Toys that don't do the playing for your kids

He's been playing in his room an hour now. Independently, creatively, happily. Every once in awhile I'll hear a soft "zhooooooom!" or a "screeeech!" or a "Watch out over there!" Each interjection is an indication of how lost Reed is in an imaginative world he's constructed.

From a box of Androidz from Androidz Planet.


First, let me explain how an Androidz came to be in our possession. I was invited to lunch with a few other local mommybloggers by Christopher Byrne (Twitter= TheToyGuy), an editor at TimeToPlayMag.com. Besides lunch and a fun conversation about blogging and reviewing and toys, Chris supplied us each with an Androidz kit to try out.

Reed was overjoyed to help me test this product. As it turned out, I got a lot out of it, too.

First off was the bonding. Reed and I read the directions together -- me showing him the words and him matching the meaning to the accompanying drawings. It took us about 20 minutes to put this Androidz scene together. It wasn't difficult -- just intricate. Later that night, after playing and after dinner and tooth-brushing, Reed told me that the highlight his day was figuring out the assembly together. It was for me, too.

Next came his play with his 5 year-old cousin, Tami's son, Dominic. The two of them moved Androidz up and over and around and down the structure with all sorts of scenarios they developed.

The last benefit is the ongoing solo play Reed does with his Androidz kit. As evidenced by both the silence and the intermittent exclamation points that come out of his room.

The Androidz kit was missing a few pieces, as was Dominic's. But the kits both worked well enough anyway. I would say that my 7 year-old enjoyed it more than my co-reviewer's 5 year-old, but that could be a function of personality and interest rather than of age.

I would love to tell you where to get your own Androidz and how much a kit costs, but I can't find that information. Androidz were launched last month and were reported to be available at WalMart. However, I can find no trace of Androidz on that retailer's site.

In any case, Reed likes the toy, and I like Chris Byrne. I will refer to TimeToPlayMag.com and TheToyGuy.com when I need the low-down on toys.

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