Review and Giveaway: Learning Resources CLOSED

Thank you to Learning Resources for participating in the Bloggy Birthday Blowout at Goodie Goodie Gumdrops!

The weather here has been super hot lately so we've been keeping cool in the backyard with some fun water play. We can splash around in our water table or lounge in our inflatable pool. While many of our outdoor toys are indeed entertaining, few of them are educational. So, I was thrilled to welcome Learning Resources to our collection.

Learning Resources has been a trusted manufacturer of innovative, award-winning, educational toys and materials for parents and educators for over 25 years. Their mission is to make learning exciting for children of all ages and abilities. They strive to create hands-on products that build a concrete foundation of skills through exploration, imagination and fun. Learning Resources features a diverse line of over 1,300 proprietary products focused on areas such as mathematics, science, early childhood, reading, Spanish and English language and more.

To complement our summer fun, we were fortunate enough to review the Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs. This set of 26 crabs features uppercase letters on one side and lowercase letters on the other, encouraging children aged 2-5 to learn both aspects of the alphabet. The crabs can be linked together to form simple words or alphabet patterns. Each crab also doubles as a squirt toy, making the set perfect for the bathtub, pool or water table. Made of soft, mold-resistant plastic, each set comes complete with a convenient mesh storage bag.

Ever since I opened the box, Nate hasn't been able to keep his hands off his Letter Link Crabs. The crabs are larger than I expected, which was a pleasant surprise. No choking risk! They are flexible for little hands to hold and relatively easy to fit together. They also stay together fairly well unless tugged apart or pulled firmly. The plastic material makes them easy to clean and the storage bag really comes in handy to drain them at the end of playtime and ensure the critters won't skitter off to the land of lost toys.

We've spent hours playing with our Letter Link Crabs outside in the water table and pool. Nate loves to sort them by color, squirt them and try and link them together. I like that the vowels are easily identifiable, with the bold yellow and red combination. I just wish there was an option to purchase more letters. Because there is only one of each, you cannot make words like "mom" or "dad". But we do have fun coming up with all sorts of creative, non-letter repeating phrases.

I'm so happy to have a durable water toy that is not only fun but also a great learning tool. Not many toys feature lowercase letters so I like that we have that option with our Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs. I know this is an activity that will keep us occupied for many summers to come - and in the bathtub during winter!

If you're looking for a gift for a special toddler or preschooler, you'll definitely want to check out Learning Resources. I'm really liking the Pretend and Play Doctor's Kit (for imaginative role playing) and the Smart Snacks Counting Fun Fruit Bowl (which teaches fractions, addition and subtraction):

BUY IT: You can purchase the Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs (ARV $19.99) at www.learningresources.com or check out their handy dandy store locator to find a retailer nearest you.

WIN IT: Learning Resources is generously donating a set of Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs to one lucky reader!

MAIN COURSE (MANDATORY ENTRY): Visit Learning Resources and tell me another toy you'd like to own. Remember to please leave your email address in your comment if it isn't visible on your profile to prevent disqualification!

SUGAR ON TOP (BONUS ENTRIES): To maximize your chances of winning, you may do any or all of the following. Be sure to complete the above mandatory entry or your bonus entries will not count!

1.) Follow my blog and/or subscribe via reader or email. Comment telling me which method you chose. If you already follow or subscribe, that counts! (1 entry each)

2.) Follow me and Learning Resources on Twitter and tweet about this contest. You can do this daily! You may use the following tweet or come up with one of your own:

#Win a set of Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs for your preschooler from @LearningHandsOn & @kris10chumley! ENDS 7/26 http://bit.ly/aHHYlm

Just leave me a comment with your tweet link. (1 entry per day max)

3.) Become a fan of Learning Resources on Facebook. (1 entry)

4.) "Like" Goodie Goodie Gumdrops on Facebook. (1 entry)

5.) Add my Bloggy Birthday Blowout event button to your site and comment with a link where I can find it. (1 entry)

6.) Add my blog button to your site and comment with a link where I can find it. (1 entry)

Giveaway will end on July 26, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. Open to U.S. residents only. Winner will be chosen via Random.org and will have 48 hours to respond to congratulatory email or prize will be forfeited and another winner will be chosen.

Disclaimer: I received a set of Smart Splash Letter Link Crabs from Nancy with Salmon Borre Group courtesy of Learning Resources to facilitate my candid review. I was not compensated in any other way for this post. The thoughts and opinions expressed in my review are solely mine. Your experience may differ.