budding little civil engineer in the family would love this classic toy … ERECTOR SETS! Since 1913, erector sets have been used by kids to create everything from cranes to buildings, towers, excavators, bridges and more. The Erector set can teach kids to build just about anything they can imagine, but also teach them creativity, observation, deductive reasoning, logical thinking, principles of mechanics, physics & problem solving.
With video games dominating the game playing world of youngsters these days, it’s hard to even get them to look at something so low tech as a metal football field rattling from electric currents while little plastic football men randomly move along in an attempt to drive a fabric football across the goal line. And often, ending up congregating in the corner as the field hums with an annoying buzz. But that’s the allure of Electric Football, a classic game that kids all over the 60s and 70s played with both passion and patience.
Everyone is dually impressed by the new BatMobile (also known as the Tumbler), and this new slot car set allows Dark Knight fans to race the Tumbler around the streets of Gotham (imaginarily) while being chased by the police who think Batman’s a wacked out vigilante.
Sure, you can pick up a copy of Call of Duty or Medal of Honor and play video games until your eyes bleed, but how about an old school alternative? Miniature playing games have been around since the 70s. I remember not only playing these games based on dragons and knights locked in mortal combat for treasure and points, but also painting tiny lead figures which would act as our doppelgangers in the campaigns that ensued. And in the last 30 years, we’ve seen MPGs in space, in the wild west, in the Star Wars universe, in the not so distant nuclear future, and now, in the wartime past.
We all know that the secret to Iron Man’s prowess is his suit. It’s also what allows him to fly just about everywhere. So it only makes since to make a toy which allows kids to celebrate Tony Stark’s aviated capabilities and this air launch rocket does it in style. But it also introduces kids to a new passion … model rocketry.
Almost. But hey, how many of us grew up with such classic toys as erector sets and other grand construction models to while away our summer days when we should be outside playing baseball. But hey, even budding engineers have to play, don’t they? Well, if your kid has the penchant for the great white knuckler, why not pick him up this scale model of the Dragon roller coaster by Coaster Dynamix.
With video games, movies, video games, iPods, video games, TV, video games,text messaging and … video games. Is there anything that can drag the kids away from their techno-obsessed lives and give them a hobby that teaches principles of building, creating, and even design all while creating a fun disposable (or collectible) toy for very little to no money? Paper Modeling will. Sure, there are plastic and balsa wood models out there for anything from the Starship Enterprise to the Gigantic Saturn V rocket. Modellers can make tanks, cars, planes, ships all out from kits that cost anywhere from $12 to 200 dollars or more. Paper models? FREE. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Certainly less than ten bucks. How? Keep reading.
This could become the best low tech driver simulator for kids. It’s a radio controlled race car with a built in wireless VGA camera on board. When the RC controller puts on the accompanying glasses/wireless receiver, driving the car from a first person perspective becomes possible.
The reviews are streaming in for the Wachowski Brother’s block buster SPEED RACER and apparently, it ain’t good. Eye-Candy to be sure, but storywise, it may be a more sound investment to buy the cool Speed Racer toys and skip the popcorn. Among the merchandising tie-ins with McDonalds and Hot Wheels, are some pretty cool toys that include R/C cars, slot car racing sets, and more.
Well, its election season and Lego currently has a campaign over their own going on in association with Toys R Us. Over at www.Toysrus.com/LegoStarWars, Lego fans can choose the next Lego set to exclusively released. The vote runs through May 18 at 11:59 pm and fans can choose from one of three classic Star Wars scenes to become the next LEGO set.