Jump Start Kindergarten

The original Jump Start Kindergarten has been a best-selling product since its release in 1994. The newest upgrade is set to be released this fall. You will find new graphics, new games and a generally "cleaned up and polished" image. If you are looking for a grade specific package for your kindergartner, this is one possible program among many which may appeal to your family.

Your child will join Mr. Hopsalot (a rabbit.....confusing to marketers looking at Reader Rabbit although that may be intentional,) who introduces your child to an interactive kindergarten classroom. The graphics in this program are more subdued, not as bright and flashy and generally more appealing. They seem to give a calmer effect to the entire program. This is one of those kindergarten classrooms from the past with few desks, lots of toys, easels, train set and lots of casual, relaxed learning. You will not find the school as cold an foreboding as it appears in the other grade levels. This is a nice one room schoolhouse in the middle of a forest.

The classroom is full of interactive hot spots. It is important to click on as many items as possible because there are activities hidden everywhere in this program! There are over a dozen various games, puzzles and activities for your child to enjoy. The difficulty level of this program is automatically adjusted according to your child's success. You can customize the difficulty levels as well. Most of the games here can be handled quite easily by the average kindergarten child. Reading is not required, but your child will be exposed to words, letters and sentence construction. Through a simple activity found on the chalkboard, your child will begin to construct sentences and associate the words with the pictures he is manipulating. The words in this activity are written to small for children this age, but it is still a good activity. Enter the class closet and find a quick spelling lesson which changes with each visit. If games are in order for your child, a simplified "Tetris" game is included which teaches shapes and colors. The instructions here are too wordy, but once your child tries the game, he or she will find it very easy.

There are more phonics activities included in this latest upgrade, but I would certainly not purchase it as a 'phonics' program. It contains some decent reinforcement and introductory activities, but it could hardly be called a 'reading program.' Keep in mind that the entire Jump Start series was intended as supplement to other instruction. Many homeschool families have come to believe that these programs were supposed to 'cover it all.' Remember that was never the intend of Knowledge Adventure when these programs were developed. It is nice however to purchase a program that will at least alert you to any huge holes in your child's education. The same holds true for a public school child. If you want to supplement what is going on in the classroom, or monitor your child's progress, these programs are good. Do not purchase them as a 'do it all' product.

Jump Start Kindergarten is a decent upgrade. If you have a child who is of kindergarten age, this product will help you monitor and supplement an already good education. This program is more mellow than other Jump Start programs, and much more mellow than the original version in my opinion.

Grading:

Educational value- 31/2
Entertainment value- 4
Use of medium- 3
Dollar value- 4
Age- 4-6

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