if it weren’t for a few small details, such as barracudas and their
teeth, jellyfish and their tentacles, crabs and their claws, it would be
an extremely cool thing to live under the sea. It would be quiet and
calm, sort of like being surrounded by a soothing New Age tape at all
times. You could find Atlantis, locate buried treasure, hang out with
mermaids, eat a lot of lobster — what could be so terrible?
Now that summer’s well under way, we all have thoughts of water dancing
in our heads. Sea, river, pool, sprinkler, you name it. So, what
better time than now to get educational about the ocean? And after all, the
ocean is very important. It covers more than two-thirds of the globe, and
contains about 97 percent of all the water on earth. The ocean floor, after
learning a bit about it, is probably not a place where anyone would want to
spend a whole lot of time.
Below 3,280 feet, it’s permanently dark, since
it’s too deep for sunlight to reach. And some of the stuff that lives down
there … take the abyssopelagic animals, for example. They’re usually
black, and they have huge mouths and stomachs that can stretch to
accommodate food that’s three times larger than they are. We’re talking
about animals like the gulper eel, which can unhinge its jaws. Not exactly
Mr. Rogers’ neighborhood.
We’ve never laid eyes on a gulper eel, and don’t intend to either, but
we’ve read about it, in The Oceans Atlas. This comprehensive,
heavily illustrated and detail-rich volume is well-suited to both kids
with inquiring minds and oceanographer wannabes. The oversized, 63-page
book by Anita Ganeri, illustrated by Luciano Corbella, could take an
entire summer to digest. ($19.95; for ages 8 and up, from DK Inc.,
888-342-5357)
Kids can of course take the direct route to becoming acquainted
with water, with no book to act as middleman. They can jump right in,
swim, splash, float, dive and snorkel. When they start asking why the
sea is blue, though, or where the salt in the water comes from, or what a
tide is, you can hand them all the answers in one box, the Exploring the
Ocean kit. It includes materials and instructions for several
experiments and activities, including creating a seascape, experimenting
with bioluminescence and learning about oil spills. ($19.95; for ages 7
to 12, from Scientific Explorer,
800-900-1182)
This is a quiz for kids: Suppose you’re banished to a desert island with
just one toy — are you going to bring Barbie, or are you going to be
smart and pack the Castaway Message in a Bottle? Well, it all
depends on how quickly you want to be rescued. The plastic message capsule
comes with instructions and information on ocean currents and the best
times to launch a message. You’re landlocked? No problem. The company will
transcribe your message and send it for you. ($10; for ages 5 and up,
from Christensen Designs, 800-928-9111)
Returning to the ocean floor, LEGO is currently sponsoring a
contest inviting kids to create their own model of a futuristic
underwater exploration vehicle or other deep-sea-themed invention out of
(you guessed it) their omnipresent little blocks. The contest runs through
December; to enter, send in a photo and written description of the
underwater gizmo, along with an entry form. Kids are encouraged to use the
LEGO sets geared to the ocean, such as the 433-piece Deep Reef
Refuge set, part of the Divers series. The grand prize? A 12-day expedition
to Antarctica for a family of four. Break out the bricks! (Contest for
ages 5 to 12, sponsored by LEGO, 860-763-3211; forms are available at toy
stores across the country. Deep Reef Refuge Divers set, $59.99, for ages 8
to 12)
it’s not often that one is saved by crocuses, even in literature. But
that’s what happens in Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic children’s
novel, “The Secret Garden.” Mary is “as tyrannical and selfish a little
pig as ever lived,” and Colin is a spoiled semi-invalid who’s fretting
himself to death. Both are miserably unhappy children until they start
hanging out in the garden, digging and weeding and breathing the fresh air.
As the garden grows, so do the children, until both the neglected garden
and the lonely children are blooming with health and vigor. “There is
Magic in there — good Magic,” Colin says of the garden. And he’s right,
as any child who reads the book will surely conclude.
And readers inspired to claim their own patch of earth
and watch the flowers grow can begin by taking a look at The
Secret Garden Notebook, illustrated by Graham Rust, whose Victorian-style
illustrations also grace a reprint of the novel. The notebook is a
seasonally organized introduction to gardening, complete with instructions
and a log to keep track of what grows when. ($18.95 for “The Secret
Garden”; $12.95 for “The Secret Garden Notebook”; both for ages 10 and up,
from David R. Godine, 800-344-4771)
There are several great kits that teach kids the basics of gardening.
For those who don’t have access to outdoor space, the Wee Enchanted
Garden is a miniature scene in a 10-inch plastic planter. The
kit comes with dirt, grass and bean seeds; accessories include a
miniature house, rocks, plastic animals and a shell — a whole
neighborhood. You provide the windowsill. ($21.95; for ages 7 and up,
from Creativity
for Kids, 800-642-2288 ext. 3037)
For the more ambitious gardener-to-be, the Vegetable Garden and
Flower Garden both come with indoor mini-greenhouses for germinating
seeds before transplanting them to the great outdoors. These kits also
contain information booklets and activity cards. ($17 each; for ages 7
and up, from ALEX, 800-666-ALEX)
Those with the most tools will, of course, grow the largest plants.
