Oregon Scientific - SmartGlobe Myth AR - Review

I'll admit, when I was younger I was never that bothered about the subject of Geography, the information just didn't seem to stand out enough to get me excited enough to want to learn more. Now my children seem to be the complete opposite to me. Much more like their father, into both geography and history, eager to absorb as much information as possible. So when I was asked if I'd like to review the latest SmartGlobe from Oregon Scientific I just knew my children would be thrilled.

The SmartGlobe Myth cleverly brings together earth, space and myth, creating a truly one of a kind experience for children of all ages.

A big plus for me as a parent is that it comes completely ready to use straight out of the box. Nothing to put together and the batteries are included so the fun can begin as soon as the globe is taken out of the box. It also comes with an instruction manual and a USB cable, the only thing that you have to buy separately is a plug if you'd prefer to have the globe plugged into the mains rather than using batteries.

*AR 3D Interaction *Stories and Earth Facts *Starry Night Light

The SmartGlobe is aimed at children aged 5+ and is totally multi-purpose. It comes pre-programmed with an abundance of entertainment:

Casdon Shopping Basket and Chip 'n' Pin Till Toy Review

Most children love to imitate what we do as adults, whether that is copying us getting dressed in the morning, doing hair and make up or this could be helping us to vacuum the house  and things tidied up. Something my girls have always been eager to do is to come food shopping with me. If I'm honest this is actually something I try to avoid, I'm sure many of you parents can agree this type of trip out can be more than stressful! But we have no need to stress anymore, not when they can now go shopping all by themselves with the Casdon Shopping Basket and the Casdon Chip 'n' Pin Till.

I think I was more excited about this toy being delivered than my kids, I had my shopping list at the ready!

Making Phonics Fun

Reading is something that everyone should be able to do but in order to learn such an important life skill children must begin with the basics which these days means phonics. Teaching the letter sounds, blending etc can be time consuming and with lots of repetitive lessons it can also turn into something rather boring and dull. Not every child will have the same enthusiasm for books and this is why we need to make the subject of phonics more fun!!

It isn't down to any one person to instil this enthusiasm, teachers and parents should be working together to tailor learning sessions to each and every child involved.

My youngest is currently in year one at school and is due to take her phonics test this month which is what gave me the idea of putting this post together. Having had three other children go through the same process I've managed to come up with a few different methods to keep the learning fresh and exciting as well as using the knowledge and resources that their teachers have provided us with over the years.

I've broken this post down into four sections to simplify what I think might just help:

Happy Calc Puzzle Review

Maths is a subject that I wouldn't say I overly enjoyed at school but it was one that I was good at, my children however have all taken after their father and favour English over Maths so I'm always looking for ways to encourage them to learn more about numbers but in ways that aren't deemed as boring. Recently we were kindly send the Happy Calc Elementary Maths puzzle to play with and review.

LeapFrog LeapStart Review

Having reviewed plenty of LeapFrog products in the past, for example their LeapReader, I was a little excited to see just what their newest release, the LeapStart had to offer. Described as an amazing, super-fun, all in one system, this interactive learning toy is set to compliment your child's schooling in the best of ways.

NEW PARLIAMENTARY REPORT ON ‘PLAY’ CELEBRATES THE POSITIVE IMPACT PLAYING WITH TECH TOYS CAN HAVE ON A CHILD’S DEVELOPMENT

LeapFrog have always been well known for their toys abilities to encourage learning through play and a recent parliamentary report which coincides with the release of their latest tablet the LeapPad Epic celebrates just what a positive impact playing with these sorts of toys can have on any child's development.

This new report from a Parliamentary Group calls for play to be an important part of an approach to childrens health and wellbeing. Of course physical acitivity is a big part of kids lives, it goes a ling to battle things like obesity but play is also needed.

The question is what is considered play in this day and age? This recent report from the All Party Parliamentary Group highlights the positive impact that modern technology can have in child's play both at home and at school. I've seen this firsthand with my children. They use iPads at school and this excites them and has them eager to learn from the apps they use on them.

