Toy Insider Associate Editor Madeleine Buckley joined KATU in Portland to show off some great educational toys that are big on fun and low on screen time. For more on the items featured in this segment, check out the product notes below, and for the complete rundown of the best toys of the holiday season, be sure to check our complete Toy Insider Holiday Gift Guide.

DIMPL DIGITS

Kids can touch, squish, pop, and learn with this double-sided sensory toy. The squishy, silicone bubbles feature the numerals 1 through 10, numbers written in English and Spanish, and dots to feel and count. Kids can touch, squish, pop, and learn with this double-sided sensory toy. The squishy, silicone bubbles feature the numerals 1 through…

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $19.95
  • Age:
  • 2+

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MAGFORMERS 14PC BASIC PLUS SET

Build 3D houses, towers, and the Magformers “magic ball” using the 14 included geometric shapes. Each piece contains magnets that never reject for easy building. When playtime is over, stack the pieces for easy, compact storage.

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $24.99
  • Age:
  • 3+

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3D BUILD & PLAY

Insert a colorful strand of BPA-free, nontoxic material and crank the handle to create custom 3D characters, animals, and more. Includes a themed storybook and backdrops to extend the fun. Helps build fine motor skills. Insert a colorful strand of BPA-free, nontoxic material and crank the handle to create custom 3D characters, animals, and more.…

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $29.99
  • Age:
  • 4+

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DIY MUSIC MAKER SCIENCE LAB

Explore the science of pitch, vibration, and acoustics while making a box guitar, a pan flute, and an ocean drum. Features a 36-page, illustrated storybook and activity guide that includes 10 STEM-based activities. Explore the science of pitch, vibration, and acoustics while making a box guitar, a pan flute, and an ocean drum. Features a…

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $34.99
  • Age:
  • 5+

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CIRCUIT EXPLORER

Circuit Explorer combines simple circuits and big imaginations! Construction play meets electrical engineering in this snap-together building system that comes in three different playsets! Kids line up the circuitry graphics on the oversized pieces and snap them together to build a fully powered, large-scale, space-themed world. Connect the pieces to make out-of-this-world custom, light-up builds.…

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $34.99-64.99
  • Age:
  • 6+

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YOUNIVERSE ULTIMATE CRYSTAL GROWING LABORATORY

Kids grow their own crystal magic. Learn the science behind nucleation, molecular reactions, and more. Discover how science and style come together by creating sparkling, crystal-growing accessories. Or learn how easy it is to make a rainbow that shines no matter the weather with a simple chemical reaction. Kids grow their own crystal magic. Learn…

Product Facts

  • MSRP:
  • $21.97-$29.99; $29.99 CAD
  • Age:
  • 8+

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About the author

Bill Reese

Bill Reese

Bill Reese is Business Operations Manager at Adventure Media & Events, where he's worked since 2014. A former editor at Playbill and graduate of SUNY–Purchase, he spends most weekends rooting for the New York Red Bulls pro soccer team and making subway systems out of Brio trains with his little boy Jonah.

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