Hooked on Phonics Get Ready to Read Activity System
© 2007 Zizzle, LLC
Just about anyone who lived through the '90s has heard the ads for Hooked on Phonics (1-800-ABCDEFG), a cassette and flash-card based home learning curriculum sold for $250, that promised to make kids successful readers -- or your money back. With new technologies have come the same promises, in the form of a line of electronic toys created by Zizzle, LLC. The flagship is a $50 Hooked on Phonics Get Ready to Read Activity System. About the size of a LeapPad, the battery-operated (3 AAs) toy comes with three spiral bound booklets that snap into a pocket. Children must then slide a bookmark to register each page, and then either explore the hot spots using a magnetic mouse, or be quizzed on the page contents. The chatty startup sequence leaves early readers wondering what to do next, while their parents search for headache relief from the repetitive dialog. As children work through the 48 pages of content, they match letters, colors, shapes and ending sounds, turning the page to change levels. Missing is customized feedback or record keeping, reducing the chances of hooking an elusive young child on much of anything.
$50, Smart Toy
Teaches: reading, phonics
CTR Rating: 48%