Blue's Clues Kindergarten

It's Kindergarten Time at Blue's House!

Product Information

Periwinkle is nervous about going to school and to help him overcome his fears,Blue and Joe transform Blue's house into a pretend kindergarten classroom where the games are all about science, telling time, rhyming, art, creativity, math and more! Play Refrigerator Rhymes in the kitchen, tell time with Tickety, play a math game atthe Sand Table with Shovel and Pail, and at Peri's fort - it's Super Science! Features the Blue's Clues host, Joe, who loves to play Hide-and-Seek throughout the game!

• Letter Recognition
• Sound Recognition
• Pre-reading
• Rhyming
• Math Classification
• Counting
• Addition
• Subtraction
• Telling Time
• Creativity
• Science Facts

Product Features

• Lots of surprises and educational clickables
• 3 difficulty levels that can be set to challenge each child
• Includes Print and Parent Areas with ways to continue the learning off the computer
• Count, add andsubtract Periwinkle's unique collections at the Sand Table
• Help Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper find the words that rhyme and match them up on the refrigerator
• Inside Periwinkle's Fort, discover interestingfacts about the Sun, Moon and planets

Windows Requirements

• Windows 98, Me, XP or Vista
• Pentium II 233MHz or higher
• 64 MB RAM
• 8X CD-ROM drive
• 60MB free harddisk space for minimum install
• 4MB Windows 98, Me, XP compatible SVGA video card compatible with DirectX version 8.1 or higher
• Windows 98, Me, XP compatible sound card compatible with DirectX version8.1 or higher
• DirectX ver
  
  Amazon.com Review
  Periwinkle is going to start school soon, and the thought is making him quite nervous! Playing kindergarten at home seems just the way to alleviate his anxieties. In Blue's Clues Kindergarten, Blue, Tickety, and Joe do just that, setting up classrooms all over the house.

  This game lets young players show Periwinkle the early-education ropes, guiding him through math, science, reading, and time-telling drills in a cheery game environment. Players select rhyming fridge magnets to build language skills, eventually making poems of the words they identify correctly. Counting and adding activities in the sandbox make elementary computation a snap, while a poster of the solar system provides a gateway to fun and interesting facts about all the planets orbiting the sun. Children can adjust the difficulty level of gameplay, adapting each exercise so its degree of challenge is just right. Successful learning is rewarded with printable activity pages, providing opportunities for learning and entertainment away from the computer.

  There are only so many ways to bundle up basic education drills, and the core content of Blue's Clues Kindergarten is not radically different from most preschool learning programs. Its tone is bright and friendly, though, making it one of the most genuinely playable games of its type. With appealing characters and well-designed activities, it delivers its educational content gently, mixing it with a solid dose of low-key humor. And for players who need a short break from the learning action, there is a hide-and-seek game. The prospect of tracking down a lurking Joe provides just the right breather for kids before they return to the task of showing Periwinkle what kindergarten is all about. --Alyx Dellamonica
  
  Amazon.com Product Description
  Periwinkle is nervous about going to school. To help him, Blue and Joe turn Blue's house into a make-believe kindergarten with games about science, math, rhyming, art, and more. Choose from five games with Blue, Joe, and friends, while three adjustable levels of difficulty match children's growth. Play Refrigerator Rhymes in Blue's kitchen, tell time with Tickety, learn math at the Sand Table with Shovel and Pail, and--at Peri's fort--there's Super Science. Loads of educational clickables and surprises await in Blue's Kindergarten. Plus, areas for printable activities and for parents let the learning fun continue away from the computer.
  
  

He has spent up to two hours playing in just the present store, picking out presents for friends within the money limit allowed. He loves choosing the wrapping paper and matching bows, as well.

As the game features many different activities (reading, mathematics, sound repetition, vocabulary, shape-sorting), it is a win for parents interested in educating their children in a fun way. I'm planning on purchasing it for my nephew, as well, and if I had more relatives with children, they'd be getting it for Christmas, too.

The main down side would be Joe, as compared to the beloved Steve, but he plays a very minor role, and is only seen when the child is switching between activity centers (library, grocery store, music store, bakery, present store). The other would be the lack of actual reading in the library. As my son can read, it would be more fun on the highest level if he could sort the books according to title, instead of just with the beginning letter. However, he still has a lot of fun with it, and the mathematics in the present store are great.


Hours of Fun   November 9, 2002
Lyn Price (Chattanooga, TN USA)
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

This was my 3 year olds first computer game that she can completely play on her own. She can spend hours playing this game. I particularly like the different levels of difficulty. She loves her Blue's Clues


We love Joe!   November 12, 2002
Shirley Blankenship (Wayne WV)
8 out of 10 found this review helpful

My daugther is 3 years old and it only took her one evening and she was playing the game on her own. It is very educational learning to buy items and picking out different shapes of food. Their is also A school where there is a computer where they can print different kinds of pictures on it. My daughter can play it for hours if she was aloud. I am sure your child will love it too. I also have a 5 year old nephew that plays this game that also enjoys very much.