Amazon.com Product Description

This package includes two great software titles from Crayola: Print Factory and Make A Masterpiece. Print Factory is the all-in-one art and print studio for every child. The software lets players draw, color, and paint with tons of tools, 88 Crayola crayons, patterns, and text. User tips for each activity stimulate creativity and provide new ways to have fun with the product. Premade designs and layouts allow users to personalize or just print out their creations.

Make A Masterpiece features incredible animated art tools and expert creative guidance so every child can create a masterpiece. Traditional tools include Crayola watercolor, oil paint, chalk, and markers; wacky tools include popping popcorn, foaming shaving cream, flickering neon paint, and animated stickers. Users can import photographs and graphics, then export their work. They can also read about famous artist's artwork, learn about art styles and techniques, and write in journals that feature artwork from The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia. (Ages 5-10) ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Crayola--Make A Masterpiece
This was a gift for a special little girl, age: 6yrs. old. I don't know who enjoyed it more, myself or the child! It is a fabulous program that allows your creative side to just go nuts!

Make a Masterpiece-a great paint\create software for kids
The Make a Masterpiece is great...both my kids (ages 4 and 7) love the variety of tools, colors, wallpapers, sounds, and effects. They especially love to "blow up" their creations in a variety of ways when they are done. This is the best paint-brush type software we have used. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

If James Bond suddenly decided to become an elementary school teacher, his curriculum might look something like JumpStart Advanced 2nd Grade. A secret-agent frog uses globetrotting and gadgets to outwit the nefarious Dr. O. Kids must visit each of the seven continents and play games, meet secret agents, and gather parts to build a crime-busting contraption that would make "Q" proud.

This program uses JumpStart's new All-Star system, which matches a particular character to your child's learning style: reader, athlete, musician, team leader, artist, scientist, or math whiz. Once a character is selected, requests for help receive a tailor-made reply. For example, the musician will help kids with reading comprehension by having them imagine the sounds the story makes. These helpers can be selected on the fly--if the artist's help leaves your kid in the dark, she or he can consult with the math whiz for a different perspective on the same problem.

Some of the seven multilevel games tackle a variety of subjects--kids may be asked to form contractions or do complex subtraction to navigate a river in the Amazon basin. This variety breathes some life into the otherwise standard-issue activities--game blandness is the weakest point of this program. Strengths include opportunities for kids to learn about the flora, fauna. and geography of the various continents with point-and-click exploration, and a final gadget-assembly task that requires logic, experimentation, and persistence to complete. This final challenge (fans of "The Incredible Machine" will recognize it) may even teach parents a thing or two. Just like other JumpStart offerings, this program has progress reports, so parents and teachers can spy on their junior spy's efforts. (Ages 6 to 8) --Anne Erickson ... Read more

Features

• Provides superior interactive game play tailored to each child's individual learning style
• Fun activities that encourage active learning through movement games
• Skill leveling that automatically adjusts game play and content to each child's growing abilities
• Enhanced motivational game reward structure
• Advanced curriculum to better prepare kids for the next grade

Amazon.com Product Description

There's something suspicious in the dark night sky: flashing lights from an old, abandoned amusement park. Thrills, chills, and problem-solving skills await you in this haunted amusement park adventure. Join the ClueFinders as they venture into a haunted carnival on a mystery-solving quest. You'll need all the nerve, wits, and problem-solving smarts you can muster to crack this creepy case.

Keep the learning excitement alive after the computer's turned off with thereal-world adventure kit, included in the program. You can create cool maps to guide your friends on treasure hunts, and use the logbook and calendar to plan activities, keep on schedule, and record your daily thoughts and achievements. You can also create, encode, and print top-secret messages with the encoder/decoder, and make good dollars-and-cents sense with the money tracker. The sound transformer lets you change the sound of your voice, your dog's bark, or any sound you can record. The club kit has everything you need to help you start your own club, host activities, solve mysteries, and dream up new adventures. (Ages 9 and up) ... Read more

Reviews (3)

It's a great adventure
The game has great skill and its very fun. You get to find find an undergroud cave. I have played this about 30 times cause its so fun. I think you should buy it if you like adventures.

