This letter came to us from 4 year old Sadie in California.  Sadie loves playing Rush Hour and would very much like to play at preschool while her friends are napping, the only problem is that the game is a bit too [...]]]> Not only does ThinkFun have the best fans… we also get the best mail!

This letter came to us from 4 year old Sadie in California.  Sadie loves playing Rush Hour and would very much like to play at preschool while her friends are napping, the only problem is that the game is a bit too noisy for rest time.  Said wrote to us with a brilliant proposal to “shush” the game a bit, her letter is below.

Sadie's Letter - click to enlarge

For those needing a translation, Sadie’s mom enclosed this letter explaining her daughter’s request:

Sadie's Letter translated

“Rubber cars for nap” … if this isn’t problem solving at it’s finest I don’t know what is!

We love to hear these creative ideas from our customers – if you’ve got one please share – we’d love to showcase your suggestion!

Meet Max, a ThinkFun fan through and through!

Thank [...]]]> One of the perks of working at ThinkFun is hearing about how our games affect the lives of the children that play them. Just had to share Max’s story, emailed to ThinkFun CEO Andrea Barthello by his mother Aileen… stories like this are what keep us going!

Meet Max, a ThinkFun fan through and through!

Thank you for taking the time to speak with me today. I felt that it was important for you to hear from “just another Mom” about how terrific your products really are. My six-year old Max literally is addicted to the “Chocolate Fix” and the “Rush Hour Jr.” and my 3 year old Sophie loves Zingo which has become her special game that she plays with her Pop Pop (he’s 73 and loves the games just as much!). To watch the two of them fight over BUG or both grab for a FOOT as they scream the word is really a sight to see.

For kids like Max, finding independent games that are fun, challenging, mind-opening and clever are few and far between….. but you seem to really have a handle on this niche. Today when I took a turn at “Chocolate Fix” he made a comment like “Hurry Mommy, customers are waiting!”

If you do ever need game tester, he’d be the first to line up. He’s a true gamer….. and finds games with strategy the most interesting. He’s as competitive with himself as he is with others. And, he just loves the “purity” of your themes (the ice cream truck, chocolates in a box.) He actually finds joy in that. I have caught him making up a story about the truck and how it has to pass the sports car, fire truck, etc. to get to the kids waiting for the ice cream.

That is another element of your product that really appeals to me as a parent. The conceptual relation and problem solving strategies increase in difficulty and can become quite complex — yet you have not lost sight of the fact that the ones playing the games ARE kids. Think Fun certainly serves up unique, tickle your brain challenges but the context for the games seem to be simple, pure and fun.”

Thank you for sharing, Aileen!

By [...]]]> This web article was published by Teacher Magazine.  Here, a veteran Kindergarten teacher reminds us of the vital importance of play and the learning benefits kids miss out on when free play is squeezed out. Love the interviews with former students sharing what they learned during kindergarten choice time!

Teaching Secrets: Let Them Play

By Jane Ching Fung

“What is ‘Choice Time?,’” she demanded. “Students don’t have time to play.”

My heart sank when I heard these words coming from the mouth of a district administrator. Everyone on our kindergarten team had included “Choice” minutes in her daily schedule. Choice was a time for students to engage in centers and activities that were not teacher directed, assigned, or graded but intentionally designed to be open-ended, student driven, and to promote unstructured interactions among the children.

Dare I say that “Choice” was time set aside for our young students to play?

Since when did the word “play” become outlawed in kindergarten? I remember a time when kindergarten classrooms were stocked with wooden blocks, paint, and dramatic-play corners complete with costuming, furniture, appliances, and play food. Not so long ago, there was a period during the day when we encouraged kindergarten students to freely explore, create, and interact with the materials and people around them.

On the surface, children may appear to be only “having fun” during this unstructured time, but take a closer look and you’ll discover what I know: Play is so much more than idle entertainment. Play, including the ability to make your own choices, helps children develop and use essential social-emotional and academic-learning skills. Through play, I have seen my students develop social, critical thinking, and problem-solving abilities in a safe, risk-free environment. Has our early childhood curriculum become so narrow that we now focus only on what is being tested and ignore all the other areas in a young child’s development?

As a primary teacher for the past 25 years and as a parent, I know that play is the foundation of learning. Young children have a natural desire to explore the world and the people around them; play provides them with an avenue to discover things on their own and to develop autonomy. In today’s diverse classrooms, providing opportunities for every student to choose and engage in activities meaningful to them can produce positive results in all areas of the curriculum. Learning is another word for it.

Continue reading about the Benefits of Play…

Voices From Choice Time Past

Allowing students opportunities to make choices and play with materials does not take away from academic time. Academic skills are embedded in all aspects of play. When Alessandra plays school, she writes sight words she has learned in class and asks her “students” to read them aloud. When Hamza constructs his Lego car, he has deliberately planned which pieces he will need to form a vehicle that is symmetric and will move. When Junieth plays restaurant, she uses the charts in the room to write a menu while her friends sort the play food. The evidence is overwhelming: Young children learn through play.

