Mia's Language Adventure: the Kidnap Caper
© 2003 Kutoka Interactive
What kid wouldn't want to explore an interesting old attic, especially from the view of a mouse? Some of the best treasures to be found are the twelve solid Spanish or French games, all nicely wound around the story of how Mia the mouse is hunting for her kidnapped Grandmother. This fourth (and best) program in the series is good, but there are some navigation problems to note. Let's start with the biggest problem. Mia, who is supposed to follow the cursor around the screen, doesn't move where she's supposed to. Say you want her to move toward a door. She'll take a few seconds do a circle in the wrong direction, before following your command. Perhaps this is supposed to be cute, but it removes feelings of control. The second problem is that once you're in an activity, you can't get out, except for pressing the ESC key, which exits the program entirely. Fortunately, the program auto-saves your spot (for up to 4 children) so you can eventually get back, but this lack of control is a major drawback. This is compensated for by the incredibly rich graphics, compelling story, and innovative activities that effectively teach Spanish or French, depending on which language you choose in the setup menu. The curriculum includes the alphabet, common words such as colors and household objects, comprehension and construction of simple sentences, and comprehension of simple dialogues. The program comes on two CD-ROMs, although disk swapping is minimal. All in all, this is an outstanding way to introduce an English speaking child to either Spanish or French.
$20, Windows, Macintosh
Teaches: foreign language (Spanish, French), logic