Curious George Reads, Writes, and Spells for Grades 1 and 2

If your kids are Curious George fans, they will enjoy interacting with him in this story activity. While the activities become a bit redundant, there is lots of spelling practice here, all of which is appropriate for the average first and second grader.

Curious George has (as usual) gotten himself in trouble by releasing a storytelling parrot. As he and his friends run through the town in search of the parrot, they cause even more chaos. At every turn, George is either repairing a mess he made, or fixing on caused by the escaping parrot. The animations are nothing spectacular, and the story is told with typical flat, but attractive Curious George illustrations. As wonderful as these drawings are, the result on the computer can seem a bit old-fashioned. Kids who have never read a Curious George book (are there any?) may find the graphical interface a bit flat and dry. Those who know the stories will be familiar with the look of the drawings.

As George travels through the town, the story will stop long enough for your child to help him repair some damage he has caused. The spelling activities are all virtually the same, with only a few twists. You hear a word, and then must find the letters on the screen to spell that word. In one case he is helping repaint some signs, in another he is rearranging flowerpots, and yet another finds him picking up crackers with letters on them. In two spots, the format becomes a bit more 'arcade style,' but my kids were still not thrilled. While the activities are worthwhile, a child who hates spelling practice will pick up on the 'variations on a theme' activities and may be turned off.

The remaining activities are fill-in-the-blank sentence completions. Short stories which relate to the main story are shown with words missing. Your child must drag the right words into the sentences to complete the story.

There are approximately a dozen activities included. Although they are extremely similar, there is plenty of spelling practice here. While there is not easy way to change skill levels, words your child misses are repeated throughout the program. Not a spectacular program, but worthwhile if your child enjoys Curious George.

Grading for Curious George Reads, Writes, and Spells for Grades 1 and 2:

Educational Value: 3 1/2

Entertainment Value: 3

Replay Value: 3

Ages: 5-8

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