McNeill Designs: Board Games for Brighter Minds

McNeill Designs promotes country edition of 'You've Been Sentenced!' word game

Toy suppliers come to Toy Fair to sell their toys, of course, but for board/card/party game manufacturer McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds, a chance Toy Fair encounter two years ago led to a country music-themed edition of its award-winning word game You’ve been Sentenced!

“The original idea came from one of our employees in a brainstorming session,” says VP Susan McNeill. “We had quite a few other ideas, too--like wild animals/natural history, to be marketed at zoos, aquariums and museums, and a history game with a companion ‘dictionary.’”

Then CEO/chairman/inventor (and McNeill’s husband) Don McNeill met a man at Toy Fair from Nashville, who told him that if he wanted to work in the world of country music, he needed to know Music Row insider Preshias Harris.

“That really got the ball rolling,” says McNeill, crediting Harris for helping come up with the country You’ve Been Sentenced! version’s words and stars, and organize promotional trade events including an all-star tournament last June at the Hard Rock during Nashville’s Country Music Fest (won by LoCash Cowboys’ Preston Brust) and a celebrity guitar-signing.


McNeill Designs' "You've Been Sentenced! Country Music Edition"
The McNeills had first thought about merely producing a country music “Add-on Deck” of cards to go with the original You’ve Been Sentenced! sentence-building game “system,” which employs 540 cards with over 2,500 words. Geared to ages eight and up, it has extensive rule variations available at the company’s website, and can be expanded with the Add-on Decks “Gourmet Cuisine,” “Pop Culture,” “NASA Space Terminology,” “Sci-fi and Fantasy” and “Sports Highlights.”

But country music offered so much in terms of words found in traditional country, new country and crossover country/rock songs, not to mention country music artists, song titles and lyrics, that a dedicated You’ve Been Sentenced! country version was warranted. It has brought such words and phrases as “deep-fried Oreos,” “calf-roping” and “Dairy Princess” into play while enlisting the support of artists including Neal McCoy, Buddy Jewell, Ty Herndon and Brust, whose tournament-winning sentence read “Crop duster, Mark Wills, freaked out and kicked sweet Band Perry’s nervous rear end backstage!”—and is featured in the new game’s initial print run.

As in the original, players simply deal a hand of 10 cards and start to build a sentence, which is then read out loud and submitted to the other players for approval. The number of game cards and words ensures unlimited variation and replay value; a “lesson plan” is included to turn the game into a classroom teaching tool for learning grammar and sentence construction.

You’ve Been Sentenced! has won numerous awards (including Creative Child Magazine’s Seal of Excellence, and National Parenting’s Seal of Approval), and You’ve Been Sentenced! Country Music Edition has followed suit with The Dice Tower’s Seal of Approval, an honor that recognizes the best in card, word, board and role-playing games.

McNeill Designs donates a portion of sales of You’ve been Sentenced! to Success Won't Wait, Inc., a non-profit organization that helps fight illiteracy through the distribution of books.

Pike Creek couple releases new game: 'You've Been Sentenced Country Music Edition

One couple in Pike Creek can't help but view life as a game — a card game, if you will. And it's easy to understand why.

In 2005, Donald McNeill and his wife, Susan, released the sentenced-based card game "You've Been Sentenced." The game, sold nationwide at retailers including Toys"R"US and Barnes & Noble, has afforded the McNeills enough income that they no longer have to work for the man. They work for themselves.

Their company is named McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds, headquartered in a modest office (located at 1729 Marsh Road) in Wilmington. They've even hired a full-time employee and a team of 30-plus part-timers.

Considering the success of "You've Been Sentenced," the McNeills have decided to roll out a new variation of the game titled "You've Been Sentenced Country Music Edition," which was released this year.

Donald, the creator of the game and chief executive officer of McNeill Designs, said the game was birthed from the desire to give country music fans a game to call their own.

To validate the widespread popularity of country music, Donald brought up WRXP, a country radio station that's been generating national attention since it launched in January. WRXP is the first country station to land in New York City since 1996, according to CMT.com.

"New York City has not had a country music radio station in a long time and one finally opened up," smiled Donald.

"One of the biggest stars out there [in all of music] is Taylor Swift," added Susan, vice president of public relations for McNeill Designs. "Country music is so hot right now."

RULES OF THE GAME

"You've Been Sentenced Country Music Edition" is for audiences aged eight and older. Three to 10 players can play the game. Everyone draws 10 cards, which are pentagonal-shaped. The game features 540 cards and each has five words (one on each side of the card) that are related to country music. An example of words on a single card are: smoked, smoky, smokes, smokiest and smoke.
Once you receive your cards, players are tasked with stacking them on their others to form sentences. Players aren't required to use all 10 cards, since sentences can be any length. One of the words on each card is worth 10 points, while the rest are worth five. The name of the game is to outscore your opponents by creating the wittiest sentences.

The fun and plot thickens if you have to read your sentence aloud and justify why it makes sense. At this point, the rest of the players become the jury and get to vote thumbs-up or thumbs-down on whether your sentence is legit enough to score points.

WHERE TO FIND THE GAME

"You've Been Sentenced Country Music Edition" is sold at all Barnes & Noble and Toys"R"US stores. Nearby Barnes & Noble locations include the Concord Mall (4801 Concord Pike, Wilmington) and Christiana Mall (340 Christiana Mall, Newark). The game is also available online at Amazon.com and McNeilldesigns.com. Retail price online is $29.95; in-store prices may vary.

You've been Sentenced! country music edition receives The Dice Tower Seal of Approval, 2013

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game, Country Music Edition was recently recognized with The Dice Tower’s Seal of Approval, an honor that recognizes the best of the best in card, word, board and role playing games. The review and evaluation were conducted by toy and game expert and The Dice Tower’s editor Tom Vassel.
Since 2005, The Dice Tower has helped share important information about the wide world of exciting new board games through video reviews, an audio show, Top 10 Lists, Seal of Approval Awards, and more.
To see podcast episodes, read reviews, or enjoy Top 10 Lists and The Dice Tower Hall of Fame, visit The Dice Tower at http://www.dicetower.com/

McNeill Designs Releases Multi Award-winning You've been Sentenced! Word Game Country Music Edition!

Recognized by both toy and game industry experts, as well as by numerous educational organizations, McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds' You've been Sentenced! word game is now available in a country music edition. The new version of the game adds fun (and often funny) words found in traditional country, new country and crossover country/rock songs.
Since its release, the You've been Sentenced! game has drawn overwhelming positive reviews from children, parents and educators alike and is a fun and memorable tool to help understand, construct and deliver a complete sentence in a competitive and fun way.
You've been Sentenced! is the recipient of an impressive list of 20+ awards and honors since its introduction to the marketplace including: Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Gold Seal Award, iParenting Media, Hot Product Award, Creative Child Magazine, Seal of Excellence, National Parenting, Seal of Approval, Mensa Parenting for High Potential, Hot Product and many more.
Game play for the You've been Sentenced Country Music Edition mirrors the perennially popular original game, but now words and phrases like deep-fried Oreos, calf-roping and Dairy Princess make creating sentences even more fun for children... and adults!
Founded in 2004, McNeill Designs launched into the marketplace with a series of innovative board, card, and party games including its flagship product, the word game, You've been Sentenced! Following up its success the education game company added the multi award-winning memory game Twisted Fish, You've been Sentenced! Country Music Edition, as well as a number of You've been Sentenced! themed add-on decks including the most recent addition, the NASA Space Terminology Deck.

You’ve been Sentenced! word game receives 2013 Family Review Center Seal of Approval
Family Review Center has been serving families and businesses since 2000, with the mission to connect families with the latest and greatest products to hit the market. Here’s what the professionals at the Family Review Center had to say about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game:
“This one you have just GOT to try!!! What fun was had tonight!!! I love word games – always have. From Scrabble on up, I love them all. And when you mix in some of the zany parts of this game, it makes it all the more fun!
A game that can be played by all of the family ages 8 and up (pssst our 7 yr old can play just fine, so try it with the younger ones if you like and see how they do) … but everyone enjoyed it and we had a lot of laughs.
Easy game to learn – Fast game to play – Fun game to play – again, and again and again!
…wacky reasoning is what makes it so much fun! Use your imagination and let it roll.”

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine names the You’ve been Sentenced! word game an Educational Games' Top Pick
“You’ve been Sentenced! (mcneilldesigns.com) by McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds is among my top picks for educational games for homeschool children. It was fun, engaging and overflowing with learning opportunities for kids 8 years old and up. (Adults loved it too!)

This game was easy to understand and included everything a homeschool mom could want; language skills in grammar, senetcne structure, vocabulary, and spelling. It was so much fun; our test group of kids didn’t want to stop playing…”

Time to Play Magazine is one of the most highly trafficked family-friendly websites out there -- the go-to spot for information, entertainment, and services on everything fun for children!
The Time to Play team scours the world, looking at the newest and most exciting toys, video games, and entertainment products (like the You’ve been Sentenced! word game!) and play tests every toy, game and children’s product that they review.
Time to Play 's eview of the You've been Sentenced! word game:
“You’ve Been Sentenced! is a fun word game that challenges players to build some creative but grammatically correct sentences. It’s a great game to play in the classroom to help children use various parts of speech and judging grammatical correctness. But it’s also a lot of fun to play with family and friends at home. It’s hilarious to hear the sentences that everyone else comes up with.”

Expert Carolann Henderson names best games for homeschooling parents including #1 pick -- the You’ve been Sentenced! word game

Expert Carolann Henderson — a homeschooling mom, website editor and researcher – says:
“One of the advantages to homeschooling is the ability to make learning fun. Most children do not enjoy being lectured at, but respond remarkably well when you take the time to talk to them and create unique lessons that do not feel like schoolwork. One creative option is the use of homeschool games to judge how well a child is grasping new material and to ensure that they are able to apply new skill sets…
You should select games that will capture the interest of your children and the lessons you are trying to teach, but these five games are favorites for many other homeschooling parents:
1. You’ve Been Sentenced!: Hilarious, yet educational, game that even adults will enjoy.
2. Sum Swamp: A board game that teaches basic math skills.
3. CriticalThinking.com: Look for their “mind benders” books for all grade levels.
…You can use homeschool games to supplement lessons you are teaching in your home classroom, but you can also use them in creative ways. For instance, why not officially declare every Friday game day? Rotate the games available as your children progress to different grade levels, and do nothing but play educational games all day. You may also have a “game hour” at the end of every school day. Children get to end the day with laughter, but they will still be learning.”

How to disguise learning as fun? “Tutoring to Excellence in Education” suggests using educational games in the classroom like You’ve been Sentenced!

Dr. Robert Muller is an experienced and well-published author, teacher and researcher who has been teaching and conducting research in the university sector since 1993. In addition, Robert has been teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) since 1984 in a range of different cultures, including Turkey, Italy, England and Australia.
This morning, a visit to his site “Tutoring to Excellence in Education” yielded a great article by Carol Henderson entitled “The Best Homeschool Games: Disguise Learning As Fun.”
Here’s a brief excerpt:

“One of the advantages to homeschooling is the ability to make learning fun.

Most children do not enjoy being lectured at, but respond remarkably well when you take the time to talk to them and create unique lessons that do not feel like schoolwork. One creative option is the use of homeschool games to judge how well a child is grasping new material and to ensure that they are able to apply new skill sets…

Top 5 Homeschool Games

You should select games that will capture the interest of your children and the lessons you are trying to teach, but these five games are favorites for many other homeschooling parents:

1. You’ve Been Sentenced!: Hilarious, yet educational, game that even adults will enjoy.
2. Sum Swamp: A board game that teaches basic math skills.
3. CriticalThinking.com: Look for their “mind benders” books for all grade levels.
4. The Scrambled States of America: A board game that teaches placement of the states.
5. BananaGrams: The learning version of Scrabble that can be used to create homemade homeschool games.”

To read this article in its entirety, please visit Tutoring to Excellence in Education.

WikiHow offers tips on improving children’s writing skills including using the You’ve been Sentenced! word game

WikiHow is the comprehensive guide on “how to do anything.” Today, WikiHow offers suggestions on How to Improve Your Child’s Creative Writing Skills including using the You’ve been Sentenced! game to help children learn to construct sentences.

