Sharon Vanorny
Mason (left) and Anthony try out Star Diner Restaurant at Goddard School in Verona during an annual game test.
Things at the Star Diner are a little amiss. The waiter, Oliver, is busy wandering around the room with his half apron draped loosely around his neck, instead of around his waist. Nevertheless, his supervisor is quite pleased. “Oliver tied the apron himself,” she beams.
When a milkshake order is ready, Oliver exclaims that it’s “chocolate and strawberry” — but refuses to hand it over to a customer. When Oliver later decides to quit working and start strumming a guitar, all is forgiven. The 2-1/2-year-old Oliver is one of 14 toddlers trying out the Star Diner Restaurant playset — which includes a reusable menu, coffee pot, set of guest checks and fake waffles.
As a judge in the annual toy test at the Goddard School in Verona, Oliver will help rate Star Diner.
The Goddard School for early childhood development, known for its play-based curriculum, has 470 schools across the country. “Learning through play works because children are more likely to remember lessons if they enjoy them,” says Mawara Sohail, who owns the Verona school. “And they are more likely to show enthusiasm for learning if they have fun at school.”
For toy manufacturers, that means the pressure is on to make their educational toys fun, Sohail adds. “The toys have to pique the child’s interest.”
In what has now become a tradition, the Goddard School conducts a toy test where manufacturers from across the country submit products for children up to 6 years old to try out in late September. After several days of playing with the toys, the children will vote on favorites, or, when the children are under 1, the teachers will make observations about how long a toy maintains a child’s interest. After compiling results from across the country, the school releases its Pre-schooler Approved Top Ten Toys of 2017, just in time for the holidays.
Back in the “get-set to preschool” room with the 2-1/2- and 3-year-olds, teacher Jessica Leibly is playing Friends and Neighbors game with a group of four kids. As the children take turns pulling a token out of the “helping bag,” they must place the token on the correct picture on their game board. The girl who is soaking wet from the rain gets an umbrella, the boy who looks scared of the dark gets a flashlight.
“They love this game,” Leibly says. Not faring as well is Make a Pet, which involves using magnetic pieces to create pictures of pets. “They like it,” Leibly says. “But they know it’s too hard for them — they want help.”
Nearby in the pre-kindergarten room, 4-1/2-year-old Arabella is playing Lil’ Lemonade Stand-Off, a memory matching game, with three classmates and her teacher, Nea Johnson. “If you don’t get it right, you don’t get money!” Arabella says. Johnson says that they love the game because they get to use coins and they have their own bank to hold on to. “It’s a turn-taking game so having something to manipulate while they wait is really beneficial,” Johnson says.
At the end of the week of toy testing, the classrooms vote for their top two favorite toys. Johnson believes the lemonade game might win, although Slick Sand and Bucket of Balls are also strong contenders, “because they are sensory.” As she says this, seven kids crowd around clear plastic bins full of water and multi-colored gel balls, submerging their hands and exclaiming things like “They feel like strawberries!”
In this year’s voting in Verona, Slick Sand and Bucket of Balls finish on top with the pre-kindergarten group. When the 2-1/2- and 3-year-olds vote — even though they’re not particularly attentive servers — Star Diner wins the day.
Goddard Schools (out of 470) chosen to participate in test: 50
Toys submitted for testing: more than 100
2017 favorite toys, listed in order of age appropriateness:
VTech Lil’ Critters Shake & Wobble Busy Ball (3-24 months)
Fat Brain Toys Oombee Cube (10+ months)
SMARTMAX My First Safari Animals (1–5 years)
Peaceable Kingdom Monkey Around The Wiggle and Giggle Game (2+ years)
VTech Go! Go! Smart Wheels Race & Play Adventure Park (1–5 years)
K’NEX Kid K’nex Budding Builder Set (3+ years)
Melissa & Doug Star Diner Restaurant (3+ years)
Learning Resources Lil’ Lemonade Stand-Off (4+ years)
DuneCraft Bucket of Balls (4+ years)
Learning Resources Let’s Go Code! Activity Set (5+ years)
