EUROPE

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(StatePoint) In the warm weather months, you can keep toddlers and preschoolers engaged with these great learning toys and games perfect for the season:

Chalk it up: With just a colorful set of washable, toddler-safe chalk, your child can create their own artwork on any sidewalk or patio. Or, draw a hopscotch or four square court for active playtime that builds coordination.

Travel inspiration: Inspire kids who are ready to go places with LeapFrog’s 100 Words About Places I Go bilingual learning book. Featuring age-appropriate words, this interactive book teaches about people and objects in 12 unique places in both English and Spanish. Go to the beach in any season and discover words in two languages about things to bring and surprises to find. The school, the park, the farm, the amusement park and more locations can light up your child’s world and spur their imagination.

Obstacle course: Transform the backyard into an amazing obstacle course. Toys you have on hand such as hula hoops, Frisbees and bean bags can be used to create different components of the course.

Ice cream fun: By pretending to run their own ice cream cart, kids can create a variety of imaginative and tasty-looking ice cream combinations. And the Scoop & Learn Ice Cream Cart helps them build memory and sequencing skills, as it comes with six cute animal order cards that encourage little ones to follow the instructions. The cart also features playful phrases to introduce colors, numbers and flavors, and plays upbeat songs and music when pushed.

• Pretend picnic: Make learning a picnic with the Shapes & Sharing Picnic Basket. Kids can lift the lid to hear cheerful phrases and unpack the colorful plates, forks, cups and food. The interactive shape sorter on the lid recognizes the food pieces and says the shape and color of each one, encouraging kids to drop the correct food in the basket for rewarding responses.

Whether your family is at home or on the go, great games and toys help link learning with fun.

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