Jumpstart Online Provides Educational Fun for PreK-age 10! Review + GIveaway!

About a year ago our family was introduced to JumpStart, an online educational program for children from preschool through about 6 years of age. When we first reviewed JumpStart, my son loved it. He went on for about 6 months almost daily.. and then it slowly faded. He went on every now and then, when the themes changed because of a holiday, or because he wanted to play on the computer. He loved seeing the new changes, but the educational games were not so educational for him any more. As a gifted kid, he runs into that problem often.


When summer began, on rainy days or 'boring' days Alex started visiting again, and noticed there were tons of changes. You can have a pet dragon now, (when I visited with him earlier, it was sleeping!), and there are more areas on the map. The Jumpeez (avatars, computer people, characters) can interact with their pet dragon and go through these different areas and worlds ('like Future Land and Story Land', Alex says), on learning adventures. MarineLand, FutureLand, and Uncle Milton’s Amazing Science Land are the new lands, and Alex says 'they're pretty cool', too.

I love hearing him play on JumpStart, and I love listening to him teach Abbie the new worlds. She's starting to get really good at the computer (now that her big brother has given her the ability to work on it alone) and enjoys her little Jumpeez too! The names of the Jumpeez are anonymous and fictional, and always gets a giggle from her as it pops up over her character's head, which is new to her!

Today, we got a "mission" as we signed on, and both of the kids were so excited!

They had to go and find pieces of a treasure map in order defeat an evil Sorcerer that is trying to take all of the energy from JumpStart.

They were even more upset when I told them that they could do their mission tomorrow, as it was bed time.

One of Alex's favorite places on the JumpStart map is the Stadium. At the Stadium, kids can go and play either football, volleyball or basketball (all with an educational twist!). The only thing Alex says that he doesn't like is the fact that they don't have soccer. Overall, he does enjoy all of the new upgrades they have done, and honestly has the desire to play every single day again. He's excited about it, and as a mom, that makes me excited.

I have a tendency to want to try all of the games my kids play, and before they played JumpStart for the very first time screened it completely. That said- I tried playing the volleyball game at level three today, and it was CRAZY! Even though the words are not hard it's like mind-hand-eye coordination at it's finest. Of course, if I wasn't still sick, and had a mouse for my laptop, it may have been easier.. but I digress!

I love the fact that you can link your Facebook account with your JumpStart account, so you can keep track of your kid's progress on Facebook, earn extra coins and meet up with friends (using top-secret-buddy codes to locate them).  If you prefer the traditional way, you can see your child's progress right in your email, or on your account page at JumpStart.com.

The bottom line is, now that Alex is older and brighter, he's found a place that he's familiar with to fit into his world that's both educational and fun. It's fun enough to keep him coming back to it, and once again, advanced enough that he can really learn and sharpen his skills on the educational side of it. The boy is happy, and mom is happy- win, win!

Speaking of winning... Our very good friends at JumpStart have offered one lucky reader their chance to score a 6 month paid subscription to JumpStart online!

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER!!

Please refer to our WINNERS PAGE for more information on how to claim your prize!

This giveaway is open to residents of the US & Canada. This giveaway will end on August 15, 2010 at 11:59pm EST. The winner will be chosen using Random.org, and all winner information will be posted on our WINNERS PAGE and on this post. Any unclaimed prizes will be redrawn accordingly and at the discretion of 4BabyAndMom. Disclosure: I received a membership to JumpStart to review at no cost. This did not affect my opinion of the product and any opinions expressed are 100% that of 4BabyAndMom. Your experience with these products, website and companies may differ.

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JumpStart: Get Moving Family Fitness Wii Game Review

Both of my kids are huge fans of the JumpStart brand. They have been for over 4 years now.

When Alex was little, we played computer software games. As he grew, he loved his JumpStart program so much we wore out the disk! Now that Abbie is at about that same age, she's also learning to love JumpStart. We've reviewed the online JumpStart program last year, and since then, they've been even more hooked. I love that they play it, and (most of the time) have no idea that it's educational!

Needless to say, when I was given the opportunity to review the brand new JumpStart: Get Moving Family Fitness for the Wii, I jumped at the chance.

Hosted by fitness expert Brooke Burke, JumpStart Get Moving Family Fitness is a great way to have fun and get your blood pumping! Kids can set up their own Jumpees, just like in the online version, and they play their way through sports and obstacles. Alex's favorite is none other than baseball, but Abbie loves the foot races!!

It's so fun to watch them work together, and independantly on the tasks, and I love participating with them. If you're kids are familiar with JumpStart.com, then they should love this game. If you've never been to JumpStart.com, run, don't walk over there and let your child try out their online world, absolutely free. If they love what they see, then definitely check out this game!

