The Best Toys for Kids this Holiday Season

Every parent knows that often it can be a challenge to find a truly great toy, especially one that's not only fun, but educational as well. For this 2009 holiday season the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) has helped take the guesswork out of toy shopping by compiling their annual Best Toys for Kids list! Nominated and voted on by the toy experts who are members of the ASTRA, the list of winners features a wide variety of toys for just about every age group imaginable. There's an emphasis here on good old-fashioned imaginitive play and fun, so you can feel good about buying these for your children. We're happy to see some of our Christmas list favorites here, like the awesome Playmobil Egyptian Pyramid.

Look for these toys at your local independent toy store, like the ones in our list of Marin County favorites (in the right sidebar of our Holiday section home page), or at online retailers.

Infant Play (0–12 months)

• Sophie Giraffe by Calisson
• Natural Skwish by Manhattan Baby

Toddler Play (1–3 years)

• Twilight Ladybug by Cloud B
• Wee WEDGiTS by ImagAbility

Pretend Play—Role Play

• Green Toys Tea Set, made from recycled milk jugs
• Shopping Cart by Melissa & Doug

Pretend Play—Fantasy Play

• Reversible Knight/Dragon Cape and Reversible Knight/Dragon Hood by Creative Education of Canada
• Egyptian Pyramid by Playmobil

Constructive Play

• Automoblox vehicles by Manhattan Toy
• Magformers Multicolored 30-Piece Magnetic Building Set
  

Creative Arts Play

• Create Your Own Pop-Up Books by Faber-Castell
• Sticky Mosaic Twinkle Tiaras by The Orb Factory

Scientific Play

• Snap Circuits Green by Elenco
• Power House Green by Thames & Kosmos

Active Play

• EzyRoller by EzyRoller
• Original Djubi by PAV/Moonracer

Game Play (3–7 years)

• Chicky Boom by Blue Orange

Game Play (8+ years)

• Bananagrams by Bananagrams

Just For Fun

• Mini Collectible Eraser by BC Office

Classic Play (Older)

• Doinkit Darts by Marky Sparky

Classic Play (Younger)

• Magna-Tiles by Valtech