Software and Games : GSP : Children's Fun & Learning : Ages 9-11

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...Children's Fun & Learning

Become A Human Body Explorer

Dorling Kindersley
Play and Learn: Reading & Counting

Dorling Kindersley

Early learning through play! Simple, fun, and effective games to help children read and count. 101 games to help your youngsterread and count including phonics, number, shapes and memory puzzles. Ages 3 to 5. Windows 95/98.
Become A World Explorer

Dorling Kindersley
Learning Ladder Year 6

Dorling Kindersley

Learning Ladder Year 6 is another excellent CD-ROM from Dorling Kindersley. It's aimed at children aged 10-11 and structured so that children listen to a lesson and then carry out exercises that help to consolidate the literacy and numeracy they are learning as part of the school curriculum. This CD-ROM would be invaluable for any child in Year 6 who is preparing for their SATs.
Exercises can be done at five different levels of difficulty, so that children are challenged and continue to make progress. For every 400 points that a child scores, they are rewarded with new pictures to use with the printing machine. As they gather more pictures they can enjoy designing their own cards, invitations and labels, which can be printed out.
Children can also have lots of fun navigating around Science City and learning lots of facts along the way. For example, they can find out about animals, food chains and gravity. The progress tracker clearly shows how each child is getting on with a system of green and red lights. This would quickly show parents where more help is needed. --Amanda York
Learning Ladder Year 4

Dorling Kindersley

Learning Ladder Year 4 is a fantastic CD-ROM aimed at Year 4 children. It is structured so that children listen to a lesson and then carry out exercises that help to consolidate the literacy and numeracy they are learning as part of the school curriculum.
Exercises can be done at five different levels of difficulty, so that children are challenged and continue to make progress. For every 400 points that a child scores, they are rewarded with new pictures to use with the printing machine. As they gather more pictures they can enjoy making their own cards, invitations and labels, which can be printed out.
Children can also have lots of fun navigating around Science City and learning lots of facts along the way. For example, they can have a go at the science quiz and find out about roots, leaves and flowers. The progress tracker clearly shows how each child is getting on with a system of green and red lights. This would quickly show parents where more help is needed. --Amanda York
Play and Learn: Science Experiments

Dorling Kindersley

Play and Learn Reader Rabbit products are designed specifically to encourage your child's development. Since 1984 Reader Rabbit has helped more than 10 million children learn to reading, number and general skills. Includes multiple difficulty levels Tutor Technology with progress reporting. Windows 9x/ME/XP.
Learning Ladder Year 5

Dorling Kindersley
Play and Learn: Writing & Calculating

Dorling Kindersley
Become A Science Explorer

Dorling Kindersley

Become a Science Explorer is another excellent CD-ROM from Dorling Kindersley aimed at children aged 6-10 years old. Children will love the challenge of going on a mission and trying to become a Science Explorer.
Fizz, the helpful ball of energy, guides children around the different environments where children can carry out activities, answer questions or look at information screens. The graphics are excellent and there is a wealth of scientific information for children to find out in a variety of interesting ways. Children's learning is also cleverly extended when they're given further explanations once they have answered a question.
Children are rewarded with prizes, badges, stickers, rosettes, medals and the ultimate prize of becoming a Science Explorer. They can use their Science Workbook to make scientific observations, answer questions and collect stickers--guaranteed to turn any child into a budding scientist.
There is a range of science experiments that can be printed out and undertaken. These would be ideal for parents to go through with younger children using the comprehensive parents' guide. There are also some very good worksheets, which would help to consolidate children's learning.
Become a Science Explorer is a fantastic CD-ROM that really supports the science curriculum in schools. This would be an excellent buy for parents or teachers of children aged 6-10 years old. --Amanda York
Disney Hotshots Toy Story 2: Cone Chaos / Toy Shelf Showdown