LeapFrog LeapPad Platinum Review

We are huge fans of LeapPads in our house, each year they seem to get better and better and I'm always left thinking that LeapFrog surely can't top what they've made but they manage to prove me wrong and they've only gone and done it again with the LeapPad Platinum.

LeapFrog Number Loving Oven Review

As LeapFrog ambassadors we are very lucky because we get sent a lot of their latest products to test out. One of the latest releases is the Number Loving Oven. This funky little number is aimed at children aged between 2 and 5 years old and is designed to teach things like counting and vocabulary.

LeapFrog Interactive World Map Review

I blog about LeapFrog books and products quite often and each time I find myself more impressed with what they have to offer. One of my most recent reviews was for their LeapReader, with so many books compatible with it, it's become a great reading companion to my children. Well last week we were lucky enough to receive LeapFrog's Interactive World Map.

Mathematics Flash Cards Review

It's funny, I always excelled at maths over English yet my kids seem to be the total opposite, maybe that's where they take after their dad? However one this made one of my latest review offerings extremely apprpriate. I was offered the chance to review a set of mathematics flash cards.

This set is priced at £5.99 for 57 cards. These cards aim to make learning about numbers fun rather than a daunting task.

Chad Valley PlaySmart Range Review

I am a huge fan of Chad Valley toys, I've had the pleasure of working with them in the past and most recently I reviewed some of their Design Boutiques range. So when I received a surprise delivery from them last month, I think I was more excited than the girls. Chad Valley have been going for 150 years now but they consistently come up with new and innovative products. this time they gave my girls and I the chance to have a play with their new PlaySmart range.

I was immediately impressed before opening the boxes because I am a huge believer of learning through play and these toys are designed to do just that. There are 19 toys in the range costing between £6.99 and £29.99, each one keeping in mind that learning should be fun.

We were sent : Family Fun Learning Games, Early Learning Pack, Jumbo Alphabet and Number Floor  Jigsaws and Magnetic Learning Play Desk (this quickly became our favourite).

The Polar Pack Book Review

Books are brilliant because not only can you read them again and again, getting lost in the story but you can also build on them, expand and extend the tales by creating activities to explore more about what they've read. Madeleine Rogers, founder of the Hove based children's designer Mibo has written a series of books which saves you some time and effort on the creative side. Included in the set is The Polar Pack, The Jungle Crew and The Safari Set.

I was kindly sent The Polar Pack for my girls to read and enjoy.

Getting Creative When Playing

I've always said that for a child playing is important, getting creative and having fun is how they learn new skills.

And creativity can stem from many places.

Using clothes, towels and blankets to create designer dresses and secret dens.

Pots, pans and kitchen utensils make the loudest of instruments.

Keeping Active With The LeapBand

You may remember a couple of months back that I wrote a post introducing one of the latest products from LeapFrog, the LeapBand and I promised you guys a review

Well I'm happy to tell you that we have been putting the LeapBand through it's paces and I'm finally ready to share with you all what the girls and I made of it.

For those of you that haven't heard of the LeapBand yet, let me give you a little more info :

It is the first wearable activity tracker for children, designed to not only get them learning but to keep them active whilst having fun too. It combines virtual pet play with physical activities and even doubles up as a watch!!

We received the LeapBand in pink but it is also available in green, blue and orange as well, making it suitable for boys and girls.

My Geometric Universe App Review

I previously reviewed a set of apps from the lovely people at Chocolapps. Recently they very kindly allowed me to review one of their newest apps, 'My Geometric Universe'. This app allows your child to draw many different shapes in both 2D and 3D.

The concept is really good. The app allows your child to use different tools to draw including pencil, ruler, compass and set square. This gets them used to what they will have to do at school if they aren't using these already.

The app itself is again available in 11 different languages : English, French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, Japanese, Chinese, Turkish and Russian.

Overall there are 6 2D shapes to create and more than 30 3D shapes to create. With each shape that you successfully draw more objects are unlocked and once fully complete, there are 3 different universes to place these objects in, The Kid's Room, Ancient Egypt and The Middle Ages.

