Holiday gifts

Many children will be asking for holiday gifts this time of year. A few suggestions with a teacher's bias:

• reading books
• coloring books
• activity books (word searches, crosswords, sudoku, etc.)
• games that build strategy (Connect Four, Trouble, Checkers, Sorry, Uno; some children may be ready for Battleship or Rummikub)
• games that build counting skills (Candyland, Chutes and Ladders)

Many games also have a Jr. version for younger children, like Monopoly, Clue, Boggle, and Scrabble. I'm a fan of anything that gets kids' minds and bodies active!