Holiday Shopping Season Is in Full Swing and Help Is Here for Those Looking for the Perfect Gift for Kids

It's always a challenge trying to figure out the best gifts for the children on your list. The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is here to help with it's 25th annual Kid-Tested, Kid-Approved list of kids favorite toys of the year. They invited families to play with toys and vote on their favorites.

INDIANAPOLIS, Dec. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Finding the perfect holiday gift just got easier, thanks to the 25th annual Kid-Tested, Kid-Approved voting event at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis! Say goodbye to the stress of scrolling endlessly online or wandering store aisles. This year, expert kid-judges have done all the hard work for you.

After hours of playing, cuddling, bouncing and tinkering with 30 of the hottest toys of the season, these young experts cast their votes to reveal the top 10 must-have gifts for the holidays. The results are in, and parents everywhere can now confidently shop for kid-approved gifts that are sure to be a big hit! Many of the top toys have animal themes and are listed below.

Go Nuts Chipmunks! The "nutty" feeding frenzy game in which players quickly gobble up as many of the multi-colored acorns with their chipmunk mallets as possible. To start the game a player must push down on the treetop that launches a batch of acorns, the winner is the player with the most acorns in their chipmunk at the end of the round! Museum educators say this kind of game can help with eye hand coordination, collaborative play and fine-motor movement skills.                    

Skunked! Careful there's a Skunk?press the wrong flower and you'll get sprayed! Turn the skunk's tail to face the player whose turn it is, the player then rolls the die and presses the same number of flowers as shown on the die. If after pressing a flower the skunk sprays water then that player is 'Skunked' and eliminated from the game! Educators like that it encourages collaborative play, math comprehension (number identification and counting) and fine-motor skills.

Foosebot's Stadium Battle! Fit the parts together to build an entire stadium of fun! Grab your foosbots folk and battle to score against your opponent! When you squeeze the Foosbot's arms, it spins and kicks the ball fast! Collaborative play is one of the benefits recognized by educators as well as social-emotional learning, eye-hand coordination, and the enhancement of spatial awareness as well as focus and attention.

Slithering Snake This remote-controlled toy brings chills to all that play. The snake comes with an egg-shaped remote control and rechargeable USB cable. Watch as it slithers to-and-fro with a light-up mouth! Creative play and potential story telling are potential benefits.

Dueling Desktop Basketball Challenge your friends to a one on one! Players will attempt to make as many baskets as possible before time runs out! Educators say benefits include collaborative play, math (number identification and counting), fine motor skills, focus, attention and spatial awareness.

Panda Panic! Don't let the pandas fall! In this fun-filled game, players attempt to remove the colored bamboo sticks without making the pandas fall from the top. The colored dice coordinate which colored bamboo stick players will pull.The game is finished when all the sticks have been removed, or all the pandas have fallen. Collaborative play is one of the educational benefits along with critical thinking, problem solving skills, fine-motor skills and math.

Zip String - Anyone can use ZipString outside of the box! With three different string lengths included. Educators say it can help with gross-motor movement (large arm movement and control), eye-hand coordination and some fine-motor skill/small muscle control.                                

Space Launch - Find the right keyhole to launch an astronaut to the stars! Load the astronaut into the spaceship before spinning the spinner to determine how many keys you pick! Insert the keys into the keyholes to see if you have selected the right one! If the astronaut launches, then you've won! Fine-motor skills, math (number identification and counting) and collaborative play are a few of the potential benefits.

Run Beaver Run! Run Beaver Run comes with 4 beavers from which to choose. Each has a different colored magnetic cap to play. Players roll the die and move their beaver upriver toward their dam! Beware the rolling logs may sweep them back downstream! The first beaver to reach the dam wins the game! Educators say collaborative play *social emotional learning, math (number identification and counting) and learning how to strategize are key components.

Hoberman Sphere - The original transforming sphere! Expand and shrink the Hoberman sphere for endless fun and play! Pulley and instructions included help kids create their very own kinetic mobile! Educators point to self-regulation (calming), focus and attention, math (shapes and geometry) and creative play as key educational benefits.

Here is video of families testing the toys: https://vimeo.com/childrensmuseum/review/1021099913/345131bf3b

Now that the hard work is done, get a great deal on the best toys in The Children's Museum Store.

Shoppers receive 25% off in-store and online through Cyber Monday (Dec. 3, 2024). Shipping and gift wrapping are available for purchases.

Don't forget museum membership also makes a great gift. It is a present that adults can also enjoy while spending quality time with the children who mean so much to them. Memberships may be purchased at the museum, online at http://www.childrensmuseum.org/gift or by calling (317) 334-4000.

On December 24, 2024, The Children's Museum will offer free admission from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The store will be open to make those last-minute holiday purchases.

A huge party will take place on New Year's Eve as the museum invites families to celebrate Countdown to Noon (at a family-friendly hour of 12noon and 1 p.m.) and kick off the Centennial Celebration as The Children's Museum prepares for its 100th year of serving children and their grownups.

The Children's Museum of Indianapolis is proud to partner with Riley Children's Health, Old National Bank, Ice Miller LLP, and The Heritage Group.

About The Children's Museum of Indianapolis???
We ignite joy, wonder and curiosity by creating powerful learning experiences for children and adults. For more information about The Children's Museum, visit http://www.childrensmuseum.org and follow us on social media @childrensmuseum.??

Media Contact

Kimberly Harms, The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, 317-334-4003, [email protected], www.childrensmuseum.org

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SOURCE The Children's Museum of Indianapolis