I just wanna be like my big sister (LeapFrog Leappad)

Member Name: Groovee

Product:	LeapFrog Leappad
Date:	08/10/04 (290 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: simple and easy to use

Disadvantages: Expensive

After our daughter received a Leap Pad learning system for her birthday, we were quite impressed with how she managed to work it and her little brother started showing a lot of interest. This caused a lot of problems as we do want to keep Eilidh's leap pad good so that Murray can use it when he is older and so that Eilidh can use it as she grows. My friend happened to mention that she had an unused one My First Leap Pad system as her daughter had received it as a present but was too old for it. So we borrowed it.

The My First Leap Pad is slightly bigger than A5 size. It sits sideyways for you to use. You get a free book which you use with it. There is a pen on it which is used with the leap pad. The pen is attached by a small cord. I would advise that it is better to supervise a child and try not to let them break the cord. This way you can keep it altogether as the pen is needed to use the pad and without it the pad is useless. The little books fit into 2 sort of pegs which hold the book in while you flip it over and work with it. On the bottom right is an easy push button which a little one can press with no problems. The pad overall is simple and easy to use. Just looking at it makes you realise how easy it will be to use. On the right hand side on the side is the cartridge holder. You get a book with the leap pad which works without a cartridge but every other book which is bought needs a cartridge to allow the pad to know which book it is working with and give out the correct information etc to the child. It is a good idea to keep the books and cartridges together to make sure that you don't loose them or have a spare book or cartridge lying about.

The leap pad takes 4AA batteries. I've found so far that the batteries last a fairly reasonable time. If the leap pad isn't used for a certain period of time (not sure how long as I have never timed it), the pad says goodbye and switches off hence saving you batteries if your little one forgets to switch it off.

The recommended age for this is 3+. Murray is 22 months and with supervised help enjoys having time on the Leap Pad. Having watched his big sister he has a basic knowledge of how to use the pad. I find it nice to sit down and spend time with him doing it. This way I am building on his vocabulary and helping him learn new words. Sometimes he gets annoyed when you turn a page and have to press the pen on the green circle to let the pad know you have turned over the pages. I find that Murray does sometimes get over excited about the pen and bangs it on the pad quite hard making a loud noise. He has however started to learn through continuity that when we turn the page, we have to press the green button and that is helping him recall things and using his memory.

Some people may say that 22 months is far too young for this but I believe with the correct supervision and adult interaction this can work well for many children. The books vary in what they provide, but the introduce pre-reading, where children are starting to learn basics of reading such as looking at a picture and being able to talk about what is happening in the picture. Pre-maths is done through counting, shapes and colours. They will also be improving their fine motor skills by using the pen and their hand/eye co-ordination through looking at the pictures, and then taking the pen to the correct object or picture. They will also start to use their listening skills at being able to follow simple instructions such as "find the purple square."

This leap pad will set you back approximately £25 from places like Early Learning Centre or Toys R Us. Additional books are slightly cheaper than the main leap pad books at £10. Many places sell these and sometimes if you shop around you may often find a buy one get on free offer. My friend doesn't need this back yet, but when she does, I still don't know if I could justify £25 for a small leap pad which children will out grow fairly quickly as the next leap pad starts at age 4. I would possibly look for a second hand one in this case. I do like the concept and believe that you could get 2 years out of this before a child outgrew it and needed the big one. If you can borrow one first, I would as my sister in law spent a fortune buying the pad and books only for my nephew never to look at it. So it is worth trying it out first.

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