magnatiles....fill me in...

[boilermakermom]

i know magnatiles get a lot of love on the boards...but i haven't actually seen/played with them. the closest i can relate is the educational aides my high school geometry teacher used....

what exactly are they? purpose? how do you play with them? best place to purchase? DD birthday is coming up, and her grandmother has a budget of around $100 for a gift. I am having a hard time coming up with a purposeful gift....other than games, books, puzzles or an AG doll.

[BunnyBee]

How old is your DD?

They're a building toy. If you have a Lakeshore Learning store in your area, you can see them in person.

[boilermakermom]

she is turning 5. we don't have a Lakeshore Learning nearby.

[alirebco]

Independent toy stores have them too. My kids build towers, make houses or garages for their toys, do color games and shapes out of them.

[crl]

My kids use them pretty much like they use blocks. They don't really use them in 3-D . They weren't worth the money for us--I know that a lot of people love them.

Catherine

[westwoodmom04]

My kids love them; hands down played with more than any other toy we've bought. We have a hundred piece set and a 30 piece set (just the larger set is fine for one or tow kids). They use them like blocks but they are so much better because the magnets make the structures stick together. Your dd is definitely in the right age group for them, my kids used them from age 3-7.

[WatchingThemGrow]

My DC use them every.single.day. We've now got 300/3 DC, and they create all kinds of structures. The most amazing one last month was over 6 feet tall, created by cousins ranging from 4 to 10.

[keh602]

We have 200+ Magna-Tiles that are well-loved by every member of the family. Just tonight we were building on top of our new light table, and it was awesome! My kids are 7, 3, and 1, and while they use them differently, they all have fun with them.

[squimp]

All I can say is get them, they are the best toy we ever for us. My dd started by building towers with them when she was 4, now at 9 she builds little houses for her stuffed animals. Every child that comes over loves to play with them and they are still played with at least once a week. I got the clear colored set. I love playing with them too.

[geochick]

My oldest (9) still plays with these weekly. I need to get more. We've had them since he was a toddler. They're worth every penny.

[barkley1]

DS got some for his bday last weekend and they are a hit. Has anyone ever had any luck finding preowned ones? I have scoured ebay and Craigslist with no luck.

[TwinFoxes]

I was keeping my fingers crossed when I bought these last Christmas. DDs LOVE them. They never cared all that much for Duplos, but they use the Magnatiles every day. I think they're fun too!

[SnuggleBuggles]

Start with the $50 set. It was enough for us. Ds2 just adores them. He got them when he turned 4 and they get daily use. Them + Imaginext= great travel toys (small, fun, open ended).

[IansMom]

My 4 year old DS is a builder (loves Legos, K'nex, wooden blocks) , but he isnt really into Magnatiles. We have the smallest set and he also has access to them at his preschool but he plays with them maybe once a month. Thankfully, I found our set in a discount store so I didnt invest much.

[georgiegirl]

My kids play with them often. They make mazes for hex bugs, garages for matchbox cars, houses for small Scheich animals, etc.