Vtech have an intrinsically clever way of knowing just how to tap into a child’s passion for learning because sit them down with a book of times tables and they may shy away but slap a brightly coloured gadget on their wrist with their favourite TV character and it’s a whole different story!
My kids are mad for Paw Patrol, the band of pups who face down adventure like a trip to the grocery store, so when they were presented with the coolest watches ever each themed for their favourite pup they were beside themselves with excitement!
The pink Skye watch for Denny (7) and the blue Chase watch for Noah (4) are seriously cool wearable gadgets, not dissimilar from Ryder’s pup pad, with built-in learning functionalities. Of course, being watches their primary focus is to encourage kids to learn how to tell the time, something Denny has become very enthusiastic about and with her new watch lending a hand (pun intended) her awareness of time has increased dramatically.
With a flick of the Skye-embossed protective cover and a click of the light-up button, we can rely on Denny for up to the minute time checks throughout the day. She also quite enjoys putting us to the test with her timer if she feels we’re taking too long to get ready to go out.
Both kids have taken to using the alarm function on their watches, which they place beside their beds at night, to wake them up for school in the morning. They were particularly excited to use it for our extra early wake up to go on holiday this week.
The perfect gadget to accompany travel, whether short car journeys to school or longer trips say on a plane overseas, the Paw Patrol Learning Watch provides excellent entertainment. With four built-in games both children were focused on helping their pups locate the right tools for the jobs that popped up on screen, as well as engaging in some basic math!
With Denny struggling somewhat to grasp numbers, the maths game albeit incredibly simple, is worth everything. Presenting the wearer with simple addition and subtraction problems and a 50/50 multiple choice answer it really helps kids who may be struggling with numbers to find comfort in the complexities of mathematics. It reminds me a little of the Kumon exercises I did as a child with its simplicity and quick fire format. For every correct answer, the watch face lights up and a happy pup appears on screen reinforcing the child’s achievement.
The other games encourage kids to identify animal tracks and recognise patterns, all four of them introducing and reinforcing matching skills and problem solving, as well as teaching them about animals and basic maths.
The watch is very easy to use with only three buttons to navigate left or right and a big OK button in the middle to confirm a selection. Both kids took to it very quickly with little intervention required from me or my husband.
I’m so excited to see their fluency with telling time grow thanks to their new watches, which also feature 12 interchangeable digital clock faces featuring the different Paw Patrol characters as well as a funky glowing light. Kids can choose from the Skye watch in pink, the Chase watch in blue or the Marshall watch in red.
Targeted at kids aged 3-6 years, but undoubtedly suitable for kids who are older and perhaps who have just started school, the Paw Patrol Learning Watch from Vtech (RRP $24.95 ea) is available from BIG W, good toy stores and online retailers.