Leapfrog Tag or V-Tech Storio reading systems ?

[Tillyscoutsmum]

I am contemplating buying one of these for DD to help her with her reading etc.

Does anyone have either of them and would you recommend them ?

Thanks in advance

Anyone ?

I wouldnt bother with either tbh. Both seem like a waste of cash to me, sorry!

How old is your dd by the way?

She'll be 5 in May. She's in reception and, whilst she's bright, she just seems to have no interest in learning to read. I just thought if I could get something which made it a bit more "fun", then she might be more interested.

I also wouldn't bother, I'm not in to gimmicks at all. Each to their own of course but if you're looking for ways to make it more fun then have a word with your librarian for some suggestions of good books, or ask her teacher, there are hundreds out there which will surely grab her attention. Do you have Bookbug sessions at your library? Do you read together lots? Do you sit with piles of books around you on the livingroom floor and just read them? Pull them all off her shelf! Any she really hates, put them aside and take away from her so she doesn't associate the boring ones with reading. Our local Waterstones has a lovely children's area with couches, tables, great displays and they are never worried when the children read books from the shelf. Take her along and just leave her for 5 mins and see what she takes a liking to, give her a few pounds or take some money from her piggy bank and she could buy her own book. Buy her bookplates to stick in the front of the books she was given as a baby, make them feel special.
I reckon she just hasn't found a gripping book yet- but she will one day!

The abc pocketphonics iPhone app is good but otherwise I wouldn't bother

Thank you

She loves stories and has, literally, hundreds of books. She will "pretend" to read and will re-tell her favourite stories from memory or make them up as she goes along. She knows all her phonemes but as soon as it comes to blending them to actually learn to read, she just clams up Getting her to try and read her school reading books is like pulling teeth (albeit I can appreciate they're mostly interminably dull).

Sorry x posts. Will look into the pocketphonics app. Thanks

Perhaps she's just not at that level yet and feeling a little pushed- when you say she clams up does she feel she should know them but doesn't? It might be worth having a word with her class teacher. Every child develops at a different rate, don't expect her to read just because her peers can. Maybe she can do something else very well which they can't.

Thanks. You're probably right. She's a bit like it with everything - whilst she finds it easier, she likes it but as soon as she has to put any effort in, she backs off. I don't pressurise her (honestly, I don't ) but I do just wonder if a different approach would help her. Its parent's evening tomorrow, so I can speak to her teacher then.

We bought a storio for ds1 (then 5) as he was really struggling with his reading but quite honestly we're not very impressed with it. Doesn't really seem to do anything for the reading - ds2 (3) uses it more to listen to the stories but hasn't learnt anything from it really.

Not really sure why we bought it - we'd kind of promised the kids we would get them either a leapfrog explorer or a vtech mobigo but when we went out to get it we couldn't find either of them in the shops. I'd discounted the storio early on but dh had got a bee in his bonnet that as we'd said we would get one we would get something so we got it.

We've subsequently got a leapfrog explorer which they both like and has a good range of games. DS2 had his 4th birthday last week and pure fluke I was in sainsburys the day before and they had the mobigo on offer at half price (so just £25) and games at half price too. I bought it for him and he has just spent most of the afternoon quite happily tapping at it - both boys are at home with a nasty bug and high temperature so listless and not up to doing much, then when the calpol/ibuprofen kicks in they perk up a bit (ie they're not dozing) and they have both enjoyed using it. I had been going to get him a 'first computer' type game as he seemed quite taken with them in the shop (and other than saying he wanted 'red one' - but not what the red one was!) he hadn't given me any birthday ideas. If you can pick up a mobigo at £25 I think it is worth it - the fact it has a nice little qwerty keyboard on it means he will get familiar with it, and there are better reading and phonics games on it than the storio. Plus you get a whole host of other games on it too - storio is very limited. I didn't show him how to use it and he was tapping away and succeeding on it by himself straight away.

And they are great for in the car (also means that we now have one for each child to be playing at the same time!) if you have a long drive or are going somewhere, considerably cheaper than a ds-type game and easy to pop in your bag. And for the explorer I've been told to try to get the wolverine game (maybe it's not going to appeal to your dd!) but it is supposed to be a good spelling one (which ds1 is rubbish at) that you can put their own spellings into. Think that would really help him to sit down and enjoy them without noticing as at the moment he hates trying to learn them whereas he'll play computer games and not notice that he is doing these things! (especially when he wants to beat his little brother's score - who I think will pick up reading much faster once he starts school!)

Thanks very much zipzap. That's really helpful. She does have a DS (which was a hand me down from someone) but, like you say, the games etc. are really pricey. I'll have a look at the mobigo

I really wouldn't bother. Making the leap to blending is always a bit of a bore, but they get there in the end. I really doubt that these systems help.