It's a Charlie Brown Christmas Android App

A charming Christmas story from my youth that still offers hope today. It's A Charlie Brown Christmas is one of several interactive apps from Loud Crow based on the Peanuts gang. This app features original images and voices from the TV special that aired 50 years ago. Plenty of interactive features makes this app a kid pleaser. Start by decorating your own Christmas tree for the story, then change the shape of falling snowflakes by tapping them, help Snoopy decorate his house for the contest, play a piano tune with Schroeder, make the stars twinkle by tapping them, and help Linus knock the cans off the wall. Follow along with the written story (at the bottom of the app) as it is read by the now-adult Linus (Christopher Shea).

Some of the scenes from the story:

 

My favorite parts are Linus stepping onto the stage and quoting several Bible verses from the Christmas story and the gang singing Hark the Herald Angles Sing at the end. A Christmas favorite for me.

 

If you are interested in purchasing this app or just want more information, click on the image below. I see that there is a free version right now.

 

 

Oriental Trading Thanksgiving

One of my favorite places to shop for craft kits and sticker sheets is an online store called Oriental Trading.  I also shop at my local Michael's and Hobby Lobby, but if you need at least a dozen of one thing, Oriental Trading will have a better price and more greater selection. Shipping is expensive these days, but if you sign up for their newsletter, they will send you offers from time to time for free shipping on any order, no dollar minimum. Some of the crafts I am using this season are the sun catcher turkeys, the Thanksgiving sticker scenes, and the cornucopia. The cornucopia offers opportunities to lace, remove the backing off adhesive stickers and work with letters. I have had a problem with an order only twice and the customer service is fast and fair in resolving issues. I have been a regular customer for many years. They have a lot of variety and things for all holidays as well as everyday.

If you are interested in checking out Oriental Trading this link will take you there.

Oriental Trading

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Android App

Work on finger isolation, swiping, app use, eye-hand coordination, manual dexterity, visual discrimination, visual tracking, fine motor precision

If you have read much of my blog, you already know that I don't miss an opportunity to talk about Charlie Brown and the gang. Loud Crow Interactive has created three Android Peanuts apps that use images and music from the original Charlie Brown TV specials: A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, It's the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, and A Charlie Brown Christmas.  Based on the TV special, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, Charlie Brown and Snoopy whip up a last minute meal of jelly beans, popcorn, pretzels, and toast. See how his guests react to this non-traditional meal. Narrated by the adult Stephen Shea (original voice of Linus). It is also possible to turn off the narration and read a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving on your own. There is a hidden leaf on each section to discover as well as many other interactive features. Help clean out the garage to get the table, set the Thanksgiving table, pop the corn, and sing along with the gang to name a few. Turn the pages by swiping from right to left, bottom.  

Will she?

Help Snoopy butter the toast and pop the corn.

Time to eat. Will a feeling of thankfulness pervade?

To see a list of fall-themed games, click here.

Great States

Play Great States and take an adventure around the USA while discovering/reviewing landmarks, capitals, state abbreviations, state locations, state objects, and more.

The game board is a brightly colored map of the USA and on each state is shown the state name, abbreviation, capital, and 3-7 pictures of objects related to that state.

Great States includes these four types of cards:

• Figure cards - These questions focus on where different things are in relation to each other on the map.
• Example - Which one of these states is west of North Carolina? Florida, W. Virginia, Tennessee
• Fact cards - These questions focus on state capitals, large cities, and state abbreviations.
• Example - What is the largest city in Vermont?
• Fun cards - These questions are just for fun.
• Example - Close your eyes and name 8 states that border the Atlantic Ocean.
• Find cards - These questions require that you match a picture from the card to the same picture on a state.
• Example - Which state's flower is the Sagebrush?

All answers are on the same side of the card as the question. The timer is a 60 second timer and it makes a loud tick as each second passes, and rings loud when the time is up. It's a great game to work on academic as well as visual perceptual skills, and has won the Best Toy Award Gold Seal. There is also a Junior version for this game, Great States Junior.
 
Object:

Be the first person to earn 10 cards and win the game.

Set up:

Set up the game board, placing the question card piles as indicated. Spin the spinner and pick a card from the pile indicated. 

Play:

Hand the card to the person on your left and set the timer for 30 seconds. The person reads you the card and you have 30 seconds to figure out the answer. Most questions allow you to use the map as a reference. If you answer correctly you win the card and your turn is over. If you answer incorrectly, the card goes back to the bottom of the pile and your turn is over. The first person to earn 10 cards wins the game.  

Try this:

• Use the game as a conversation starter. Encourage people to share stories about the places they have been and the things they have seen.
• Set the timer for 60 seconds instead of 30. Have the player on your left read one question from the category after another until the timer rings. See how many you can find in one minute.
• Skip the timer and don't take turns. One person reads a card and all players look at the map at the same time. First one to yell out the answer gets the card.
• Work on figure ground, visual discrimination, spatial relations, manual dexterity, geography, socialization skills, process skills, executive functioning skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: Game board, 100 figure cards, 100 fact cards, 100 fun cards, 100 find cards, mechanical timer, spinner
Ages 7+, 1-6 players

If you are interested in purchasing this game or just want more information, click on the image below.

