A whole stack of fun (The First Years Stacking Rings)

Member Name: anwar7

Product:	The First Years Stacking Rings
Date:	29/01/04 (100 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: See review

Disadvantages: none

What are they?
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Most people reading this will know what stacking rings are, but for those who do not they are rings of different sizes, and colours, with a hole in the middle, which allows them to be fitted in size order onto a vertical pole
There are numerous different versions of this toy available but all have the same concept. When my son was 6 months old he was given a beautiful set made by Lamaze. The set consisted of 4 fabric rings each one a different vibrant colour. The base consisted of a soft fabric pole on a square base. The rings each had a hidden sound and were really tactile .At first he enjoyed chewing on the rings and waving them around to make the different sounds. Now he is able to fit them in correct size order onto the pole. This set is available from John Lewis and costs£12.99 I thought it would be helpful to review some of the sets available so have spent some time wondering around toy shops and asking friends for their opinions. My list is by no means exhaustive but hopefully will be useful for those of you looking to decide which set to buy.

1. For the very young I would recommend the soft fabric version of this toy. In addition to the Lamaze version I have reviewed above, Galt also make a lovely stacking chicken in bright colours it costs around £13 and is available from John Lewis, mail order express, alders and numerous other toy retailers. Soft fabric stacking rings are great for babies and young children as they are easy to hold, soft to chew and safe for little ones with little hand control as they don?t hurt when you accidentally hit yourself on the head!

2 .For those who like wooden toys there is plenty of choice. I liked the E.L.C version, which has 7, rings in different colours. There is a ball, which fits on top of the rings when they have been stacked correctly. This toy costs £8.00,good value I think.

3. D.K.L makes 2 wooden versions of this toy. One a giant set consisting of 8 rin
gs costs £20.00And a smaller one which is a more affordable £9.00 also with 8 rings. I have only been able to examine the cheaper version, which appeared well made in brightly coloured hard wood. This toy is available from Mail order express and John Lewis.

4.Plan toys also make stacking rings in different coloured hardwood. This version is very similar to the one sold in E.L.C and has a ball, which fits onto the top. The plan version costs £10.99 and is again available in John Lewis

5.Stacking rings are also available in plastic .I bought a set of plastic stacking rings from a car boot sale about a year ago. These consist of 7 different coloured rings, which fit onto a plastic white vertical pole-not nearly as nice as the fabric or wooden versions but a good cheap alternative. I only paid 50p but the E.L.C sell basic plastic stacking rings for £6.00.

6.For his first birthday my son was given a set of fisher price stacking rings. These consist of a plastic pole with 4 star shaped rings each a different colour with added sparkle. On top is a round smiley yellow face. The base is rounded to allow it to rock. When the rings are put onto the pole lights flash, when the head is fitted a tune plays. There are several different tunes, which made it more interesting.
The verdict
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My son loves his stacking rings .At first he enjoyed the texture of the fabric rings chewing them and learning how to shake them to make sounds. Later he was able to fit the rings onto the pole albeit in a haphazard order. Now he can fit the rings in the correct order and is beginning to learn his colours. The musical version is now a favourite toy and he gains great satisfaction from working out the correct order to fit the star shapes and loves to watch the lights flashing. My older son enjoys trying to throw the plastic rings over the pole!

I think stacking rings are a really good inexpensive toy. They help to teach hand eye co-ordinati
on, colour recognition, decision-making and early mathematical concepts. We have also used this toy to count. But most importantly stacking rings are FUN!!! I would suggest that stacking rings are suitable for children from 9 months until 3 years old, although my 6 year old like to play with them too!







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