LeapFrog: Let’s Go To School DVD – Review

Educational

Leap Frog: Let's Go To School DVD

Pre-School Fun

Now that it’s Back-to-School, my granddaughter, ‘Lil Moomette is all excited.

She may be too young for Kindergarten, but she recently started dance lessons and we let her know that this milestone in her life is her “school.”

It won’t be too long before she starts her formal education, and I’ve had the opportunity to review a new DVD that will prepare her for preschool.

Lionsgate has partnered with top educational toy brand LeapFrog to release the first new LeapFrog educational DVD in four years -  LeapFrog: Let’s Go To School.

My granddaughter goes on frequent trips to visit her grandparents in Vermont, and this is an excellent DVD to pop into a DVD player for the long trip up.

With an engaging story line, school starts tomorrow, and Tad and Lily are nervous!  Your toddlers will join Tad, Lily and their magical firefly Edison as he gives them a tour of the classroom and shows them that the classroom is more nervous than they are! As the twins reassure the blocks, globe, clock and more talking teachers, they learn key lessons about phonics, counting, days of the week and animals.

This is a great educational birthday or holiday gift, and nice to have for pre-school, daycare, or to give to Grandmom to keep on hand for when the little ones visit!

DVD SPECIAL FEATURES

• 5 Sing-along songs

• Interactive alphabet book

• A sneak peek at Math Adventure to the Moon

Available on: Amazon
For More Information Visit: Leapfrog

Type: Full Screen
Genre: Educational
Age Target: Children, Ages 3-6
Rating: Not Rated
Closed Captioned: English
Subtitles: English
Format: Full Screen
Feature Running Time: Approximately 35 minutes
DVD Audio Status: 2.0 Dolby Digital

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes

Thanks for visiting! Comments are always appreciated! This blog is Do-Follow Links!

VTech Bugsby Reading System – Review

VTech

Bugsby Reading System

My 3-year old granddaughter started speaking quite early and has an excellent vocabulary.  Whereas her mom used a pacifier that we threw away when she was two, ‘Lil Moomette sucks her thumb.  I think it’s a harder habit to break than the pacifier.  We’ve noticed, however, that due to her thumb-sucking, ‘Lil Moomette has difficulty pronouncing certain words.

My granddaughter enjoys being read to, whether she’s visiting at my house, or at home before bedtime.

I recently had the opportunity to review Bugsby the Book Worm Reading System by VTech, along with two additional books.

Save The Chimp (3-5) – Teaches Letters;  Phonics;  Rhyming; Alphabetical Order; Reading Comprehension

Bugsby and the Magical Museum (5-7)  – Teaches Adjectives; Spelling; Consonants; Punctuation; Reading Comprehension

The Bugsby Reading System by Vtech is recommended by  certified Reading Specialist Dr. Deborah Sharp Libby, Ph.D, and has received the Children’s Technology Review Editor’s Choice Award for 2009 for Excellence in Design.

Children are able to read along and interact with their favorite characters while at the same time building early reading skills. Bugsby enables the kids to build reading skills through play while developing reading comprehension, phonics, sentence structure, word recognition and more.

What we liked about the Bugsby Reading System for ‘Lil Moomette is that it reinforces the pronunciation of words that we encourage my granddaughter to repeat.  I grew up learning to read by “see it – say it – spell it.”

The Bugsby Reading System includes a software cartridge with every story book title

Bugsby Reading System Pen & Starter Book Bundle Features:

• Interactive reading system featuring pen touch technology

• Curriculum focuses on reading and language arts

• Story reading and interactive activities

• Cute bookworm character shaped pen

• Comes with bundled title featuring a story about Bugsby

This is a great item for any pre-school, daycare or home-schooling household to have!

Recommended Age Group: 3 – 7

Available at Major Retailers: Walmart, Toys R Us, Target, Sears and Kmart

Become a Fan of VTech on Facebook

Follow VTech on Twitter

Enroll in Club VTech to learn more about VTech’s products and get important updates on new toys and offerings.

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes

Katie and Kimble: A Ghost Story – Book Review and Giveaway

<

Schools will soon be out of session for the summer here in New England.  In many parts of the country, school’s out already!