As well as drawing shapes, there is also the opportunity to cut them out and and watch the 3D shapes being created. You can see in the above picture that one of the objects that my daughter unlocked was a doll and you are free to place this object wherever you want in the scene above. All you need to do is press your finger on the picture of the doll and move her around.

As I said the concept is great. Your kids get to learn about shapes, when you click the question mark on the side it tells you a little bit about the shape, for example for the square above it tells you that it has four equal sides.

The instructions to draw the shapes are very clear and easy to follow however actually drawing the shapes proved a little tricky sometimes. When 'drawing' the line, it sometimes took a few attempts for it to actually draw the full line. The other difficulty came when trying to turn the tools around to draw the lines that were going up the page, my daughter and I were both trying but on many occasions the set square for example didn't respond to being twisted around.

Overall I would recommend looking at the app from Chocolapps. Although not quite as simple as it could be, it definitely teaches the kids alot, you just need a bit of patience with it at times.

xxxx

Disclaimer : I was sent a code to download the app however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Great Gizmos Review

If you read my blog you will know that I am a huge fan of educational toys and the idea of learning through play. Great Gizmos are a site that provide just that.

Established in 1997, Great Gizmos stock an extensive range of high quality educational and creative toys for kids of all ages, their ultimate aim is to make learning fun.

I was recently sent an impressive parcel of goodies from Great Gizmos to look at the exact kind of products that they sell. I didn't know what I would be receiving so it was a lovely surprise. Inside were products from NICI, 4M, Plan toys and Lil Pet Pals.

The first item that Great Gizmos sent me was the NICI Owl Backpack. This adorable bag has a RRP of £24.99 and comes complete with fluffy wings and stripy feet stitched on the outside. Suitable for boys and girls, it is a perfect size for younger children to take to playschool with them. I managed to fit in a jumper, a top, a pair of trousers, underwear and a hat and there was still room for more.

With the option of a carry handle of back straps, the backpack is both fun for the child and it is also extremely practical as the design encourages your child to carry their own bag. Gracie took to wearing it around the house, I think the owl became her new friend.

The second item to come from Great Gizmos was the Dragon Bag from Lil Pet Pals. This bag has a RRP of £13.95 and is actually a lunch bag in disguise. Inside it is fully insulated to keep food and drink either hot or cold. With its bright colours and and added sticking out ears, the design is simple yet extremely effective.

It even comes complete with a name tag inside, so need to worry if someone happens to have the same lunch bag. As you can see from the pictures above, Layla claimed it as her own, the small carry handle at the top made it easy for her to carry. The bag is well made and I think because it has wipe clean material, it would last a long time making it great value for money. A quirky item that may help if you have a child that doesn't like the idea of staying out for lunch.

The third item we received from Great Gizmos was the Beehives game from Plan toys. Now I am a huge fan of wooden toys and I have to say this game didn't disappoint. This game has a RRP of £23.96 and although it says it is suitable for 3 years +, it proved popular with all of my children. The set includes 6 beehives, 6 bees and a pair of tweezers. 

The bright colours of the bees and their hives draw you in and each of my children had different ideas of what to do with them. Layla was keen on trying to "help" her sisters play. Gracie who is three worked out quite quickly all the different things she could do, matching up the bees with the same coloured hives, stacking up the hives into towers. My 5 year old Freya enjoyed making different patterns with the hives and my 8 year old Elise was mixing the colours, for instance she told me when she put the blue bee in the green hive it would make yellow. A really great educational toy that teaches a new lesson each time you play with it.

I think we saved the best till last, item number that Great Gizmos kindly sent to us was the Christmas Mould and Paint Kit from 4M, just perfect for this time of year. With a RRP of £8.95, this kit comes complete with mould, plaster, paint, brush, string and magnets. We had the chance to make some festive decorations and magnets. The plaster was simple to mix and once put in the moulds, only took half hour to set.

The girls took it in turns to paint their chosen festive characters, you can see from the picture above the final creations. There is enough plaster to make 12 different moulds. The string needed to be placed in the plaster before it dried but stayed in place nicely one the plaster had set. The only negative thing we found was that the magnets wouldn't stick to the back of the plaster, we ended up getting Daddy Hazelden to superglue them on but overall the kids were very pleased with what they had made and they have decided to give their creations to their teachers as Christmas presents.