I asked my former students, all adults now, to share their thoughts on choice time and self-directed play. This is what they said:

Hannah: “During play, I could actually socialize with other children, which I did not get at home. If it weren’t for play time, I never would have learned to interact with other people.”

Shirley Jean: “I wasn’t always playing with others, I was reading. It was a fun time to catch up on random reading. But what I think I liked doing most was the puzzles with my friends on the rug. It was a challenge to us to get the puzzle finished before center time was over. Every day, we tried to beat our original time to see if we could get the pieces together without as much difficulty as the days before. Not only did it allow us to think and work together, but it also helped create strong friendships.”

Kathleen: “I was able to be a child—carefree, lively, innocent, and spontaneous. I was able to run around and let out all the energy inside me so that when it was time to go back on the rug, I could focus and not be all squirmy and distracted.”

Dante: “(It) allowed us to exercise our brains and imaginations, while at the same time developing our social skills through team work and/or compromise.”

Raul: “It was fun. I got to interact with others while building structures and engineering ways to create something huge through teamwork. It created an environment of friendship and joy. It was a very healthy part of my education and growing up.”

Sebastian: “Playtime gave me the tools to be around different people from various cultures, and interact with them on many levels inside and out of the classroom. Sometimes playtime gives students a reason to come to school—and if students can have something to look forward to at school, even if it isn’t academically related, it’s good for them to be excited in classroom and hopefully that excitement will manifest into a greater excitement for learning.”

I am not advocating that we get rid of direct instruction and structure; what I am saying is that there are crucial learning skills that young students need to develop and make sense of on their own. Play provides a path for students to acquire these abilities, as well as academic skills.

Students may not have “time” to play, but they need to play.

My name is Sanjli Gidwaney from Design for Change, [...]]]> The following is guest post by Sanjli Gidwaney, an inspired individual dedicated to encouraging creativity through systematic curriculum change in developing countries around the world.  Sanjli has recently taken on the role of Country Coordinator to bring the global Design for Change competition to the United States!

My name is Sanjli Gidwaney from Design for Change, a worldwide competition that is forming the largest movement of young people creating change around the world. This effort is on part of Kiran Sethi from the Riverside School in India who spoke at TED India last year in hopes of illuminating the impact of young minds on pressing global issues. The contest gives children around the world one challenge: design, create, and implement a project that directly benefits their school or community and tell us about it. The competition essentially provides a platform to support, empower and encourage children to take the reins of global change into their own hands.

While last year the competition ran exclusively in India, this year it has been opened up to schools across the world including: New Zealand, Australia, Canada, USA, Mexico, Taiwan, Ireland and many others. We are currently looking to sign up over 1,000 schools throughout the USA to represent our country’s commitment to social change.

The Design for Change simple 4 step process...

As a leader for Design for Change USA, I am honored and excited to partner with ThinkFun on this incredible initiative to transform the lives of millions of Americans with a simple “I CAN” attitude.

ThinkFun embodies the true meaning of learning by making it fun, challenging and enjoyable, a notion that is in line with the Design Change Competition. It is the creative and team building skills learned through games such as Rush Hour and Chocolate Fix, which will enable students throughout the USA to brainstorm, create and execute on their plans to improve their schools and communities! ThinkFun has so graciously sponsored Design for Change by awarding the winning entry with a suite of ThinkFun games and learning tools! What a wonderful way to kick off the competition!

For more information on how to get involved, please visit www.designforchange.us or email us at info@designforchange.us .

Take 3 minutes to watch [...]]]> I saw this video several years ago and have come back to it time and time again… sometimes for a 3 minute inspirational boost, but most often to forward on as the best response I’ve ever seen to the offensive and misguided statement that “those who can’t do teach.”

Take 3 minutes to watch this fantastic piece by slam poet Taylor Mali… then go hug a teacher!

After that final dip in the pool and last drippy ice cream cone, teacher-mode kicks into high gear as you prepare for the kiddos to return.  For teachers, [...]]]> From a former teacher to the thousands of you currently savoring the final weeks of summer… I hope you are enjoying the end of a wonderful, relaxing break!

After that final dip in the pool and last drippy ice cream cone, teacher-mode kicks into high gear as you prepare for the kiddos to return.  For teachers, back-to-school prep means rolling up our sleeves to deck out naked classroom walls, label desks, put the photocopier through the workout of its life, and work through loads of other logistics and to-dos.

While it is certainly important to prepare your teaching space for the arrival of a new class of eager learners, these weeks also give teachers an invaluable opportunity to prepare ourselves mentally for the year ahead.

Whether you are a veteran teacher or a classroom newbie, use this time to reconnect with colleagues, reflect on the experiences of the past, and think about applications for literature and new curriculum you’ve explored over the summer… and set your own New School Year resolutions!

I will make sure my students see me laugh every day...

A few ideas to get you started:

• I will seek out 3 new professional development opportunities.
• I will start that new committee and take on a leadership role.
• I will involve my students more in self-evaluation and reflection.
• I will engage my students in meaningful community service projects.
• I will use interactive technology to engage my students.
• I will read aloud to my students every day.
• I will dwell on my students’ strengths, not on their weaknesses.

