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| Sunday, July 1, 2007 |
School Zone Discovery Cards |
Originally published on March 8, 2007.
 I am reviewing two products from the School Zone Discovery Cards for the Parent Bloggers Network.
 The first is called Peek-A-Boo Bunny Guess Who?. They're a set of cards marketed for babies 9 months and up. I have to admit when I first pulled them out of the box, I was a little confused by them, but they actually are very easy. There's a squeaky yellow stuffed bunny with a magnetic cardboard piece attached to it. The bunny's paws and eyes are also magnetic. You start with the bunny's paws covering its eyes in a peek-a-boo fashion. The idea is that you take one of the cards, which are also magnetic, and attach it onto the board. You read what is on that card. For example: "Peek-a-boo! Who likes cheese?" then you turn the card over and say "Who could it be?" and open the flap. "Mouse likes cheese!" Then you open the bunny's arms.
I thought the concept was interesting. My 8.5 month old younger son (YS) seemed to really enjoy it, but honestly it might have been because I was pretending to be very excited over it. What this toy was really good for was my 3.5 year older son (OS). While it was a little young for his interests, he enjoyed showing his brother how to use it. I found attaching and reattaching the cards to be a little tiresome, but OS seemed to enjoy doing it for his brother. That being said, after a while they did switch to using the cards without the magnetic board. The set contains 6 cards and sells for $11.99
 Fuzzy Animal Friends Discovery Cards were a much bigger hit. They are marketed for ages 6 months and up. Like the Peek-A-Boo cards, they look like a board book that was never bound together. Each card in the Fuzzy Animal Friends Discovery Cards set has at least one sensory item on it. YS's favorite is the card that has a ladybug made of shiny red and black paper on one side. The ladybug also has soft fabric legs that hang off the bottom of the card. On the other side of the card is a yellow bird. What are the legs on the lady bug's side are "hair" on the bird's side. The belly of the bird has soft fabric on it. So how is this different from the tons of sensory books that my sons enjoy? I have to admit at first I didn't see how YS in particular would find this any different. It turns out I was wrong. What I didn't foresee was how easy it was for him to pick the cards up. Unlike a book which is heavy and closes on him while he is trying to play with it, these cards are very light. He was able to turn it around and around and examine it from all different angles. Also, the sensory parts are more creative than the books we have. For example, the alligator/snake card has googly eyes and a crinkly tail that hangs off the card.
I was reading The SeaBird Chronicles review and I have to agree with her that I think these cards would make excellent crib toys. They certainly have kept YS entertained for a while. The only thing I didn't like about them is the packaging. I remember with OS that he and some of his friends went through a phase where putting toys back into their containers was just as much fun as playing with the toys. Other than the original plastic packaging bag, there is no child appropriate container like there is for the Peek A Boo cards. This is important because the cards aren't bound like a book, so there is a very good chance that they will wind up under your couch without you realizing it until someone is looking for the ladybug card later. Or it is possible that someone, and of course this would never be me, might spend a good 5 minutes looking under her couch for the 6th card only to later double check the packaging and realize that it came with 5 cards and not 6 like the Peek-A-Boo Bunny Guess Who?. This costs $15.99 and comes with 5 cards.
I would buy the Fuzzy Animal Friend Discovery Cards. YS enjoyed them a lot. Plus, since they are not bound like a book, you can always grab a card or two to take on errands for your baby. The Peek-A-Boo Bunny Guess Who? cards would be good as a gift particularly from someone like a grandparent or aunt who is looking for a way to interact with your child. |
posted by Alex Elliot @ 9:26 PM
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| Name: | Alex Elliot |
| Home: | MA, United States |
| About Me: | Professional Mom of two cats, a dog, an ant farm, and oh yeah...two boys: a 4 year old and a 1 year old. Also found in my house is my husband who is known on this blog as The Big Giraffe. |
| See my complete profile |
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