I have shown you just a tiny selection of products that Great Gizmos have to offer, why not pop over and take a look for yourself, you may just find some products perfect for those Christmas presents that you need to buy.

xxxx

Disclaimer : These products were sent to us free of charge for reviewing purposes however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

My Wondercube Review

Having had four kids, we have had a fair few toys in this house, the trouble is that the younger ones tend to get all the old toys and nothing new for themselves and even when we want to buy new, we struggle with ideas for something different to purchase.

When I was asked to review the My Wondercube, I was rather excited for Gracie and Layla as this was something new for them that they could enjoy together.

My Wondercube is an innovative educational toy that was actually created after the creators watched their daughter pulling wet wipes out of their packet.

These cubes are suitable from birth onwards and come in a range of materials : organic cotton jersey, organic fairtrade woven cotton and lovely crafted wooden. All made by manufacturers who use ethical and environmentally friendly production and they are all carry the CE marking.

We were sent the Little Wonder Jersey which is made from the organic cotton jersey.

The cube is extremely soft and wonderfully colourful. It comes complete with five pieces which fill the cube, all presented in an eco friendly box. 

The pieces that are included feature the "Wonder characters" : munchy, max, mimi and min. These pieces are all just as soft as the cube and each one does something different, squeeking, crunching, rattling. There is a little velcro part on each one so that you can stick each piece together. 

Being machine washable, you don't need to worry about sticky fingers getting over it or little mouths munching away on it. All of the filling pieces are machine washable too.

Priced at £17.99 for this version, I think it is money well spent. The toy is fun and your child is learning as they play. There is something new to do each time, learning colours, sounds, putting things in a row, pulling things out and putting things away, the list is endless. It is a toy that will help with your little ones developing their fine motor skills, 

The best bit is that you can buy additional add on fillings to go in the Wondercube, from letters and numbers to shapes, emotions and animals. The add on filling prices range from as little as £0.99 up to £19.99. This is turn will help them learn their alphabet and form words and learn to count and maybe even start doing basic sums.

It is a toy that is durable and made to last. It will be played with for years as your child grows as there are always more things to learn and is one that is perfect to pass on to younger siblings etc too. It can be adapted for whoever is playing with it. A great addition to any toy box.

xxxx

Disclaimer : This toy was sent to me free of charge for reviewing purposes however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Chocolapps Review

I am always on the look out for new apps that the kids can play on the iPad but specifically ones where they can learn as they play.

Chocolapps are a company that produce and publish interactive children's apps and they have been doing so for over three years now.

Aimed at children aged between three and twelve years old, their catalog includes over 30 different applications that are then broken down into three categories :

The Kid-eBooks - which includes tales like The Little Mermaid, Pinocchio and Robin Hood.

The Kid-eLearns - children can learn about educational subjects such as the human body, space and much much more.

The Kid-eGames - this includes things like puzzles and hide & seek.

All of the applications are available in seven different languages : English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch and Portuguese, making them suitable to a big audience.

I was sent codes to download four different applications, two eBooks, an eLearn app and an eGame app.

The two books we downloaded were : The Little Mermaid and Cinderella, these choices went down well with my girls because they are huge princess fans!! The stories are read clearly and the words are highlighted as they read, this makes it a lot easier for your children to follow the story. What I loved the most was that there was an option to click on words when the story was paused and you are given a dictionary definition of what they mean, this was great for me as I sometimes struggle to know exactly how to word things when I am asked what the meaning of something is. There is also an option for younger children which is "show me" and instead of getting a worded explaination, you get a picture to show you what something is. This makes the app appropriate for all age groups, a nice learning tool no matter how old they are.

The eLearn app that I downloaded was, The Little Market. This game is aimed at learning mathematical skills. You have to pick items of fruit and veg from the market stalls and pop them in your basket, it then shows you how much your total spend comes to and you have to work out what change needs to be given to pay. This was good for my 5 year old as she is just learning this sort of thing and it was like a refresher for my 7 year old. Not as suitable for younger children however my three year old did enjoy putting the items in the basket.

