Flipover!
(ThinkFun $19.99 Score:)

Deal the cards and place on card in the Barnyard flipper. First player hits the flipper and that reveals half an animal. Players look at their cards. One player will have the other half of the animal and place it on the barn. Now, that player flips the card and reveals the next animal half. Play continues until one player uses up all of his cards. This can be played by 2-6 players. The name of the animal is printed on both halves for another form of matching. But this is a game that can be played by pre-readers and helps them see part whole relationships as well as learning to take turns. It's fast enough so that players get lots of chances to win a round. Testers liked the action of the card flipper, although sometimes the cards need a little straightening. 4 & up.

Age: Preschool, Early School Years. Award Year: 2010. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.

Goodnight Moon Game
(Briarpatch $19.95 Score:) This utterly simple, but right on the mark, game features illustrations from M.W. Brown's classic GOODNIGHT MOON. Children take turns picking and matching cards with pictures on their lotto-style playing boards. There's no reading or counting, but this is good for developing language and recalling the story many kids can recite. 1-4 players. 2 and a half and up. SNAP INFO: A charming matching game that features illustrations from M.W. Brown's classic GOODNIGHT MOON. Children take turns picking and matching cards with pictures on their lotto-style playing boards. There's no reading or counting, but this is good for talking about what's happening in the pictures. 1-4 players.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 1999.

Finders Keepers Game
(International Playthings $16.99 Score:) Players draw three small picture cards and race to be the first to find matching object on the playing board. Winner is first to find 15 objects. Don't be put off by the graphics on the box. The game illustrations are clear and not cartoonist. His is a challenging matching game that enlarged vocabulary, too. For two-four players. 4-8.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2002.

Touch N Play Lotto
(Guidecraft $32 Score:) SNAP INFO: Four wooden playing boards and matching Lotto pieces have raised textured shapes for sensory feedback through the fingertips. This is an excellent choice for children with visual disabilities. (800) 544-6526.

Age: Preschool,Early School Years. Award Year: 2000.

eeBoo Color Dominoes
(eeBoo $12.95 Score:) Handsomely designed sturdy cardboard set of dominoes that focuses on colors and matching shapes (stars, moon, train, heart, blueberries) rather than traditional numbers or dots. The company has signed a verification form complying with our safety requirements. We did not independently test this toy in a lab.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2004.

eeBoo I Never Forget A Face Memory Game
(eeBoo $12.95 Score:) Our almost-five-year-old tester proclaimed this the best memory and matching game ever (after resoundingly beating his grandma in several rounds). Features illustrated faces of kids from around the world. A classic concentration game for a new generation. 3 & up. The company has signed a verification form complying with our safety requirements. We did not independently test this toy in a lab.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2005.

IQ Preschool Around the Blocks
(Small World Toys $25 Score:) A high-quality set of 26 blocks with upper and lowercase letters, plus images to match the letters. All store in a big cloth bag. SNAP Activity: Use these blocks for playing sound games. Put blocks with three distinctive sounds in sight. Ask child to find the block that has the same sound as the word you say. (800) 421-4153.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2005.

eeBoo Tea Party Game
(eeBoo $15 Score:) Our three-and-a-half-year-old tester loved the big playing pieces and the tablecloth that add to the pretend part of this simple game. Players use a spinner to collect the pieces of the tea set needed for their party. There are no skills involved in this luck-of-the-draw game. Graphics are beautiful and the game is on target for the preschool set. Picnic Game ($15 5) uses the same idea with a few ants thrown into the mix! Both are winners! 3 & up. (212) 222-0823. The company has signed a verification form complying with our safety requirements. We did not independently test this toy in a lab.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2007.

eeBoo Preschool Numbers Memory Game
(eeBoo $12.95 Score:) Two sets of thick cardboard number cards to match by color, image, and numbers in this 1-10 matching game. Aside from the concentration game, played with these good-sized cards, there is a lot to talk about and count on each of the cards. 3 & up. The company has signed a verification form complying with our safety requirements. We did not independently test this toy in a lab.

Age: Preschool. Award Year: 2008.

Rainbow Race
(International Playthings $18 Score:)

Each player gets playing pieces that are the colors of the rainbow. A card is drawn that shows the colors in different order. Players race to stack their colors to match the rainbow card. This is a game that calls for visual memory, sequencing and speed, not to mention dexterity. They say 3 & up, we think this would be challenging but fun for older 4’s-7.
        The company has signed a verification form complying with our safety requirements. We did not independently test this toy in a lab.
 

Age: Preschool, Early School Years. Award Year: 2009. Click here to purchase the product on Amazon.com.