Mega Bloks Junior Builders - 60 pieces

Mega Bloks Junior Builders - 60 pieces

As I noted in a previous blog titled Building Skills with Construction Toys, building sets are great for working on multiple skills simultaneously. Comparable in size and shape to LEGO Duplos, I purchased this Mega Bloks Junior Builders set because of the pattern cards. 

You can't see this very clear, but according to the picture of the tub (above, top right), there are three pattern cards shown. There are six models pictured on the front of the tub so I figured that would be three cards, with a model printed on each side. In reality, there are only two cards and only three patterns depicted. The fourth side is a picture of all the sets together. I felt that was misleading.

The tub is oversized, the blocks only take up about 1/3 of the space. The lid sits on the top and does not snap on at all, just sits there. I contacted Amazon and said I wanted to return the item. They refunded my money and told me to keep it.

Try this:

• Offer a few minutes of free play at the beginning so the child can get the feel of the pieces and learn how they go together.

• Give the beginner a piece at a time while building and point to the piece on the picture to show where it should go.
• Put out only the blocks that will be needed for each project so as not to overwhelm. Or just give one block as it is needed.
• Start with the smaller projects, end with the rainbow (increasing in difficulty).
• Keep the unused pieces in a pile so the child will have to search for each needed piece. Turn some of the pieces upside down or on their side so the child will have to recognize them from different perspectives.
• Advise the child to hold the model in the same orientation as the one in the picture if they are having trouble orienting a piece.
• Take time to play once your set is complete.
• Place a piece of white paper over any pieces (on the pattern card) above the layer you are working on if the individual has difficulty keeping track of where he is working. 
• Work on spatial relations, manual dexterity, visual discrimination, figure ground, visual closure, bilateral hand use, sequencing, finger strength and dexterity, creative play, problem solving, visual form constancy, play and leisure exploration and participation.

  In the tub: 60 pieces, 2 pattern cards, sticker sheet
Ages 24 months - 5 years

If you are interested in purchasing this item or just want more information, click on the image below.

Imagination Magnets - Expansion Pack

Imagination Magnets Expansion Pack

This set is an expansion pack for the Imaginets kit that I blogged about earlier. Like the pieces in that set, the pieces in this pack are brightly painted wooden blocks with magnetic backs. At first glance I thought that this pack could stand alone without the original Imaginets set. But as I flipped through the pattern cards I realized otherwise. There are three block colors included with this set - pink, goldish orange, and blue. The first 10 patterns are created with only those three colors and blocks from this expansion set. However, the last 10 patterns include colored blocks that can only be found in the original Imaginets set, including yellow, purple, and green. 

 

Left - Blocks from this expansion pack.  Right - Blocks from this expansion pack plus the original kit.

When putting the two sets together, there will be two shades of blue and an orange, gold, and yellow. Some of the pieces in this set are also smaller than in the original set. Here is a picture comparing the two sets. The pieces on the left come with the original Imaginets set. The pieces on the right are from the Expansion Pack, sold separately.

The original block set starts with simpler designs with fewer pieces. I have found the original set very useful in my practice and it is well received by most. A good tool for working on multiple visual perceptual skills. I often use the magnetic pattern sets with beginners or individuals who have slight hand tremors or other conditions that impact their fine motor precision because these magnetic pieces, once laid, are much harder to disturb if bumped than non-magnetic pieces.

For more of this type of activity, check out my post on What's in Your Therapy Box? Pattern Blocks Edition.

Try this:

• Play with the pieces before using the cards and point out the differences in size, shape, color, etc.
• Put the first piece in place in front of the individual if he cannot look at the picture and figure out where to start. Or say something like "Let's start with the ears".
• Orient and place a piece if the individual is having trouble with orientation. Then pick it up, hand it to the individual, and invite him to place it.
• Hand the individual a piece he will need and ask him to turn it in-hand for the correct placement.
• Use consistent directional and positional language such as above, to the left of, under, flush, etc.
• Find all pieces for the picture ahead of time. Place only those pieces (or even fewer) next to the board if you want to focus on one specific skill at a time, such as spatial orientation. This may decrease frustration from working on too many things at once.
• Practice recognizing shapes from different orientations. Ask the individual to search through all the available pieces to find the ones he needs. Make sure that the pieces are in various positions so that some are facing the wrong direction, some are overlapping, some are upside-down, some are on their sides, etc.
• Correct errors as soon as they are made as continuing to build on incorrect placement may impact the rest of the model.
• Teach the individual to recognize and correct errors. After the individual places a piece incorrectly, ask "Are you sure?" or say "Try again". If he cannot figure out the error, make the correction while he watches. Then pick up the piece and hand it to him to place.
• Give fading prompts as the individual learns to identify errors and correct mistakes on his own.
• Ask the individual to cup his non-dominant hand. If he has trouble doing this, place a small ball in his hand and ask him to curl and lightly squeeze his fingers around the ball. Then remove the ball and ask him to hold his hand in that position. Place several of the pieces he will need in the cupped hand and keep the hand cupped while he places the pieces on the board.
• Work on manual dexterity, in-hand manipulation, visual discrimination, visual closure, spatial relations, figure ground, eye-hand coordination, executive functioning skills, process skills, recognition of shapes and shape names, play and leisure exploration and participation
  

In the box: 37 magnet backed wooden blocks, 20 patterns on 10 cards (back-to-back)
Ages 3+, 1+ players

If you are interested in purchasing this item, or for more information, click on the image below.