Customer Reviews

Juana La Iguana Historia De Piratas [VHS]

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Juana la Iguana is a wee bit cheesier than Barney, but my 22 month old loves it. He asks me to constantly play "Juana Uana." It has children singing short songs and rhymes, and going on adventures with their stuffed animal friend who comes to life when they need her (sound familiar?). This DVD has bonus material which includes four "Tipitips" which are little clips of FYI stuff for kids and "Canciones" which has short clips of 4 songs. At first I thought my son would be scared of the sight of the huge green lizard but he adored her (she has a very sweet and soothing voice). The only thing is that the topics are a bit more advanced than Barney type topics are. For example, this one with the Pirates talks about saving the dolphin from Tuna fishing nets and about preserving the rain forests all over the world. It's a bit intense in that sense, but my son doesn't care. He just likes the music and songs and seeing the kids jump around and dance, etc. I like that it's in Spanish because it's hard to find educational kid's shows in Spanish aside from Plaza Sesamo. If you can stand Barney shows, you can tolerate Juana. I personally really like Juana's theme song. I've caught myself humming it a bit TOO OFTEN.

Juana la iguana is truly a great series. The children who participate are talented artists and endearing. They are allowed to be more than mere supporting characters. The storyline of every episode is fun and filled with surprises. The vocabulary has a good range and the pronunciation is clear. The music include Spanish classic children songs and new ones. The choreographies are simple and easy to replicate - ideal for a curious, active child to dance with.

I find the comparison with Barney unjust, the similarities end with the fact that Juana la Iguana is also a plush toy that transforms itself into a real life animal. Juana interacts with the children in a respectful, equal footing way - very unlike the bothersome condescending manners that make Barney so annoying. Her voice is pleasant and it is clear that she is not the only star of the show, the children are as important as she is.

All this makes Juana la Iguana a nice choice for those who want quality programs for children, in Spanish.