Toys On The Brain

Posts Tagged ‘classic’

Now here’s a classic toy. Everyone’s gotta have a Sit n Spin, right?

It’s too bad I couldn’t enjoy this toy much when I was a child; turning around and around on the flat wheel made my stomach well, turn around and around. But my little boy has thoroughly enjoyed this toy’s features since he could barely stand. And there’s nothing like a toy that lasts through several developmental stages.

He loves hitting the handle to play the music that goes through a round of tunes and stops, only to be started again when touched. As he got older, he learned how to spin properly: holding on to the handle while pulling himself in a circle with his lower body.

Then one day last fall, he laid down on his stomach and spun himself around - legs stretched and toes pointed - while pushing off the floor with his hand for speed. His daddy and I are certain it could be a new Olympic event.

The Playskool Sit n Spin was used when we got it, and it hardly has a scratch. It’s durable, lightweight, and I’ve yet to change the batteries after owning this toy for over two years.

Spin on baby, spin on.

• Sit N Spin at the Hasbro Website

Buy Sit N Spin Online:

• at Amazon.com

I’m horrified to admit it, but I have not one, not two, not even three, but four of these old school musical clocks haunting my days. Two are in fact vintage models (along with the expected chipped facings, peeled-off decorations and questionable tunes) and two are the recently released Fisher Price retro-nouveau offerings.

Both models are basically identical, though of course with chunks of wood falling off of the older versions, I hesitate to let kids play with them. The new versions are made of plastic, and so are more durable, if a little less charming. The basic idea behind the clocks/music boxes is that you wind them up with the knob on the back, and as they play the tune (supposedly “Grandfather’s Clock” - and yes, I looked that up) the pictures on the front rotate to show what a child would be doing at different times of the day.

Overall, it’s nice to see an older toy come back for a younger generation. It’s also awesome to find a toy that doesn’t rely on batteries to keep kids entertained. That said, however, it isn’t exactly a toy that will hold your child rapt for hours at a time. It also won’t miraculously teach them to tell time, though it’s a great tool for you to use together towards that end. The one gripe I have with this toy is that the hour hand doesn’t always move in proportionate time to the minute hand. Admittedly, I’m probably doing something wrong, but if you want to use this to help kids learn to tell time, it can be a little annoying.

Buy the Fisher Price Classic Clock Online:

• at Back to Basics Toys
• at Target