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TOY AWARDS
Oppenheim Toy Portfolio: Founded in 1989, the Oppenheim Award seal assures that toys are selected by noted experts in child development, children's literature and education, and further tested by children themselves. To get a meaningful sampling, they work with families from all walks of life and ask testers to live with a product to ensure that the novelty doesn't diminish. "The Platinum Awards" honor the best new products of the year. Other categories include the "Gold Seal Award" and the "Special Needs Adaptable Product".
Parents' Choice Foundation: Founded in 1978, this is the nation's oldest, not-for-profit reviewer of children's media. The biannual list has long been viewed as the ultimate consumer guide to children's products. Their award committee is comprised of a wide variety of children's professionals, as well as parents and kids. All award categories honor products that are fun, safe, socially sound, fairly priced and of the highest quality.
Parent's Guide to Children's Media: Parent's Guide locates, reviews, and honors media materials to help consumers find the most interesting and stimulating products for young people. Children are the first evaluators, and items with high marks are then sent to final reviewers comprised of children's professionals, university specialists and staff reviewers from major media. "Children's Media Awards" are given to those products with the highest ratings.
Dr. Toy: Every year, Dr. Toy (Stevanne Auerbach, PH.D.) selects and evaluates the newest in children's media for "Dr. Toy's 100 Best Children's Products" as well as "Dr. Toy's Best Vacation Products". She is an expert in play, toys, children's products, education, parent education, child development, child advocacy, child psychology, child care and special education. These awards are presented to the best educational and developmentally appropriate children's products.
The Canadian Toy Testing Council: As a charitable organization since 1952, the Council has been working for parents to help them make informed toy purchases. Every year, hundreds of toys are selected as representative of those being offered on the market. The toys are tested year round by Canadian children in everyday settings to assess design, function, durability and play value.
The National Parenting Publications Awards (NAPPA): Beginning in 1990 as a consumer awards program for children’s media, their expert judges review and select the best submissions to receive recognition as either "Gold" or "Honor Award" winners. These awards commend toys that have lasting appeal and exhibit superior quality.
KTVU News Great American Toy Test: Originating from the San Francisco Bay area in 1979, hundreds of toys are distributed annually to day-care centers and after-school programs in major cities all over the United States. While their teachers and supervisors observe, kids play with the toys. Both adults and children then grade the toys using criteria that include: quality, durability, ease of assembly, maintenance, short-term and long-term interest, educational value, safety and enjoyment.
Parenting Magazine: As parenting specialists, this publication utilizes resources that include physicians, parents and child-development experts who focus on the early years. The "Toy of the Year Award" is given to toys in several different categories that best exemplify superior quality in children's media.
Child Magazine: As well as publishing a magazine dedicated to childhood, these children's specialists also find the time to annually select and award a "Best Toy of the Year" commendation in several age-specific categories.
Duracell Kids' Choice Toy Survey: Each year Duracell, also known as the battery company, releases the results of its children’s toy tests where both battery-operated and non-battery operated toys are evaluated. Duracell looks for toys that will not encourage aggressive behavior and focuses on the ability of a toy to capture a child’s attention.
National Association of Toy and Leisure Libraries: As an organization of more than 1,000 toy libraries in the United Kingdom, the association strives to raise the awareness of the importance of play. Toy libraries offer services to local families by providing carefully selected toys to borrow for a minimal fee or free of charge. Many of these libraries also offer specialized toys and equipment for children with disabilities and provide play sessions as well as an informative meeting place for children and their parents. The association's annual Good Toy Guide is the longest-established and most authoritative consumer guide to toys available in the United Kingdom. Hundreds of toys are tested each year through the toy libraries where the views of educational and child-care professionals are combined with the opinions of parents and children.
Redbook Top Ten Picture Books of the Year: Children’s literature is assessed yearly with an emphasis on illustrative quality and the artwork’s ability to complement and enhance the text. The books selected for the top ten lists are recognized for their capability to capture the imagination of their readers through the beauty of art.
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