Could your old stuffed animals be worth thousands of dollars one day?
Toys or Treasures?
The Luke Skywalker action figure was like most other toys. It sat in a toy store in its box. In 1978, a Star Wars fan bought it for $2.49.
No one played with the Luke toy for almost 40 years. Then in 2015, someone bought it. And the person paid $25,000 for it.
That’s right. An old toy was worth more money than a big diamond ring. Welcome to the wacky world of toy collecting!
DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images
Many of these old toys are now worth a lot of money.
Treasure Hunt
Most people buy toys to play with them. But toy collectors don’t. They don’t even open them!
Collectors buy them because they hope the toys will be worth a fortune one day. A fortune is a lot of money. For these people, collecting is like a big treasure hunt. Action figures, Lego sets, and even some stuffed animals are all toys that can cost more money as time goes by.
SplashNews.com
Would you pay thousands of dollars for this Hot Wheels van?
Why People Collect
Remember that Luke Skywalker toy that sold for $25,000? It had a part that broke easily. So the company stopped making it. Today there aren’t many left. This is why people will pay a lot for one.
Then there’s the Roller Beach Bomb. This was a Hot Wheels van made in 1969. But the van kept tipping over. Hot Wheels stopped making it.
But today, a Roller Beach Bomb could be worth $150,000. That’s enough to buy 10 real cars!
Why would anyone spend that much on an old toy car? Some people collect because they hope an object will become more valuable. Something that is valuable is worth a lot of money.
Some want to feel like they’re part of history. And some love hunting for a rare toy. To them, it’s like looking for hidden treasure.
My Treasures
We asked three kids if they had any treasures of their own. Here is what we learned.
Pepper’s Treasure: Mr. Frog
Shonelle Cooper-Caplan
Pepper used to take Mr. Frog everywhere she went. But this year, she was ready to go to school without him. She put his picture in her backpack. That way, he would always be with her. “I love him so much,” she says.
Myles’s Treasure: A Shark Tooth
Esti Choi (Myles); BW Folsom/Shutterstock (Shark Tooth)
Myles got a fossil kit from his parents. Inside was a shark tooth. Now it’s his treasure. “I love it because great white shark teeth are rare and hard to find,” he says.
Arturo’s Treasure: Little People
Isabel Santos
Arturo makes little people from things he finds at the park. He uses twigs, pine cones, seeds, bark, and leaves.
He says his people are special. “I madethem because my grandpa died,” he says. He says they are angels who watch over his grandpa.
More About the Article
Science Focus
Animal Adaptations
IMPLEMENTATION
Small group; whole group; independent reading
PAIRINGS AND TEXT CONNECTIONS
“A Puppy Found Treasure!,” p. 2
“The Search for Pirate Gold,” p. 6
“Toys or Treasures?” and “My Treasures,” p. 18
“Lost and Found,” p. 24
BEFORE READING RESOURCES
(10 minutes) Kids can cut out the nonfiction bookmark and use it to preview the text.
(5 minutes) Help students become familiar with vocabulary words they will see in the article.
(5 minutes) Help students think about what makes something a treasure. They can connect the ideas in the video to the themed texts in the magazine.
SUGGESTED READING FOCUS
Compare and contrast (30 minutes)
AFTER READING SKILLS PRACTICE
(15 minutes for each activity)