What are your resolutions for this year?  Please share by commenting here!

The last precious weeks of summer are upon us… time for a final dip in the pool, a last popsicle in the park, and some eleventh hour speed reading of assigned summer books. The excitement of returning to old friends and new teachers has [...]]]> The following is an excerpt from my guest post for Everything Mom!

The last precious weeks of summer are upon us… time for a final dip in the pool, a last popsicle in the park, and some eleventh hour speed reading of assigned summer books. The excitement of returning to old friends and new teachers has kids buzzing, but the implicit message in “Back to School” is that playtime is over. While the lazy days of summer rarely mean months of idle lounging, they do provide vital goof-off time… and this unstructured play is something to hold on to year round.

With high-stakes testing and budgets that cut arts, P.E., even recess, kids spend less and less of their school lives engaging in activities that allow for play and discovery… and their creative mental muscles pay the price. In today’s rapidly changing world, kids not only need multiplication facts and rules for comma usage, but they must also be equipped to solve problems yet to be imagined. With schools still hammering away at the 3 R’s of yore, there’s a 4th R our kids desperately need: Reasoning.

This fall, before you whip out the calendar and wedge an hour of intensive Reasoning training between gymnastics and violin, there’s good news! Reasoning and creative thinking develop naturally when kids have real, meaningful problems to solve… and you’d be amazed how many “problems” surface when kids have the freedom to simply muck about and play! Call it what you want… “Goof-Off Hour,” “Let Loose Time…” the important thing is that, as backwards as it sounds, you make time for your kids to do nothing!

Some tips to make free play a part of your life year-round: (Click to continue reading…)

Today begins the 6 month  countdown to New York Toy Fair!  Last year was my first year attending, and I had a blast!  Check out highlights from the event here, and click here for more recap and some fun [...]]]> Friday the 13th may seem like an inauspicious date, but here’s a great reason to celebrate it…

Today begins the 6 month  countdown to New York Toy Fair!  Last year was my first year attending, and I had a blast!  Check out highlights from the event here, and click here for more recap and some fun photos of our booth!

Toy Fair 2010... I'm shrinking!

To get in the spirit, click the photo below for a fun video of the 1961 Toy Fair shared by industry expert Richard Gottleib!

Shop for new mind challenging games and puzzles at www.thinkfun.com and enter promo code  BACK2SCHOOL at checkout for a 25% savings.  As always, orders over $25 ship free!

This offer is good through Sunday, September 12.  Discount applies to [...]]]> ThinkFun is celebrating the start of a fantastic new school year with a 25% discount!

Shop for new mind challenging games and puzzles at www.thinkfun.com and enter promo code  BACK2SCHOOL at checkout for a 25% savings.  As always, orders over $25 ship free!

This offer is good through Sunday, September 12.  Discount applies to all purchases at www.thinkfun.com except already-discounted Game Club Sets.

Please feel free to share this code with friends, family, teachers… anyone whose brain craves a new challenge for the school year ahead!  Happy puzzling

The following guest post [...]]]> The Ontario Mathematics Olympiad, (OMO) is an annual mathematics competition featuring teams of the best grade 7 and 8 math students from across Ontario. This year’s Olympiad featured 124 students (31 teams of 4) who completed 4 contests, one of which included a logical thinking challenge featuring specially designed Chocolate Fix puzzles!

The following guest post is by Jeff Irwin, Contest Committee Chair for the OMO 2010 Venncouver Olympics

For the Ontario Math Olympics, contests are created to challenge teams of 4 students. These teams are the regional champions from all of Ontario. It was our hope to create a series of contests that both challenged the Mathlete and were fun to complete.

As part of a Basketball challenge, Chocolate Fix provided the ideal logical thinking exercise. The Basketball event consisted of 4 quarters (challenges) that were completed as a team. The four quarters were 1. a manipulative logic puzzle, *Chocolate Fix, 2. a graph match challenge using TI-84’s and a CBR unit, 3. a design challenge using cube-a-links, and 4. an optimization problem.

Rules for the OMO Basketball Challenge

The fact that Chocolate Fix is as logic puzzle that uses physical manipulatives instead of pencil and paper appealed to the Contest Committee. The team saw the challenge sheet, then had to communicate amongst themselves to place each chocolate piece in the correct position. As the students rotated through the four quarters of the Basketball event, you could hear the excitement as they completed each Chocolate Fix challenge!

A sample OMO team challenge

All teams enjoyed the Chocolate Fix activity and when there was extra time at the end of the contest rotation, the teams often tackled the regular challenges. Throughout lunch and during breaks students could be overheard discussing how much they enjoyed this event!

As a side note, my enthusiasm for ThinkFun games convinced other organizing committee members to purchase and distribute 20 ThinkFun games as thank-you gifts to our high school cabin counselors. It was their role to help students from across the province bond as cabin mates and ensure that teams arrived at the correct contest on time… so now 20 more families will have the opportunity to enjoy ThinkFun products!

A full set of contests is available on the OMO website which can be accessed by following the links on www.oame.on.ca. Thank you once again for all your support in this endeavor!