V Tech V. Reader Review and Giveaway!!

I was so excited when VTech asked me to review their new V. Reader Animated Book System. We are huge fans of V Tech around this house and now that we are starting to teach Brody to read- this was perfect timing! Brody’s favorite thing is being read to and doing his flashcards and learning to read to himself.

And now V Tech has found a way to make “Reading Come To Life!”

I was so excited to show this to Brody when it arrived. I thought it looked and functioned just like a Kindle Reader- but for kids! The V. Reader is an animated book series that displays graphics, sounds and the words on the screen as it is being read to you. At the end of each page- your child will have to use the included Pen, or his finger to change the page.

Features: (from VTech)

* Animated Storyteller

Children will enjoy character voices, narration, sounds and music.

* Touch and Read System

2 Options of Play: Kids can follow along with the story or touch the screen to hear words and play interactive reading games

* Teaches Core Reading Skills

V.Reader helps reading comprehension, vocabulary, phonics and word building and more!

* Story Dictionary

Enhances vocabulary skills with kid-friendly word definitions.

* Down loadable Content

V.Reader features a USB port and is expandable with SD Memory cards (not included). Download themes, avatars, as well as enjoy additional stories!

* Track Your Child’s Progress

Connect V.Reader to your computer to monitor your child’s learning, and receive certificates of achievement for each story completed.

*Sturdy Design

Kid-Tough and perfect for kid-sized hands, cover protects the touch screen when not in use

Brody’s Take:

Brody was hooked the second I took it out of the box. He SHRIEKED “I finally got my very own Computer!” (Remember he JUST turned 3!! jeez!)

I started off by showing him how to insert the Story cartridge, and turn it on. Then for the first time set-up he had to type in his name- which he was so proud of himself for! Then he followed along with the reader and loved every second of it.

The Cartridge it came with was about a dog named Rufus moving from the country to the city and Brody loved it. He “read” along with the narrator, then wanted to dive right into the games. There are 3 levels- Easy, Medium and Hard. We chose Easy to start with and he was able to play by himself. At the Medium level- he had to ask a couple questions and we skipped the Hard. But that is a good thing- that means that he will be able to grow along with this learning game and not outgrow it next month.

On that note- V Tech plans on releasing over 100 new Story titles that can be instantly downloaded- most of them FREE!! Yea!!

My Take:

I have never been a huge fan of video games- I would much rather engage with the kids or have them play outside and be active. I have seen first hand some kids at only 4 or 5 spending hours upon hours on mindless video games and I always swore mine would not. BUT- the V.Reader is not like that at all.

It is basically a book, and is actually educational! With hubby and I being avid readers ourselves, I will do anything to encourage that love of reading with my kids- and this is a great tool to aid in just that! I love the fact that they can choose to just listen to the book while the words light up as they are read- or Brody liked to actually point to all the words to prompt the narrator to read the word. To me- that is a great tool- he is looking directly at the words as they are being read! And the games ask specific comprehension questions such as “What did Rufus wish for instead of a new bed?” and it shows the page that explained that scene and the kids have to point to the object Rufus was wishing for. I LOVE it!!