Here’s a brief excerpt:

“The ability to write well is vitally important to do well in school and in a career, as many jobs require writing, even if only to communicate via email.

Traditionally, little teaching of creative writing has been done until the upper elementary grades, and even then, it often takes a back seat to other subjects. It is possible, though, to improve your child’s creative writing skills through encouragement, supporting the teacher’s efforts at home, and teaching some writing skills yourself. The following steps provide you with ideas and methods to help make your child a better writer…

Play games with words. Word games include not just commercially available board or card games, but brainstorming games as well. Following are examples of both commercial and brainstorming games you can play with your child, some of which you can follow with actual writing projects:

Word games such as Scrabble, Unspeakable Words, Bananagrams, or Boggle are great vocabulary building games. With Unspeakable Words, which requires players to keep a list of already used words, you can use that word list as a list of story prompts.

Games such as You’ve Been Sentenced! provide opportunities for sentence building. In addition to playing the regular game, you can have your child take a group of game tiles and try to come up with the most ridiculous sentence he or she can think of…”

You’ve been Sentenced! word game cited as an effective writing tool by wikiHow

wikiHow is the “How To” manual for just about everything! Yesterday, I found a great article call “How to Avoid Repetitive Words and Phrases in Fiction Writing” that offered some great tips – including playing the You’ve been Sentenced! word game!

Here’s a brief excerpt:

“Writing fiction, as with any other kind of writing, can be challenging at times, particularly when it comes to choosing the right words to describe the setting, set the mood, or define the characters. Many times, writers struggle to find the right words, often falling back on overused words and phrases. Repeating words and phrases weakens your writing, confusing the mood, deflating conflict, dulling character descriptions, and generally killing your reader’s interest in the story. Learning to avoid repetitive words and phrases takes effort and practice; the following steps will guide you in recognizing the words and phrases you can do without and in choosing better words…

Play word games and quizzes. Games such as Scrabble, Bananagrams, and Unspeakable Words help you develop and practice your vocabulary, with the competition against other players substituting for the pressure of a deadline to stimulate your thinking process.

Other word games, such as Boggle and Scattergories, test your ability to brainstorm as well as the extent of your vocabulary.

The game You’ve Been Sentenced! tests your ability to use words effectively in making complete sentences.”

Other great suggestions include:

Use descriptive nouns and verbs whenever possible
Use adjectives and adverbs sparingly
Avoid repeating a word in a sentence when you use a different meaning of it.
Avoid using “crutch words.”
To read this article in its entirety, please visit wikiHow.

You’ve been Sentenced! ranked #1 language arts game for middle schoolers by ThreeBlindWives.com

Game Week with Teens – Educational Games for Middle Schoolers
ThreeBlindWives.com

“When my kids were younger we played games all the time as both part of our homeschooling and just for fun but as the kids have grown older, it seems like we play less and less of them. The ironic thing is they are actually old enough to play games I find interesting (I eventually had to ban both Candyland and HiHo Cherry-O because my continued sanity was questionable). I’m trying to really commit to playing games with the kids regularly and as part of our “Summer Homeschooling” I designated this week as Games Week and I thought I’d share some of our picks.

Language Arts

First, I’d like to put some spelling games here, but since I said I was putting our favorite games and no spelling game would ever make my kids’ favorite list, I have to leave them off…

1. You’ve Been Sentenced – Who can create the longest sentence out of a collection of random words? It doesn’t have to make sense but it does have to be grammatically correct. I like this because it makes the kids focus on what type of word it is so they can determine if their sentence works. They like it because it generates some pretty silly sentences…”

To read more great suggestions from ThreeBlindWives.com visit Game Week with Teens – Educational Games for Middle Schoolers.

Good-bye to Gadgets and Gizmos: Ideas to foster technology-free
By TRAE BODGE www.RetailMeNot.com

“Are your kids already technology addicts? Or are they teetering on the cusp of gadget dependence? While fun, clever and even educational games and movies do exist, we want our kids to be entertained without relying on technology.

Many experts agree. “It’s clear from a huge body of brain research that the best amount of screen time for a child under the age of 6 is zero,” says Beth Proudfoot, the director of the Child and Family Counseling Group in California. “For children over the age of 6, a half hour or so per day of slow-paced, commercial-free and educational screen time may be OK.”

Registered nurse, licensed psychotherapist and author of The Inner Peace Diet Aileen McCabe-Maucher says that in order to promote healthy brain development and social skills, “children of all ages need to spend time playing with friends, reading, playing sports and engaging in creative or imaginative play.”

So tell your child to put down the Nintendo DS and open the proverbial door to technology-free amusement…

Brain-Stimulating Games

Have games available that will get your kids thinking. Here are four of my favorites:

The Education Outdoors Snipe Hunt Game ($12.83) from REI is a fun hide-and-seek toy that involves two “snipes,” one for each team or person. Both snipes are hidden and then hunted. If the snipes are not found within a certain time frame, they light up and make noise. The best part is that this activity is safe and appropriate for all ages!

The award-winning McNeill Designs game You’ve Been Sentenced! ($24.95) is a fun, educational word activity. It can be played with the family or the kids can play it on their own. Add-on decks are available to suit your kid’s interests. Themes include sports, space, pop culture and more. It’s suggested that kids ages 6 and older play this game because they must know how to read.

Yamodo Themes ($9.95) challenges kids to draw and define made-up words. Categories range from Monsters and Aliens to Magic and Mayhem to Gizmos and Gadgets, so there is something for every kid. Ages 8 and up.

The Children’s Globe ($19.99) by Ravensburger is a 240-piece puzzle ball available at Toys R Us. It will help expand your kids’ map-reading abilities and geography knowledge. This one is a little more complicated, so the recommended age is 10 and up.

Activities such as these can take place almost anywhere. It doesn’t matter whether you live in the city or the country; just be creative and work with your surroundings. And remember, entertainment doesn’t have to revolve around a screen. Happy playing!”

More suggestions include:

Aspirational Art
Treasure Hunts
Scavenger Hunts and Fairy Houses
Storytelling
Practice Makes Perfect
Work
Fitness

"You've Been Sentenced" Country Music Edition Game to Hit Retail Shelves

Board games have been a timeless classic form of entertainment for countless years with families everywhere. My personal favorites have always consisted of an easy concept, and setup that brings creativity, laughter and memories in the process. What could make a game even more enjoyable? A country music basis of course!

I recently had the pleasure of talking with one of Nashville’s favorite ladies, and found myself “sentenced” to checking out an exciting new project. Industry powerhouse Preshias Harris who is a Production Advisor/Artist & Industry Relations Representative graciously took time to answer my questions, and to introduce me to a new game by McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds. Preshias has been working with the manufacturer as they have delivered a Country Music Edition of the popular game “You’ve Been Sentenced!”

Recently country music stars gathered together to play their hand in the first annual celebrity charity event during CMA Music Festival. Both tickets to watch and to take part in the game could be purchased. Jeff Bates, Ty Brown, Burns & Poe, Jason Michael Carroll, Buddy Jewell, Matt Kennon, Danni Leigh, LoCash Cowboys, Justin McBride, Jaclyn North, Julie Roberts, Doug Stone, Rhonda Vincent, Mark Wills, and several others participated. Afterwards, the event concluded with acoustic performances. Children’s Miracle Network Hospital and Success Won’t Wait benefited from this good cause and enjoyable afternoon.

As a supporter of literacy, Preshias has been dedicating her time seeing to it that this educational project is promoted, and reaches audiences around the world. She is understandably excited about the future of this edition as it is a great addition to the table in the industry that she, and so many others are passionate about. The game is continuing to receive positive reviews from classrooms, educational facilities, and homes everywhere.

The already successful and global “You’ve Been Sentenced” has sold more than 250,000 copies in just six short years. Consumers have been able to find it at Barnes & noble, Toys R Us, Kohl’s, Amazon.com, and soon to be Menard’s. The new country music edition which can now be pre-ordered online is slated for retail release this coming August. McNeill will donate a portion of your sale to the literacy organization Success Won’t Wait.

The game which only takes 30 to 45 minutes to play is for ages 8 and up, and can consist of 3 to 10 players. The basic concept is forming sentences with your country word cards, and trying to earn as many points as you can. The sentences are likely to be crazily hilarious, but that is what makes this game a must play, and a must own. “You’ve Been Sentenced” has a great deal to offer as it continues to introduce country music to the world, while providing a fun, and creative learning experience for all.

Check out: www.musiciansforliteracy.com

www.mcneilldesigns.com or www.amazon.com to order a copy today!

You've been Sentenced! word game wins 2012 MOM'S CHOICE AWARD

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game recently received a 2012 MOM’S CHOICE AWARD. Around the world, parents, educators, retailers and members of the media look for the MOM’S CHOICE AWARD (MCA) Honoring Excellence seal of approval when selecting quality products and services for children and families.

The MOM’S CHOICE AWARD ® (MCA) evaluates products and services created for children and families. The program is globally recognized for establishing the benchmark of excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. The organization is based in the United States and has reviewed thousands of entries from more than 18 countries.

An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. The MCA judges are bound by a strict code of ethics which ensures expert and objective analysis free from any manufacturer association.

The evaluation process uses a propriety methodology in which entries are scored on a number of elements including production quality, design, educational value, entertainment value, originality, appeal and cost. Each entry is judged on its own merit. Judges are especially interested in products that help families grow emotionally, physically and spiritually; are morally sound and promote good will; and are inspirational and uplifting.

You’ve been Sentenced! word game wins Mom’s Best Award!

You’ve been Sentenced! recently was recognized with the Mom’s Best Award, an honor that recognizes the best of the best in juvenile products, toys, apparel and media as evaluated by real moms.
Founded in 2004, Mom’s Best Awards offers moms an unbiased way to determine a product’s value, quality, usefulness, functionality and appearance. It’s also a way for manufacturers to receive product recognition and valuable feedback from moms.

Each of the Mom’s Best Award winning products have gone through a rigorous evaluation process by moms, who have used these products in everyday living situations. These products are then graded on their own merits with pre-selected criteria determined by moms.

“Products displaying the Mom’s Best Award Winner’s Seal offer consumers a level of assurance that these products were evaluated by moms, dads and childcare experts and will perform to the highest level of satisfaction,” states Emily Perilla, MBA Coordinator. “The Mom’s Best Award Winner’s Seal says it has earned the discriminating acceptance of the true experts — moms.”

Here’s a little of what moms at Mom’s Best moms are saying about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game…

“I had fun playing this game with my kids and my husband. I love having a game that I can play with my kids that is educational. I’ve been looking for good ways to teach my daughter grammar. She’ll be going into third grade, so many of the concepts are new to her. This game is the perfect way for her to learn how to construct sentences properly, and the entire family has a great time while she is learning.”

“I love how creative ‘You’ve Been Sentenced’ is. Coming up with wacky sentences (that are also grammatically correct!) is fun and challenging. Some of the sentences we were coming up with were really out there just so we could get the most points, and it was hilarious. This game is great for both adults and kids.”

“Not only is this game great for the educational value, being able to buy different theme cards is an inexpensive way to make it seem like a whole new game. It never gets boring! This is the first game my family chooses on family game night. It’s also an extremely valuable tool for teachers to get students motivated and have fun in the classroom.”

You’ve been Sentenced! word game named to “7 Top Family Board Games” by Circle of Moms

Circle of Moms is a place to connect with moms you know, a private circle for sharing family updates and more, plus Circle of Moms is the place to get answers and support on mothering, 24/7.

In a recent collaboration of popular mom bloggers, Circle of Moms put together the 7 Top Family Board Games in the marketplace, including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game.

You’ve been Sentenced! word game celebrates its 7th birthday!

On Dec. 29, 2004 McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds’ CEO Donald McNeill had an idea for a word game. The concept? Players would make sentences from words on cards – something that had never been done before.
From his initial “a-ha moment,” Donald moved quickly. Having no background in game design, he assembled a team of designers, language specialists and business advisors to turn the dream into reality.

In order to make the game “work,” Donald had to figure out the mathematics and geometry of how to make language into a playable game. It took weeks to turn the initial concept into one that would not only work, but would be entertaining, as well. This preparation included reading the dictionary – cover to cover, twice! – for just the right words to include.