Avanquest Software

Woody has been abducted by toy collector Al McWhiggin and his Toy Story pals are off to rescue him. In Toy Story 2--part of the Disney Hotshots series--the toys are camouflaged as traffic cones and you have to guide them across the road to find their kidnapped friend.
Using the arrow keys on your keyboard you can quickly move the cones to the left and right as they make their way across the busy road. The fate of the likes of Mr Potato Head, Slinky Dog and Rex are literally in your hands as big lorries, racing fire engines and cars hurtle towards you.
As the Cone Chaos game gets progressively harder, the traffic speeds up. If it gets too tense, you can always take cover at a manhole. Overall this is a quick-paced game which is easy to learn and entertaining to play.
In the second game in this title, Toy Shelf Showdown, you help Buzz take on and defeat the evil Emperor Zurg. The task is to assemble a rocket ship while avoiding hostile robots and lots of bouncing balls. This is an action-packed game with lots of different twists and turns. Buzz can stun the robots with lasers and if you run out of shots, you have to find a battery for recharging.
Both animated games are introduced by Buzz and Woody and there are good clear instructions with the title on how to play and where to get help. This is your chance, as Buzz says, to go to "interactivity and beyond." --Justin Hunt
3D World Atlas

Dorling Kindersley

Travel has never been more popular. Yet no matter how many footloose gap-year students stream to the corners of the globe, armchair travel probably remains almost as popular. Dorling Kindersley's 3D World Atlas is a new CD-ROM package firmly in the armchair bracket, giving in-depth coverage of every country in the world--from maps, through demographic statistics to information on geographical phenomena. Why move from the sofa when you can (virtually) experience the world in your living room?
3D World Atlas includes the range of features you would expect from a printed atlas and more. The general world maps are set to an optimal scale, allowing different levels of focus, and there are also the physical maps to view. However, the most striking aspect of this package is its unusual features, particularly those that come from space.
The two satellite image-projections of the earth are revealing. First comes the ordinary view of the earth's physical features from the heavens--yes, you really can pick out the Great Wall of China--and then an image of the earth by night, showing all the lights around the world: it's a sparkly and revealing picture of the spread of economic development across the planet. Add to this brilliant photography of deserts, mountains and jungles in the bio-climate zones and the package transcends the limitations of traditional atlases. --Toby Green
Become A History Explorer

Dorling Kindersley
Become A British Isles Explorer

Dorling Kindersley

Become a British Isles Explorer is a fun CD-ROM aimed at children aged 6-10 years old. It encourages them to play games, look at maps and find out a whole range of interesting facts about the British Isles through very informative information screens.
Children will love the challenge of following Jo on his five journeys around the British Isles and collecting five medals to become a British Isles Explorer. Children can explore the map of the British Isles. They can look at regions, and towns to find out about famous places, people and much more. The trips can be recorded in the child's own travel log, together with stickers and photos that are collected along the way. A great way to reinforce the information they have found out. There are a range of fun activities for children to do, for example, recording the weather, sending postcards and printing out map outlines which can be filled in. There is also an excellent Index Menu that children can use to find out about a wide range of topics and look at word definitions. They could use this menu to answer any questions that they might be having trouble with.
Become a British Isles Explorer would be a good buy for children aged 7-11 years old and it would really extend their understanding of the British Isles. This would be excellent to use if a child was doing a topic or project on the British Isles. --Amanda York
Disney Hotshots Lion King 2: Paddle Bash / Conga Longa

Avanquest Software

When you start The Lion King II: Simba's Pride you enter a very atmospheric animated jungle. Paddle Bash and Conga Longa are easy games to pick up but they are difficult to master.
In Paddle Bash you grab a paddle and you get yourself ready to send balls flying as you try to knock down as many bricks as you can. As you would expect from Disney, there are plenty of fun, colourful special effects as bricks are successfully broken up. Smart keyboard skills are required as you try to angle your shots and send balls bouncing in every direction. And as you score points, you help Timon or Pumbaa move closer to a tasty bug treat. There are clear printed instructions with each game and your mouse is represented on the screen as a lion paw-print. If you want to break yourself slowly into the game, you can start at the kitten or cub level.
The second game, Conga Longa invites you to keep the jungle beat as you join a swinging conga-line of cartoon animals. The aim is to move your cub around and gather up other animals into a conga line. As you dance by an animal, it hops into your line. But if you break your line, you lose your dancing animals. With the jungle music pumping away in the background, this is a tough game to get to grips with. But if your cub dances over a red flower, you get bonus points and there are specific bonus animals you have to collect. It's an original game but it requires a lot of practice to get your conga swinging properly! --Justin Hunt
Alice in Wonderland (Fun Learning Interactive Adventure)