My girls were always sent home with the required book reading lists.  I always encouraged some “extra reading” of books of their own choosing.

If you follow along on my other blogs, you’ll know that at one point I almost became a Reference Librarian.

I’m delighted to have the opportunity to have reviewed Katie & Kimble, “A Ghost Story“ to recommend this parenting tip to you just in time for your child’s summer reading list or leisure time reading!

Katie & Kimble “A Ghost Story” is Book 1 in a Series by Linda Thieman.

Nine-year-old Katie Russell and her family LOOK like a normal family. But the Russells don’t know they are living with Kimble, the ghost of a 10-year-old girl. That is, until Katie discovers Kimble and the two of them set off on a quest to find out what happened to Kimble’s mother.

A Ghost Story is recommended for ages 7-10.  The print is large enough for young eyes.  The book is written in a conversational tone, with lots of back and forth bantering.

There are several black and white illustrated photos.  Book 1 of the series has 11 chapters, and 106 pages – enough to keep the kids occupied for awhile once they get into the story!

If you homeschool, make sure to add this charming mystery book to your child’s reading list this summer!

Available on Amazon

ISBN-10: 0-09794396-1-2

ISBN-13: 978-0-9794396-1-2

For More Information Visit: Katie And Kimble

Moomette’s Magnificents Reviews is hosting a Giveaway Contest! For a chance to win an Autographed Copy of this book by the author, there will be two (2) winners!

Please include a way of contacting you. Should you be the contest winner, this information may be shared with the contest sponsor in order to send your prize.

Main Rule: (remember if this rule is not followed then no others will count)

a) Subscribe to my blog through my Feedblitz link (on the top of my left column or let me know if you already are, in a separate comment)

b) Visit Katie and Kimble and leave a comment about what you like best about their site and another fact that wasn’t mentioned in this post.

Now for extra entries (each task will get you 1 extra entry):

~One Extra Entry: Add my banner button to your sidebar or add me to your blogroll, and come back here and leave the link (I will be checking)

~One Extra Entry: Blog about the contest on your blog linking to my blog and the site

~One Extra Entry: Stumble this post and leave your SU name (I will be checking) in a separate comment

~One Extra Entry: Favorite Moomette’s Magnificents Reviews in Technorati and leave your name (I will be checking) in a separate comment  (the link is on my left column if you scroll down) or both.

~ One Extra Entry: Follow Me on Twitter and let me know your Twitter name in a separate comment.

~One Extra Entry: Tweet about this contest (Retweet button at top of post), and come back to this post and leave the URL link to the Tweet so I can check. You may Retweet once per day until the end of the contest, but please leave a separate comment for each Retweet, along with the permalink

~One Extra Entry: Post the contest on Facebook linking to my blog and the site and leave your Facebook  name and permalink

Make sure you comment separately for each task after the required entry task so you will get credit for each one ~ and leave your e-mail where you can be contacted.

This contest will run until June 16 at approximately 11:00 pm.

Winners are chosen by Random.Org, if you want all your chances counted, make sure you leave individual comments, not all of them in one!

*Winner has 48 hours to contact me or another name will be chosen.

*Include your email if it’s not enabled.
*Open to USA and Canada Only
*Rules for each entry must be followed to be valid.

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes

Leslie Patricelli Childrens Book Author – A Review

On one of my most recent posts on my Moomettesgram’s Musings WAHM blog I mentioned I’m participating in a new publishing concept called “Cross Blog Conversation.” I divulged that I am a frustrated librarian at heart, and as a child spent a significant amount of time reading.

I passed along my life-long passion for books to both of my daughters, and hopefully my granddaughter, ‘Lil Moomette will follow in our footsteps.

As one of those people who can spend hours perusing the stacks of a library, or idling the hours away at second-hand bookstores while day-tripping or on vacation, it seems I’m always on the lookout for the perfect book.

I believe I’ve found some!  All grand moms like to give gifts to their grandchildren, and I am no exception.  When I was asked to review several books from the author Leslie Patricelli (Candlewick Press), I jumped at the chance.