On May 5, 2005 the You’ve been Sentenced! word game was launched. Today, the game is the recipient of 20 prestigious national awards and can be found everywhere from Barnes and Noble, to Toys R Us, Kohls and at over 1000 independent toy and game stores.

You've been Sentenced! event will benefit children's charities

The You’ve been Sentenced! charity event will be held June 7, 2012 at the Hard Rock Cafe in Nashville and will include some of today’s hottest country music artists.

Limited seating available:

$10 general admission.
$25 VIP admission.
$100 buy-in to play the You’ve been Sentenced! game with today’s brightest country stars!

Plus, the game will be followed by an intimate, acoustic performance by attending artists.

All admissions fees will benefit the Children’s Miracle Network and Success Won’t Wait.

For more information, please contact McNeill Designs at 302-478-2757.

McNeill Designs is proud to support the 2012 Winterthur Point-to-Point Steeplechase
For over 30 years the running of the Winterthur Point-to-Point Steeplchase has been a must-attend social event in Greenville, Delaware.

The races are held annually on the spectacular grounds of Winterthur Museum and Gardens and the event helps raise money for the museum, which houses the largest collection of American furnishings in the country!

This year, McNeill Designs will sponsor one of the day’s most anticipated races – the Stick Horse Races! Part of Winterthur’s ongoing commitment to keeping the event family-friendly, the Stick Horse Races are an exciting opportunity for kids of all ages to run the course with a valiant steed!

All eyes will be on the little jockeys as they take to the course during prime time racing:

1:30 pm: ages 4 and under
2:15 pm: ages 5–7 years
2:45 pm: ages 8–10 years

Children can bring their own Stick Horse or purchase a plush, whinnying stick horse for $25 on-site and enter the races. Winners in each category receive medals and all entrants will receive Twisted Fish game (retail $10), courtesy of McNeill Designs.

Kids’ can also participate in the Winterthur Hunt. In a nutshell, kids visit various stations all over the museum grounds to enjoy fun activities like pony grooming, leading a pony through an obstacle course, and navigating a hay maze, plus all kids receive great prizes!

Meet us there! General admissions information and wristbands

General admission wristbands include access to all of the race day activities, free remote parking on Winterthur grounds, and the option to picnic on the Infield hill overlooking the race track and finish line. Please note that general admission wristband holders do not have access to the tailgating areas.

To Purchase:

Available online
By phone at 800.448.3883 or 302.888.4994*
By fax at 302.888.4650*
At Winterthur
At satellite ticket partners’ sites. See list below.
*Credit card sales only
Cost

$30 adult general admission (March 1–April 27)
$50 adult general admission (April 28–May 5)
$15 young adults, ages 12–20
Children under 12 free, but must have a wristband for admittance (not available on race day)
Winterthur Member discounts available.

McNeill Designs' You've been Sentenced! word game takes the Country Radio Seminar by storm!

The Country Radio Seminar was the ideal opportunity for McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds to debut the new You’ve been Sentenced! word game’s Country Music Edition!

We enjoyed playing the game with some of Nashville’s finest, many of whom — as accomplished songwriters — came up with some real doozies!

The Country Radio Seminar is the premier educational and networking event for the country radio and music industry. There were three days jam-packed with activity including informative panels, prominent speakers and intimate performances from some of today’s biggest stars.

The annual event is produced by Country Radio Broadcasters, which was created to provide a platform and structure for education and growth for the Country Music format, as well as serving as the conduit connecting the interests of Country Radio with the Country Music Industry.

Since the founding of Country Radio Broadcasters in 1969, the number of Country Radio stations in the United States has grown from about 600 to almost 1700 today. Country continues to be the dominant radio format in America!

Music News Nashville features country music industry insider and McNeill Designs’ Production Advisor, Preshias Harris

Music News Nashville, the online magazine for the country music industry, contains all the news you need to know about Nashville and beyond. So, we were thrilled at the magazine’s recent profile of Preshias Harris, McNeill Designs’ Production Advisor and Artist & Industry Relations Representative.

Here’s just a little of what they had to say:

“Preshias Harris, endearingly referred to ‘round “The Row” as the “Queen of Networking,” has announced her departure from PCG-Nashville as VP of Artist & Industry Relations. She has accepted the invitation to devote her time and talents on a full-time basis as a representative of McNeill Designs. Working alongside the brand as they unveil a Country Music Edition of the award-winning game You’ve been Sentenced!, Harris will act as Production Advisor and Artist & Industry Relations Representative.

Created to go above and beyond family fun, You’ve been Sentenced! has become an educational tool that is garnering rave reviews in homes, classrooms and educational facilities around the world and is now staged to reach a brand new audience. McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds, the game manufacturer, is set to introduce the You’ve been Sentenced! Country Music Edition to entertain the country music fan. Harris will work in alliance with McNeill Designs to elevate industry awareness and to produce and promote the new Country Music Edition…

“You’ve been Sentenced! is a fun-filled, educational game that can be played by one and all and it is a natural fit for the country music format,” said Preshias Harris. “The response we all received playing with artists–sharing the literacy movement–during CRS was overwhelming and early proof that the Country Music Edition will be a winner! We’re excited to see what fun is in store for us.”

You’ve been Sentenced! wins 19th award; Play on Words honors game with a PAL Award for language advancement

Established by respected speech and language expert Sherry Artemenko, the PAL Award recognizes exceptional toys, books and games like the You’ve been Sentenced! word game that, through their design, content, quality, and character, promote play that advances language. PAL winners in the hands of kids spark fun and creative play with lots of talk!

Products are chosen on the basis of Play on Words’ experts’ practical child development experience, and are complemented by thoughtful reviews, showing parents how to best use each toy, game or book to build language.

For more than 35 years, Play on Words founder Sherry Artemenko has worked with children to improve their speech and language, serving as a speech language pathologist in both the public and private school systems and private practice. Sherry started Play on Words to advise parents, companies and authors on the attributes of the best toys, games and media to build language.

Here’s a little bit of what Sherry had to say regarding the merits of the You’ve been Sentenced! word game:

“As speech therapists, we spend a lot of time helping kids put together a good sentence and eventually a story. “You’ve Been Sentenced!” can help such language learning and provide a lot of fun in the process. Racing against a timer and your fellow players, one must construct a meaningful sentence from a random set of words. So many skills are tapped it is hard to list them–grammar, parts of speech, meaning, word order etc. I guarantee a laugh! Check out their website for Lesson Plans and suggested variations on the game…

Do you want to get friends and family together and have an educational challenge, quick game and loads of laughs? Check out “You’ve Been Sentenced!” and get ready to put a silly sentence together.

Flip over your 10 cards, each with 5 word options to start building your sentence. Themes start swirling in your head as you try to link words in a grammatically correct sentence.

How do I combine spill, sliding, fish and lunch? Oh yes, I have 6 more cards to use. The fastest player to complete their sentence turns over the timer as the rest of the players race to finish theirs and hope that the first contestant gets his entry voted down.

Our testers found that there is a balance between throwing a sentence together fast and taking too much time to think. The cards offer 5 clever variations of a root word such as rusher, rushed, rush, rushes, and rushed.

An incredible language learning game, “You’ve Been Sentenced!” calls on players to know their parts of speech, draft a theme, and use correct grammar. Players act as members of the jury, deciding the fate of proposed sentences adding a social language component to this game also. Add-on decks like their newest “NASA Space Terminology” continue to expand the vocabulary kids and adults can learn. Get sentenced at home or the classroom!”

To read the full review of find more PAL winners, visit Play on Words.

McNeill Designs launches the Country Music Edition of the You’ve been Sentenced! word game at the 2012 Country Radio Seminar.

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds has just returned from Nashville where we attended the Country Radio Seminar for the very first time. It was the perfect opportunity to debut the new You’ve been Sentenced! word game’s Country Music Edition!

The Country Radio Seminar is the premier educational and networking event for the country radio and music industry. There were three days jam-packed with activity including informative panels, prominent speakers and intimate performances from some of today’s biggest stars like the incomparable Faith Hill (one of our all-time faves — what a show!).

The event was a great way to gauge reaction to the new game from some of country music’s finest. And, what a reaction! We’ve always thought that the music industry in Nashville had heart — and now we’re sure!

Supporting the You’ve been Sentenced! mission to eradicate illiteracy really resonated with the country music artists, who literally lined up to learn more! The Country Music Edition of the game, like the original You’ve been Sentenced! word game, will help fund the efforts of the literacy organization Success Won’t Wait.

Success Won’t Wait is a 501c3 non-profit organization that encourages reading — particularly by children — and provides free books to organizations and programs nationwide and abroad. Since 2002, the organization has made available close to 400,000 books in a wide variety of literacy programs.

About.com linguistics expert calls the You’ve been Sentenced! word game a “fun way to explore language: sentence construction, grammar, and meaning”

As a writer and expert on gifted children for About.com, Carol Bainbridge certainly knows her stuff. Carol has a B.A. degree in psychology and is currently completing a doctoral degree in linguistics, with a focus on verbally gifted children. Plus, this linguist even has a verbally gifted kid of her own!

So, when she reviewed the You’ve been Sentenced! word game with an eye toward its use with verbally gifted children, we were thrilled! Here’s a little of what Carol had to say about the game:

“You don’t have to be a linguist or have a verbally gifted child to love this game … This award-winning game is challenging, fun, and educational.”

To read this review in its entirety, please visit About.com

Cartoon Network Hall of Games Awards’ official gift bag includes the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and Sports Highlights add-on deck

Jewels and Pinstripes, one of the nation’s premier gift bag companies, recently announced the contents of its Celebrity/VIP Gift Bag for Cartoon Network’s Hall of Game Awards which included the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and the game’s Sports Highlights add-on deck.

The show, which aired February 20, was hosted by basketball legend and TNT NBA analyst Shaquille O’Neal. Cartoon Network’s Hall of Game Awards is a high-energy, off-the-wall, multi-platform experience that lets viewers vote and honor their favorite sports stars and sports moments of the year.

Cartoon Network’s Hall of Game Awards broadcast also featured appearances by Grammy Award-nominated rapper and international superstar—and song writer of the top 5 hit “Good Feeling”—Flo Rida, and American Music Awards “Favorite New Artist” winners Hot Chelle Rae, whose massive hit singles “Tonight, Tonight,” and, “I Like It Like That,” are featured on their recently released album WHATEVER.

Some of the athletes and celebrities who appeared at this year’s Hall of Game Awards include: David Beckham (Los Angeles Galaxy), Victor Cruz (New York Giants wide receiver), Nick Cannon (“America’s Got Talent”), Cam Newton (Caroline Panthers quarterback), Hope Solo (Pro and World Cup soccer goalie), Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher), Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions quarterback), Maya Gabeira (Pro surfer), Tony Gonzalez (Atlanta Falcons tight end), Desean Jackson (Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver), Terrell Suggs (Baltimore Ravens linebacker) Jimmy Graham (New Orleans Saints tight end), AJ Green (Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver), LeSean McCoy (Philadelphia Eagles running back), Calvin Johnson (Detroit Lions wide receiver), Matt Kemp, (Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder), Steve McCann (BMX rider) Torii Hunter (Los Angeles Angels right fielder) and The Miz (WWE Superstar).

The Celebrity/VIP gift bag was displayed at the event and distributed to the show’s Winners and Host. The gift bag is valued at over $900.00 and, in addition to the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and the game’s Sports Highlights add-on deck, includes a wide assortment of wonderful items including custom clothing, adventure sports gear, high-end beauty products, toys, personalized accessories, gourmet sweets and more!

What the Stuff Toy Review gives the You’ve been Sentenced! word game a 5-Star Certified Rating!

What the Stuff Toy Review provides readers — moms and dads, manufacturers and commercial buyers — with product reviews and buyers guides for products available on the market for babies through teens. All items showcased on the site are reviewed and evaluated by the WTS product specialist team, resulting in honest and interesting information about each product.

Recently the WTS staff reviewed the You’ve been Sentenced! word game, which they have a 5-Star Certified Rating! Evaluation criteria included:

Originality: “We have seen a lot of word games in our days doing reviews, but we have never come across one as interesting as You’ve Been Sentenced! It has a design that makes the game different every time you play, and in that difference, the sentences that are created will get funnier and funnier. Add in the fact that all sentences has to be properly grammatically structured and we have the makings of a very fine, very educational, very funny sentence making game!”