Cool!
This is a really cool game! It raised my math grade to an A!

interesting
I think that this game was very poorly made, but the concept was very innovative, so if you really like this genre of games, then run and order it today! But if you think that graphics and sound effects are an important feature of computer games, then I would not suggest this graphically inferior game. Hope I helped you. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Reader Rabbit Preschool Classic delivers learning fun for ages 3 to 5. Kids journey to a crazy amusement park with Reader Rabbit and friends, where they adventure and play through 12 activities and wild games. Four difficulty levels help kids recognize letters, numbers, shapes, and colors, and develop phonics, reading, and counting skills. In all, 40 age-appropriate skills are covered while having fun at Reader Rabbit's educational amusement park. ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Great Educational Fun!
When my 6 year old was struggling with new math concepts, I bought a lot of software. I wanted something for her that was both educational, and fun. This program is by far the best we've tried. You can set the difficulty levels, so kids don't get frustrated, but also they don't get bored. The characters are really cute, and because there is an overall goal of building the boat, kids want to keep playing! For each 3-5 question activity they complete, they get a boat part as a reward. The various activities cover all math basics, including fractions, money, and time.

With other programs, my daughter would play, and then get bored or overly frustrated very quickly, but because of the ability to customize this game to your child's skill level, she played for hours and hours. The skill levels on it vary widely, so it can teach concepts from a 1st through 3rd grade level, unlike so many games that are only relevant for one grade. My daughter's gotten tons of fun math practice out of this game, and she's still playing! I'd recommend it to anyone.

A kid favorite!
My sons will be in 2nd and 3rd grade in the fall. They just love this game and would rather play it than any of their other games. I hope to find a sequel for they will be done with this game before long.

we love it
We got this software for our five year old daughter and she loves it. At first she needed some parents' help. But soon she likes to play by herself, occasionally asks some questions. She got it a few weeks ago and has already learned so much from it. Her favorite parts are actually pretty challenging for a five year old -- fraction, money and time. She will need to learn some more from school to play the difficult part of this game, but she can already "play" most of it. she enjoys play and learn at the same time. we are very happy about this game. Our daughter is a very advanced five year old who joins 2nd grade reading group in her school everyday. This software helps her catch up with the math part and really enjoy it.

Reader Rabbit 2nd grade Rules!!!!!!!!
I'm a 2nd grader and my friends and I play Reader Rabbit 2nd grade at school and we love it! Everbody in the class says, hey can I go on the computer. It is fun and educational. I asked my mom to get it for home, so I could play more.

I LOVE THIS GAME!
Okay, I'm in sixth grade- a little old for a second grade game, but I DON'T CARE! This is a really great computer game that features my favorite Reader Rabbit character, Sam the Lion. He's so strange. And if any of you get stuck in the skillways because you can't get past the trapdoor (this happened to me), you can jump OVER the trapdoor by pushing the Up arrow and the LEFT arrow. (Many thanks to my eagle-eyed little sister for discovering this.) In short, this is a really great game that is not just for second graders. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Games, toys, stationery, and tons of other craft ideas created for young minds will provide hours of fun. Enhanced artistic ability and the opportunity to print work will provide your children a satisfying and enthusiastic learning and creating experience. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

ClueFinders 5th Grade Adventures is designed to make learning funby presenting a series of educational activities wrapped up in an adventuregame. Suitable for ages 9 to 11 years, this adventure finds the heroes washedashore on an uncharted volcanic island by a tsunami. When they awaken on theisland, they find that two of the ClueFinders have disappeared along withGrandpa. You have to help the remaining ClueFinders unravel the mysteries of theisland and rescue their lost friends before a volcano blows.

The mysteries are very varied, and getting to the bottom of them requires skillsin math, language, science, and problem solving. There are more than 86 skillscovered in all, across 16 interactive activities. You are plunged in right awayby the need to devise a way across a river using variously marked stones tocreate a bridge. Thinking caps definitely need to be on to solve this, and theother puzzles in the game.

