Recently Little’s kicked his obsession with wanting to be like his big brother into high gear. Dress like him? Athletic pants, long-sleeved waffle shirt, football jersey/shirt — check. Play like him? Tackle, shoot, tackle, dribble, celebration dance — check. Read like him? Well, that’s not so easy…
Which is why I adore the LeapFrog Tag system. In case you’re not familiar with it, this fancy little pen-like device brings books to life. It not only reads the story page by page, it also interacts with different pictures on the page. It’s an amazing way for a non-reader to start understanding words, sounds, and reading comprehension — long after you’ve read the 10th book of the night to them. I honestly and truly believe that Big got a huge boost in his early reading skills by spending time “reading” with his Tag.
The latest book we’ve enjoyed is Leap and the Lost Dinosaur. When it arrived a couple weeks ago, Little greeted the package with “Awesome!” (cubed). That’s right, a triple “A” rating is just about as good as it gets on Little’s scale.
Beyond being a book that reads to you, it comes with 15 interactive dinosaur playing cards. Little immediate starting punching them out of the packaging, and quickly discovered that they’re just as cool as Big’s baseball/football cards, but much sturdier and Pink-proof. Each card teaches you about a specific dinosaur, when he lived, what he ate, etc. The book even has a pouch to hold the cards, but I’m afraid it’s not as sturdy or Pink proof as I would like, so we keep the cards in a zipper sandwich bag.
The book itself is so rich with information, it provides much more entertainment and engagement than a simple book of dinosaur facts. For instance, Little loves to play a game where he can see how some modern animals share characteristics of dinosaurs from the past. (Ask him which dino flaunts its stuff like a peacock.)
From learning about fossils, to the different time periods, to various dinosaurs, this book has everything a bad-guy-animal-lovin’ kiddo could ask for. (And Mom’s thrilled with it too.) While some of the other books are better if you’re looking to teach your child to sound out words, this is a great book for getting your child deeply engaged in a personal interest. I’m confident that Little has just begun to scratch the surface of the mighty dino world.
Please note, the Tag system is sold separately from the book. Leap and the Lost Dinosaur can be purchased on the LeapFrog site or at retailers. It’s recommended for ages 5-8, but Little is 4 and really enjoys it. (Probably because he thinks he’s 6 going on 7.)
Disclosure: As a LeapFrog Parent, I was sent a copy of this book for review purposes. All opinions are my own.
Product photo courtesy of LeapFrog.
I’ve been wondering about this system… I had a leap pad thingy for Finn (cushion-y lap reading system) when he was young and he was not interested in it at all… and neither was Seamus. Then there’s the leapster explorer… again – seamus just keeps asking for a zombie game for “his DS”… so I’m wondering if he’d like this… or if he’d just use the pen thing as a weapon…. maybe we’ll give it a try :)!
Jodie, I think this is a really different kind of system than the ones you mentioned trying. But maybe a friend has one you can borrow and try? Since my boys don’t have a DS and we (selfishly) don’t let them play on our iPhones/iPad (unless it’s a waiting room emergency), maybe they have a higher tolerance for different kinds of games.