When I came across the SmartyAnts concept, I was intrigued. Targeting kids 4-7, I was in the sweet spot for this review. Developed by one of the founders of LeapFrog, this toy is meant to encourage and entertain young readers.Smarty Phonics Reading Pup is designed for children who are entering the amazing world of reading. Whether completely new to ABCs, already reading, or somewhere in between, this toy and program has a game suited to your child's development. This toy is AWESOME! I LOVE it, and so does my daughter! I recommend this toy for anyone, and EVERYONE!
Our pup arrived by UPS (my daughter says PUS truck). Setting him up was a breeze. We simply switched him on and squeezed his toe. My 4 year old was in love!--the plush dog swayed his head to the music and regaled us with a song about letter sounds--perfect for my early reader. She's still tripped up by the different "c" sounds--carrot versus charm. Very handy song indeed! Then, we went to http://www.smartyants.com/ to set up the online component. I'm sad to say my old macbook pro (the one where we put all the kid-related stuff) took three hours to download the application. I imagine a high-speed connection+newer computer would download the SmartyAnts app in a second. We dealt with the frustration and carried on. Once we had the software in place it was time for the fun to begin. We got animated figure, an ant, named her Julia (my first lesson in Internet safety--NEVER name a avatar after yourself) and set about playing. All the games are phonics-related and super fun. We wrestled with the climbing wall of letter sounds and stomped on letters on a virtual treadmill. All the games helped us build an early reader book. Each game can has personalized levels of difficulty based on your child's skills--all very impressive. If you're going to rely upon online support for your reader, it doesn't get much better than this game. It's got plenty of flash, but mostly relies on substance. More information about the science that went into the game visit http://www.smartyants.com/for-parents
I was sent 2 Smarty Ants pups! One for review, and one to give away! My daughter snatched up the husky, cuz it looks like our oldest dog, so the white (malteese?) one is up for grabs!
TO ENTER, tell me who would be getting this pup if you won! And, tell me what you'll name this pup..I gotta make sure he/she has a very good home! Rachel says so!)
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