There are four difficulty levels, and parents can use these to ensure the gamematches the abilities of their children. ClueFinders 5th Grade Adventuresis a challenging but fun game, and you'll learn without even knowing it. As abonus, there is an Adventure Kit CD offering various fun activities, such as acode maker for sharing secret messages. --Sandra Vogel ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Don't buy from this company
If you have to order this software, don't buy it through cyberdeals. The software arrived in a flimsy bubblewrap envelope. The box is damaged. What a nice thing to do one week before Christmas. I'm not sure what I paid to have this item shipped, but I was ripped off big time. Thanks for making them one of your dealers.

Perfect computer game for kids.
.... Cluefinders is a wonderful, mysterious computer game kids can do while learning. There's little bit of everything: Maths, English, Science, Basic Logic etc etc etc. There's a big mystery for every CD-ROM fan, and I'm sure everybody will like it alot. Cluefinders is a wonderful guide to every kid's education, and has proved very beneficial program as a fun learning method...

The ClueFinder's adventure
The ClueFinder's always produce exellent computer games that help you learn. I recommend any ClueFinders' game that there is. Some of the other games are ClueFinder's 6th grade adventure, ClueFinders' Math and Reading, and the ClueFinders' 5th grade adventure. All the games are fun, intresting, and they are easy. They teach different games and help you learn. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Magic School Bus Explores the Ocean
Like all of the Scholastic games, this is an excellent game for children but this game may or may not work with Windows XP Home Edition. This is the only Magic School Bus series game that I cannot get to work on my PC. Note: All the other Magic School Bus games will work in the compatibility mode.

easy to run through, then it is done
My daughter ran through this one in about 2 hours. While there are some nice facts in it to learn and a few games, once you run through it, it's essentially done. She occasionally goes back to it, but knows that there is rather little to see on the excursion part. As such, it adds to the pile of played out software. And she is only 5.

Also, as with many fact-based science CD-Roms, there is hardly anything conceptual. With the exception of a few disjointed facts, evolution, pollution, and ecology - or even that life exists in a balance! - are neither introduced as concepts nor much mentioned. At five, my daughter is too young for this at a sophisticated level, but why not introduce these notions now? As it stands, she just gets disjointed facts from this rather than a taste of things to come or an enticement to dig further.

That is very disappointing. Nonetheless, the images are nice, as are some of the special effects. You just can't dig very far into it.

This is a great game!
I like this game because it teaches a lot of science about the ocean. My sister, who is 5 years old, likes it, but it is not her favorite. I learned about kelp forests and the open ocean. Kids who like the ocean and science will love this game.

Great Game for Magic School Bus Lovers
You are going on a field trip to the beach with the Magic School Bus Class. You look in the water and find a treasure map. You have to get the answers to the three questions in order to find the treasure. Along the way you can explore each zone of the ocean and play fun games that earn you fish cards. It is hard to get all the fish cards and I haven't even done it yet but I've started the second page. You can even print out your fish cards. Kids will have a lot of fun exploring the ocean and learning about sea life. You can also see animations by just clicking on a picture. This is a very easy game to use and I think you should buy it. If you don't you're missing out on something great. ... Read more

Features

• Fun and discovery for you and your baby
• Designed by learning development specialists
• Designed with the input and feedback of parents
• Discover colors, shapes, songs, and more
• Fun and easy to use

Reviews (1)

excellent software for the youngest member of your family
There are ten activities, so there is plenty for a to choose from. These activities are: identifying body parts or emotions on faces, uncovering characters hidden in a house or on a farm, storybooks, a sing-along, a kaleidoscope, pictures hidden under bubbles, a shape sorter and musical instruments. There are also some extra activities and some printing (coloring pages, for example). The activities are a bit lame, but the program is delightful. As a matter of fact, now that he is a little older and plays with Reader Rabbit Toddler more often, our son still squeals with delight when the opening music and sequence begins on this fine software.

