AWARDS
Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar is named a 2007 iParenting Media Award winner.
Review:
“[Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar (Let’s Play)] is very well done and would be a great addition to a family’s collection. What a great way to teach your children Spanish by making it fun and exciting! This video really keeps a child’s attention the whole time while watching.”
“There were many positive characteristics of this DVD: 1. Friendly and articulate narrator. 2. Friendly and engaging children. 3. Wonderful, bright and colorful images. Overall, the movie takes a fun and simple approach to teaching Spanish to children. While it doesn’t use any English translation, the pictures and illustrations are clear and simple to understand. The movie is quick moving and therefore works to keep younger attention spans engaged, which is difficult when they don’t understand the language.”
“There are many positive characteristics of this Spanish DVD. My 5-year old twins enjoyed watching this show and watched it many times throughout the review period. The main points that they enjoyed were the songs and characters. The songs were up beat and involved lots of action, therefore appealing to their attention span. Although they didn’t know what was being said as the whole DVD was in Spanish, they continued to enjoy the show. The characters and colors were vibrant and active. My kids loved the puppets and the children the most. It was great to hear them laugh at some of the characters.
The translation guide was helpful and I think after a few more times of watching the DVD, I’ll be able to use the guide more. The guide is set up to be user friendly and the user is able to quickly find the Spanish translation. The DVD was long enough for the kids to enjoy and learn Spanish, yet short enough that they didn’t get bored. There is an excellent balance of content and time. I liked that the DVD language was in Spanish and the idea of learning the language through immersion is an excellent idea. The simplicity of the characters and songs are amazing. I hope this DVD becomes a favorite in the household and that even I learn Spanish.” -- iParenting Media Awards
About iParenting Media: "The iParenting Media Awards represent outstanding achievements in the children’s and/or juvenile product marketplaces. The iParenting Media Awards program is certified by ISO 9001:2000, the internationally recognized standard for quality assurance. [R]eviewers are a diverse set of parents, experts, licensed childcare centers and schools nationwide. The iParenting Media Awards Program provides a credible and objective method of determining the best products in the market and then honors them with the most prestigious consumer award."
iParentingMedia.com. November 2007.
http://www.iparentingmedia.com
Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar and Los Animales are endorsed by KIDS FIRST!
About KIDS FIRST!: “The Coalition for Quality Children’s Media is a national, nonprofit organization founded in 1991 whose mission is to teach children critical viewing skills and to increase the visibility and availability of quality children’s media… KIDS FIRST! is the Coalition’s program that evaluates, rates and endorses children’s feature films, DVDs, videos, CDs and TV shows using volunteer community-based juries comprising child development professionals, teachers as well as parents and children from diverse geographic and socio-economic and ethnic backgrounds. A KIDS FIRST! endorsement is given to titles that meet the KIDS FIRST! baseline criteria and are approved by both adult and child jurors.”
-- KIDS FIRST! / Coalition for Quality Children’s Media website
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar (Let's Play)
Charming animations, children's involvement, interactivity coupled with playful association of words and the visual screen including music and puppet shows that make it very appealing. This title works well in a Spanish immersion format. Key character Maria, although not well known, is very engaging and has great charisma. She and the children are excellent role models, portraying good humor and fun. Helps build a child's Spanish vocabulary through skits, dance, Spanish songs and play. Children learn the Spanish words for parts of the body, clothing and numbers. This program continues to reinforce Spanish words learned in its partner DVD, "Los Animales."
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales (Animals)
Very enjoyable and engaging to watch. Makes learning a language fun and easy. The playful associations of words, repetition in different scenarios, from animation to live action is natural and moves along with style and ease. Music, play and fun puppets add to the mix in an imaginative way that will capture children and adults alike. The flow of the language coupled with the visuals is very impressive and engaging - without any English translation at all.
Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales and Vamos a Jugar are winners of Parents’ Choice Approved Awards
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales (Animals)
"Designed to teach the names of animals in Spanish, this enjoyable DVD combines real-life pictures and sounds, cartoons and puppets to explain the terms being taught. Examples of the animals are shown as the Spanish words are spoken. The animals are also reviewed as each new animal is taught. An added bonus is that the DVD comes with a translation sheet to assist in reviewing the terms. "
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar (Let's Play)
"Featuring children from infants to age 9 or so, young viewers are introduced to the names of body parts in Spanish through a combination of play, song and dance. Our pre-K test group participated happily and repeatedly, and began to pick up on some of the frequently used words and phrases. The gentle and skilled presenter serves as a bridge between the abstract and real life examples. The printed translation guide is an added bonus."
Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales is named a 2007 Honors Award winner by the National Parenting Publications Awards
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales (Animals)
“This very interactive DVD uses the immersion method of learning which makes it downright easy for kids to pick up the Spanish language. Lots of songs sung in Spanish, play and puppet fun make for a culturally broadening experience.” -- NAPPA
About NAPPA: "NAPPA is one of the oldest, most-comprehensive and, quite likely, the most selective awards program of its kind. NAPPA recognition is more than just a seal of approval; it means that a product has been expertly judged against comparable products and been deemed "best of the best." The Children's Products division of NAPPA was designed to help parents make the best, most age-appropriate choices in children's books, toys, music, DVDs, software and spoken-word recordings for their children, from newborn to adolescents. The NAPPA judges are independent industry experts who have extensive professional experience working with children and parents, and who utilize input from parents and children both."
Parenthood.com. October 2007.
http://www.parenthood.com
Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales and Vamos a Jugar are winners of The National Parenting Center's 2007 Seal of Approval.
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales (Animals)
“This unique DVD offers a fun way for children to actively participate in expanding their knowledge of Spanish . . . Using characters that are whimsical and appealing, children are exposed to and encouraged to enjoy the experience. Our testers felt with repetition that their children would absorb the lessons.” -- The National Parenting Center, 2007 Fall Report
Review of Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar (Let's Play)
“Using a simple and straightforward approach to teaching young children a second language, Whistlefritz employs an easy to follow system. Bright colorful images to capture the child's attention, a clearly spoken friendly narrator, and a good assortment of characters, skits, games and songs that kids already know in their native tongue, all serve to make this a standout bilingual program. When presented on this DVD exclusively in Spanish, parents found that their kids were able to follow the story lines and pick up the vocabulary quickly.” -- The National Parenting Center, Holiday 2007 Report
About The National Parenting Center: "The National Parenting Center's Seal of Approval program, created in 1990 as an adjunct to TNPC's support services, identifies the finest products and services being marketed to the parent/child audience. From educational and entertainment products and equipment to travel destinations, the consumer oriented testing process solicits evaluations from parents and their children. This award signifies to other parents that their peers have acknowledged a product's quality and desirability based on a wide variety of determining factors.”
David Katzner
President, General Partner
The National Parenting Center
Spanish for Beginners: Los Animales wins Creative Child Magazine's 2007 Seal of Excellence Award
Spanish for Beginners: Vamos a Jugar wins Creative Child Magazine's 2007 Preferred Choice Award
Review:
About Creative Child Magazine: Creative Child Magazine is a national publication that focuses on providing the latest information on how to nurture creativity in children. Each year a panel of judges, which may include child psychologists, child educators and parents, monitor a pre-selected group of kids whose ages correspond to the various products that were submitted. The panel then evaluates each product based on four major factors: educational value, creative nurturing, creative play and overall value with respect to retail price.
Only one product per category (e.g. book, CD, DVD) can win a Toy of the Year award. Finalists for the Toy of the Year receive a prestigious Preferred Choice Award. The coveted Seal of Excellence Award is awarded to products that are not finalists but exceed expectations based on criteria for nurturing creativity and education in children.