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Times Table Snap
by chickiepoo
I bought this for my two children to share last year, as I really wanted to help them learn their times table but make it a little more fun, I mean lets face it who liked to do maths when they were younger.
When I saw this for £5 I thought this could work and make my kids enjoy learning at the same time. The game is just like normal ... snap but with a twist. Instead of matching cards they had to match the sums, for example if one of them turned over 3x2 they would have to match it with a 6 to be able to win snap.
The pack comes with the standard 52 cards all been a mixture of multiplication questions and their answers, the cards are also pretty thick so even now with the kids using them so much none of the cards have become damaged.
The game states its for one player and up from the age of 7 years old, mine were 8 then so they were just about right for them.
If they wanted to play one player then obviously you can not play snap just by yourself but you can lay the cards out and play match it, where they have to match the sum and the answer. To be honest mine never bothered with the 1 player game as they would have got bored playing it alone.
I found that when my kids played this, I am not going to say it was a miracle game that improved them straight away, and they did struggle sometimes at first but then they started to get better at their times table and they did improve. They do seem to get more competative now and want to prove they are better than each other lol.
I think this was a really good buy because they do seem to have improved, and I also sometimes sort out the cards and just get the sums out and ask them what the answer is to try to learn them even better. They do now do their times table really well and I think it was £5 well spent on my children's education. I would recommend these to anyone who would like to learn their kids in a quicker and more fun way to learn. Its about the only time my kids have not moaned about doing maths.
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Interplay Wild Science - Triop World
by Assassin4273
I recentently purchased Triops, about 3 weeks ago. They work in the same way as the more popular Sea monkeys, which a lot of people have owned in their lifetime.
In the pack, you get a container, the Triops eggs, food and a few other tools and of course instructions. they are very simple, you use bottled water, and let it warm ... to room temperature, then drop in the gravel, food and eggs. 24-48 hours later you should have tiny little Triops swimming about, but i also found that some other creatures hatched, including sea monkeys. I'm not sure why this was, maybe food for the Triops as they grow much bigger than anything else, but it does not say anything about this on the box or n the instructions. Either way they grow fast and a very entertaining if not also a little bit creepy. The girlfriend is terrified by them.
For under a 10 this a little bit of fun science and some small pets all rolled into 1 little package that i would recommend.
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Interplay Wild Science - Triop World
by kiwiii85
My nephew has so many toys that i was completely stumped when it came to christmas. My sister wants to buy him a hamster and i thought this would be the ideal present to teach him a bit of responsibility.
~~ Triops ~~
Triops have been around since there were dinosaurs and hatch from little eggs that are supplied ... with the kit. They are more commonly known as the tadpole shrimp and so aren't as exotic as i first thought! Along with the eggs you get the container to store them in, sand, food and an instruction booklet.
If you ask me, they are very strange little creatures and I was freaked out by the way they kept digging into the sand. After a few weeks, they grow to quite a size (though not as big as the box makes out) and whilst my nephew was fascinated, i hated them!
~~ Good Bits ~~
The triops hatch with little effort within 24 hours of putting the eggs into the water so your child won't be waiting around for days for something to happen. They are also guaranteed to hatch so long as you follow the instructions properly. There are a couple of other species that hatch alongside it and grow along with the triops, but don't get too attached because the triops actually eat these after a while! They are fascinating to watch though so your little one can see lots of different species.
It teaches your child responsibility and i think these are ideal for anyone thinking of getting a pet for their children. You have to feed them and change their water to a certain extent so it's just a practice run for something larger.
The triops don't have a long life span but don't think that you have to run off to the shop to buy more everytime they die. They actually lay eggs and rehatch so you can have all of the enjoyment over and over again. Well, for as long as the food lasts! You do have to wait for the sand to dry out before they rehatch but it's a lot cheaper than running off to replace a fish that has died.
The food is provided along with plenty of eggs and sand for the triops but please remember to buy a bottle of water before you take everything out of the box with an excited child. They won't hatch with tap water.
~~ Bad Bits ~~
You don't have to clean them out as such so the water does go a bit green and yucky looking. I suppose this can be a good thing as it's less work for you, but it gets harder to see them and the water just looks disgusting! The container that they come in is also a bit disappointing as it's only plastic and isn't very sturdy, a few nudges and I'm sure they would be on the floor.
How do you explain to a child that some of the creatures eat each other so you'll only have the actual triop at the end? My sister thought she'd killed them all at first before we read that the triop actually ate them. It lead to a rather funny conversation with my 5 year old nephew!
The short life span of the triops is also very disappointing and hard to explain to a child how they have all died. I think it's twelve weeks they are supposed to live for but ours only lasted for 3. This could be because they are supposed to live in warm water (we kept the light on over the top) and our winter has made it very hard to keep things warm all of the time! I'd definitely buy them in summer next time.
~~ Value for Money ~~
We bought these for around £6.50 in asda just before christmas and my nephew loved every minute of them. He's had a few attempts and gets to sit and feed them and watch them swim around and dig in the sand at the bottom of the container. I think this is definitely value for money, even if they didn't last as long as we expected them to. Nevertheless, we still have food and we're currently waiting for the sand to dry out so we can try it for a third time. They always say third time lucky, i'll let you know how that goes!
~~ My Verdict ~~
I would definitely recommend these to someone else although i'd perhaps recommend to try them in summer rather than winter. They are cheap, easy to look after and rehatch several times. If your child has been asking for a pet, introduce them to the triop and see how they go. You can also see if they get bored of them quickly and whether they are actually ready for a pet.
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