Screen Play as Homework
In the age-old battle over homework, parents have added a weapon to their arsenal in recent years. As more and more families have bought home computers, children have found themselves doing work that seems more like play.
Studying and video game playing have more in common than one might have guessed years ago. With a click of a mouse a child can answer a challenging math question or blow up an enemy from another planet.
As the new school year gets into full swing, parents may be looking for ways to supplement their children’s schoolwork in a way that is palatable for all concerned. We spoke this week with dealers of computer products and educational merchandise to find out what is available, how parents can distinguish one brand from another and how much they can expect to spend.
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Paula Hultman, owner of the Bright Ideas for Learning school supply shop in Camarillo, offered a short checklist for parents looking to purchase one of the many educational software products on the market
“Make sure, number one, that the software is open-ended--it has to be something that children won’t tire of, that they can build on,” said Hultman, a longtime teacher and curriculum coordinator in the Ventura and Los Angeles county schools.
“Also, look for a program where you can monitor your child’s progress and [check] that there is sequential learning going on,” she said. “And you want to make sure it’s age-appropriate.”
Hultman used to stock her store with a full supply of educational software, but as a small vendor, she said, she couldn’t sell enough at competitive prices to keep up with big computer and electronics retailers.
Nonetheless, she said, she continues to get requests from parents and still has a list of recommendations. High on her list are the Reader Rabbit, JumpStart and Math Blaster series, all of which offer learning in game formats. Each also has versions for specific age groups.
Hultman also suggested the Oregon Trail series--which simulates pioneer adventures and develops decision making skills--and the American Girl series, which encourages users to create stories based on different girl characters.
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We found several of the series suggested by Hultman at Circuit City in Ventura and Best Buy in Thousand Oaks. Circuit City has a supply of Reader Rabbit software for kindergarten, first grade and second grade, priced at $27.99 each. Each program helps children develop age-appropriate skills including math, sorting, phonics and reading.
The store also carries other brands for a range of grades and ages.
A Sesame Street Baby & Me program, for ages 1 to 3, covers music, color, shapes, letters and numbers. It’s priced at $29.99. Let’s Go Read! 2, for ages 5-7, covers a variety of subjects including phonics, spelling, vocabulary and comprehension. It sells for $29.99.
The Clue Finders, for third- and fourth-grade students, helps develop problem solving and critical thinking skills. It sells for $27.99.
And for older students, Circuit City carries the High School Advantage 2000 software and the Middle School Advantage 2000 software, each priced at $39.99. They cover common school subjects including algebra, history and science for the middle school program and chemistry, geography, literature and Spanish for the high school program.
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At Best Buy, media specialist Nathan Eddy recommended the Reader Rabbit and JumpStart software in particular. It is priced from $20 to $30.
“Reader Rabbit has stuff going from baby up to about fifth grade, JumpStart goes basically from around baby to sixth grade,” Eddy said. “They are fun as well as educational. . . . They’re fairly compatible with most PCs starting at the older end on up. You don’t have to have a high-end PC to run these programs.”
For older students, Eddy suggested the Kaplan series, including Higher Score Middle School and Higher Score Mathematics, both priced at $39.99.
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A discussion of learning products isn’t really complete without a look at Bennett’s Educational Materials, with stores in Ventura, Santa Barbara and Santa Maria.
Again, JumpStart ($19.99) was at the top of the list, said Leslie Smith, an employee at the Santa Barbara outlet. Smith also suggested software from Educational Insights, which has a series of programs focusing on dogs, cats and horses. Children age 6 and older are taught about different breeds and how to care for pets. Bennett’s sells the programs for $34.95.
One final suggestion--it wouldn’t hurt to check out the Internet site www.superkids.com, which offers parent-teacher reviews, prices and a bestseller list of educational software programs.