Child-sized gardening implements do exist, and there probably isn’t
a kid alive who doesn’t lust for a watering can — not to mention a hand
trowel, hand shovel and hand rake. ($4-5 for hand tools,
$26 for watering can; for ages 4 and up, from BRIO, 888-274-6869)
For those who want to keep a close eye on what’s growing, the
Multiscope is a telescope-microscope-spectroscope kit that allows
kids a different perspective on the leaves in your backyard; it also lets
them spy on the neighbors’ gardens. The assemble-it-yourself tool
magnifies at 30X, and the telescope has a power of 4X. ($15.95; for
ages 8 and up, from Educational
Insights, 800-933-3277)
Traveling with children can make you ponder certain topics, such as: Why
aren’t you a Trappist nun? Why are rest areas so many miles apart? Why
hasn’t natural selection eliminated whining from the species? Of course,
none of these questions will even flicker across your mind if you have a
TV/VCR in your minivan, in which case you can stop reading this right now.
Although I have nothing against multimedia on wheels, it lacks the
challenge and suspense of keeping kids entertained on family vacations. For
those willing to go the distance, I’ve worked out a step-by step strategy.
Step One: A selection of good books is your first requirement for
any family vacation. Don’t even question this step. If you don’t know which
books your kids will like, or don’t have the time to choose, help is just a
phone call away. The Travel Pack is a nifty assortment of at least
five books and book-type things, such as activity books and stickers, that
are geared to a kid’s age, sex and reading ability. It can even be
customized to reflect special interests or vacation destinations, and the
version for kids under 7 comes in a backpack. ($24.99; for all ages,
from Children’s
Literature; 800-469-2070)
Step Two: Kids Travel, subtitled “a backseat survival kit,”
is a fun, goofy, absorbing book-kit that consists of games, puzzles and
projects, much of it geared (but not limited) to long car trips. In
addition to 48 pages of suggested activities (license plate bingo,
palm-reading, songs), it has a back cover that doubles as a clipboard and
triples as a penny hoops game. But wait — there’s more: a workbook full of
stuff like mazes, crosswords and instructions for drawing superheroes.
Markers, string and other necessities are included in an attached pouch.
Truly hours of fun, and maybe even minutes of quiet. ($19.95; for ages 7
and up, from Klutz; 800-558-8944)
Step Three: When you run out of ideas, the 52 Deck series
is there for the flipping-through. These eminently portable packs of cards
are geared to subjects and places. For the travel process itself, there
are 52 Fun Things to Do on the Plane (“Instead of being on your way
to visit your grandmother in Detroit, imagine you are on a top secret
adventure …”) and 52 Fun Things to Do in the Car. Once you’re at
your destination, packs range from the general, such as nature activities,
to the specific, such as adventures at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In
addition, several cities — Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New
York, San Francisco and Washington — have a pack of their own.
($6.95; for ages 6 and up, from Chronicle Books; 800-722-6657)
Step Four: One of the bummers about traveling is that you don’t
have room in your suitcase to take the whole house, or even the whole toy
chest. Thank goodness, then, for Travel Games, cute portable
versions based on popular games, including Travel Connect Four, Monopoly
Jr. Travel Game, Travel Hungry Hungry Hippos, Travel Hot Shot Baseball
and Don’t Wake Daddy Travel Game. These are not the sturdiest games
you’ll ever see, but they’re small and light. As a bonus, we suspect that
the very tiny pieces probably do a lot for hand-eye coordination. ($3.99
to $8.99; ages vary, from Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers;
413-525-6411)
Step Five: Have a great vacation!
A hundred years ago, when Toys ‘R’ Us was still a glint in God’s eye, a
boy might have kicked off the summer by making a squirt gun from a piece
of an old cane fishing pole, with a quill for a nozzle and a plunger
carved from cedar. By mid-July, he’d be hard at work, building a
scow-shaped rowboat. Come August, he’d have to guard his rowboat from
his sister, who, having wearied of applying dried starfish to brown
flannel to make curtains, would be eager to transform the rowboat into a
set of bookshelves for the family’s seaside cottage.
Our vast knowledge of children’s toys, games and activities of yore comes not from a past life (that’s another story), but from “The American Boys Handy Book” and “The American Girls Handy Book.” These books give kids a unique and fascinating glimpse of history, with their step-by-step instructions on a myriad of projects. Originally published in the 1880s and reprinted, the books are organized seasonally and devote large chunks to summer fun. ($12.95; for ages 10 and up, from David R. Godine)
While delayed gratification and working for your toys may have held
certain pleasures, the cane-and-quill squirt gun pales in comparison to
the Freeze Fazer, which is undoubtedly the most sadistic water gun
on the market today (we report this with pride). It’s all in the name –
the
roomy reservoir cup accommodates ice cubes as well as water. So when the
shooter commands the target to “freeze,” it’s meant quite literally.
And, as a friend pointed out, this toy is not without merits for
parents. On a hot day at the beach, an ice-cold swig from a water gun
can be mighty welcome. ($6.95; for ages 5 and up, from Archie McPhee, 425-745-0711)
A good grip on the trigger is essential, but so too is a firm grip on the
ground, whether it’s grass, beach or poolside, and whether said ground
is wet or dry. A tall order, but the Sports Sandal fills it, with its
water-resistant combination of rubber sneaker-like soles and cushioned,
self-adjusting straps. ($19.50; for toddlers in sizes 5-8 and for youths in
sizes 9-13 and 1-5, from Lands’ End, 800-734-KIDS)
Of course, summer isn’t only about running around and playing games.
Good things come to those who sit and sift. We’re talking about sand
castles, holes to China and their ilk. As always, the right equipment
is a must. Sure, you can get a pail and shovel just about anywhere, but
it wouldn’t be the 14-piece Sand and Water Playset. It’s got a large
pail. It’s got a small pail. It’s got a rake, a shovel, a sifter, two
trowels — it’s got things kids 100 years ago would have gladly traded
their handmade fishing rods for. ($20.50; for ages 2 and up, item
BB3280 from Battat, 800-247-6144)
