Wednesday, September 26, 2012

MeeGenius Teams Up With Sesame Street For Exclusive E-Book Partnership


MeeGenius, the digital home for children's books, today announced an exclusive partnership with Sesame Workshop to bring six Sesame Street e-book titles to the web, iOS and Android platforms.

The additional Sesame Street titles, debuting every Wednesday throughout the month of September, are: Count to 10, Elmo and Abby's Wacky Weather Day, Get Ready for School: Colors, It's Check-up Time, Elmo and The ABCs of Cookies. Each title features lively audio narration and text highlighting. An exclusive set of fun questions and activities at the end of each story extends the learning beyond the book and also helps build reading comprehension skills. "Bringing Sesame Street e-books to the MeeGenius platform is a significant milestone for us," said Wandy Hoh, MeeGenius, chief executive officer. "Sesame Street has an unparalleled reputation, reaching almost every young child as their first learning experience. MeeGenius is proud to now offer this great content to our ever-growing user base."

Hoh, a mother of three young daughters, launched MeeGenius in 2010 as a way to educate and stimulate the imaginations of not only her own children, but also an entire generation of early readers, who are growing up surrounded by technology. "Sesame Workshop is proud to join the MeeGenius app, which has quickly become a destination for parents of preschoolers looking for high-quality digital reading experiences with their children," said Jennifer A. Perry, Vice President of Worldwide Publishing at Sesame Workshop. "Our Sesame Street collection focuses on important school readiness topics in order to encourage active learning when children and parents use digital technologies together."

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Dr. Toy Announces 100 Best Children's Products of 2012

Following are the award-winning toys and products and the companies that make them grouped in selected categories of "smart" play. You can find more products by assigned codes that designate types of products.

Ten Best Active Products - Chicco (4-in-1 Ride On Car), First Act (WrapStar Mic), FirstBIKE Int'l (FirstBIKE Balance Bike), GeoPalz (GeoPalz Pedometer), Kinderfeets (Kinderfeets), OgoSport (OgoSport RAQ), Razor USA (Razor FlashRider), Sbyke (P-20 Rear-Steering Scooter), Smiletime Toys (Inflatable Pirate Ship), System Ent. (RingStix).

Ten Best Audio/Video Tapes/CDs - Brainetics (Brainetics), BrainFood Learning (Fascinating World of Birds), BrillKids Int'l (Little Musician Basic), Little Pim (Spanish Intro Gift Set with Book), Master Comm (Worlds Together Series), Moey's Music Party (Princess Revolution!), Music Together (She Sells Sea Shells), New Hope Records (WO!), ScienceAndMath.com (Amazing Science! Vol. DVD), Steps4Kids (Steps4Kids to Draw).

Ten Best Building Products- AroundSquare (Deconstruction Blocks), Bridge Street Toys (Hydrodynamic Deluxe Building Set), Citiblocs (CTBIN500C), K'NEX (K'NEX Classics 50 Model Building Set), LaQ USA (LaQ Dinosaur World T-REX), Laser Pegs Ventures (Laser Pegs The Dragon), LEGO Systems (Friends Olivia's House), MEGA Brands (Build 'n Learn 1-2-3 Count!), Smart Blocks (Smarcks Smart Blocks), Thinkplay/Morphun (Starter Tub)

Ten Best Children's Products - Ann Williams Group (Loopdedoo), Buckle Toy (Buddy the Backpack), Dress Up America (Black Fire Fighter Kids Costume), Gryphon House (Budding Builder), Innovation First (HEXBUG Warriors Battle Stadium), Klutz (Coin Blaster), Monkeying Around (Greatest Dot-to-Dot Adventure Book 1), Schoenhut Piano (My First Piano II), SeatPets (SeatPets), Smart Trike (Smart Trike 4-in-1 Dream).

Ten Best Creative Products - ALEX (Ceramic Bead Sticker Party), Blue Orange (Tell Tale Fairy Tale), Colorforms/Univ. Games (Tinga Tinga Tales Create-A-Creature Game), Creativity for Kids (Stunt Squadron), Hero Arts Rubber Stamps (Ink 'n' Stamp Animal Prints), Kiwi Crate (Kiwi Crate), Kaleidograph Design (Kaleidograph), Tech 4 Kids (3D Magic Magna Color), Wowopolis (Colorgami Craft & Activity Kits), WowToyz (E-Z Crafts Paint-A-Bank Kits).

Ten Best Educational Products - Creative Foundry Games (KerFlip!), Exploramania® (Exploracise Multiplication Football), Learning Journey (Match It! Mathematics Memory), Learning Resources (Multiplication Master Electronic Flash Card), LittleBits Electronics (littleBits Starter Kit), MathTwister (MathTwister), Peaceable Kingdom (Snug as a Bug in a Rug), Shainsware (Notebook w/100 Elements), Style Paige (Shallie Starter), Whistlefritz (Cha, Cha, Cha).

Ten Best Games - Bag-O-Loot (Bag-O-Loot Junior), Edupress (That's Baloney Games), Flying Rabbit Enterprises (Baffle!), Game Chef (Rollick!), Gamewright (Big Fat Tomato Game), Hutter Trade (Talat), Indie Boards & Cards (Flash Point: Fire Rescue), Patch Products (You're Invited Game), Strikerz Gamez (STRIKERZ Soccer Card Game), ThinkFun (Distraction™).

Ten Best High Technology Products- Bandai America (Omnitrix Touch), Diggin Active (Wobble Deck Extreme), Ganz (Amazing World), LeapFrog (LeapPad2), MGA (iTikes Map), Pixel Ent. (Global Game Changers [book app]), Scholastic (Storia), Small World Toys (Haute Couture Fashion Studio), SmartLab Toys (DJ Rock Dock), VTech (MobiGo 2).

Ten Best Socially Responsible Products - b. dazzle (Black Capped Chickadees Scramble Squares), Discover w/Dr. Cool (Shark Teeth Excavation Kit!), DuneCraft (Butterfly/Bird Mixture Seed Bombs), Easy Daysies (Easy Daysies Every Day Starter Kit), Metamorphic Toys (Mythical Creatures Silly Signs), Mudpuppy (Fruits & Veggies Wooden Magnetic Set), My1story (My1story Book Collection), Rubbabu (Shape Sorter Bus), Tiny Green Bee (Crunch a Color Conversation Starters), University Games (Very Hungry Caterpillar Match & Munch Game).

Ten Best Toys- 4D Cityscape (4D Time Puzzle), B. toys by Battat (Symphony in B. by B. toys), Build-A-Bear Workshop (Marine Midnight Teddy), Fisher-Price (Servin' Surprises Cook 'n Serve Kitchen & Table), Gibout Toys (Gibout Big Blocks), Jada Toys (Cutie Pops), Make It Mine (MIM Doll & Accessories), Ohio Art (Limited Edition Etch A Sketch), Sassy (Loopy Ball), World of EPI (Diva Abrielle).