Ease of use: “You’ve Been Sentenced! is one of those games that the gang will pick up and play with no trouble the first time around …”

Functionality: “… You’ve Been Sentenced! packs plenty of fun and function!” To read the What the Stuff review in its entirety, please visit WTS. And while you are there, check out their amazing reviews filled with the best in baby products, kids products, teens and tweens faves and a specialized Buyer’s Guide.

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine calls the You’ve been Sentenced! word game fun and challenging for homsechooling families

The Old Schoolhouse Magazine is a global homeschooling company offering homeschoolers a variety of resources and encouragement, as well as ways to learn about the latest and greatest educational resources out there. So when they offered to take the You’ve been Sentenced! word game for a spin, we were thrilled!

Here’s what Courtney Larson of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine had to say…

“I played this game with my 12, 11 and 9 year old sons, and we had a lot of fun… It took us about 30 minutes to play the game, and there were lots of laughs involved. I loved how it challenged them to build proper sentences out of random words, and the defending of their choice is an added bonus. They loved the silly sentence factor. I highly recommend You’ve been Sentenced! as an easy and fun way to get in some grammar and writing instruction…”

Board Games Critic gives Twisted Fish a 5-Star Rating!

Board Games Critic (BGC) provides the most comprehensive board gaming resource online. The editors at BGC aim to spark a new interest in the playing board games which allows families, friends and loved ones to spend quality time together — without the need for expensive and overpriced gadgets.

Board Games Critic recently reviewed the Twisted Fish memory game. Here’s a little bit of what they had to say:

The game is advertised as being suitable for children aged 6 – 10 years of age. The overall theme of the game though makes it perfect for kids & adults alike and ideal for Christmas parties, dinner parties and family get togethers …“The concept of the game is simple but fun, with easy to follow instructions allowing anyone to play the game within just a few minutes of reading them.

With an RRP of just below $10 you really can’t go wrong with this game, it’s great value for money for the quality you get and we would highly recommend you give it a try if you’re looking for a fun and exciting card game with a twist. To sum up in one sentence, a thoroughly enjoyable game.”

Overall Rating: 5 stars
Durability Rating: 5 stars
Fun Factor Rating: 5 stars
Educational Rating: 5 stars
To read this review in its entirety, please visit Board Games Critic.

Parenting author Jeff Bogle highlights the You’ve been Sentenced! word game on NBC10 Philadelphia and Out with the Kids

Jeff Bogle of Out With the Kids (OWTK) provides a unique dad’s perspective on parenting, kid’s media, and kid’s culture. In addition to OWTK, Jeff also writes a regular parenting column that appears on EverydayChildhood.com as well as Time Out New York Kids Magazine, Mommy Poppins, iVillage, StopBuyingCrap.com, North State Parent, Curious Parents Magazine, and Families.com.

Recently, Jeff was featured on NBC10 Philadelphia reviewing the You’ve Been Sentenced! word game! Here’s what Jeff has to say…

“The game is a riot because it combines the best parts of Scrabble and Mad Libs and has you thinking fast and thinking creativity.

For avid OWTK-ers, You’ve Been Sentenced! is a winning mix of two of our faves: Rory’s Story Cubes and Dabble. But instead of being 100% imaginative with picture cubes and without arranging single letters to form a disparate batch of words, here you have 10 cards / 50 words in total per round to make as big and bizarre a sentence as you possibly can. You’ll be judged (like in court, get it) by your opponents on the validity of your sentence both from a grammatical sense and a sensible sense. Each word has a point value and the total of all the words in your sentence is your score for each round. Squeezing higher value words like ‘shapely’ into your sentences will vault you to the 200 points needed to win quicker and thus allow you to dominate your feeble-minded foes. Umm, or just make the sentences more robust and silly…

The results of this fast paced game can be funny, curious, brilliant, or even lightly off-color (that was totally the Mrs., not me. I swear) but no matter what sentences are formed, the action is fantastic. I love You’ve Been Sentenced! and I think you may also.

If you’ve got a young reader/author/storyteller in your family, the odds are quite excellent that You’ve Been Sentenced! is going to score bigtime. And with specialized add-on decks containing words relating to: NASA, Gourmet Cuisine, Sci-fi/Fantasy, Pop Culture, and Sports, gameplay can be tailored to one’s particular interest or hobby, and there’s virtually no end to the number of sentences you’ll be able to construct.”

To read more from Jeff, please visit OWTK.

The Toy Man® “Fifty Best” Award 2011 Christmas List has just been released and includes the You’ve been Sentenced! word game

With the economic recovery still slow, buying decisions are even more important this holiday season and The Toy Man® “Fifty Best” Award 2011 Christmas List is now available to assist holiday shoppers in making those careful choices. The Toy Man®” Fifty Best” Award 2011 Christmas List showcases innovative, quality, and “ChildSafe™” products for family members of all ages.

Products were drawn from a wide array of categories including board and card games, puzzles, children’s books, CD’s, DVD’s and online content, consumer electronics and accessories, iPhone and Android products and accessories, Mommy stuff, toys, dolls, specialty products, video/electronic games and accessories.

The judgment for selection is based primarily upon the following factors:

* Recommendations by Moms
* Functionality
* Educational value
* Contribution to skill development
* Marketability
* Visual appeal
* funQuotient™
* Safety

The products selected to become recipients of this award and recognition are those that The Toy Man® Product Guide judges have determined are an invaluable investment or provide a substantial contribution to positive skill growth and productivity. Even more important, these products have all been “Mom-approved.” Mothers from across the globe have shared their opinions and recommended these products for your Christmas season shopping list!

Pittsburgh Better Times adds the You’ve been Sentenced! word game to its Holiday Gift Guide top picks

Pittsburgh Better Times is a lifestyle publication serving the nearly one half-million individuals in Pittsburgh and surrounding counties. The magazine features educational and informative articles, as well as enriching and empowering stories about life, love, and leaps of faith.

This week, Pittsburgh Better Times assembled their annual Holiday Gift Guide for this most wonderful time of the year, including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game.

Here’s what they had to say about You’ve Been Sentenced!:

You’ve been Sentenced! is the word game for everyone on your holiday shopping list, especially those hard-to-shop-for tweens and teens. You’ve been Sentenced! is the first game to turn language and sentence construction into a truly fun game. Plus, now the You’ve been Sentenced! offers themed add-on decks to add to the fun. From Sports Highlights, to Pop Culture, to our latest – NASA Space Terminology—add-on decks customize game play just for you.

To read more great suggestions to make your holiday shopping just a little easier, please visit Pittsburgh Better Times.

About Families Magazine recommends educational toy and game holiday stocking stuffers, including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game

About Families is a publication devoted to families in Berks and Lebanon Counties (Pennsylvania) serving as a comprehensive, central resource with information about local cultural and educational issues, classes and activities, entertainment and community resources. This month, with holiday gift giving on everyone’s mind, the About Families staff put together a holiday gift guide of stocking stuffers that are sure to please, including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game. Best yet, woven within this column of Christmas gift ideas, you will find an interactive theme of learning!

Here’s a little bit about what the folks at About Families had to say about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game:

“This multi-award winner takes only seconds to learn, minutes to play, and with several add-on theme decks available you truly will enjoy a lifetime of fun. The wonderful thing about this game is you can play the same card over and over and it will ultimately be played differently every time … so the game never grows old.”

To read this article in its entirety, please visit About Families .

Board games make great gifts and great memories; Hudson Valley Parent Magazine suggests You’ve been Sentenced! word game

Below is a brief excerpt from a recent article about games and their influence on the family taken from Hudson Valley Parent Magazine. To read the article in its entirety, please visit Hudson Valley Parent Magazine:

“I grew up in a game-playing family. Every week, my parents and my brothers and I would either play poker (with pennies) or another game that required a board, and I think was called DelMonico — it was always a lot of laughs, and the conversations we had were precious. Another game that my family played but which I just couldn’t grasp was pinochle, and I’d hear “whoops” and “hollers” from the table as someone yelled, “you tricked me, ” or some other game-playing term, like a “partner” wasn’t holding up their end, whatever. It was, I can see now, a way for all of us to be together and leave the little annoyances of the day behind. There was no nagging or scolding on their part, nor whining or back-talk on ours. We were playing a game, with rules that no one could debate.

This Thanksgiving as we gathered around the family house in Brooklyn, we did it again. Though our parents are gone now, the games continue….

The next game we tried out was You’ve Been Sentenced!, which came with a timer, so you already can feel the frantic nature the game must come with. In an egg-timer’s worth of time, players have to put a sentence together from the cards they were dealt. Each card has a circle of words, a variation of the same word, so the card can offer multiple opportunities. It levels the playing field since I was playing with two teachers, and my sentences made just as much sense as theirs. I think one of my sentences was something like: “George Washington sat in the mud and then ran through a sprinkler.” Now, you know things about George Washington are always true, which was my explanation for such a sentence. Oh yea, I forgot to tell you that you have to explain to the other players how your sentence makes sense or not, and with a vote of a “thumbs up or thumbs down” players are awarded points. Additional cards with specific themes like “sports” or “science fiction” can be purchased to keep the game going and going. It’s a keeper. It retails for 24.95, with extra cards priced at $7.99. This game is a winner of the Parent-Tested Parent-Approved Seal of Approval for 2011. mcneilldesigns.com.”

San Diego Family Magazine names You’ve been Sentenced! a “Hot Toy of the Season” for 2011 holiday shoppers!

The You’ve Been Sentenced! word game was recently selected as a San Diego Family Magazine’s 2011 Hot Toy of the Season. This award-winning word game is a favorite of kids, parents and educators alike and makes a wonderful holiday gift for both kids — and teachers!

To read a full review and see other top picks, visit Sand Diego Family.

CMA gift bag will auctioned off to benefit The Michael Landon Children’s Cancer Fund

The official gift bag for the 2011 CMA Awards included the award-winning You've been Sentenced! word game.

The Michael Landon Children’s Cancer Fund is the featured charity for the 2011 Country Music Awards (CMAs) gift bags which were presented to nominees by Hollywood Baskets.

After Michael’s death from pancreatic cancer in 1991, those closest to him decided to honor his memory by continuing his commitment to the welfare of children. Along with the The Michael Landon Celebrity Tennis Tournament committee, long time close friends and colleagues, Kent and Susan McCray, and The Landon Family helped establish the Michael Landon Children’s Cancer Fund. The work that the Landon Fund supports is important: It is aimed at eliminating cancer as the leading cause of death from disease among children between the ages of one and 14.

For anyone wanting to make a donation, Hollywood Baskets will also be auctioning one of these amazing CMA gift bags. Proceeds will benefit the Michael Landon Charity. Please contact 1-800-379-8219 for bidding information. Gift Bags assembled and provided by www.hollywoodbaskets.com

Hollywood Baskets has also donated an identical gift bag valued at $3000.00 to the fund to be auctioned off at Charity Buzz .

For more information or to make a donation to the Michael Landon Children’s Cancer Fund, call 1-520-626-2280.

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game is a family game everyone will love, says Families.com homeschool expert

Families.com parenting expert and homeschool mom Richele McFarlin recently had this to say about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game:“I am very excited to bring to you this wonderful game. As a homeschooling mom, a lover of grammar and words, and an all around crazy gal, I have to say this game is now one of my favorites! It’s challenging, hilarious, and almost too much fun! I have to tell you that finding a family game that everyone loves and keeps your brain working is hard to find. This game encourages a healthy dose of brain training along with pure family fun…

I played this game the first time with my two kids, ages 13 and 11, and they asked to play it three times in a row! …

Honestly, it encouraged such creativity and proper sentence structure that my kids were applying what they learned in their lessons to this game and vice versa.

I highly recommend this game for family game night or any game night. A group of adults will have just as much fun with this!”

To read this review in its entirety, or to join the Families.com community and learn more about parenting, pregnancy, homeschooling, and more, please visit Families.com

Country Music Association (CMA) Awards include You’ve been Sentenced! in nominee’s official goodie bag

2011 CMA Awards official "nominee goodie bags" include the You've been Sentenced! word game! The CMA Awards are Country Music’s biggest night of the year! And, we’re thrilled that the You’ve been Sentenced! word game was chosen to be a part of the festivities and is included in official “event goodie bags” for the superstar nominees.

