Disney's Winnie the Pooh Baby CD-ROM
© 2001 Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media
The lovely graphics are the best feature of this otherwise disappointing program for babies and toddlers. Each of the main Winnie the Pooh characters— Winnie, Roo, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet— present one activity each. Babies are supposed to look for honey with Winnie, paint pictures with Eeyore, play Peek-a-Boo with Tigger, bang on pots and pans with Roo and find body parts with Piglet. Children touch the keyboard to attempt to get things to happen onscreen, and parents use the mouse to select activities. The themes and colorful characters are great for babies and toddlers, but the program has one fatal flaw— minimal responsivity. Children's repeated actions are quickly lost in four out of the five activities. For instance, as babies tap on the keyboard to get Tigger to come out of his hiding place, he emerges too slowly and then talks and talks and talks. A quick "peek-a-boo" would have worked just fine. The pot banging activity (with Roo) was a little bit better but after a while Roo simply stops banging, while the child keeps tapping. To truly get something out of their interactions at the computer, babies and toddlers must immediately control the action, ultimately learning that they have an effect. This program provides an experience comparable to a television show. If your baby or toddler is in love with Pooh, and you just can't resist, look for the box with the "Free Winnie the Pooh Digital Coloring Book" sticker. Our baby testers did not stick with the program, but their older siblings enjoyed the free digital coloring book.
$19.99, Win, Mac
Teaches: early learning, peek-a-boo, colors