The Educational Supplies & Furniture Program took place February 8-11, where we hosted live, one-on-one virtual meetings between over 100 retailer and supplier companies. Trending opportunities such as STEM/STEAM were areas of focus during this crucial review period. New to the program this year,  Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) was added as these materials will be needed for the classroom and for staff. During the session, participating buyers were able to visit the Buyers Choice Awards section of the ECRM Connect platform and cast a digital vote on their favorite product based on innovation and product packaging. We are pleased to announce the winners: 

First Place: Yellow Door, Breads of the World Sensory Play Stones

Yellow Door has been passionately developing quality early childhood products to support the learning and development of young children since 2006. Their range is full of award-winning, multi-sensory resources designed to inspire creative, open-ended, and language-rich play.  

Breads of the World is a brand-new product in the Sensory Play Stones range. Along with Foods of the World, Threading Kebabs, and Pizza Toppings, they join the best-selling Fruit and Vegetables sets which were launched last year. Made from a unique stone mix, the eight different types of Breads have been crafted with incredible detail. They look realistic; you can feel the seed toppings, trace the indents, and they have the potential to make you feel hungry! Perfect for dramatic play, they will complement any indoor kitchen, but will often find their way outdoors to the Mud Kitchen. As they are made from real stone, these products feel delightfully different and offer a unique sensory experience, giving children the freedom to play wherever they choose – be that in sand, water, or dirt. The stones also offer a wonderful multicultural aspect – children can talk about where they think the breads come from, and that may lead to rich conversations about other foods from those places, or maybe foods where they are from. Safe for children aged 2 and up.  

Finalist: Scholastic Corporation, Scholastic News Sticky Situation Cards

Scholastic News Sticky Situation Cards encourage students to have rich, mind-opening conversations. Kids are often confronted with complicated issues involving friendships, bullying, schoolwork, and they may not always know what to do. Engaging in meaningful discussions using these “sticky situation” cards will help children navigate thorny issues. Each of the 180 sticky situations sets a scene that students can relate to and prompts them to think about what they would do and why. The 8x5 double-sided cards meet Listening & Speaking standards as well as Writing (opinion) standard. Each set targets a different age group; Grades 1-3 or Grades 4-6 and comes in a sturdy box for $34.99. They will be available in June 2021.

Scholastic Teacher Resources offers high-quality teaching materials created and tested by educators and vetted by editors including books for children and educators, lesson plans, boxed sets, classroom resources, classroom décor, and educational products for Pre-K – 12 teachers and students.  

For more than 100 years, Scholastic Corporation has been encouraging the personal and intellectual growth of all children, beginning with literacy. Having earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families, Scholastic is the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books, a leading provider of literacy curriculum, professional services, and classroom magazines, and a producer of educational and entertaining children's media. Scholastic creates and distributes bestselling books and e-books, print and technology-based learning programs for pre-K to grade 12, and other products and services that support children's learning and literacy, both in school and at home. With 15 international operations and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom libraries, school and public libraries, retail, and online. Scholastic Teacher Resource materials are available from your local teacher resource store.

Congratulations to our Buyer’s Choice Award Winners!
The Summer Educational Supplies & Furniture Program will take place August 10-12, 2021.