The 45th Annual CMA Awards will air live on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 8|7c on ABC-TV. Country superstars Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood are hosts for the fourth consecutive year.

And the nominees include…

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift
Keith Urban
SINGLE OF THE YEAR

“A Little Bit Stronger,” Sara Evans, Produced by Tony Brown, RCA Nashville
“Colder Weather, “ Zac Brown Band, Produced by Keith Stegall and Zac Brown, Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
“Don’t You Wanna Stay,” Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson, Produced by Michael Knox, Broken Bow Records
“Honey Bee,” Blake Shelton, Produced by Scott Hendricks, Warner Bros. Nashville
“If I Die Young,” The Band Perry, Produced by Paul Worley, Republic Nashville
ALBUM OF THE YEAR

All About Tonight, Blake Shelton, Produced by Scott Hendricks, Warner Bros. Nashville
My Kinda Party, Jason Aldean, Produced by Michael Knox, Broken Bow Records
Speak Now, Taylor Swift, Produced by Nathan Chapman and Taylor Swift, Big Machine Records
This Is Country Music, Brad Paisley, Produced by Frank Rogers, Arista Nashville
You Get What You Give, Zac Brown Band, Produced by Keith Stegall and Zac Brown, Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
SONG OF THE YEAR

“Colder Weather,” Zac Brown, Wyatt Durrette, Levi Lowrey, and Coy Bowles – songwriters
“Dirt Road Anthem,” Brantley Gilbert and Colt Ford – songwriters
“If I Die Young,” Kimberly Perry – songwriter
“Mean,” Taylor Swift – songwriter
“You and Tequila,” Matraca Berg and Deana Carter – songwriters
FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Sara Evans
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood
MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Keith Urban
VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

The Band Perry
Lady Antebellum
Little Big Town
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band
VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

The Civil Wars
Montgomery Gentry
Steel Magnolia
Sugarland
Thompson Square
MUSICAL EVENT OF THE YEAR

“As She’s Walking Away,” Zac Brown Band featuring Alan Jackson, Southern Ground Artists/Atlantic Records
“Coal Miner’s Daughter,” Loretta Lynn, Sheryl Crow, and Miranda Lambert, Columbia Records Nashville
“Don’t You Wanna Stay,” Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson, Broken Bow Records
“Old Alabama,” Brad Paisley featuring Alabama, Arista Nashville
“You and Tequila,” Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter, BNA Records
MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR

Sam Bush – Mandolin
Jerry Douglas – Dobro
Paul Franklin – Steel Guitar
Dann Huff – Guitar
Mac McAnally – Guitar
MUSIC VIDEO OF THE YEAR

“Honey Bee,” Blake Shelton, Directed by Trey Fanjoy
“If I Die Young,” The Band Perry, Directed by David McClister
“Mean,” Taylor Swift, Directed by Declan Whitebloom
“Old Alabama,” Brad Paisley featuring Alabama, Directed by Jim Shea
“You and Tequila,” Kenny Chesney featuring Grace Potter, Directd by Shaun Silva
NEW ARTIST OF THE YEAR

The Band Perry
Luke Bryan
Eric Church
Thompson Square
Chris Young

McNeill Designs donates over $800 in educational games to exceptional teachers at North Side Elementary

Don McNeill surprises North Side Elementary fifth grade teacher Ms. Renniger, as well as seven other teachers, with educational games for the classroom.

Recently, we learned about North Side Elementary’s Khristina Renninger, an exceptional fifth grade teacher, who was one of the teachers selected nationwide to receive classroom supplies through OfficeMax’s annual “A Day Made Better” program.

In an article about the program, we were thrilled to hear that one of her classes’ favorite activities is playing the You’ve Been Sentenced! word game! However, none of the other fourth or fifth grade classes at the school have a copy. So we decided to make a surprise visit of our own!

This week, we surprised teachers in eight different North Side classrooms of fourth and fifth grade students with a copy of You’ve been Sentenced!, an entire collection of themed add-on decks, and a copy of the memory game Twisted Fish!

The response was so enthusiastic and the children had so many questions, in fact, that we’ve be invited back to speak to students at a special assembly about entrepreneurship and how to take an idea from concept to completion!

Many thanks to North Side Elementary’s Principal Dr. Mary Nardo for facilitating the donation and for the wonderful invitation to return!

To read more about Ms. Renniger’s classroom please visit Penn Live.

OfficeMax surprises 1,000 teachers with $1 million in much-needed classroom supplies

OfficeMax® Incorporated recently donated more than $1.7 million in classroom supplies to teachers nationwide through OfficeMax’s annual “A Day Made Better” classroom surprise events. The program helps provide economic relief and encourages national support for teachers, who often fund extra classroom expenditures from their own pockets.

That was good news to teacher Khristina Renninger, an exceptional fifth grade teacher in the Central Dauphin School District’s North Side Elementary School. Each morning, Ms. Renninger’s students shake hands with one another in what has become a morning ritual. They have a “sharing” moment each day in which one child shows something to the others. And, students say that Ms. Renninger makes learning more fun with such innovative practices as playing You’ve Been Sentenced! word game!

To read more about Ms. Renniger’s classroom and other Office Max winners, please visit Penn Live.

You’ve been Sentenced! is a “Children’s Favorite Board Game, 2011 Edition” at Board Game Geek

Board Game Geek is one of the truly great game sites. No matter what you’re looking for — game reviews, information, forums and more — if it has to do with games, it’s all there! This week, the folks at Board Game Geek published their (somewhat) annual Children’s Favorites list. Here’s what they had to say:

“As we celebrate Thanksgiving this weekend here in Canada, I have much to be grateful for. Among many other things, I’m thankful for my children, and I deeply appreciate the time we can spend together. This past year brought the preciousness of life and health to the foreground for us as my eldest daughter (now 14) developed a brain hemorrhage and suffered a stroke in the summer. After two weeks in the hospital and a lot of therapy, she’s actually doing very well now, and life is almost back to “normal” for us. And I’m grateful that among the various activities we enjoy as a family, playing boardgames continues to be one that the children are still begging for me to indulge in with them…

As before, I asked the oldest five to put together their own individual lists of their top 10 games, with a short blurb about why they like them. None of them referred to their previous lists while making their new ones, and all of the text describing what they like about the games is new. They each went through the list I printed of about four hundred different games that I had played with them at some point or other and noted on paper which they especially enjoyed. Then they painstakingly culled that list down to their absolute top 10 favorites. This year, we used Tom Vasel`s method of ranking games and it proved a lot easier than last time. The kids each wrote the names of the games that they thought might have a shot at their top 10 list on small blank slips of paper. Then they chose a game title written on one of those slipss randomly and compared every other game in their pile to it, putting the ones they liked better in a pile to the right, and the ones they liked less in a pile to the left. They would then pick up each of these piles in turn and continue the process until they had each of these games in a row ordered by their ranking.”

What the kids had to sayabout You’ve been Sentenced!

#3 on Bethany’s top 10 list:
“I like the creative writing element in this game. The funny sentences that come out of the limited words are really great too.”

#6 on Isaac’s top 10 list:
“I like You’ve Been Sentenced because of the funny sentences you can make.”

To read the list in its entirety, please visit Board Game Geek.

Twisted Fish named to Top 100 Board Games 2011 list by The Dice Tower

McNeill Designs’ memory game Twisted Fish has recently been included in the Top 100 Board Games for 2011 by The Dice Tower!

Since 2005, The Dice Tower’s highly anticipated Top 100 Board Games list has honored exceptional games in a diverse selection of genres. Three categories are recognized – one general list is compiled by The Dice Tower’s editor Tom Vassel, one “kid-friendly” list is compiled by Melody Vassel, and a People’s Choice award is created by reader voting. Twisted Fish was recognized in the kid-friendly category.

Haven’t played Twisted Fish yet? This great game takes traditional Go Fish and gives it a challenging twist. The game contains 13 unique fish characters in five different colors, plus 8 unique Zingers that allow players to break the rules. These Zingers make Twisted Fish a unique game experience that offers laugh-out-loud fun for the entire family!

Since its creation in 2006, Twisted Fish has been the recipient of numerous awards including Creative Child Best Family Game of the Year, Mr. Dad Gold Seal of Approval, and FAO Schwarz Toy Auditions, Winner. Earlier this year, Twisted Fish was added to the permanent collection at The Strong, the world’s most comprehensive collection of historical materials related to play!

The Insider’s top technology-free entertainment for kids includes the You’ve been Sentenced! word game

According to Trae Bodge of The Insider, too many kids are becoming technology “addicts” from an early age. How to steer them into more challenging channels? Trae gives great advice in her recent column:

“Are your kids already technology addicts? Or are they teetering on the cusp of gadget dependence? While fun, clever and even educational games and movies do exist, we want our kids to be entertained without relying on technology.

Many experts agree. “It’s clear from a huge body of brain research that the best amount of screen time for a child under the age of 6 is zero,” says Beth Proudfoot, the director of the Child & Family Counseling Group in California. “For children over the age of 6, a half hour or so per day of slow-paced, commercial-free and educational screen time may be okay.”

Registered nurse, licensed psychotherapist and author of The Inner Peace Diet Aileen McCabe-Maucher says that in order to promote healthy brain development and social skills, “children of all ages need to spend time playing with friends, reading, playing sports and engaging in creative or imaginative play.” So tell your child to put down the Nintendo DS and open the proverbial door to technology-free amusement.

Brain-Stimulating Games

Have games available that will get your kids thinking. Here are four of my favorites:

You’ve been Sentenced! The award-winning McNeill Designs game You’ve been Sentenced! ($24.95) is a fun, educational word activity. It can be played with the family or the kids can play it on their own. Add-on decks are available to suit your kid’s interests. Themes include sports, space, pop culture and more. It’s suggested that kids ages 6 and older play this game because they must know how to read. (Get McNeill Designs coupons)”

To read more technology-free ideas guaranteed to stimulate your kids’ imaginations, visit The Insider.

McNeill Designs inks agreement with HSA, Nashville to create a line of board games, card games, and electronic games geared toward Country Music fans

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds recently announced the official signing of a representation agreement with HSA, located in Nashville, Tennessee. The independent firm, represented by Preshias Harris, Suzzane Skinner and Kat Atwood, will work collectively, and in alliance with McNeill Designs, to produce and promote a new line of board games, card games and electronic games geared specifically toward Country Music enthusiasts!

“As active members of the Music City community, the ladies of HSA have their fingers on the pulse of Country Music,” said McNeill Designs’ President and CEO Donald McNeill. “This version of the [You’ve been Sentenced!] game will embrace the popularity of the Country Music genre throughout the USA and globally. HSA will be instrumental in developing the language for this sector of the game, as well as opening the door to potential partnerships with industry associations and Country Music artists.”

Accounting for nearly 15% of the music product sold since 2006 (in addition to CD sales and on the radio airways) Country Music has made its impression in various books, television, magazines and games; artists have been recognized with Presidential honors and appeared in movies; and corporate sponsors have come forward with multi-million dollar deals utilizing the Country Music platform to elevate product awareness.

“The statistics support our endeavor to branch into the Country Music arena,” McNeill added. “With existing add-on decks such as NASA Space Terminology, Gourmet Cuisine, Pop Culture, Sports Highlights and more, adding Country Music terminology opens the field to an entirely new family of gamers.”

According to the most recent Country Music Associate Research Report available (2006):

• 31.7% of Country Music listeners reside in the top 25 DMAs

• More than 48.1 million adults listen to Country Music radio stations nationwide each week, reaching more listeners than any other format

• More than 27% of adult radio listeners tune to Country Music radio

HSA’s first course of business is to prepare the Country Music vocabulary list and extend an outreach to Country Music artists and potential sponsors to establish working relationships with McNeill Designs.

For more information about HSA visit www.musiccitymedia.com

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game is recognized for industry excellence with The Toy Man Seal of Approval

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds recently received The Toy Man Seal of Approval for the You’ve been Sentenced! word game. In order to become a recipient of The Toy Man Seal of Approval, each product is evaluated by not just consumers, but by highly qualified industry professionals, as well, in a strict and well-defined evaluation. To receive Seal of Approval products must not only entertain, but also teach simultaneously, actively stimulate a child’s imagination, and contribute to further creative skill development in the age group for which they are designed. Further, products must be easy for children to use/play, consistent with current safety standards and contribute to the child’s development, mentally, physically, socially, and emotionally.