We have had no problems with it, installing or running. A child can play using the mouse or keyboard, so it has adapted to his development.

In addition, it is possible to load your child's name and picture into the software and these will appear in various activities, which is thrilling for a child to see and hear. The program is well written and implemented, will last a long time without getting boring, and is well worth its cost. ... Read more

Features

• Youngsters will test-drive their learning abilities by getting ready for a wacky car race
• They'll learn about art, addition, counting and other skills -- and use those skills to build their own crazy racers
• Other skills presented include number recognition, science, subtraction an more
• Prepare your kids for kindergarten the fun & easy way -- with JumpStart Advanced Kindergarten!

Amazon.com Product Description

Scholastic's The Magic School Bus Explores Inside the Earth, is an interactive science adventure that takes kids on a geological escapade to learn about volcanoes, fossils, rocks, and minerals. Kids explore 6 terrains of the earth: a canyon, an underwater volcano, a giant fault, a deep cavern, a land volcano, and inside a crystal. The Magic School Bus Explores Inside the Earth is filled with eight games, four experiments, and six reports to keep kids playing and learning. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Follow that formula - solid, down to earth fun
The magic school bus series is brilliant. My son started with them when he turned four and each year he finds new ways of enjoying them.

The Magic School bus earth follows the tried and tested school bus formula. It takes the child through a canyon,a geode, the undersea, a volcano, a cavern,a rock fault, and of course the classroom. As usual there are puzzles and games and clickable facts at each location.

The experiments in the back are particularly good allowing the child to play with rock chemistry and activities such as making your own volcano. For some children geology will not be as magical as say dinosaurs, oceans and bugs, all of which are also highly recommended. But the content is good and if your child is already a rock collector, this CD is a must.

Many hours of contented learning, guaranteed. ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

With brain-teasing graphics and puzzling riddles to solve, this spooky addition to the I Spy series will keep elementary-agestudents occupied for hours at a time. A skeleton host rewards players with a secret message puzzle piece upon successful completion of each riddle. Those clever enough to collect all the pieces can solve the bigger fun house mystery.

With ten different rooms ranging from an inventor's laboratory to a library--and text that is written entirely in rhyme--the world created here is utterly absorbing. No matter how many times you explore a room, there's always new details and creepy clickables you hadn't seen before. Particularly well done is the attic, where you can explore in the dark with only a flashlight to light your way.In the study, you can even create your own riddles to send to your printer!

This software concentrates on critical-thinking skills,problem-solving abilities, and acute observational techniques that are centered around a mansion. This software takes a well-loved series to a whole new level--it's perfect for the die-hard fan or as the first member of what we're sure will become a large I Spy collection. --Jill Lightner ... Read more

Reviews (33)

A Family Favorite
My son is only three and a half, so my husband bought the game with the intention of saving it until our son was older. I got it out for him, and even though it is rated for ages 6-10, it is one of our son's favorites. Given that he can't read, I had to help him at first, but once I showed him where to click to get the riddles read to him, he could play independently (for hours on end). I keep two different user files -- one of a completed game so that he can make all seven ghosts (which requires completing the game); and one uncompleted, so when he completes puzzles the skeleton gives him new puzzle pieces. Other reviewers said that the game was not interesting once played through, but we have not found that to be the case. Our son was _more_ interested in the repetition once he'd got the hang of it. Also, of all the games we have, this is the most pleasant and interesting for the adult helping the child.

Great education and entertainment value
My son had loved the "I Spy Junior" game so I thought he might enjoy trying this challenge, recommended for ages 6-10. He's 5 but a very strong visual learner with great memory skills. The beauty of this game is it not only plays to his strengths but encourages building lesser skills with words on many levels. My favorite aspects: beautifully detailed graphics, a fun laboratory animation with 7 ghost experiments, and the concentration games which are a challenge at many levels. You get the sense that the creators enjoyed making this product. I find the best children's computer games (eg. Learning Company's Cat in the Hat series) reach parents as well making shared learning opportunities a joy!

