MBP's Back to School Blast

We've been having a fabulous summer, and it's almost sad to see it coming to an end. In just a few shorts weeks, classrooms will once again be filled with students, eager to learn more about the wonders of the world. As a mom of a 2-year-old, I'm not expecting moments of genius, but he surprises me every day, with what he observes and remembers. With that in mind, I have tried to get my hands on some of the best educational products for us to enjoy as we play and learn at home.

I have heard a lot about Lakeshore Learning, and their educational toys and products for children of all ages. Lakeshore's story dates back to 1954, when its founder, Ethelyn Kaplan, a single mom, packed up her kiddos and headed out west, so she could open up a toy store. Talk about taking a chance! This was a bit of an unconventional move during that time. Ms. Kaplan started out by selling toys to parents, but soon enough, she was receiving calls from teachers and schools, asking for supplies for their classrooms. So, Ms. Kaplan listened, as she saw the need increase for these types of products. She began Lakeshore Learning Materials. Ms. Kaplan's sons and two grandsons now head up this ever-growing company, keeping their business all in the family.

I was very excited for the opportunity to select an age-appropriate educational and summer learning products for my son. Lakeshore Learning has an incredible selection of age-appropriate learning toys and tools for toddlers, and I knew I would find something that Balian would not only enjoy using, but that would stimulate his little mind.

Our package from Lakeshore- with their cute little logo...

This little summer learner couldn't wait to see what was in the box!

Our package from Lakeshore, protected by air pillows during shipping...

I chose to review the Big, BIG, Bigger Magnifiers from Lakeshore. I noticed that Balian had taken an interest in my mom and dad's magnifying glasses on display at their house, a few weeks ago, and thought that this would be a wonderful teaching tool for us to use in our own home!

The Big, BIG, Bigger set of three Magnifiers from Lakeshore...

Our package also included a full product catalog, which I couldn't wait to look through!

Big, BIG, Bigger Magnifiers from Lakeshore... each magnifying glass was individually wrapped for protection.

Balian was so excited when we opened up this set of preschool magnifying glasses! With this fun set of three sturdy, colorful magnifiers, little explorers can get an up-close and personal view of the world around them, as well as make size comparisons. The magnifiers have a super thick lens, and magnify up to 3x, 5x, and 8x an item's original size! Wow!

Balian immediately picked up the blue magnifier (3x) to check out the Lakeshore catalog, and exclaimed how big the pictures were!

The magnifiers are just the right size for little hands, and are thick and easy to grip. They're not clunky or heavy, and they're the perfect leaning accessory to have at home or on the go! We explored with the magnifiers a bit in our house, but I knew that the real fun would be for us to get outside with the magnifiers. So, we packed them all up and headed out to our front porch to do a little looking around...

Balian took turns using all of the magnifiers, so he could see things looking Big, BIG and Bigger!

We noticed how big and pointy the edges of the cactus leaves looked on our outdoor coffee table...

...and they looked super big with the largest strength magnifier.

We spent a great deal of time outside, looking through the magnifiers at bugs, bees, butterflies, pieces of grass, flower blossoms, etc. Balian was amazed by the details he was able to see in the things he just sort of waltzes by every day, without taking much notice. We even did some experiments, where we took three of the same flowers, placed them side by side, and then looked at them through each magnifier. Balian was able to quickly identify which one was 'small,' 'medium,' and 'large,' through the magnifiers.

Balian loves this magnifying glass set from Lakeshore so much, that we have been taking at least one magnifier with us, just about everywhere we go! We've been taking them with us on car rides, over to grandma's house to explore, out in the backyard so we can look at ants, rocks, sand from the sandbox, etc.

Lakeshore has such an incredible selection of learning products that are perfect for continuing education while at home on summer break, or to have on hand as the kids head back to the classroom this fall!

Some our of favorite products available from Lakeshore Include...

Magna-Tiles

Color-pillar Magnetic Maze

Let's Go Shopping Cash Register

As a parent, I am incredibly impressed by Lakeshore and its products. I'm sure I'd be hard-pressed to find an educator who doesn't know about Lakeshore already, but if you're a teacher and you by chance haven't heard of Lakeshore before today, I encourage you to check out their products! We'll definitely be regular Lakeshore customers from here on out, as we aim to further our son's development and education at home.

Want It? Buy It!

You can discover all of the wonderful products available from Lakeshore, by shopping their website, or bu locating a Lakeshore store near you! Be sure to take advantage of Lakeshore's special Back to School sale items, and their free shipping on purchases of $79.00 or more!

Lakeshore Learning is social and would love to connect with you through Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube.

Special thanks to our friends at Lakeshore for allowing us to review this amazing educational product and share about it with our readers!