Like amateur magicians, childhood toys are often full of old gimmicks and appear to wince when sawn in half. Enlist a dependable new plaything instead with today's Groupon: for $10, you get $20 worth of children's games, books, and toys at Ann's Teachers Store.

Ann's Teachers Store stuffs backpacks with engaging activities for school and home. Safely teach a budding chef or practice a knife-hurler circus act on a dozen sliceable fruits and veggies ($17.99) whose pretend produce features hook-and-loop fasteners to give way under a blunt plastic blade. Or modernize Lincoln Log ghost towns by assembling the 49 thistle blocks ($19.99), whose prickly plastic pieces fit together seamlessly. Older kids can hone critical-thinking skills with strategy games such as Gobblet ($29.99), a tic-tac-toe-like puzzle played on a sturdy polished-wood board, or experiment with the curvy Bendominoes ($12.99). Ann's Teachers Store also outfits educators with classroom tools, such as a 160-page lesson-plan and record book ($11.99) that can chart their classes' increases in spitball accuracy over time.