My students enjoy it!
I am a pediatric occupational therapist who used this game as a fun way to develop eye-hand coordination, visual perception, thinking, and reading skills. They were so motivated! Unfortunately after you "win" the game that is all there is; not another more challenging level to explore.

Spooky Mansion...unrevisited!
Santa brought this game for my 6 yr. old for Christmas. She and I and her 3 1/2yr. old brother opened it the day after Christmas. It is very interesting with 10 rooms to explore and 26 riddles to decipher. After completing each riddle, you're given a piece to the final puzzle which in turn instructs you how to finally get out of the mansion. My daughter stuck with it for the first 13 riddles, and suprisingly my 3yr. old wanted to keep playing until the end. We received the "certificate of completion" that very day. When we signed back on to play a "new game", we were soooo disappointed - there isn't any new game. Same 26 riddles to solve. We'll have to wait a year or so, in the hopes that we'll forget where everything is. (Or just give it to all our neighbors, family, shool chums etc.). Obviously, the I Spy books have limitations, but the software could and should give many additional games/levels.

Very clever
Purchased for my grandson's 5th birthday. Incredibly clever, well designed, plays without a hitch on iMac. He played for over 2 hours the first time out of the box and is still loving it. The adults are fighting over a turn. ... Read more

Features

• Complete reference resource for school or home
• Award-winning encyclopedia; research and learning tools
• Dictionary and thesaurus, literature guides, and chart maker
• Video content from Discovery Channel; new and updated articles
• Visual browser with easy navigation; homework center

Reviews (1)

best for foreigners
Game using voice recognition and correction of pronunciation are very helpful for many foreign kids including adults. It gives pleasure and educational effects at the same time. Today There are lots of native speaker teachers everywhere. but Everyone cannot have opportunity to learn english from them and also decicde their english is good or not. That is why this will be the best english teacher for foreign kids. ... Read more

Features

• Exciting reading games for first-grade kids
• Explore the world of weather on Cloud 9
• Work on skills one at a time or have fun with the story
• Skill levels automatically adjust to kids
• Tracking reports monitor progress

Reviews (2)

Hours of fun and laughter
We got this for our daughter who was 7 at the time,and she chose to play Reader Rabbit over playing Playstation or Nintendo 64 games. The friendly characters are so encouraging and so cute that my daughter walks away when done playing with a smile on her face and a really good attitude. That doesn't happen when playing other video games.

An enjoyable game (the first time)
My daughter rushed to complete all of the tasks needed to start the show. It took a period of a few weeks playing an hour at a time. She was very persistent and enjoyed creating the signs that pop up throughout the scenery. The costume-matic (which forces you to make exact change) was very good for my first grader and took some time so that she didn't exceed the amount required. However once done and we saw the show, the game leaves you unable to do anything else. We have to sign on as a new person or uninstall the game to start it over again. I'm considering trading my game with friend, so they can enjoy it. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

The Magic School Bus Explores the Ocean is an interactive science adventure that helps children learn about the wonders of the ocean as they join the Magic School Bus class to explore the seven ocean zones. Available for both Macintosh and PC platforms, this CD-ROM software is designed to entertain and encourage a sense of adventure and exploration, especially about science and technology. The Magic School Bus Explores the Ocean teaches key science concepts in a fun and age-appropriate way. (Ages 6-10) ... Read more

Reviews (3)

same old thing: run through and it's done
I was very disappointed by this software. My daughter, at 5 on the young end of the age scale for this package, did virtually everything in it in just a few hours (three sessions). We now add it to the pile CD-Rom "run throughs": she may occasionally pick it up, but its originality is essentially exhausted. While there are some nice features in it - graphics, sounds, info - they are very very light. For what there is of it, the content is not bad.

Also, iMac users beware: every time we put it on, it screws up our screen - blanks out other applications, eventually freezing it in strange colors - and we have to reboot to play anything else. It also refuses to "eject" from normal commands and so we have to manually pull it out.

The best of a great series
The magic school bus series is a great series, and we have found this one perhaps the most entertaining of them all.

