DVD Review: “Leapfrog: Numberland”

Leapfrog: Numberland

Released: January 31, 2012

Studio: Lionsgate

Running Time: 35 minutes

ABOUT:

Join Scout and his friends for another exciting learning adventure from the world of LeapFrog.  When the pals long to learn about numbers, their magical car, Axle, whisks them away to Number Land.  With the help of a new friend, Max, the pals meet all the numbers in the land and build early numeracy skills. Then it’s time to help the residents of Number Land plan a surprise birthday party for Max.  It all adds up to plenty of fun and adventure as kids sing and count their way through Number Land with Scout & Friends!

In addition to the skill sets taught on the DVD, Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos — mother, developmental psychologist and the mathematics curriculum designer behind LeapFrog: Numberland— has offered the following tips and activities to engage children with early numeracy concepts:

• Practice number recognition and verbal counting with your child by walking through your house or neighborhood, and pointing out the different numbers that you see. Ask your child to say the number names, and then practice counting out loud together. For example, if your child finds the number 5, practice saying “1, 2, 3, 4, 5”.
• If your child can recognize numbers but struggles to put them in the correct order, you can play games that help them create their own number lines. Have your child write the numbers 1 – 10 on large pieces of paper, and then scramble the numbers so they’re out of order. Then ask your child to switch the numbers around so they are in the correct order from smallest to largest.
• Invite young children to arrange objects of different sizes, such as stacking cups, in order from smallest to the largest. The ability to compare things based on a dimension, such as size, and arrange those things in order is a very important aspect of mathematical development.
• Play games together! Several studies have revealed that children can increase their knowledge of several important early math skills by playing board games that contain a number line, like Chutes and Ladders.
• Get active and move around! Try drawing a number line from 1 to 10 on the ground outside using sidewalk chalk, and then invite your child to hop on the numbers and say them aloud. You can even practice skip counting by asking your child to jump on the even numbers — 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 — to drive the concept home.

MY THOUGHTS:

My boys love Leapfrog products and the few letter DVDs we have seen from Leapfrog, so I figured this DVD would be a hit as well.  “Numberland” is a DVD that features the fun characters from Leapfrog products, but also numbers 1-10.  It is a perfect first counting DVD for kids to learn from and it fits nicely with the other Leapfrog products.  Throughout the DVD the numbers 1-10 are repeated and re-arranged over and over, but not in a boring way.  The DVD makes kids think too because it puts the numbers in different orders, has them answer which number is missing and so forth.  The animation is bright, colorful and kid-friendly.  While this DVD is only 35 minutes, my boys don’t mind watching it over and over again!  The DVD states its for 2-6 year olds, and my boys are 3 and 5 and love it.

BUY IT: You can buy “Leapfrog: Numberland” at http://www.leapfrogdvds.com or look for it wherever DVDs are sold.

WIN IT: (1) US winner will receive the DVD “Leapfrog: Numberland”

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Mom and More Disclosure: I was sent this DVD to review in exchange for my honest opinion. Please see my Disclosure Policy.