Disney’s Buzz Lightyear 1st Grade Published on March 9th, 2001

While Buzz Lightyear loves to “fly to infinity and beyond,” he needs to ground himself better in the basics of what makes software work. Buzz’s entry into the academic software arena falls short of mark because of some programming flaws. The software opens in Andy’s room, the familiar setting of the Toy Story movies. There, by visiting the various toys, children discover nine activities. The activities cover spelling, reading, math, telling time, music, geography, and logical thinking. The program also provides a way to print additional materials. These activities are fun to explore at first; and six of them actually have special programming that adjusts the content presented to mesh with how the child is performing. Nevertheless, the software has some fundamental flaws: 1. There is no sign-in, so the program cannot keep track of a child’s performance over time. Every time the child plays, he must replay easy levels to get to material that is right for him. 2. There is no story line or motivational system to bring children back to the title. For most children, the activities alone are not fun enough to return to the software repeatedly. 3. The reading activities fail to highlight words when read. Most first graders are beginning readers and would benefit from highlighting. 4. Animations repeat and are uninterruptible.
Summary Age  5 - 7 Platform  Mac Price  $20.00 Category  Grade Specific Grade  ISBN  Company  Disney Interactive (800) 900-9234 http://www.disneyinteractive.com

Reader Rabbit 1st Grade with Learning Creations Published on March 9th, 2001

Reader Rabbit and his friends at Wordville are about to put on a variety show when they discover that someone has stolen all their scripts, costumes, props, and sets. Players help the Wordville gang recover all the missing items by playing eight different educational games and four short activities. The games cover math, early reading, science, art, and music. Some of these activities are quite engaging. Kid-testers particularly liked an activity where they had to measure things using animal feet (instead of the traditional foot measurement). A separate CD called Learning Creations adds some additional open-ended art and calendar activities. As with Buzz Lightyear, Reader Rabbit 1st Grade has some flaws. The difficulty levels automatically progress without manual adjustment; so the activities may get too hard too quickly. Other weaknesses include insufficient help when a child is struggling, and too much uninterruptible talking. The strength of Reader Rabbit 1st Grade is its compelling story line that makes children want to return to the program repeatedly. Because of its easy content, it is best for beginning first graders.
Summary Age  5 - 7 Platform  Mac Price  $20.00 Category  Grade Specific Grade  ISBN  Company  The Learning Company (800) 543-9778 http://www.learningco.com

JumpStart 1st Grade Deluxe Published on March 9th, 2001

This two CD-ROM title upgrades the previous version of JumpStart 1st Grade and adds a second disk of additional activities. On the first disk, children join Frankie the Dog and his JumpStart pals in a series of treasure hunts. To earn clues for the treasure hunts, children play 12 activities set in a schoolhouse. These 12 activities cover a wide range of topics including: math, telling time, reading, grammar, spelling, science, art, and music. Each of these activities has 3 levels of difficulty which progress automatically. However, unlike Reader Rabbit 1st Grade and Buzz Lightyear 1st Grade, JumpStart 1st Grade Deluxe allows the child or an adult to adjust the levels manually as well. The second disk presents a series of global adventures. The learning in these adventures is not substantial, but children are exposed to different countries and their cultures. JumpStart 1st Grade Deluxe beats the competition in three essential arenas: its content is better and more substantial, it is more fun, and it is easier to play. This is the best all-purpose first grade title on the market!
Summary Age  5 - 7 Platform  Windows Mac Price  $30.00 Category  Grade Specific Grade  ISBN  Company  Knowledge Adventure (800) 542-4240 http://www.knowledgeadventure.com

All software is judged on a five star scale by looking at the following five factors: educational, fun, ease of use, value, technical.

Jinny Gudmundsen is the Editor of Computing With Kids magazine. If you have questions or comments, please write to: .

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