Leslie manages to capture the fun and silliness of being a child through bright and engaging artwork, yet at the same time, encouraging the development of simple concepts.

The first book is Baby Happy Baby Sad.  This book is small yet sturdy enough that ‘Lil Moomette, who’s 2-1/2 could flip through the pages all by herself.  What I liked about it was that if something spills on it, the lamination allows it to be wiped off quickly. Each page is unique in that it provides situations that the child would be able to identify with:  Petting a puppy is Happy while dropping ice cream is Sad.

The next book by Leslie Patricelli, Higher! Higher! is a little larger for a child to handle.  The concept is about a child’s adventure on a swing  ~ examples of the higher one goes, the more you can see: in a swing; in an airplane or into outer space.

Leslie has received accolades  from magazines such as Scholastic Parent and Child and School Library Journal.

I recommend adding these titles to your book list when looking for the perfect birthday present for little ones or addition for story hour whether you’re a daycare provider or homeschooling mom.

Recommended for ages 1-5

Review Courtesy of Team Mom

Image Courtesy of Creative Commons

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes

ReadKiddoRead ~ A Review

When I was growing up, I lived one block from the local library. Very few mothers worked out of the home at the time, and very few drove. If they did know how to drive, most families only had one car during the 1950s and 1960s.  If I felt like getting out of the house, one of the few alternatives I had besides going to a friend’s house was walking to the library. Consequently, I spent many hours browsing through the stacks. My love of books and reading therefore led to my holding high aspirations of some day becoming a librarian. Although I never achieved that goal officially, my professional career has always tended to be in a research capacity.

According to the 2008 Kids and Family Reading Report by Yankelovich and Scholastic, despite 80% of parents wanting their kids to read for fun, most kids claim there aren’t enough really good books for their age group.

James Patterson has taken this issue to heart. A father himself, he knows that one of the main obstacles for young readers is a lack of books kids can truly connect with, those rare stories that draw you in and keep you reading until the very last word. We can all remember the joy of a great book from our own childhood; begging to stay up ten more minutes to finish a chapter, then hiding under the covers with a flashlight to read “just one more.” Patterson has made it his mission to give this experience to children everywhere and instill in them a love of reading.

To that end, he recently launched a new website in order to give kids of all ages access to truly great books. Whether you are still enjoying picture books with your baby or have an older child reading at an advanced level, ReadKiddoRead acts as a resource for finding the best books.

Each featured book, hand-selected by Patterson, includes a synopsis, related themes, quotes from critics, links to find the book in any number of locations (including local libraries), and even similar suggested reads. In addition, the website provides resources for finding book discounts and promotions, features interviews and contributions from authors and celebrities, and even allows members to connect with each other via a Ning community. Providing kids with a love of and appreciation for books gives them something that will remain with them throughout their lives, and this resource helps make that possible. Plus, if anyone can get even the most reluctant readers interested in great stories, it’s James Patterson.

Visit these sites for more Information:  http://mother-talk.com and http://readkiddoread.com

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes

Join the 5th Annual Mommyfest Blog Party ~ Meet other Moms Like You ~ May 12-16

I’ve joined a Blog Party to try to meet other Moms and Grams like me!

Blog Fests and parties are a great way to see what’s going on and get to visit some new Bloggers.

Many of the Mommy Bloggers are sponsoring Contests and Give Aways. Here’s a chance to get to take a break from your daily routine or WAHM obligations, and visit some good reads. Enter some of the terrific contests and win some fabulous prizes too! What a selection!

Join in Now for MommyFest! MommyFest, happening May 12-16, 2008 to visit cyber-moms & grams blog all over the world!

I’m sponsoring eBook giveaways from my Moomette’s Magnificents Olde Town Shoppes site. I have some wonderful eBooks with immediate download for your reading pleasure ~ everything from Recipes, Crafts, Gardening, Children & More!

Come Join in on the excitement!
Visit MommyFest to learn how to sign up and get in on the A-C-T-I-O-N!

Copyright 2010 Moomette’s Magnificents – All Rights Reserved

Follow Me on Twitter
@Moomettes