Tag: gifts

3-12, Critical Thinking, Education, Games, Problem Solving

Craniatics

Terri Eichholz

fa072

Here we are again; it’s Friday, and time for another holiday post on “Gifts for the Gifted”.  You can see last week’s post here, and it will also give you links to my other recent Friday posts.  You might also enjoy my Pinterest board of “Games and Toys for Gifted Students”.

I have not had personal experience with Craniatics – yet.  I was skipping along on the web, looking for new ideas, and ran across the Parents’ Choice Toy Awards.  As I hunted through the lists, I found an intriguing description of Craniatics, and decided to do a little more research.  I then found this blog post that gives a very good in-depth review of the game.

Craniatics is packaged in a magnetic box, which makes it a good choice for long car or plane rides.  As Gabriel Fernandes described, “The included brainteasers are a mix of solitaire logic puzzles and multiplayer games with difficulties ranging from fairly easy to demanding.”

The recommended minimum age for Craniatics is 8.  My daughter is 10, and I have a feeling this might show up under the tree this year…

Creative Thinking, Education, K-12, Science, Student Products

Little Bits Holiday Kit

Terri Eichholz
Little Bits Holiday Kit

For those of you new to this blog, I am devoting Fridays during the holiday season to recommending “Gifts for the Gifted”.  You can see the three posts that I have done so far here, here and here.  You can also visit my Pinterest board on Games for Gifted Students.  A lot of these are not just for gifted students, but would be appreciated by many children – and adults.

Today’s recommendation happens to be one that I have not tried, yet.  But, I am ordering this kit for my 10-year-old daughter because it looks like the perfect combination of imagination and engineering.  The Little Bits Holiday Kit retails for $49, and includes the following items:

  • A double sided instruction sheet with quick start guide and project suggestions
  • A custom-made 9V battery + cable
  • A 9V battery connector.
  • Custom plastic screwdriver

7 littleBits:

  • • power
  • • pulse
  • • light wire
  • • dc motor
  • • bright led
  • • wire x2

The list above does not really do the kit justice, however.  There is so much potential in the various combinations of these parts, some of which is shown in the video below.  And, if you have a child or group of students that might be interested, Little Bits is also offering a “What are You Making for the Holidays?” challenge with a deadline of December 11th.  Inventors of any age are invited to submit sketches of a possible Little Bits design, and the winners will receive all of the parts to build their inventions.

If your child is interested in building, inventing, and designing, this could be a great gift to put under the tree!

 

Art, Creative Thinking, Critical Thinking, Education, Games, K-12, Parenting, Teaching Tools

Wedgits

Terri Eichholz

For those of you new to this blog, I am devoting Fridays during the holiday season to recommending “Gifts for the Gifted”.  You can see the two posts that I have done so far here and here.  You can also visit my Pinterest board on Games for Gifted Students.  A lot of these are not just for gifted students, but would be appreciated by many children – and adults.

I have Wedgits in my classroom, and my students love them.  They enjoy meeting the design challenges on the cards, but they also delight in creating their own structures.  The pieces are practically indestructible, and the design combinations are endless.  Wedgits are the type of toys that meet the needs of kids who love to precisely recreate masterpieces while they also meet the needs of kids who want to make their own unique mark on the world.

Wedgits are available in many different bundles.  You can get a “Starter Set”, an “Explorer Pack” (oh wow!  I totally need this for my classroom!), “Mini-Wedgits”, Pink or Purple Wedgits, even Translucent Wedgits – and more.  Go shop for the Wedgits set that fits your gift-receiver’s personality, or your own!

Education, Games, K-5

Q-bitz Extreme

Terri Eichholz
image from: http://www.mindware.com

During the holiday season (yes, I know it’s a bit early, but we all know that it’s going to come fast!), I have pledged to use my Friday posts to give suggestions for gifts for your favorite brainy child (or teacher of brainy children).  I’ve decided to call this “Gifts for the Gifted”.  Last week, I posted about the new, augmented-reality-enhanced Guinness Book of World Records.  Today, I offer you the game, “Q-bitz Extreme.”

“Q-bitz” happens to be one of the favorite games in my classroom.  From Kindergarten to 5th grade, my gifted students all enjoy trying to create the patterns on the cards using the 16 wooden cubes.  Some of them create their own patterns.  Yesterday, one pair of students delighted in showing me that, not only did they create a pattern on top of the cubes, but that a reverse pattern showed when they flipped them over.  Although “Q-bitz” is designed to be a game in which 2-4 players compete, most of my kids prefer to do their own thing – which is fine, because there are four sets of cubes, each set a different color.

I recently found out that there is now a “Q-bitz Extreme“, which has new, curvy patterns to try to replicate.  If you visit the website for “Q-bitz Extreme“, you will see that Mindware offers some suggestions for variations on the game, which you could also use with the original “Q-bitz“.  In addition, they sell an expansion pack.

For some more gift ideas, you might also want to check out my Pinterest board at http://pinterest.com/terrieichholz/games-for-gifted-students/.

Apps, Books, Education, K-12

2013 Guinness Book of World Records

Terri Eichholz

Since gift-giving season is right around the corner, I thought I would use my Fun Friday posts to share some excellent gift ideas for engaging your kids.  The newest edition of the Guinness Book of World Records (currently $19.11 on Amazon.com) has been released, and it has a special feature that families with iDevices might appreciate.  By pairing a free augmented reality app from Guinness with the book, readers can experience portions of the book in 3D.  There is also a free bonus e-book app to go along with the printed version.  Below is a video showing some highlights, or you can go to the following link: http://youtu.be/EWf_xxVbj5c

3-12, Education, Philosophy, Teaching Tools, Videos

We Are What We Choose

Terri Eichholz

In 2010, Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, delivered the Baccalaureate Address at Princeton University.  Last year, I showed this video of his address to my 5th grade GT students.  In 18 minutes, Jeff Bezos is able to sum up everything that I hope that my students will gather from our classroom activities and discussions.  In particular, I like this part of his speech, “What I want to talk to you about today is the difference between gifts and choices. Cleverness is a gift, kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy — they’re given after all. Choices can be hard. You can seduce yourself with your gifts if you’re not careful, and if you do, it’ll probably be to the detriment of your choices.”  You can find a complete transcript of his address here.

This year, I will show this video to my current 5th graders, and we will talk about the questions that Mr. Bezos poses at the end of his address.  My students may not be in college, yet, but it is never too early to consider that our strengths can be destructive when wielded without thought for others.

This video can also be viewed at http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/jeff_bezos_gifts_vs_choices.html