Toys“R”Us Unveils Annual Toy Guide

Offers Toy Suggestions and Safe Play Tips for Children with Special Needs

Toys“R”Us, Inc. has debuted its 2009 Toys“R”Us Toy Guide for Differently-Abled Kids, an easy-to-use toy selection guide that matches specific skill sets with a wide range of everyday playthings. Released annually since 1994, this complimentary resource is available in Toys“R”Us and Babies“R”Us stores nationwide and online, in English and Spanish, at Toysrus.com/DifferentlyAbled. Whoopi Goldberg is featured on the cover along with Grace Kurowski, a five-year-old girl from Skillman, New Jersey.

New this year, the Guide features a special section dedicated to providing critical safety tips to help parents and caregivers avoid playtime injuries. While the 2009 edition includes updated features and an enhanced website, the fundamental elements that remain family favorites year after year, like the recognizable skill-building icons, still appear in this beloved resource.

Since 1994, Toys“R”Us has partnered with the National Lekotek Center to evaluate hundreds of toys during therapeutic play sessions to determine those that best contribute to the development of children with special needs. This nonprofit organization, dedicated to making the world accessible to children of all abilities, assigns at least two skill-building characteristics to each toy selected for the Guide—such as auditory, language, social skills, creativity and so forth. Within the Guide, Lekotek also provides helpful tips for choosing developmentally appropriate toys for children with differing abilities.

Toys“R”Us, Inc. has a long history of supporting the special needs community through the Toys“R”Us Children's Fund, a public charity affiliated with the company. Organizations which receive support include the American Society for Deaf Children, Autism Speaks, Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Muscular Dystrophy Association, National Down Syndrome Society, National Lekotek Center, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, National Organization of Parents of Blind Children, Special Olympics, Spina Bifida Association and United Cerebral Palsy.


The text above is excerpted from the Toys“R”Us press release announcing the launch of the 2009 guide. Read the full text of the press release here. View the microsite here.