Best Preschool Toy Gifts for the Holidays

Stormy Seas

Ahoy mateys! Kids take turns balancing cargo on Stormy Seas's artfully designed moving game board. But be careful not to rock the boat, or you'll dump the pieces. 3 years+; $40; hapetoys.com

• Buy Stormy Seas at hapetoys.com.

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Color Wonder Story Stampers

Crayola's ingenious mess-free-marker formula has found its next niche: stamps. These sea creature stampers only work on the special paper so you don't have to worry about ink stains on your kid's clothes or the couch. 3 years+; $12; crayolastore.com

• Buy Color Wonder Story Stampers at crayolastore.com.

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Leapster Explorer

Proving that video games can be fun and educational, this handheld system is a high-tech tutor that uses amusing activities and graphics to help your child with early reading, math, logic and other skills. And parents can even get an online progress report. 4-9 years; $70; leapfrog.com

• Buy Leapster Explorer at leapfrog.com.

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Pop Goes Froggio

Preschoolers spin the wheel to see which animal the arrow lands on. The first kid to find the matching critter card in the room gets to jump on the stomper and launch the frog into the sky. 4 years+; $18; hasbro.com

• Buy Pop Goes Froggio at hasbro.com.

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Sesame Street Shape & Spin Elmo

Everyone's favorite Sesame Street character is teaming up with Play-Doh to teach kids how to recognize different shapes and colors. Press Elmo's hands down to make a dough model and hear what he has to say about your creation. 3 years+; $20; playdoh.com

• Buy Sesame Street Shape & Spin Elmo at playdoh.com.

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Sky High Scoops

Our preschool toy testers got super excited trying to stack all the scoops in the order called out by this electronic game. The winner gets the cherry on top. 3 years+; $25; learningresources.com

• Buy Sky High Scoops at learningresources.com.

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My Take Along Puppet Theater

Forget huge doll houses! This fold-up stage allows your kid to put on Broadway-worthy shows with a variety of back-drops and props. It also includes a sound-effects box to add music, laughter, and applause to his productions. 4 years+; $50; playmobilusa.com

• Buy My Take Along Puppet Theater at playmobilusa.com.

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V.Reader

If your child has her eye on your Kindle, she'll dig this sleek gadget, which lets her read interactive stories and play games on its large touch-screen display. 3-7 years; $60; vtechkids.com

• Buy V.Reader at vtechkids.com.

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Rad Dogs

Puppy love is guaranteed when your child meets these hip, huggable hounds. 3 years+; $9-16; douglascuddletoy.com

• Buy Rad Dogs at douglascuddletoy.com.

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Smart Fortwo Coupe

Get your kids to run over to the neighbor's for a cup of sugar in this eco-trendy two-seater: It's Power Wheels' longest running (and possibly coolest) car ever, thanks to its innovative battery. 3 years+; $250; fisher-price.com

• Buy Smart Fortwo Coupe at fisher-price.com.

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Laundry Jumble

Kids sort the clothes hidden inside the dryer with just their sense of touch. Find the most matching pieces to win. 4 years+; $30; educationalinsights.com

• Buy Laundry Jumble at educationalinsights.com.

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Backyard Barbecue Get Out 'n' Grill

Your child can cook you dinner tonight with this portable grill that comes with play hamburgers and hot dogs. 3 years+; $40; littletikes.com

Copyright © 2010 Meredith Corporation.

• Buy Get Out 'n' Grill Backyard Barbecue at littletikes.com.

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