Important Advisory:

We are now requiring companies to provide us with documentation that their products have been tested by an independent lab for phthalates and lead.
Please click here for submission requirements for new products. However, as we are not a lab, we will not be independently verifying those results. Also, with the exception of the 2008 Platinum Toy Awards, toys submitted for review prior to January 2008 were not tested for lead.

Instructions for submitting product to the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio for review.

Contact the Toyportfolio @ (212) 598-0502 or by email at Webmaster@Toyportfolio.com.

Copyright 1995-2008. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio - All Rights Reserved. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award, and Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Blue Chip Award are Registered Trademarks of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio.

Early School Years Games and Tools

During the early grades, writing and reading go hand in hand. It's a sort of chicken-egg deal - one skill builds on the other.  Keep in mind, not everything needs to be high-tech.

Problem Solving

( KNEX $$99.99$ ) The wow-wee set of the season, this ball run is over five feet tall when completed (which will require some adult assistance). Comes with more than 1350 pieces, so not for the meek builders! Four D batteries power the fan that propels the plastic balls through a maze of tubing, and traditional Knex pieces! A fun parent–child project for those who love to build. Age: Late School Years, Tweens. Phone: (800) 543-5639. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award 2005

( Lego Systems, Inc. $$29.99$/719 pieces ) The large red T-Rex that you can build with this set is "amazing looking." Our experienced builders warned: "It's very delicate and could break easily." Set comes with instructions for 10 creatures. Marked 7 & up, we’d say more like 9 & up. About Titan XP ($49.99/782 pieces ) from the same series, our tester wrote "wow, there are a lot of pieces!" Builds a 14"-tall creature that swivels at the waist—but he too is very fragile. (800) 223-8756. Age: Early School Years, Late School Years. Phone: 800 453 4652. Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award 2005

( WowWee $$99$ ) Our eleven-year-old testers were thrilled with this programmable 14'-high black-and-white robot that walks, dances, picks up and tosses objects, and delivers karate chops! Not designed for instantaneous gratification--there's a manual that involves reading and thinking to make things happen. Marked 6 & up, we'd say better for 9 & up. (514) 344-1250. Age: Late School Years. Phone: . Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Award 2005