Now, from a reviewers standpoint, there were a few things that I wish they would have done a little bit better. The graphics online are so fun, and although the background picture changed during the Wii game, it wasn't overly exciting. The kids had fun, but they are 4 and 7.. My son who gets easily bored enjoyed playing it, but mentioned that baseball is also on the Wii Sports. I think what he liked most was that his Jumpee looked like the same Jumpee he plays with online. It is not a die-hard exercise game, but it does make you move (like many Wii games on the market). You also have to make sure your calibration is dead-on with this game, as the first time we tried to play, the placement of our sensor was not working with the game. I have no idea if this was just us and our Wii, or if this might be something they need to fix. The kids do prefer the online JumpStart game versus this one, but I think it may be because there have been recent changes to the program. As a mom, I wish they incorporated more educational material into this game. After all, that is one of the things I love the most about the online game.

In my honest opinion, I do believe that this game is a fun game if your kids like the online JumpStart program. So check it out: http://www.jumpstart.com/ and let the learning begin.

Special thanks to our friends at JumpStart for allowing us to review this game in exchange for our honest opinions on this game.

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Jumpstart Review and Giveaway!

I remember being young and hearing from all the adults how computers were going to be the demise of their young children, because it sucked all of us in, and wasted our brains. Yet the world became a computer filled world, with technology continually building and growing to points in which my elders never dreamed of. That is the beauty of technology.

I will admit it- I'm a mom who's ok with computer or video games for their kids. We started Alex on PBS when he was about 18 months old. He wanted to play on the computer so bad, so one day we signed on, and instantaneously, he we were hooked. We would joke that he was able to navigate and work on the computer better than my father in law, but honestly- it was the truth! He was given the JumpStart Toddlers program and a Jay Jay game the next Christmas and he played them both until the CD's themselves died. He grew into programs like JumpStart Preschool, (and other online games), and now both of the kids own their own hand held learning systems. They both love it, they're both learning, and I am proud that they are as advanced as they are.

During the summer in our home, we struggle with keeping the kids occupied, as they're constantly bored. They've read all the books, played all the games and nothing seems to work anymore. Alex loves educational toys and games, as long as they "grow with him". If he thinks it's 'too babyish' for him, he will not even look at it anymore. Striving to keep him entertained and aiding to avoid summer burn out, I'm very grateful we were given the opportunity to review JumpStart 3D Virtual World.

This Virtual world is geared towards ages 3-10, JumpStart provides an interesting, exciting and educational experience no matter what age child is at the controls! This program is great for families with multiple children as you can create several profiles and Jumpee's (children's avatars) that you can totally customize their look, their clothing and their accessories. Your child will explore lands loaded with fun stuff like art centers, a pet grooming site, slides and hang gliders but continue to learn with numbers, shapes, colors, reading, patterns and more- all age appropriate! The program itself is made up of the perfect combination of character, story and game play which keeps the kids engaged for hours!

At first we created just a profile for Alex. He started playing immediately, and within minutes knew how to control everything. It wasn't long before Abbie realized what Alex was doing was super cool, and Alex ended up setting her profile up! The most difficult thing I've had to deal with since signing up for the JumpStart 3D Virtual World is "taking turns".

Both of the kids have dalmatians as pets, Alex's wears a pirate hat, and Abbie's wears a bow. They groom it, and play with it, without the mess and responsibility of a real pet. The two of them compare stars they've earned for completing games and tasks, and congratulate each other for passing a level, earning a new star or for excelling in the program. I was listening to Alex add and subtract as his jet-packed Jumpee flew through arithmetic problems today.

It's delightful! Both of the kids ask if they can go on JumpStart every day. I love watching them discover new games and boards, and finishing tasks to complete new storybooks to read at the library. Abbie gets so proud matching the colors and shapes and letter orders! Nothing's more rewarding than watching them both laugh and giggle while playing and learning.

JumpStart also offers parents valuable resources, ideas and tips on how to keep your child learning, active and engaged over the summer, long vacations, and any time you're together on their blog. Teach your children about money, science and nature, or how to create fun projects together with the ideas on the JumpStart Blog.


Want it?
Head over to JumpStart and check out the video intro to the new 3D Virtual World. *Disclaimer- if you watch it with your child, they will continually ask you for it, until you sign up!* Signing up is quick and simple!


Win It!
Our friends at JumpStart have offered one lucky reader a 3 Month membership at the Jumpstart 3D Virtual World!

Here's how:
Visit JumpStart and tell me one fun or interesting thing you learned that was not mentioned in this review and why you want to win! You must complete this entry before you can submit additional entries.

Extra Entries:

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• Blog about this giveaway with a link to 4BabyAndMom and JumpStart. Please leave link in comment. (5 entries)
  
• Follow 4BabyAndMom on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway. You may R/T: "Keep kids learning this summer w/JumpStart's 3D Virtual World for ages 3-10! WIN 3mos membership! http://bit.ly/Qfd9T @4BabyAndMom Ends7/20" Leave the link to the tweet in your comment, please. (One per day)
  
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This giveaway is open to US Residents 18+ only and will end on July 20th, at 11:59pm EST. One winner will be chosen at random using Random.org. Special thanks to JumpStart for sponsoring this review & giveaway!

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