Dorling Kindersley

Alice in Wonderland is a story most adults know, and one that children always seem delighted to discover. This CD-ROM version from Dorling Kindersley combines elements from the story with educational activities and games, and is designed for children aged 7 to 12 years. Each user logs on with their own name, so several family members can use Alice in Wonderland at their own pace.
The CD begins with Alice following the White Rabbit down his famous hole, and arriving at the Hall of Doors--the first of 10 magical worlds she will encounter. There are riddles and problems behind some of the doors in this hallway, and you have to help Alice complete them to gain items or information she'll need later on. And of course, you get to play with the infamous "drink me" and "eat me" foodstuffs. Alice in Wonderland continues in the same vein throughout, and features many characters from the book--the Cheshire Cat is on hand to provide help, while you'll also meet the Mad Hatter, the Queen of Hearts and others. In true Alice in Wonderland style, Alice herself is a real girl, while the other characters are all animated.
Alice in Wonderland hangs together well, and this multimedia fairy tale is an interesting example of making an educational CD from a children's classic. The American voices of the characters may be a little grating at times, though. --Sandra Vogel
Disney Hotshots Villians Revenge: Pirate Block / Wonderland Maze

Avanquest Software

Villains' Revenge is an opportunity to revisit the classic Disney films of Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland. In Wonderland Maze you are invited to move a little caterpillar up and down a maze. You have the ability to spin the maze around in order to find ways through for the caterpillar. You can drag the caterpillar with your mouse and it makes funny squelching sounds. This is a very entertaining game that is bound to appeal to younger children.
The second game in the title, Pirate Block, is a more complex strategy adventure board game. Peter Pan and Captain Hook have decided to settle their differences on the board. To win the game, you have to either capture six pairs of your opponent's coins or create a line of six coins in a row. You can choose to be Captain Hook or Peter Pan. There is a multi-player option as well so you can play against one, two or three of your friends. They can choose which characters they want to be from the likes of Wendy, Captain Hook, Smee or Peter Pan.
Both games are quick to install and are likely to appeal to parents as well, who will probably remember seeing the films when they were younger. --Justin Hunt
T-shirts 4 the Kids 2 Make

Avanquest Software
Mr Men & Little Miss Mr Noisy Presents Balloon War

Avanquest Software

In a Mr. Men style variation on the old arcade classic Donkey Kong, Mr. Noisy Presents Balloon War is a running and jumping platform game where you have to make your way to the top level, grab a balloon and then drop it on your opponent, whether you're playing against the computer or against a friend.
Each player starts the game with five lives and along the way you can snaffle bonus points by running over rabbits, cakes, ladybugs, carrots and aliens. The real fun starts when you encounter the various obstacles--there are worms that burrow through the platforms, knocking you over, and there's Mr. Noisy himself, who shouts so loud that should you be in the way he knocks you over as well. In addition, other Mr. Men pop up here and there, altering your character's behaviour, sometimes making you do things in reverse, slowing you down, or giving you an extra life.
As in the other games in this series, there are six characters to choose from, each with strengths and weaknesses that alter the way the game's played. Little Miss Late for example, responds to keyboard commands after a slight delay, but can jump higher than most other characters. Each game has five themed backgrounds, three levels of difficulty (within which you can set the overall level to easy or hard) and applies the basic laws of physics. Thus, should you grab a balloon and then drop down to a lower platform for a better shot, you can't jump back up again until you've dumped the balloon because you're too heavy. Similarly, if you stand still and throw a balloon, it falls straight down, but if you throw it while running, it moves in the same direction.
This is good, addictive fun for six to 10 year olds. It's easy to pick up and the various levels of difficulty, changes of scene and character variations mean that it'll stay fun. --Rob Beattie
Brain Buster Quiz

Dorling Kindersley Ltd
LEGO Island

Avanquest Software