Gift Ideas for Babies ->Teens (Made in the USA!)

Happy 10 Days Till Christmas Eve!! 

Figured it was time to put up a (hopefully) helpful list of gift ideas for the kids in your life, with the bonus of being #MadeInTheUSA . Be on the lookout for a similar list for the grown-ups in your life soon!

All images lead to Amazon and I do appreciate your purchases through my affiliate links~

BABY/TODDLER Gifts


A sweet baby gift, something that I have purchased in the past for baby presents, an all natural wood rattle with a jingle bell inside~ LOVE it! (Currently $12.54, 10% off list price)



And here is another set of rattles and teething toys, again, all natural wood. (Currently on sale for $19.95).

For ages 6 months and up, a lovely stacking toy that can extend to older ages as it teaches counting sides and learning shapes! (Currently on sale for $18.37, 22% off list price).



Make Four 4-inch vehicles out of wood. Hammer and Glue required. Non-toxic fun for ages 3 and up. (Currently on sale for $14.99, 22% off list price).



This one is another ages 3+, and I think it would make a wonderful gift for an elderly person as well~ what lovely illustrations! (Currently 8% off list price at $23.99)What a GREAT gift idea!

($32.95)

($9.95)

Uncle Goose offers a large variety of wooden blocks~ the full color alphabet blocks as well as uncolored Upper Case, Lower Case, and Numerals for you to decorate yourself, if you are artistically inclined. :) There are many more, including foreign language blocks, Braille Blocks, and Sign Language Alphabet Blocks. So Cool!

Obviously, I'm a fan of natural wood products, but there are some others out there worth looking at as well. Green Toys were just starting to be on my radar when my youngest was the appropriate age~ they have some fun things made from recycled materials, and again, made in the US of A. ;)
Tea Set is $17.52  and Dinner Set is $25.72, Dump Truck is $17.19

           

Kids (Tween to Teen)

CLASSIC Christmas gift~ Who doesn't remember the classic potholder loop-weaving kit? I personally love this Kit ($16.99) from Harrisville Designs, along with the refill loops kit ($15.78)~ these are GORGEOUS colors!

$12.95

$18.95

Magnetic Poetry! There are a number of sets~ The BIG First Words set for the younger kids, and there are some really fun sets for older kids and adults as well... Love the Bard? There's a set for that! Make Merry on your Refrigerator!

$12.99 currently

Have you seen this Wallet Multi Tool? What a fun and useful gift for the handy kid in your life! Pretty nifty piece of work right here, with 3 screwdrivers, 6 nested hex wrenches, Bottle opener, letter opener, and 6 more tools.

Currently $11.60

Or a stocking stuffer sized light to keep in a car or backpack? With the sun setting so early and rising so late, a little extra light is not a bad thing! (I saw a  student waiting for the bus at 6-something this morning... in the dark, on the side of the road, no reflective materials~ a flashlight would be a good thing!)

Currently $22.95

($26.00) 

Along the same lines~ if you have a runner (or dog walker, or really anyone who goes out at night) in the family, how about a reflective beanie? There is a ponytail version and a regular version.





Fun Socks anyone? Soulmate recycled cotton blends make for super cute mismatched socks, with color choices that suit both guys and gals. This boot topper is just an example of the designs you'll find.

Mismatched Boot Topper
$14.00+ $2 S&H

Hope this gives you some ideas~ I'd love to know if you found something new and useful in your post~ thoughtful comments are always appreciated. :)

Blessings~

Monki See (monki do.....monki learn)

MonkiSee, Monki Do? 
Children truly do learn by mimicking those around them. Neural pathways are being connected and reinforced constantly.  MonkiSee creator Krista Guerrero (A homeschooling mother of 6) recognized this, and created the MonkiSee program to help others after having success with teaching her younger children to read at an early age. You can read more of her story here, and some facts about the program here.

The entire program utilizes DVD's, Books, and Flashcards.

MonkiSee is based on research by Glenn Doman, the author of "How to Teach Your Baby to Read". You can read some of his research and find other resources on this page (Glenn Doman's research is found at the IAHP links). In a nutshell, my understanding of the basic concept is to exercise and stimulate the same neural  pathways over and over so that what is seen (or heard, or touched) is "learned", and this learning takes place most quickly and easily the younger the brain....

My youngest is on the older end of the recommended age for MonkiSee, (ages 3 months -3 years) but he enjoyed watching the MonkiSee Baby's First Words DVD (Retail $24.95, currently on sale for $19.95). It is pleasant to watch, with calm music and children's voices. The accompanying pictures and puppets are also interesting.

We didn't actually watch it EVERY day as recommended, as Youngest likes variety in what he watches, and I do try to limit his viewing. He wasn't very fond of reviewing the included slideshow, although he was willing to watch it a few times. I'm guessing he was a little old for the purposes of this program(Not quite as compliant as a younger child might be...;) He has his own, vocal opinions about what he watches and reads at the moment ;) ).

I like the way that the MonkiSee book, "Know Your Monkey" (Retail $11.95, currently available for $9.95) is set up. 

A 2-page spread with text (Mostly one-two words/page),

and the following spread has a picture with the same words repeated.

I think this is a useful tool! It gives the opportunity for the child to focus on the word shape before seeing the picture. When the word is repeated with the picture, the child begins to associate the shape of the word with the picture. This is very well done! I would like to see more "baby books" utilize this concept.  Oh, and the words in the book reinforce those found on the video, which was "thoughtful", and makes sense.

I would say that this process would work best with someone who is fairly regimented, as frequent repetition is a key aspect of the program. I understand and admire those that are wired this way. Unfortunately, that is just not the way our family works (In addition to having limited viewing time, I'm just not an "Every day 3x/day kind of person".... you should see me trying to remember to take vitamins!).
I am curious though, what the results would have been if I had had this program to use when my Youngest was an infant. 

However, that being said, I appreciate the ability to have something very "Gentle" to watch upon occasion that is educational in nature. This is even addressed in the FAQ's ~ (See the answers to "Should I do this daily with my child?"  and  "What if we don't do this consistently?") The only negative recommendation  makes perfect sense~  to NOT make this the only think that your child sees and does all day long~ not a multi-hour electronic baby-sitter! 


If you are interested in giving your 0-3 year-old child a "head-start" in learning to read (By memorizing word shapes, and eventually internalizing some phonics), then this might be a program you would be interested in. You can purchase the items individually, or you can purchase an entire package (6 DVD's, 2 books, and 5 sets of flashcards). Retail for this package is $265.35, but it is currently on sale for $139.95~ over 45% savings. 

To see how this worked for other TOS Crew Members, please check out the TOS Crew Blog.


As always, I hope that this review was useful to you as you search for the best items for YOUR homeschool.

Blessings~

 

Side note:  Krista Guerrero does recommend using a phonics program for children 4+ as the "Window of opportunity" for teaching via sight-reading is much smaller at that point.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this/these item(s)/service for free as part of the TOS Crew Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."