The eGame app that I downloaded was, Hide and Seek. Simple yet effective, it was a game that all three of my children sat and done together. This game made them sit down and concentrate, you can easily zoom in to make it simpler to find certain objects and each level you complete then unlocks a new level, giving them a liitle more of an incentive to do it.

I loved these apps. I feel that they help your children learn and develop whilst remaining fun. A lot of the apps are free to download so you won't get a better excuse to try them out. The only real negative for me is that at the the moment they are only available on iPads and iPhones, for me personally that is great as I have both but it would be nice to see a smartphone version bought out so that others can enjoy the apps too. 

xxxx

Disclaimer : I was sent these apps free of charge for reviewing purposes however all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Is technology taking over??

I know I am guilty of popping the television on for the children when I want a bit of peace and quiet or if I'm trying to get on with housework without having them leave a trail of mess behind me but do you think technology is replacing traditional toys and parents playing one on one with their kids these days??

Now I am not against gadgets, infact I encourage my children to use my iPad and  the laptop but I don't just let them sit there for hours playing any old game. I allow them to do it because I pick out educational games or I am helping them research things for school. I know I can be seen a lot of the time with my iPhone in my hand and now that I think about it, I really should spend less time tweeting, blogging etc

I came across an interesting article from Galt toys that said research has found that busy parents are spending less than an hour a day playing with their children, instead replacing themselves with things like games consoles.

I think it such a shame. This same article shows that parents have lost confidence in their own ability to play with their children, what happened to a good old game of pots and pans and wooden spoons, just sitting doing a puzzle or reading a book. I love doing things like this because as I am sure many of you have realised, they grow up all too soon and won't want to be seen playing with mummy anymore.

Galt have actually bought a new range of toys, developed with Dr Miriam Stoppard, encouraging learning through play and they even come with special play guides and handy tips to help make the most of play time.

I love the idea of going back to basics as such. I think we as parents should make time to really have fun and interact with our children. We really can't use the excuse that we are too busy, if we have time to be sat on twitter, taking photo's of what we've eaten that day or playing candy crush for the tenth time that day, then we really do have the time to sit with our children and just play!!!

What do you think?? Tell me what do you like to play with your children??

xxxx

Bananagrams Review - Rainbow Toy Testing

A while ago I was picked to be a Rainbow Toy Tester. I've been waiting patiently ever since to see what toy we would be sent. I was finally put out of my misery a couple of weeks ago when we were sent a set of Jumbo Banagrams to test and play with.

This game is similar to scrabble in the sense that you have to make words out of the tiles however this is where the similarities end. You don't take it in turns to make the words, oh no, this is a race to the end, making as many words as you can and in the end you get left with what looks like a giant crossword.

The tiles are made are made from a water resistant material making them suitable for both indoor and outdoor play, great for when the sun makes an appearance as you can play it out on the grass and they can easily be wiped clean after if they get dirty at all. 

There are that many tiles, 144 to be precise, that you can have up to 6 players playing the game, however I did find that the tiles were extremely heavy when all put in the banana carry bag together so although it is a brilliant idea that you can transport them anywhere, I would suggest that only the parent carries them as we wouldn't want any injuries!!!

The thing that really stands out for me is that it isn't just a game for fun, it enables you to teach your child how to spell certain words, so they are learning as well as playing and I am a huge fan of educational games. I will mention that all the letters are printed on the tiles in capitals, this I would change, I would like to see them all in lower case as this is how children are taught in school.

As you can see from the above picture, my children found other ways to use the tiles instead of just sticking to the normal game play. I found this message from my eldest daughter to my youngest daughter very cute.

My kids and I really loved this game, great fun for both children and adults and because there are no boards, pencils etc required, you don't have to worry about losing any pieces. It is great at getting friends and family socialising and having fun whilst helping your kids to gain knowledge at the same time. Definitely one to have in the games cupboard.

Disclaimer : we were sent this game free of charge to be part of the rainbow toy testing program however all thoughts and opinions are my own.