According to The Toy Man, “You’ve been Sentenced! creates an atmosphere of challenging gameplay that encourages strategic thinking and planning, using your brain a bit more than usual, and stimulates the competitive spirit in all of the players. You’ve been Sentenced! can become literally habit-forming with all of the hilarious fun!”

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game joins fall lineup at Kohl’s. Expect great things!

This fall, look for the You’ve been Sentenced! word game at your local Kohl’s Department Store!

The award-winning word game will join classics like Fisher Price pre-K toys, Mattel’s legendary Barbie, and more in Kohl’s 1,067 department stores across the USA. Founded in 1962, Kohl’s is a family-focused, value-oriented, specialty department store offering quality, exclusive and national brand merchandise in an environment that is convenient, friendly and exciting.

To find a Kohl’s store near you, click on Kohl’s easy-to-use Store Locator.

You've been Sentenced! word game wins Parent Tested Parent Approved (PTPA) Seal of Approval

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds’ You’ve been Sentenced! word game was recently awarded the Parent Tested Parent Approved (PTPA™) Winner’s Seal of Approval. This is the 13th national honor for the game in the toy and game world, as well as in the education sector.

“We are thrilled to receive this honor by the PTPA,” says McNeill Designs’ CEO Donald McNeill. “Parents, grandparents and teachers looking for high-quality children’s products and services know that the PTPA Winner’s Seal is clear evidence of a product’s excellence.”

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game was chosen from among entries submitted from across North America, all competing to earn the PTPA™ Seal. Independent parent volunteers evaluate products in their own homes to ensure that PTPA winners are chosen based on merit and consumer experience – not on commercial considerations. As a result, the PTPA Media™ Seal has become an international leader in certifying consumer products for quality, effectiveness and value.

“At PTPA Media, we are proud to play a role in certifying innovative products that families can trust,” says Sharon Vinderine, CEO and founder of PTPA Media Inc. “When consumers search for our Seal of Approval on product packaging and web sites, they are essentially searching for validation from their peers. Their peers will have objectively tested and approved these products based on their performance in a real life environment. That type of resource for families is priceless.”

McNeill Designs' You've been Sentenced! word game supports the Golden Trailer Awards

The 12th Annual Golden Trailer Awards (for film trailers!) were recently held at the Music Box in Los Angeles and McNeill Designs was part of the event! Goody bags filled with fabulous products like McNeill Designs’ awardiwinning word game You’ve been Sentenced! were given to the winners in each category.

Here are some of the winners. For a full list, please visit The Golden Trailer Awards. Congrats to all of the winners and nominees!

Best In Show Winner:

The Social Network “Trailer #2?, Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates

Nominees:

Blue Valentine “Trailer 1?, The Weinstein Company, Zealot Productions Inc
Inception “Control”, Warner Bros., BLT:AV
The King’s Speech, The Weinstein Company, AV Squad
Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates
Best Action Winner: Inception “Control”, Warner Bros., BLT:AV

Nominees:

Sucker Punch “Trailer”, Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures, Mojo
The Town “This Side”, Warner Bros., Wild Card
Unstoppable “Domestic Trailer”, 20th Century Fox, Ignition Creative/Skip Film
Best Animation/Family Winner: Rango “Teaser”, Paramount Pictures, The Ant Farm

Nominees:

Cars 2 “Spies Are Us”, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, mOcean
Gnomeo & Juliet, Walt Disney Studios, The Ant Farm
Hop “Battle For Easter”, NBC Universal, Cimarron Entertainment
Best Comedy Winner: The Other Guys “Return to Glory”, Columbia, Seismic Productions

Nominees:

Bad Teacher “Hot For Teacher”, Columbia, Seismic Productions
The Hangover Part II “Trailer #3?, Warner Bros./Legendary Pictures, BLT:AV
Paul “Trailer”, Universal/Working Title, Workshop Creative
Best Documentary Winner: The Tillman Story “Trailer 1?, The Weinstein Company/ A&E Indie Films, Zealot Productions Inc.

Nominees:

Catfish, Universal Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates
Life in a Day “Best Day Ever Trailer”, Scott Free/National Geographic, Empire Design
Running America, Nehst, Mighty Pictures
Best Drama Winner: The Social Network “Trailer #2?, Sony Pictures, Mark Woollen & Associates

Nominees:

127 Hours, Fox Searchlight/Pathe, Motive
Hereafter “Connection”, Warner Bros., Wild Card
The King’s Speech, The Weinstein Company, AV Squad
Best Horror Winner: The Last Exorcism, Lionsgate, Mojo

Nominees:

Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark “Whisper”, Miramax, Buddha Jones
Let Me In “More”, Overture/Hammer/Relativity Films, Buddha Jones
The Rite “Proof”, New Line Cinema, Aspect Ratio
Best Independent Trailer Winner: Tree of Life, Fox Searchlight, Mark Woollen & Associates

Nominees:

It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Focus Features, Big Science Film, Inc
Martha Marcy May Marlene “Can’t Wait”, Fox Searchlight, Acme Trailer Company
Winter’s Bone, Roadside Attractions, AV Squad

GRAND Magazine includes the You've been Sentenced! word game in top high-tech and no-tech toys and games for summer!

GRAND Magazine provides grandparents of all ages (and in all stages of life!) both information and inspiration. GRAND Magazine and http://GRANDmagazine.com celebrate the joys and tackle the challenges of one of life’s sweetest experiences — having grandchildren.

Features on the site include: long-distance grand parenting, kinship care and grandparents’ rights, children’s health and development, intergenerational travel and reunions, family money, food and family gatherings, fashion, inspirations, grandchildren’s photographs and funny sayings, and much more!

This month, GRAND Magazine featured the best high-tech and no-tech toys and games for summer fun including the You’ve been Sentenced! word game. Author Dan Nessel of Dad Does says:

“Water guns are great for those hot summer days, but what about when it rains? Head inside and play You’ve been Sentenced! … this word game makes learning grammar and vocabulary fun…”

To read more about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game or to see Dan Nessel’s other top picks, please visit GRAND Magazine.

McNeill Designs supports the E3 Hollywood and Games Mixer with goodie bags filled with (what else?) games!

Here at McNeill Designs we love a good party. And that’s just what was served up at the recent E3 Hollywood & Games Mixer, sponsored by Fund the Future! with the generous support of Microsoft Game Studios and Seagate.

There were drinks, snacks and cake (yum!), plus some networking with the new generation of leaders in the game and film/television industries.

Our part? Goodie bags, of course, filled with the award-winning You’ve been Sentenced! word game and some inspiring add-on decks!

The E3 Hollywood & Games Mixer is held in support of Fund the Future! whose mission is to improve quality and diversity in games and entertainment. This year’s fund will go toward a scholarship to Clarion West, a six-week intensive writing workshop in Seattle, taught by the best in speculative fiction today.

Fundraising giant Buyer Topia adds the You've been Sentenced! word game to product line up

The mutli-award-winning, educational You’ve been Sentenced! word game was recently added to the roster of products available at Buyer Topia. Since 2002 Buyer Topia has promoted reading while helping schools, religious organizations, associations, clubs and other nonprofits earn money by selling books, calendars, CDs and more.

Buyer Topia optimizes fundraising performance and satisfaction by providing accessible and useful information, products, services and systems. More than 80% of the products offered by Buyer Topia are available for at least 35% off the standard retail price, and each organization is able to determine its own profit margin.

“Based on our shared passion with Buyer Topia for promoting literacy and our ongoing commitment to the literacy organization Success Won’t Wait!, we felt that the partnership was a perfect match,” says McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds CEO Donald McNeill.

In fact, the inherently educational nature of You’ve been Sentenced! greatly complements Buyer Topia’s current, educational product lineup. Since its creation in 2005, the You’ve Been Sentenced! game has been recognized by the education community and is the recipient of numerous education awards. You’ve been Sentenced! has been honored with the list below among many others in the toy and game world:

* George Lucas Educational Foundation’s Edutopia magazine, Hot Media for Educators

* MENSA Society’s Parenting for High Potential magazine, Resource Roundup Pick

* Scholastic Instructor Magazine Teachers Pick Best of 2009

* Parent’s Choice Award

* Creative Child Magazine, Seal of Excellence

* Dr. Toy Best Products

* Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Gold Seal Award

* Parent’s Choice Award

The You've been Sentenced! word game named a Top Pick in "The Ultimate Father's Day Gift Guide"

Who better to compose a list of the best Father’s Day gifts around than dad himself? DadDoes.com supplies us with the best of the best for 2011 in The Ultimate Father’s Day Gift Guide!

In addition to fantastic ideas like a Boccini Travel Set, Bringrr Smart Phone Charger, Bottle Opener Case for the iPhone and a Fisheyes Rod and Reel with Underwater Video Camera, DadDoes.com included the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and NASA Space Terminology add-on deck!

DadDoes.com says, “Some Dads can tell you every player on the 1950 Dodgers, while other Dads can tell you every Astronaut who has circled the globe. For the latter group, make them happy this Father’s Day with the NASA Terminology Add-One Deck for the You’ve Been Sentenced! game.

You’ve Been Sentenced! is a fun, family game where you make bizarre sentences and then have to defend them to score points. Sure, this game is for kids 8 and up, but Dads will love playing it as much as the kids and it will give Dad a chance to show off his bizarre knowledge of NASA.”

The You've been Sentenced! word game wins the Dad Does Approved Award

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game was recently awarded a Dad Does Approved Award! Here’s a brief snippet of what the folks at DadDoes.com had to say about the game:

“Finally a Game Moms and Dads Will Enjoy As Much as Their Kids. I am a Dad who loves games, but some of the games my kids want me to play having me so bored I start to wish the game will spontaneously combust. Playing You’ve Been Sentenced! and the topic specific Add-On Decks is sort of like playing Trivia Pursuit meets MadLibs. Moms, Dads, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and Very Smart Dogs all will have a blast playing You’ve Been Sentenced! with the kids…

I am man enough to admit when I am wrong — and I was very wrong about You’ve Been Sentenced! I really did not believe that learning grammar and vocabulary could be fun, but this game proved me wrong. You’ve Been Sentenced! is one of those simple games that just works on all levels. The NASA Space Terminology Add On Deck is great for kids interested in Space and they also make a number of other Add On Decks in other categories…”

To read the review in its entirety, simply visit them at DadDoes.com.

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game wins Parent’s Choice Award for Spring 2011

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game was recently honored with a Parent’s Choice Award for Spring 2011. Established in 1978, Parents’ Choice is the nation’s oldest nonprofit guide to quality children’s media and toys.

Diana Huss Green established Parents’ Choice Foundation on the following three beliefs: reading is the key for children to the world’s histories, literatures, arts and sciences; accomplishment is essential to self-esteem; and learning requires discipline. The Foundation’s mission is to provide parents with reliable unbiased information about tools to help their children learn, to explore new challenges, to discuss ideas and to pursue dreams.

According to the Parent’s Choice review by Don Oldenburg of the You’ve been Sentenced! word game, “Educationally, the game reinforces skills in sentence structure, grammar, vocabulary, spelling and overall language. In terms of pure fun, if you have the right players, this can be a loud and funny blast of smart gaming.”

Creators of the You've been Sentenced! word game ink international representation agreement with Richard Gill and NH Contract Management

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds recently announced that the firm has signed a representation agreement with NH Contract Management LLC. The agreement covers all international distribution for McNeill Designs’ roster of award-winning, educational toys and games including the word game You’ve been Sentenced! and the memory game Twisted Fish.

“Partnering with NH Contract Management is a huge step in the growth of McNeill Designs internationally,” explains CEO Donald McNeill. “Worldwide distribution on this scale could only be handled by someone with the experience and expertise of Richard Gill, President of NHCM.”

In fact, Emmy-nominated Richard Gill has developed, distributed and licensed numerous games and toys for the global toy market on his own behalf, as well as for third party inventors/companies. Gill is also a former co-owner of the wildly popular Pictionary game and former Executive VP of Horn Abbot International, the former international owner of Trivial Pursuit, two of the best-selling games of all time!

