Did you know its Eeyore's birthday? (Disney Winnie Pooh Pre-School (PC))

Member Name: Karenwilson

Product:	Disney Winnie Pooh Pre-School (PC)
Date:	16/03/01 (792 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: See text

Disadvantages: none

Well let me begin with a brief story regarding how I came about purchasing this computer game. It was my son Luke’s birthday yesterday and he is really getting into computers and regularly plays the Tweenies cd rom. I knew another computer game would be an instant hit and I do feel that it is important for children to get to grips with learning the basic computing skills to prepare them for school. I popped out shopping in search of a new game. Originally I picked up Bob the Builder, as that looked quite interesting but I do think that Luke is beginning to get bored of Bob now. Then I came across a Disney Winnie the Pooh (Pre-school). Unbeknown to me at the time of purchase it was suitable for ages 2-4.

Once my son opened his present and I saw the age category and I was a bit unsure whether it would be too easy for him as he has some experience in computers now. After watching him playing I realise that it had such a choice of different skill levels that I personally think it could be suitable for children a bit older than the age quoted.

At the beginning you have to type in your name, the letters are displayed on a cobbled wall and once selected they are copied on to a mailbox. Then you select PLAY.

The activities are based on a journey around the Hundred-Acre-Wood whereby you visit all the characters homes to play the games. At the start you are in Pooh’s bedroom and he wakes up saying that he has a funny feeling in his tummy and he is sure he has forgotten something. The last time he forgot something was Eeyore’s birthday with this in mind he convinces himself and the others that it s in fact Eeyores birthday. This is where the mission begins Pooh goes outside to tell the others about Eeyores birthday and arranges for them to bring a present to the surprise party.

Your child can select which house they wish to visit first and below I have described what activity they will find in each house.
<
br>*** OWL’S FAMILY TREE ***

The idea is that you help Owl sort out his family pictures into a photo album. Your child has to identify the difference between the photos of the owls; some may have glasses so they go to the right and the ones without go to the left. Each level gets harder with not so obvious differences. This is a great way in getting your child to really notice the different characteristics of the owls and making them think of the layout of the album. After three goes they have completed the mission and Owl then takes a framed picture as a present for Eeyore. Your child can leave any house by following the white arrow at the top left of the screen. If however they wish to play on they can and the skill level increases.

*** RABBIT’S CANNING ENCOUNTER ***

Rabbit is busy canning fruits and vegetables for the winter and needs help so he can come to the party. The idea of this game is to test your child’s counting ability and recognising numbers up to 20. My first impression of this game was that my son would get bored with the counting but in fact it had endless different ways to keep them interested. Such as counting a certain number of strawberries into a jar and then replacing the lid. Once the novelty of this wore off he could then get a jar filled with the items and then select a sticker that corresponded with the number on the jar. Obviously the longer he played the skill level again increased. The finished product was a preserve to be taken to the party.


*** TIGGER’S MAGICAL MUSIC MACHINE ***

Tigger is in the middle of setting up his new musical machine and needs help in finishing sticking in the pipes. Three strange objects come in on a convey belt (a bit like the generation game, but more rickety). Your child then has to click on the blue drawing and listen carefully to the sound it makes, they then have to click on the conveyor belt items and find the
matching sound. Once selected you “drag” it over to the music machine. This game was good for sound recognition and also uses computer basics such as clicking and dragging. All of the other rooms also made them use these skills. As I have said before the skill level increased by more items and sounds to choose from. At the end Tigger with your child’s help had created a song for Eeyores birthday.

*** PIGLET’S PICTURES ***

This is basically painting on an easel. Your child is given a picture to copy and they have to make sure the colours are in the right areas. When it was completed they have a nice little extra whereby a draw pops open and you can then stick little bits to the picture such as macaroni, feathers, stickers, stars etc. At harder levels your child is taught to mix colours together to make new ones. The present taken along to the party is of course a picture.

*** KANGA’S ALPHABET SOUP ***

The idea is to help make alphabet soup and for it to be completed all letters need to be included in the cooking pan. Using Kanga’s cookbook as a guide it shows which letters are missing from the soup these letters appear in grey on the cookbook and when added to the soup the letters on the cookbook then go black. The letters appear on a chopping board and the correct ones need to be dropped into the soup. In later levels the letters appear on the vegetables. The soup is the item that will be taken to the party.

*** POOH’S DREAM ***

In this activity your child can navigate Pooh through his dream world by looking at picture images in clouds and seeing which missing item completes a little story. An example of this is a lolly is displayed + a hot sun + your child then has to enter what would happen to the lolly and has several choices to pick from. This exercise displays their powers of deduction and reasoning. After every story is completed they make their way f
urther up the stairs until they reach the honey pot which is taken to the party.


*** THE PARTY SPOT ***

This is where the party takes place, your child can pop back there beforehand to see how many activities are left to complete. Remember that after each task is done a present is taken to the party. When all six learning activities are complete the story ends here in a festive celebration at the cake-laden table in the woods. Pooh does end up getting it wrong and it is not Eeyores birthday but they have a party anyway.

Another extra feature to this cd rom is a “Print N Learn” section which allows your children to print stickers, customised ID cards, personalised bookmarks, flash cards and a 14 page workbook that rein-forces and elaborates on skills strengthened in the activities. These are all printed on A4 paper.

Yet another feature is a “Progress Chart” this allows the parent to monitor the child’s progress. It is updated every time your child plays the game; it displays difficulty levels completed for each activity as well as the time spent playing at that particular level. To access this chart, click on the sign in name at the beginning and then select the “Progress Chart” icon.


*** KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS ***

ESC Key - Interrupts current animation or voice over and skips to the
Beginning of the next sequence or state.

Alt F4 - Quits the program and returns you to the desktop – PC

Command Q - Quits the program and returns you to the desktop – MAC


*** DIFFICULTY LEVELS ***

Each activity features three levels of difficulty. The first time your child plays a new activity it will automatically default to the easiest level. To change levels and increase the challenges click on a higher number from the numbers in the right hand corner of the navigation
screen.


*** EXITING THE PROGRAM ***

Click on the EXIT icon on the top right hand corner of the navigation screen.


Well I hope that gave you a real insight into this game and I think you will agree at £19.99 it really is great value for money. (God I sound like an advert, sorry) With regards to the age category I do feel that my son who is just 4 will benefit the most out of the levels and can play on his own without my guidance. Maybe children of a younger age could use this game with their parent’s help.


Other titles are: Disney Winnie The Pooh – Toddler Aged 1 – 3 years

Winnie The Pooh Infants Aged 4 – 6

Web site www.disney.co.uk/disneyinteractive/

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