Educational Insights Review: Fun yet Educational!

As I walked around my house last month, I saw one toy after another and don’t get me wrong toys are great and I definitely spoil my kids, but I also realized we didn’t really have any educational toys. I mean we do have books, puzzles, and a few toys that sings ABC’s, but now that Aidan is getting older, I started thinking we needed to expand our horizons. Through my search, I found the company Educational Insights which has been providing educational products for over 45 years! With that kind of longevity and diverse product line, I trust and believe in Educational Insights. They are also the largest manufacturer of hands-on learning products in the world to “engage, entertain, and educate” kids.

Where can you find these toys? Educational Insights is carried in teacher stores, museums, various educational toy stores and of course you can buy them on their website. They also are favorites amongst teachers for classroom play and home schooling moms! The toys are broken down into the following categories: Class Test Prep Solutions, Creative Play, Brain-Boosting Games, Early Learning, Ready & Language, Math, Science, Social Studies, Classroom Resources, and Homeschool. So whatever your child is interested in, there is defiantly a product carried at Educational Insights to please both you and your child!

I was so thrilled when I was allowed a review of their products and could not believe my eyes at what I received! Not only was everything super cool but it was all exactly what I was looking for! All of the toys are not only categorized by genre but also by recommended ages and school grades. This is important to me because it helps me to know what me child should be learning or doing at a certain age because I want to make sure he is staying in line with other kids his age. You see Aidan is a few months behind in his developmental tasks and we will be using Educational Insights products and a developmental therapist to help him.

Our Community Stamp Set and Healthy Foods Stamp Set: Aidan loves these as he is learning all the different items and now he picks a stamp and uses it after I ask him for an airplane stamp or corn stamp. He also loves to color them after he stamps them! Each set includes 24 large rubber stamps that are easy to grip and use. They also come in nice plastic cases to organize all the stamps.

Washable Jumbo Stamp Pad: Title says it all, “washable.” I love it and it is big enough that Aidan can use it without getting frustrated. Also, Aidan had to test it out and yes it washes off easily!

Mr. Scrambles: Remember that game where you put the egg on the spoon and you race a friend, well Mr. Scrambles is that egg and he even comes with a giant spoon! You can play 7 different games with him and best of all, he is completely washable! I love that Aidan can play alone or play games with him in a group. Mr. Scramble talks and definitely had Aidan’s attention. I think this will be especially cute in another year or two when he understands games!

Play Foam: I received the 6 fun colors set and this was a hit with all of us. My husband and I both made creations and Aidan loved how it felt! This foam is meant to be play with over and over as it NEVER DRIES! So far I have had it out for just over a week and it is still fresh and soft. The foam is made of sculpting beads that are not sticky or wet, but are actually like those balls in
beanbag chairs but they are somehow stuff together and colored! Also, surprisingly Aidan didn’t try to eat it and he somehow knew exactly what to do with it. Goodbye play-doh and hello Play Foam!

Traverse: This was more for older kids so I played with my 11 yr. old sister and she loved it! It combines chess and Chinese checkers to make this crazy game where you jump, slide, and maneuver around other pieces. I only played with one other player but you can play up to four players and I could see this being a great family game when the kids get older!

You’re Bugging Me: I don’t know if it is just boys, but Aidan loved this game because of the bugs! This game teaches colors, following directions and encourages working together. I played this with Aidan and my sister and we were laughing because you have to wear bugs on your arm as you Velcro them to a wrist cuff. It reminds me of Uno, as you roll the dice and it says to pass a certain colored bug to a player on either your left or right. I loved though that there is no reading required, you just need to know your colors and then follow the arrow left or right!

Hot Dots Power Pen: This talking pen is first of all pretty cool! You can buy Hot Dot products to use it with or make your own interactive games, flash cards and quizzes. The pen comes with 450 peel ‘n stick Hot Dots and requires 2 AAA batteries. How it works is this: Peel them Hot Dot stickers and put the “hot” and “cold” stickers” next to the appropriate answers. Then your child touches a dot and it will glow red for incorrect and green for correct, all while using 20 appropriate phrases and sound effects! I used to love to play teacher when I was little and this would have been perfect. For now I am using it for Aidan and making some fun flash cards!

Hot Dots Phonics Flash Cards (Vowels): This is just one of the many Hot Dot sets you can purchase and is excellent for learning vowel sounds and to help with reading. This set came in a nice plastic container with 72 full color, self-checking phonics flash cards. Aidan doesn’t understand vowels yet, but he is learning the sounds and he loves playing with the Hot Dot pen!

So with all of these great items how could Aidan (and Gavin when he gets older) not learn and have fun! Even my sister was playing along and enjoying these products. I just love how their product line includes something and everything for all ages. I can’t wait to expand upon our collection from Educational Insights! If you know a teacher too, tell them about Educational Insights products because anything to engage your kids in class is a definitely a good thing! They also have a note on their website stating that their products are safety tested to comply with safety standards and laws, including lead and heavy metals. I mean with all the product recalls going on around lead, it is comforting to know that Educational Insights is letting consumers know that they are aware and taking precautions.