BabyRazzi.com calls the You've been Sentenced! word game "a fun family game" and "educational"

BabyRazzi.com is THE place on the internet to catch up on all the latest celeb baby, pregnancy, and relationship news. The folks at babyRazzi give you more of what you love… with a focus on celebrities and how they interact on a personal level. More babies, pregnancy, kids, and relationship news and photos.

Here’s what they have to say about the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and new NASA Space Terminology add-on deck:

“I’m always on the lookout for fun family games that are educational as well. Have you heard of the popular game “You’ve Been Sentenced”? Have you played with your friends or family yet? It’s a fun, brain-teasing, silly sentence-creating game that has been winning awards and gaining in popularity over the past few years…”

To read this review in its entirety, please visit BabyRazzi.com

Playthings Magazine staff names You’ve been Sentenced! word game and NASA add-on deck “Toy of the Week”

Playthings Magazine recently named the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and the NASA Space Terminology add-on deck Toy of the Week for the magazine’s online site. Playthings Magazine provides the latest news from the world of toy, game and collectible retailers, manufacturers and suppliers. In addition to industry financial results, store openings and closings, promotions, marketing efforts, and other business developments, Playthings Magazine highlights the best new products available for kids of all ages.

According to Playthings Magazine, “New NASA Space Terminology Deck is an add-on for use with the game You’ve been Sentenced! by McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds. Produced in conjunction with NASA’s Education Department. Word definitions, individuals’ bios, and term definitions can now be found on the NASA websites.

McNeill Designs’ CEO Donald McNeill grew up within blocks of three astronauts, including Neil Armstrong. His brother Kevin Lee McNeill, co-author of the NASA Space Terminology Deck, spent the majority of his professional life with Lockheed Martin and was program manager for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.”

To read more, visit Playthings Magazine.

The You've been Sentenced! word game receives a Gold Rating from ToysBulletin.com

The editorial staff at ToysBulletin.com recently gave the You’ve been Sentenced! word game a Gold Rating on their site’s Bronze-Silver-Gold rating system. ToysBulletin.com offers 100% independent reviews of everything from board games, to building toys, to outdoor toys and games, plus so much more.

Here’s just a brief excerpt of what the folks at ToysBulletin.com had to say:

“The key to the success of this game is that many of the sentences can be totally understandable, but ridiculously silly. Many players were laughing out loud at some of the outrageous sentences, yet in almost every case, it was truly a real sentence, with proper grammar. For example, one of the most funny sentences was as follows, “Abraham Lincoln/ smelled/ the/bottom of/ the/ alien/’s/ face/ in/ the lunch room.” That is a valid sentence, so it scored points. The first player to earn 200 points wins the game.

This game was rated very good or excellent from all of the kids and adults who played it. That was indeed a big ‘thumbs up.’ ”

Quest for Fun! releases Top 100 Card Games list; You’ve been Sentenced! word game takes spot #42

The You’ve been Sentenced! word game has made it onto the Quest for Fun! Top 100 Card Games List. Better yet, ranking at #42, it’s actually in the Top 50!

According to the Quest for Fun author, the list includes best-selling card games by quantity sold, stripping out expansions and the Living Card Game category.

Other Top 50 finishers include Apples to Apples, Quiddler, Uno and Set.

Delaware AeroSpace Education Foundation and Thurgood Marshall Elementary School team up for You've been Sentenced! word game competition

5th grade enrichment students at Thurgood Marshall Elementary School in Newark have teamed up with Delaware AeroSpace Education Foundation (DASEF) in a unique competition. On Monday, April 4, the students will play the popular You’ve been Sentenced! word game using special space-themed words from the game’s new NASA Space Terminology add-on deck. The most creative sentence will be chosen by DASEF to be used as part of the webcast of the final launch of the space shuttle Endeavor.

During the launch’s webcast, the game’s inventor, Donald McNeill, will explain to viewers and the astronauts themselves how to play the game. He will also use the winning Thurgood Marshall sentence as an example. The students will be tuned in on launch day, April 19, to find out whose sentence was chosen.

Enrichment instructor Nancy Ventresca explains, “The students are so excited to have a small piece of history during this special launch. Our students were members of the DASEF, Launching a Dream Program two years ago and the whole school got caught up in the excitement of the program. Our team of astronauts won the Hubble Telescope Challenge Award that year and the enthusiasm for learning about space has continued.

That same childhood enthusiasm for space exploration is, in fact, what led to the game’s creation. As a child in the 1960’s and 1970’s, game inventor Donald McNeill grew up in El Lago Keys Estates Houston, Texas — home to many of the pioneers of NASA’s space program. For example, the first man on the moon Neil Armstrong (Gemini 8, Apollo 11) lived just up the street, neighbor Ron Evans (Apollo 17) lived a block away, and Fred Haise (Apollo 13) was quite literally just next door.

And on April 19, McNeill will be able to make his own personal mark on the space program during the webcast of the STS-134 launch of the space shuttle Endeavor. This is a historic mission not only because it is the final launch for Endeavor, but because the mission will be commanded by Mark Kelly, husband of Senator Gabby Gifford of Arizona, who was wounded in a tragic shooting earlier this year.

The Game Preserve recommends the You've been Sentenced! word game

The Parry Game Preserve is a site for those of us with a passion for toys and games. In any given week you may find some examples of older toys, some discussion about current price trends, and an example of something new and cool that just came out.

So we were thrilled with the recent inclusion of a review of the You’ve been Sentenced! word game and the new NASA Space Terminology Add-On Deck. Here’s just a brief snippet of the review. To read this review (and lots of other great toys and game observations!) please visit The Parry Game Preserve .

“Tonight’s entertainment included playing a new word based game, You’ve Been Sentenced. If you are into word play, you’ll certainly enjoy this game. You’ve Been Sentenced consists of cards, each with a word in various states (for example flew, fly, flies, flying on one card) or a set of words that are a similar type like several prepositions, that are used to create sentences.

This game is great not just for children, but also for those wishing to practice thinking on their feet and keeping their brains sharp.”

NASA adds Donald McNeill of McNeill Designs to webcast of Space Shuttle Endeavor’s final launch on April 29

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds recently announced that game inventor and lifelong space enthusiast Donald McNeill has been added to the NASA DLN webcast on April 29, 2011 (NEW DATE) for the launch of the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Detailed shuttle mission coverage is available online on the NASA site.

Through distance learning technologies like videoconferencing and webcasting, the DLN connects students and teachers with NASA experts and education specialists. There are numerous modules in the Event Catalog for all grade levels featuring science, technology, engineering, and mathematics and STEM content that highlights NASA research and missions like the Endeavor launch.

Endeavor’s final launch, STS-134, coincides with the “launch” of McNeill’s new NASA Space Terminology Deck, an add-on deck designed for use with the popular You’ve been Sentenced! word game. After brokering a Space Act Agreement with The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), McNeill’s firm produced the new deck in conjunction with NASA’s Education Department. Together, the two chose words that reflected the rich history and future of NASA and space exploration.

During the webcast, McNeill will explain to the millions watching why he felt that encouraging children to learn more about space and space exploration was so important. As a child in the 1960’s and 1970’s, McNeill grew up in El Lago Keys Estates Houston, Texas — home to many of the pioneers of NASA’s space program. In fact, the first man on the moon Neil Armstrong (Gemini 8, Apollo 11) lived just up the street, neighbor Ron Evans (Apollo 17) lived a block away, and Fred Haise (Apollo 13) was quite literally just next door.

In fact, the “space culture” of the era and friendship with these national heroes made a permanent impression on the entire McNeill family. McNeill’s older brother Kevin Lee McNeill, co-author of the NASA Space Terminology Deck, was also profoundly influenced during his youth by close contact with these NASA legends. He has spent the majority of his professional life with Lockheed Martin and was the Program Manager for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) which launched successfully in August 2005. These brothers share a lifelong passion for space exploration and are eager to share this enthusiasm with children and families nationwide.

“Playing You’ve been Sentenced! in conjunction with the NASA Space Terminology Deck is a fun and memorable way to deliver and understand these terms and data,” says Kevin McNeill. “The NASA Space Terminology Deck also contains the names of past astronauts, missions and craft that will help teach the rich history of NASA to children in grades 5 – 9.”

STS-134 LAUNCH FACTS

Launch Name: STS-134

Launch Mission: The shuttle mission will deliver the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer and an ExPRESS Logistics Carrier to the International Space Station and will also mark the final flight of Space Shuttle Endeavour.

Launch Vehicle: Space Shuttle Endeavor
Launch Site: Kennedy Space Center, Launch Pad 39A
Launch Time: 7:48 p.m. EDT

Launch Crew: The STS-134 crew members are Commander Mark Kelly, Pilot Gregory H. Johnson and Mission Specialists Michael Fincke, Greg Chamitoff, Andrew Feustel and European Space Agency astronaut Roberto Vittori.

You've been Sentenced! and Twisted Fish games are now part of the permanent museum collection at The Strong

Two of McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds’ best-selling games, the word game You’ve been Sentenced! and the memory game Twisted Fish, were recently added to the permanent collection at The Strong, the world’s most comprehensive collection of historical materials related to play.

“Inclusion of our games by The Acquisition Committee is an incredible honor,” says McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds CEO Donald McNeill. “The Strong is devoted to preserving for future generations the rich history and diversity of play – from well known, traditional offerings like Monopoly, Sorry, and Scrabble to “the new classics” like You’ve been Sentenced! and Twisted Fish.”

Located in Rochester, New York, The Strong displays thousands of play-related objects throughout the museum building. The exhibitions are open to the public, as well as researchers and collectors.

In addition to the collection, The Strong has five programmatic arms called “Play Partners.” These are the National Museum of Play, the International Center for the History of Electronic Games, the National Toy Hall of Fame, the Brian Sutton-Smith Library and Archives of Play, and the American Journal of Play.

Play on!

McNeill Designs increases its’ store roster, surpassing the 1,000 mark

Following the tremendous success of Toy Fair 2011, held earlier this month in New York City, McNeill Designs has surpassed the 1,000 mark, adding even more independent toy and game retailers to its’ store roster.

“Small, independent toy and game retailers have always been the backbone of our business,” explains McNeill Designs CEO Donald McNeill. “Independently owned stores are always on the lookout for those exciting, engaging products that help them differentiate themselves from large, mass retailers. Our games, including the word game You’ve been Sentenced! and the memory game Twisted Fish are perfect in this setting.”

Independent toy and game retailers are the pioneers of the industry. Very often it’s the small mom-and-pop retailers that discover the next “big thing” and literally introduce it to the world. To surpass the 1,000 store milestone is an exciting achievement for the firm!

For a complete list of stores, please visit McNeill Designs.

Yahoo! Shine names You've been Sentenced! word game one of the Top 6 Family Game Changers for 2011

Earlier this week, the folks at Yahoo! Shine named their Top 6 Family Game Changers. Leading the pack was the You’ve been Sentenced! word game.

According to Shine, “…this game is no joke. You really think hard to jumble random, unrelated words into a cohesive sentence. Sure, we all laughed at what we came up with, but we also saw an amazing opportunity to teach kids about sentence structure, grammar and reasoning.”

Yahoo! Shine is the online destination for women looking the latest information and advice from experts and the community on parenting, fashion, relationships and much, much more. This is a smart, dynamic place for women to gather, get info and to connect with each other and the world around them.

To read the article in its entirety and to see which other 5 great games made the list, visit Shine.

You've been Sentenced! word game makes The Babble List: Best Kids Toys for 2011

From pregnancy questions, to toddler development issues, to the most exciting new family products available, Babble has it all. Got a pre teen-related question? Looking for a unique baby name? Need a recipe for veggies that kids will actually eat? Babble has the answer!

Michelle Horton and Liann Snykus of Babble recently attended Toy Fair in New York and scoured over 100,000 products from 91 countries to find the best of the best for The Babble List: Best Kids Toys for 2011 — including the word game You’ve been Sentenced! Other top picks included Cluedo World of Harry Potter, Lego Champion, and the new Spirograph from Hasbro, plus lots more.

To see all of Michelle and Liann’s fantastic picks, simply visit Babble.

You've been Sentenced! and Twisted Fish games ranked in the top 101 board games

The You’ve been Sentenced! and Twisted Fish games have both recently been included in the Top 101 Board Games according to Best101BoardGames.com.

