One of my son’s favorite gifts he received for his 5th birthday last week was a set of Wedgits. He already had the Wedgits To Go 35 Piece Set (shown above) and wanted more to add to his collection. I had never heard of Wedgits until a friend of ours gave my son the To Go set about a year ago. Made by Imagability, Wedgits are bright, chunky geometric blocks that fit together in various ways, allowing kids to build to the height of their imagination. The complex thinking and experimentation they promote is evident every time my son builds something new with his Wedgits. Whether he’s trying to copy a design on the Design Cards that were included with his set or creating something new, he’s using spatial and perceptual skills and honing his dexterity.

Wedgits are recommended for ages 3 and up (because of some of the small parts). I’d highly recommend them as an educational tool that’s fun for a child to play with while he’s simultaneously learning. You can purchase the Wedgits To Go 35 Piece Set at Amazon.com for $44.99. It comes in its own handy carrying case, so your child can even build on-the-go.

Exobonz, an arthropomorphic building bone-anza, is a fun and very unusual building set.  Made by Zolo, Exobonz is a set of 54 interchangeable pieces that your child can use to build all kinds of bugs that come from his imagination. It’s a great creative toy and would make a wonderful holiday gift.

Exobonz are recommended for ages 4-7. You can purchase this set at Zolo.com for $30.

In this day and age, when shopping for toys, one doesn’t always know what one will get. There have been so many safety recalls, problems with melamine in plastic toys, problems with imports from China, and so forth, that it might make parents afraid of buying toys for their children this holiday season.

If you feel like this, it might be a good idea to return to basic toys, such as this classic Roy Toy Tree House Play Set. These building blocks have been made in Maine from real wood since the 1930s. This is a practical, quality toy. The 71-piece set comes in a reusable storage container.

Recommended for ages 4 and up, you can purchase this toy for $24.95 at VermontCountryStore.com. It’s one gift you can feel good about buying and giving to your child.

I remember when I was little, my brother and I used to take all of the pillows from our bedrooms and stack them up to build forts. We felt so cool that we had our own space to play that no one else was allowed into. The problem with pillows is that they used to fall down and you could never quite get it the same way again. That’s one of the things that makes the Space Frame so great. Your kids can build forts and tunnels or whatever else their hearts desire with these huge building blocks and they’ll stay but. They are also super durable, yet still soft to the touch and very easy to use. This environmentally preferable toy is made from 100% recycled plastic soda bottles and was featured in Child Magazine. The set contains 20 pieces and is recommended for children 2 and up. It goes for $199.00 on www.modernseed.com.