Great Conversation starters (and a giveaway!!)

I love to talk and have conversations, and I think it is great to encourage good conversation for our kids/teens. I was really excited to hear that Around the Table Games came out with more conversation starter sets, which were created and inspired by kids, for kids. Beth Daniels, owner of Around The Table Games, first created “Family Talk” and “Grandparent Talk," which have won many awards, including a 2008 iParenting Media Outstanding Product Award, a Top 10 Puzzles & Logical Thinking Games from Dr. Toy’s 100 Best Children’s Products of 2008, the Grandkids Gift Guide 2008 Superproduct Award, the National Parenting Center 2008 Fall Seal of Approval and a Teachers’ Choice for the Family Award 2009.
There are three new versions of the game, Camp Talk, Buddy Talk, and Teen Talk. I really like the ring of conversation cards. Kids can clip this to their backpack or jeans, and have a way to enjoy great conversations with their friends. It really encourages great topics, and ones that kids care about. There are 50 cards in each set.

Camp Talk – Gather around and make new friends with…Camp Talk! Perfect gift for kids heading off to camp or for family camping trips! Camp Talk is the perfect way to get to know new camp friends on the bus to camp, in the bunk after lights-out or around the campfire while eating s’mores! It’s also a great way to learn fun things about your family! Just draw a card, read one of the 50 cool questions and let the fun begin! The handy flashlight and compass allow you to navigate your way back to your campsite or cabin for some fun, late night conversations! Ages 7+, MSRP $7.99. Here’s a small sample of the questions included in Camp Talk:
- What's the funniest or most unusual nickname for a counselor you’ve heard? - If you wrote your own campfire song, what would it be about?- Name a place you feel you can really be yourself.

Nathaniel has had a great time asking his friends questions from the Buddy Talk - he says it is fun learning more about his friends, and finding out what they think. He likes to ask his neighbor friend questions while waiting for the bus, and asking his friends questions at school. Ages 7+, MSRP $7.99. Here’s a small sample of the questions included in Buddy Talk:
- What's your favorite thing about summer break?- If you could have picked your own name, what would it be?- What is the funniest trick your pet can do?
Teen Talk – A fun way for teens to really get to know their friends! This set of diverse questions is sure to spark some colorful conversations among teens! The cool carabiner clip attaches to backpacks, sports bags or overnight bags for fun conversations anytime! MSRP $7.99. Here’s a small sample of the questions included in Teen Talk:
- What is one thing you couldn’t live without?- What influences you the most?- What is the weirdest dream you’ve ever had?- Do you think guys/girls act or talk differently online than they do in person? Why?- What would be the title of YOUR autobiography?

Also new for 2009, Around The Table Games is offering a double-deck tin with full playing-card-sized Family Talk and Grandparent Talk decks. Makes a great addition to any family gathering or game night. Each tin comes with 200 conversation cards. MSRP $19.99
Around the Table Games is rolling out “new and improved” cards for Family Talk, Family Talk 2 and Grandparent Talk. All cards will be larger playing-card-sized, made from heavier paper stock with rounded edges and equipped with a circular carabiner for easier flipping. MSRP on each 100 card set is $9.99.

ABOUT AROUND THE TABLE GAMES
Creator and owner of Around the Table games, Beth Daniels was blessed to have her grandparents and great-grandparents in her life for decades. Over the years, she realized that the more she learned about them, the better she understood herself. As an Occupational Therapist, wife and mother of two, Daniels understands all too well how active lives and busy schedules can prevent families from sharing the anecdotes and folklore that make a family a family. That’s why she created Family Talk and Grandparent Talk games as a fun way for families to reconnect.
What began as a business of bringing families together through conversation has now brought the Daniels family together through entrepreneurship! Beth’s 9-year-old daughter saw and heard the impact that her mom’s games had on peoples’ lives, so she decided to write some games of her own. Thanks to Beth’s daughter’s hard work, in 2009, Around the Table added Buddy Talk (for tweens) and Camp Talk (for kids going away to camp) to its line of conversation games. The family involvement continued as Beth’s niece wrote Teen Talk - a conversation game designed for Teens!

I just think it is great that Around The Table Games have created this great resource for kids to be encouraged to talk to each other. With the rave of video games, TV~ well, media in general, it is great that there is something that will help kids connect and learn from each other.

Around The Table Games has offered to sponsor a giveaway to my readers! You can choose which one of these games you would like to win. This contest is open to USA addresses, and will end on June 22, 2009. There is a new way to enter for this contest: Tell me in the comments what is a creative question you would like to ask your child/teen, or friends while camping? You can get extra entries by: "Following" the company's Twitter page and/or become a "Fan" of their Public Profile on Facebook. More chances to win: blog this contest, add my button to your page, subscribe to sassyfrazz, follow me on twitter, visiting/commenting everyday, commenting on other posts, etc. Just leave separate comments for each "extra credit" you do, so you can get the credit.