Best 101 Board Games includes top-rated games in genres as diverse as fantasy, role playing, physical, strategy, party, and more. This simple tool enables users to find the latest and greatest board games.

According to the folks at Best 101 Board Games, “We want to make it easy for people to discover and talk about the best board games now available. There are too many people whose idea of a board game is Monopoly, Cluedo (Clue), Risk and Scrabble. Over the last 10 – 15 years there has been a massive shift in the board game industry and the results are more enjoyable, fun, interesting and exciting board games.”

You've been Sentenced to a little fun!

This article was originally published by Dane Carlson’s Business Opportunities Weblog Network. The piece entitled, “You’ve been Sentenced! to fun” offers a glimpse of just what makes a toy and game inventor tick:

If you want to learn something new, the best way to do it is to make a game out of it. The more fun everyone has while paying the game, the more information they will retain.

It is that same basic idea that has made You’ve Been Sentenced! such a big hit. The game, which was created by Donald McNeill, allows the players to create fun sentences using special cards that are included. Each player earns points for the words used. Much like Trivial Pursuit, you can buy extra card decks to help you expand your game play at home. In the ever changing world of word-play, You’ve Been Sentenced! is a game that will live on for a long time. This fun-for-all ages game can also help adults and kids alike learn the basic skills of piecing a good (or funny) sentence together.

I recently interviewed Donald about his business, McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds, and the two games they currently produce.

Tell us a little about your company, McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds.

On Dec. 29th 2004 I had an idea for language as a game where you would actually have to make sentences from words on cards. That was the beginning of what would grow into an educational game company that now has 9 products and even a Space Act Agreement with NASA as we are launching our new NASA Space Terminology Add-on-Deck to the game of You’ve been Sentenced! that is filled with the names of astronauts, missions and terms illustrating NASA’s rich history.

What inspired you to get into the educational game business?

It was sort of a fluke! In order to make You’ve been Sentenced! I had to figure out the mathematics and geometry of how to make language playable – I know that sounds nuts! But honestly 6 weeks into the concept I was ready to quit when I came up with what worked. For the first two years we focused on marketing the game to the toy and game market and did well but it was teachers who kept writing me thank you letters – some than even choke me up until this day that made us start to focus on the education market as well. The game has been in B&N and Borders for 5 years now and I am very proud of that.

How many games do you currently offer? Can you tell us a little about each one and how they work?

You’ve been Sentenced! is the flagship product and it now has 6 Add-on-Decks to it as well. I have attached the catalog so you can read about them too. Our actual second product is a game called Twisted Fish which is a great memory game and takes the old game of Go Fish and makes it so much more challenging.

What separates your games from the others available on the market?

You’ve been Sentenced! is truly the first game in history to turn making sentences into seriously hilarious fun! It has now won 10 national awards and 3 great mentions.

Do you have any plans for new ones in the near future?

We are really focused on developing all of the capabilities of You’ve been Sentenced! right now but we do have many games in the pipeline and we receive requests to submit ideas all of the time. Ideas are a dime a dozen in the games business…but very few ever stay alive for more than a year or two.

What do you enjoy the most about inventing games?

Today it is really more about writing more Add-on-Decks to You’ve been Sentenced! and that is a lot of fun to pick and choose who will appear in the deck.

What are some lessons your business has taught you?

If you want to make a small fortune in the games business…start with a large one. Just kidding. I have learned so much from my mistakes and try never to repeat the same one twice.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Thank you for the opportunity and if people are curious to learn more you can publish my email address dmcneill@mcneiolldesigns.com I do get busy but I always find time to respond to thoughtfully written questions.

Any advice you’d like to offer fellow entrepreneurs that are just getting started?

Passion is the only single drive that can make you succeed – If you are not passionate about what you do… don’t do it. When you thinks of a great idea, don’t blow it off, right it down and ask those close to you if they think it is a good idea. If they do GO FOR IT!

George Sergio joins McNeill Designs' team

Joining the McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds team is George Sergio. George brings a vast wealth of knowledge and experience with over 30 years of senior level experience, including thirteen years as a partner, in national accounting firms and twelve years as CFO of a fine paper distributor with domestic and international operations and with sales growing from $500 million to $1 billion.

The NASA Space Terminology Add-on Deck for the You've been Sentenced! game is now available

Game development firm McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds recently announced the “launch” of the new NASA Space Terminology Deck, an add-on deck designed for use with the popular word game You’ve been Sentenced! The add-on deck retails for $7.95 and is designed to increase the understanding of the language of NASA and space terminology in a fun, competitive manner.

After McNeill Designs signed a Space Act Agreement with The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the firm produced the new deck in conjunction with NASA’s Education Department, choosing words that reflected the rich history and future of NASA and space exploration. As an added learning tool, word definitions, individuals’ bios, and term definitions can be found on the NASA websites, so that children and parents can learn about space exploration and NASA together.

Encouraging children to learn more about space and space exploration is a theme that resonates with McNeill Designs’ CEO Donald McNeill. As a child in the 1970’s, McNeill grew up in El Lago Keys Estates Houston, Texas — home to many of the pioneers of NASA’s space program. In fact, the first man on the moon Neil Armstrong (Gemini 8, Apollo 11) lived just up the street, neighbor Ron Evans (Apollo 17) lived a block away, and Fred Haise (Apollo 13) was quite literally just next door.

In fact, the “space culture” of the era and friendship with these national heroes made a permanent impression on the entire McNeill family. McNeill’s older brother Kevin Lee McNeill, co-author of the NASA Space Terminology Deck, was also profoundly influenced during his youth by close contact with these NASA legends. He has spent the majority of his professional life with Lockheed Martin and was the Program Manager for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) which launched successfully in August 2005. These brothers share a lifelong passion for space exploration and are eager to share this enthusiasm with children and families nationwide.

“Playing You’ve been Sentenced! in conjunction with the NASA Space Terminology Deck is a fun and memorable way to deliver and understand these terms and data,” says Kevin McNeill. “The NASA Space Terminology Deck also contains the names of past astronauts, missions and craft that will help teach the rich history of NASA to children in grades 5 – 9.”

Since its creation in 2005, the You’ve Been Sentenced! game has been recognized by both the gaming and education communities and is the recipient of numerous awards including:

* Creative Child Magazine, Seal of Excellence
* Dr. Toy Best Products
* Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Gold Seal Award
* Spewgie Award, Best Family Fun Game
* iParenting Media Hot Product Award
* FAO Schwarz Toy Auditions, Winner
* National Parenting Seal of Approval
* Mr. Dad Seal of Approval
* George Lucas Educational Foundation’s Edutopia magazine, Hot Media for Educators
* MENSA Society’s Parenting for High Potential magazine, Resource Roundup Pick
* Scholastic Instructor Magazine Teachers Pick Best of 2009
* Tillywig 2010 Laugh Out Loud Fun Award

The NASA Space Terminology Decks, as well as all McNeill Designs’ games, are be available nationwide through ACD, Alliance, Diamond Distribution, Borders Books, Barnes and Noble, and at hundreds of independent retailers. McNeill Designs products are also distributed internationally in New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Australia, and Canada. For a comprehensive store locator, please visit McNeill Designs.

You've been Sentenced! wins 2010 Crowd Pitch Award from Funding Universe

McNeill Designs for Brighter Minds, creators of award-winning educational, party and board games was named the winner of the 2010 CrowdPitch Award on January 18. The event, sponsored by FundingUniverse, is an opportunity for selected entrepreneurs to pitch their company and products to both a panel of experts and a live audience. The pitch is followed immediately by a three minute Q&A session with the audience. Finally, the panel of experts offers up constructive feedback to each presenter.

FundingUniverse is the leader in connecting qualified entrepreneurs to banks, investors, and other funding sources nationwide, working with thousands of business owners each month who are seeking some type of business funding.

McNeill Designs’ word game You’ve been Sentenced! was the focus of the firm’s presentation by company founder and game inventor Donald McNeill. In addition to impressing the CrowdPitch panel of judges, the game has also elicited rave reviews from groups as diverse as the Mensa Society (Toy Roundup), to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine for homeschooling parents, and Metro Kids Magazine.

You’ve been Sentenced! has also already won an impressive list of awards including:

Creative Child Magazine, Seal of Excellence
Dr. Toy Best Products
Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Gold Seal Award
Spewgie Award, Best Family Fun Game
iParenting Media Hot Product Award
FAO Schwarz Toy Auditions, Winner
National Parenting Seal of Approval
Mr. Dad Seal of Approval
George Lucas Educational Foundation’s Edutopia magazine, Hot Media for Educators
Scholastic Instructor Magazine Teachers Pick Best of 2009
Tillywig Toy Awards Laugh Out Loud Award Winner 2010
Stylish Award from Parents with Style

Washington Family Magazine chooses toy and game standouts including the You've been Sentenced! word game

“Walking down the aisle of the toy store can be overwhelming. Bright colors, creative packaging, adorable characters and playful music all compete for your attention and your toy purchasing dollars. So how do you get past all the hype to find toys with long term playing power? Ones that your child will turn to over and over again. Ones that grow with your child. Ones that teach, delight, soothe, excite and become family favorites.

All of the toys and games on this year’s list meet the criteria for being more than just a toy. They teach, foster imagination, get kids moving and bring families together. Hopefully, with the toys on this list, you won’t hear “I’m bored” for at least a week and maybe not even until sometime next year.

Many of the featured toys have also won numerous national and international awards, meaning they were a hit with kids, parents, testers and industry experts. Groups like the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio, Dr. Toy, Parent’s Choice and AblePlay give awards to toys and games that meet criteria for standing out among their peers*.

*(To learn more about Toy Awards; visit the online FAMILY Magazine Article Archives )

Here is our list of this year’s standouts…

Elementary (5-9 years) Preteen (10-12) Teens/Adults (13+) You’ve Been Sentenced
Wild, wacky, witty wordplay. Can you form a hand of random words into a sensible sentence? Can you justify to the “jury” of other players that your ingenious creation is a sentence? Sometimes the story is as good as the sentence in this totally unique, award-winning game of grammar hilarity. With add-on decks including sports highlights, gourmet cuisine, pop culture and more, you will laugh out loud as you strive for wordy success in You’ve Been Sentenced.

Approximate Price – $24.95 McNeill Designs
Awards – 10 awards including Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Award, Tillywig Toy Awards laugh Out Loud Award Winner, iParenting Media Award, Dr. Toy’s Best Products Award, Creative Child Seal Of Excellence.”

To read about more standouts as chosen by the magazine, please visit Washington Family Magazine.

"You've Been Sentenced" Robotics Add-On Deck Featured at the Duel on Delaware.

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We've Done It Again!
November 7, 2006

We have just captured the 2006 iParenting Media Award in the Greatest Products in 2006, Toys & Games category.

"Evanston, IL - iParenting Media Awards announces the winners of our Greatest Products of 2006 Call for Entry, during which we evaluated items ranging from spectacular toys, educational books and great music to juvenile product gadgets, highly interactive Web sites and stimulating video games and software. All of the items were thoroughly evaluated by experienced reviewers to determine which ones exceeded the standards to earn an award.

The iParenting Media Awards program is so thorough it has attained ISO 9001:2000 Certification from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). ISO is the world's largest developer of standardization regulations, and ISO 9001:2000 is an internationally recognized standard of quality assurance. Only a fraction of the companies that attempt this certification achieve it, and the iParenting Media Awards program is the only product testing service with an awards program in our industry that has the certification.

'iParenting is celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2006 as a leader in providing parents with the best information. We enjoy evaluating products that are targeted to both children and parents," says Alvin All, Chief Executive Officer of iParenting Media. "There are so many choices to make this holiday season, but it's good to know we are making a difference in helping consumers decide which ones are best for their families. We evaluated thousands of items in our Greatest Products Call for Entry, but only the ones that exceeded the high evaluation standards we set earned the iParenting Media Award.'

To be considered for an award, each company submitted product samples, which were then precisely matched within iParenting's database of hundreds of experienced reviewers using iParenting's state-of-the-art technology. An expert, a group setting with mulitple users and a family reviewed the products and submitted a thorough evaluation of each item. Results were compiled and submitted to the iParenting Media Executive Committee for final approval. The end result of this comprehensive process is a list of award-winning products parents can feel confident in purchasing for their family."