BEST OF COOPERATIVE GAMES
Introduces teachers and students to games that cultivate physical experiences like throwing, catching, running. Cooperative games are more than just fun - they teach or reinforce basic skills in math, English, environmental awareness, teamwork, creative thinking and concentration. Adult Juror Comments: From backyard to field day, this is a great DVD for the home library, teacher, babysitter or guidance counselor. LeFevre compiles favorite games from the past two and a half decades into one DVD with clear directions and fun-filled visuals of kids having a grand time playing the games. The games encourage cooperation, fine and gross motor skill development and good old-fashioned fun. Production quality works for a teaching environment, but the video is often washed out and the audio not completely clear, with distracting background sounds at times. Well organized but it lacks a continuous play option which would make it easier to view as a whole.
Age: 8-12
DVD. 60 min.; $29.99
Short film from NEW GAMES
GROWING UP CREEPIE VOL. 1: CREEPIE CREATURES
Creepie was found on the doorstep of an abandoned mansion and taken in by a family of bugs. If anyone finds out the truth, she'd be taken from her family and the house, fumigated. Except for a few friends, no one can ever find out Creepie's secret.
Age: 8-12
77 min.
Feature film from GENIUS PRODUCTS/DISCOVERY KIDS
** KID GUIDES: FT. WORTH ZOO (KID GUIDES).
Matt and Brittney travel to the Ft. Worth Zoo in Texas, where they help prepare food for orangutans, feed giraffes, watch an elephant paint a picture and learn about otters. Adult Juror Comments: Good educational presentation that invites kids to participate with some activities. It describes what taking a trip to the Fort Worth Zoo is like. Moves along well from one location to another. Gives a lot of information about each area of the zoo. Kids are able to see the animals at close range. The presentation is geared for a child, with appropriate vocabulary and concepts. Unfamiliar words are explained. It has long pauses between segments. Kid Juror Comments: Enjoyed it. "It was fun to watch them feed the animals and fun to watch the animals." They enjoyed seeing the kid hosts and seeing all the animals. "Pictures of the animals are great. I wish some of them would have been longer." "I liked this because I like to go to the zoo." "I would watch it again to see the elephants and the gorillas."
Age: 5-12
DVD. 24 min.
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT. ** KID GUIDES: MONTEREY BAY AQUARIUM (KID GUIDES).
Matt and Brittney travel to the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, where they learn about kelp forests, clean up poop in a sting ray tank, help feed jellyfish and then dive in the waters of the aquarium. Adult Juror Comments: Excellent information is shared about the ocean and the animals that live in it. The aquarium is a wonderful place to visit; if you can't actually get there, this DVD shows the best highlights. The time spent in different areas of the aquarium are long enough to share important information but not too long that they become boring. It is well produced with youth hosts taking you to places that most kids would appreciate. Very educational and visually interesting. Shows lots of different animals that children may want to learn more about. Gives scientific information but also plain talk - like how to clean the tanks. Kid Juror Comments: Really enjoyed it. "This was great! We could see the real fish and the kids interviewing asked good questions about things that we were interested in." "I liked it because I like sharks and swimming." "I would watch it again because I liked when they went swimming and saw how big the sharks were." "My friends would like the jelly fish and all the other fish - they were fun to watch."
Age: 5-12
DVD. 24 min.
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT.
** KID GUIDES: NATIONAL ZOO (KID GUIDES).
Matt and Brittney travel to the National Zoo in Washington, DC, where they learn about Giant Pandas, handle snakes, learn what it takes to be an elephant keeper and how to care for poison dart frogs. Adult Juror Comments: Great guide for kids. The National Zoo is a terrific place for kids to learn about animals and their habitats. This program shows some of the best parts of the zoo. It shows a map of the zoo 2 then the progression of walking through the zoo. The live footage of the animals is fantastic. The guides are very good at asking questions about the animals. Very educational and informative. Kid Juror Comments: A big hit. "This movie tells a lot about animals and the National Zoo looks like a really neat zoo to visit." "The poison dart frogs were neat; I liked them a lot." "It taught me a lot about how animals live." "My friends would like it because they like animals, and it shows a lot of different types of animals." They enjoyed the two youth hosts. "The two hosts talked to people who work at the zoo about the animals." "I learned that we should take better care of animals and where they live. I didn't know as much about the pandas and how few of them there really are."
Age: 5-12
DVD. 24 min.
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT ** KID GUIDES: SHEDD AQUARIUM (KID GUIDES)
Matt and Brittney travel to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, where they learn about coral reefs, help feed sharks, learn about crabs, get in the water with whales and give a shark a physical exam. Adult Juror Comments: As tour guides go, this one delivers complex information in a kid-friendly manner. Two kids serve as guides to take us through some interesting displays at the Shedd Aquarium. They get up close to the animals and cover fascinating areas of the aquarium and the very unique creatures who live there. It shows animals in their natural habitat and explains why we need to take care of them. The sea creatures shown are interesting and covered in a manner that kids can easily understand. Very fun to watch. Kid Juror Comments: Liked it. All the kids stayed still and paid attention throughout the entire DVD. They had many questions afterwards about the crabs and other sea life in the DVD. All said they would watch it again with a sibling or a friend. "The kids were glued to the screen, even the little ones." "My friends would like it a lot; one would be afraid of the eel." "I liked seeing how the aquarium takes care of the turtle." "I liked the picture of the otters. Wish we could have seem more of them." "I wanted to see more penguins." "It made me think about eels. It made me think about spider crabs. I thought about the Japanese crab." I liked playing with the dolphins and how she could make hand signals to make him do stuff."
Age: 5-12
DVD. 24 min.
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT
** KID GUIDES: ST. LOUIS ZOO, EPISODE 1 (KID GUIDES).
Matt and Brittney travel to the St. Louis Zoo, where they participate in a Sea Lion Show, learn about gorillas and orangutans and help feed the penguins. Adult Juror Comments: Well done but included commercials, which everyone commented on, and disliked. This is a visual field trip of the St. Louis Zoo with excellent information. The explanation about the layout of the zoo and how you travel around the train to see the exhibits was well done. Everything is presented clearly in a way that school-aged kids can easily understand. Good production values, good video, audio and information. It actually makes you want to visit this zoo. Kid Juror Comments: Enjoyed it. "I like seeing the animals." "It goes by so fast." "I didn't like the commercials - they kept breaking up the story." "I liked learning about sea lions - what they can be taught to do and what they eat." "It has good graphics and maps."
Age: 5-12
DVD. 24 min.
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT
MORE MAGIC 4 FUN DVD
Frank DeMasi teaches 22 new tricks with everyday objects; including cotton balls, crayons, pencils, sponges, coins and even a few card tricks.
Age: 5-12
72 min.
Independent feature from MAGICFRANK'S LESSONS IN MAGIC. PIRATE DRAWING ADVENTURE
Join a Pirate Princess on a daring adventure as you learn how to draw! Artist Michael Moodoo shows viewers how to use Secret Shapes to create a cutlass, Jolly Roger, pirate ship, parrot, treasure chest, sea monster, Skull Island and more.
Age: 5-12
80 min.
Independent feature from MOODOO PRODUCTIONS, INC. |
