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59 of 68 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
good for preschoolers if you want them using the computer!, October 18, 2002
This program doesn't teach anything special that is not easily taught outside of a computer game. Success at the game will be had most quickly if the child already knows the skills needed to play the game (see below, i.e. already knows their basic shapes). If you want your child using the computer during the preschool years then this is a safe and good bet. If your child doesn't know everything this program covers already then they are sure to learn it quickly if they like the game and are not discouraged. There is much more to phonics than this program covers, of course.We held off introducing our son to the computer until he was almost 4.5 years old. We strictly limit what he can do on the computer and he does not use it much, sometimes going 2 months or so without using it. We purchased this program when our oldest just turned 5, at which time he already could start up the computer, open a program, change CDs and close the entire system down all by himself. I thought it best to buy an easier Reader Rabbit game and see how he likes it rather than start off with the Kindergarten or the phonics Reader Rabbit. If you have a 3 or a 4 year old (or even a 2 year old) that you want using a computer game then this one is great (see section on phonics for a possible difficult part though). Being unfamiliar with children's computer games I was surprised that much of this is almost like a video on television, there are songs that seem to be about 3 minutes long and very graphic and long introductions to the program every time it is started and before each game. The characters on screen tell the user what to do. I was disappointed it did not come with written instructions, as when my son needed help there was nothing I could turn to. Goodness knows I am not sitting with him all the time watching him play, so I miss the already-spoken instructions for the overall game. Instructions for the mini-games that they play can be repeated by simply clicking on a certain character on the screen. I sat down to play it as a new user and we played for over an hour. I was annoyed that the instructions are not clear. Specifically, the program has the user doing a little job to earn a gem called a brillite. They wanted 5 yellow brillites to start. We did all the jobs but there was a missing brillite. There was no instruction as to how to get this missing brillite so we re-explored every area on the program's map and began repeating jobs because we didn't know what else to do. That began earning us different colored brillites. It is a little unclear to me as to how to win this game, they say to gather brillites but we really don't know how many of each and how to exactly get them except play in a random manner repeating the games. I'd much prefer them to say "repeat all the games to earn the blue brillites in order to earn the missing yellow brillite" or some other such informative instruction. This is truly geared for preschool age (3 or 4) or for any age that already knows the 6 colors of the rainbow, circle, square, oval, triangle, diamond shapes, if they can count to 10 and follow oral directions. The hardest part of the game, which may be difficult for preschool aged children and may cause frustration, is the phonics portion. An object comes along on a raft and there are 3 sparkle shakers above it and the user must choose which sparkle shaker (with a letter on it) represents the first letter of the object. The first go round has the word written under the object (i.e. violin) but after that round is won the object comes out without a word. Shame on them for showing a giraffe and giving both a g and a j as options! Bad choice for beginners to phonics! The user will be told if they make an incorrect choice and they can narrow it down by process of elimination. The game with the train and matching the object shape is more of a fast paced game to improve hand and eye coordination and fast mouse-usage than a true matching game-if they pick the match right after the fast changes they are doomed. On the box it says this does drawing and coloring but that is a stretch: the kids are told to paint a certain shape a certain color and they simply click once on the proper color and click once on top of the shape and it is instantly colored in. There is nothing about drawing going on there! The only math here is counting up to 10 (it is advertised as having math on it). There is nothing offensive or questionable about this game, the language is clean, etc. This is a fun game for preschoolers (I found it too easy for my just turned 5 year old). It is very entertaining in that it has interludes in between games and songs with a few minutes of on screen entertainment. The songs are catchy. The graphics are very good compared to the old days of Space Invaders and such!
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
OK for the younger set, October 18, 2002
Reader Rabbit Preschool has 5 games and one additional game that you earn. Although there is a game that focuses on letters and sounds and one on numbers and counting, the other three are all color and shape (with patterns in the bugs game). The games allow your child to practice skills they have, but doesn't do as much to help them learn as it could. If they don't know the skill, they might get frustrated with a game. It does increase difficulty with success (more colors, patterns,...) and tracks progress. From a programming stand point, the game functioned well on my PC with Windows ME.In Bug matching, baby bugs are dragged up to their matching parent. The bugs are irregular shapes with colors and/or patterns. The baby bug won't release unless you have it with the right parent, but it doesn't appear that the number or choices is reduced. In Rainbow Falls the child is ask to fill a particular shape (and later a particular sized shape) with the color. If the child picks the wrong color or shape, they are told what color or shape they picked, but the program never resorts to actually showing the child what shape or color they need to pick. The third color/shape game has the child picking matching gems in the Mining game. If they pick the wrong one, they get a horn, but no further help. In the number game they are shown a rocket with the number and number of dots equal to the number of "sparklenauts" needed in the space ship. The child is told he has too many or too few but isn't actually told to add or remove "X" number of "sparklenauts". Every successful launch fixes a cloud, but there are way too many clouds, so this game tends to drag. In Rushing river, an object floats down in a raft and waits for the child to choose the matching letter from the 3 choices above and shake glitter over the item. The beginning letter and object is named if you click on the object. The letter choices above are not named. If you choose the wrong letter, it will tell you that, but it never reduces your choices or gives hints. The bonus game is has the child string movements together to create a dance. There isn't enough variety or difficulty for my son that just turned 5. My son that just turned 3 is challenged by the letter and numbers section, but not the 3 color/shape sections. I would recommend JumpStart Advance Preschool for more variety and challenge.
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116 of 149 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Skip this one, October 8, 2003
My son (now almost 4) is pretty academically bright and pretty good with a computer mouse. We bought this game for him just before he turned 3 last year. What a disappointment! Now, we are a big computer game family, and our son has played a few other titles which we have loved (Little People Discovery Airport, Ollo Saves the Fair, Putt-Putt, and a few others). We loved Reader Rabbit Toddler and Reader Rabbit Baby, which were designed very well. Unfortunately, Reader Rabbit Preschool did not stack up.As usual, the game has a creative story behind it, and there is a goal that involves collecting things. These are wonderful motivators. However, the game skill levels seem either much to easy (matching bugs) or pretty advanced (counting out just the right number of bugs to fill a rocket, including addition and subtraction as the game increases in difficulty) for a "typical" preschooler. I should add that I used to teach preschool and kindergarten, so I have an idea of what is developmentally appropriate. This game ranges from boring to frustrating with very little in between. Some activities, such as the "painting" activity at the waterfall, require very very good mouse control, as the shapes tend to be very small, and the child must click in just the right areas. I highly recommend skipping this game. Our son is now happily playing Reader Rabbit Kindergarten (the Summer Camp one)with very little trouble.
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