The magic school bus takes the child on an adventure of exploration, to a sandy beach, a deep ocean, a coral reef, a kelp forest, a tidal pool, deep see vaults and the open ocean. There are games and activities at each destination, and the child can go to the back of the bus and busy oneself with scientific experiments.

When my son was four he really enjoyed clicking around the ocean at the hundreds of click-able objects and busying himself with the simple activities. Now at five he has come back to it and has discovered that he has the co-ordination to play the more difficult games, and the understanding to laugh at the fun facts.

The information is rich and interesting, and we can build on the knowledge when we go to the coast or to the aquarium.

He has still to grow into reading the reports, collecting the fish cards and really understanding the scientific experiments. However the richness of the material means that he can put the CD away and return to it several months later and discover new facets and new dimensions. I think we have much pleasure and exploration left.

A great CD from a great series.

Really fun!
My 4 year old can't get enough of this game. He's been able to figure it out without much assistance and has really been enjoying it. However, the sound goes out occasionally and requires a reboot. Still, it's a great game! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

An exciting new set of learning games featuring the ever-playful Reader Rabbit and friends, Thinking Adventures provides tons of activities designed to get kindergartners mastering all kinds of important skills. The goal is to throw a party for Sam the Lion, and there's a lot to do to get ready--matching, sorting, patterning, memorizing, and problem solving all play a role here.

As always with this series, the difficulty level adjusts automatically, and there's lots of printable worksheets and certificates. Reader Rabbit is always ready with helpful hints, which is great for kids who like to play without parental assistance. This is a great accompaniment for other Reader Rabbit titles--kids love the characters, and this title is more about general learning and entertainment than other programs that focus exclusively on math or reading. Younger kids will have a great time exploring with the easier skill levels--nearly every scene has lots of fun clickables, and many games can be easily handled by preschoolers. Reading isn't necessary, but good listening skills are--more easily distracted kids may need some assistance in understanding game instructions. You'll appreciate the progress reports--and knowing in which areas your child excels or needs some extra help. --Jill Lightner ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Quite Engaging for Any Youngster
This software immediately caught my 4 year old's attention. The animation is great, and Reader Rabbit even addresses your child by their name (which you supply the program).

Many wonderful games for children to learn sequencing, matching, similarities & differences, and many more things. A second disk is even included that allows you to print helpful worksheets so that you may work away from the computer.

This software is money well spent.

Excellent educational games require advanced mouse skills
As with all of the Reader Rabbit titles, this one has excellent education activities and an engaging storyline. My daughter loves it. Parents should be aware, however, that this title requires more advanced mouse skills that other software for this age group: two activities require the user to "click and drag". In another game the child must click in very small areas and in the "present wrapping" activity it is very easy to accidentally exit the game.

Too confusing for 4 years olds!
I had always heard great things about Reader Rabbit software but I was very disappointed in this one! My four year old got frustrated after 5 minutes and gave up. She found the instructions to be too difficult to understand because they were very detailed and spoken too quickly. The premise is that you're supposed to gather items for a surprise party. You need to obtain a specific amount of each item and it goes into an empty room once you gather enough for the party. You need to go to different areas to make cookies, wrapping paper etc. I don't know how a four year old could do this without adult supervision. This software will sit on the shelf until my daughter gets older. Hopefully then she'll enjoy it.

Uninspired and dull with clunky interface
There is one part of this game where the main character enters a room that is entirely empty except for a carpet, a few drapes, and blank walls. It's like someone forgot to work on the scene. There are other parts where the animated characters do the same things over and over and over, and the tasks are extremely repetitive. Other scenes are equally dense or unimaginative. The artwork is awkward and ugly. The interface is non-intuitive, as is the flow of the story. There's also this Blob thing that lays on the ground to help you with navigation, and he's a depressing little thing.

So, this title is not recommended. Try Freddi Fish or Puttputt or SpyFox. Avoid this turkey in disguise.

Not very impressed
My kids did not find the games very interesting and neither did I. ... Read more