Melissa & Doug Magnetic Chalk Dry Erase Board Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Looks like an ideal gift for preschoolers, but after purchasing this for my niece, I realize it has significant limitations.
First - the good: It's a chalkboard, a whiteboard, and has magnetic alphabet letters - what more would you want for your 3 or 4 year old? Plenty here to keep your child occupied doing all kinds of different, creative things.
Now, the bad: First, there isn't a place to put the marker and the chalk when not in use. Not too bad if your kiddo is sitting on the kitchen floor, but can be a disaster if he or she is sitting on the carpet. The natural inclination of children is to set everything down (even if the marker top is off - which it usually is). This also becomes a problem if your artist has just drawn a wonderful picture on the whiteboard side and flips it over to draw with chalk on the other side (whiteboard side face down on carpet - you get the picture). Yikes!
Second, the age range mentioned above is for 3 - 6 year olds - which I think is stretching it by a few years. Most 5 and 6 year olds are already in school and aren't satisfied with just playing with the magnetic letters. They are much more interested in making words to show mom and dad, and find it frustrating when they only have one of each letter. The letters also disappear all over the house, showing up on many magnetic surfaces - significantly reducing the ability to make any words at all.
Another note of caution - don't expect to use this in the car. Seems like a great idea, but it is a little large for that, and as there isn't a storage space for the accesssories - they all end up going between the car seats - argh!
I know this review seemed mostly negative which wasn't what I really intended - but I felt parents should be aware of some of the negatives, as well as the positives, before purchasing!

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A+ Childsupply Table Easel Review

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(More customer reviews)While this product has the potential to be a study and high quality product, the one I received was poorly constructed. There were three problems with mine. The board on top was warped a little, creating a not so good looking seam with the side boards. The second problem is the white board installation. It was installed with bubbles under it. I'm assuming it was glued and they didn't work the bubbles out. It's really annoying to draw on the bubbles. I plan to eventually replace this with a white board insert with one of my own. The third and most annoying problem was that the bolts were too short to put the unit together. I had to drill out the holes so that the bolts could sit below the surface of the wood and be long enough. It's possible the bolts were correct to begin with and that they just forgot to drill the holes properly. Either way, I was in the garage with a drill on Christmas day. I would have returned the unit had it not been Christmas morning and my son wanted to play with it. I also had the hassle of returning online purchases. If you can get one without these problems, I'd recommend you get one. They are study units. Just make sure to check it out and plan to return it if it's messed up.

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F8154 Features: -Tabletop easel. -Made of strong and durable birch plywood. -For children ages 2 and up. -Dry erase board on one side and a chalkboard on the other. -Includes a ledge on each side to hold supplies. -Space saving design for young artists. -High quality for use in schools, daycares or homes. -One year manufacturer's warranty. -Assembly required.

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Crayola Dry Erase Activity Center Review

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(More customer reviews)Fabulous toy and Crayola has great customer service. My children love doodling and now writing on this toy.
But, don't make the mistake of using other dry erase brand markers on this surface though as you may find that it does not want to come off! I made this mistake as I could not find these markers at a store (as another reviewer mentioned, these markers are difficult to find.) We used an Expo dry erase and another brand that I had bought from Target and they did not come off. We tried dish soap and rubbing alcohol and a lot of elbow grease. Then I read on the internet that someone suggested draw over the area that you want to erase and erase immediately.
What worked for us ultimately is drawing over the lines that would not erase with a newish Crayola dry erase marker, one that had lots of ink in it, and then using the eraser to wipe it off. We had to do this many times before the other dry erase lines were removed. Now you can't see the lines anymore.
We found that you can use the Crayola dry erase markers on this product and other true dry erase boards but you can't use other brand markers on this plastic surface - the ink is absorbed into the plastic.


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Crayola Crayola Dry-Erase Activity Center 98-8630 Dry Erase Boards

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Alex 26 " Wall Easel With Paper Roll Review

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(More customer reviews)I got two of these for my classroom at church. They are wonderful and the kids love them. They went on the wall perfectly, wipe off easily and appear well built and sturdy. My only complaint is that the paper cutter goes across the bottom. This seems like a great idea until you get the kids painting and they are ready to make another one. Then you realize the paper cutter is useless because you can't feed the wet painted paper through it to rip it off. It would be a better design if it was at the top with just a slip across the bottom to hold the paper down. I'm going to have my husband use his drill to move it to it's functional. If not for this, this would be the best invention ever! Great space saver!

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Every artist needs their workspace, and this beautifully screen printed, hanging easel features a colorful dot motif and blue chalkboard center. Includes a paper roll (12" x 100'), holder, safety cutter, and 3 colorful cups to hold paints or supplies. A perfect addition to any child's room or play area.

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