Without a doubt, it appears that if you have a youngster in the house, a computer in the house, but no Kid Pix software in the house, somebody`s missing out on something good. And it may be you.
That`s the opinion of an ad hoc panel offering their views on some of the best educational software-some of it new, some of it not so new-that would make great gifts for kids.
Kid Pix by Broderbund was the only unanimous recommendation of: Susan Agate, lower school computer coordinator for Francis Parker School; Steven Feldman, president of Automated Offices, which will supply computer hardware and software to KidsQuarters, a children`s superstore in Winnetka slated to open in early 1993; Zelda Turner, owner of FutureKids of Lincoln Park, a private computer school for children; and Veronica Walker of the National Lekotek Center, an Evanston-based nationwide network of play and resource centers for children with disabilities and their families .
If you`re thinking about buying a program, first you`ll need to find out what kind of computer the child has; each program is geared to a particular operating system such as IBM-compatible, Macintosh and so on. Some are available for just one system; others run the gamut.
More about the popular Kid Pix program (IBM, Macintosh compatible;
$59.95), for kids as young as 3 years old: Even adults profess glee at using this paint program, which not only offers a full set of paint ”tools,” from pencils and brushes to erasers, squares and circles, but accompanying sounds for each. Walker was especially fond of a firecracker-eraser that loudly blasted everything off the screen.
Also recommended is Kid Pix Companion ($39.95), which is designed for kids not yet able to read and adds such features as ColorMes, pre-drawn black- and-white images that kids can color electronically or print out and color.
For the preschool set, Turner was fond of the Disney series that teaches Mickey`s ABCs, Mickey`s 123`s, and Mickey`s Colors & Shapes (IBM compatible;
$29.95).
Feldman and Walker suggested Just Grandma and Me by Broderbund (IBM, Macintosh compatible; $39.95-$54.95) which comes only in CD-ROM format-a compact disc-driven program that requires special hardware. ”They never get tired of this program,” said Walker. ”It follows a little boy and his grandmother on a trip to the beach, and it has wonderful graphics and digitized sound.” And, along the way, the program teaches kids reading skills-in either English, Japanese or Spanish.
For those without CD-ROM, Walker likes the relatively inexpensive McGee series, which includes McGee, Katie`s Farm and McGee at the Fun Fair (Lawrence Productions; IBM, Mac, Apple 2Gs, Amiga; $24.95). ”It`s sort of about cause- and-effect,” she says, ”which is good for young (preschool age) children. It`s simple enough that they can control it themselves.”
For grade-school kids, Turner suggests the Super Solvers series from the Learning Company, including Midnight Rescue (IBM, Mac; $49.95-59.95), a reading comprehension program; and Operation Neptune (IBM; $59.95), a math program for kids ages 10 and up. In the latter, she said, ”kids are involved in an underwater adventure to reclaim pieces of a capsule that has fallen from space. You`re on a submarine, and math problems such as velocity, time, multiplicaton, division and fractions come up as you`re navigating to find the capsule pieces.”
And the Learning Company`s new Treasure Trilogy, including Treasure Mountain, Treausure Cove and Treasure MathStorm (IBM; $59.95), incorporates math, reading, spelling and vocabulary skills.
At the Parker school, Agate said, ”We`ve had great experiences in our 4th-grade class with World Geograph by MECC (Apple 2Gs, Macintosh compatible; $59), a particularly stimulating and creative geography program. Also from MECC is Problem Solving Strategies (Apple compatible; $59), another recommendation of Agate`s. In it, ”you have to solve a problem-such as figuring out how many diagonals in a dodecahedron-using three different methods: guessing, trial and error, and using math skills.”
Also on her list of top programs are: Think Quick (Learning Company;
Apple 2, IBM; $49.95) which develops critical thinking skills and deductive reasoning, and Crossword Magic (Mindscape; IBM; $39).
Finally, for high-schoolers, the ever-popular Carmen Sandiego series received plaudits all around as well-which teach geography, history and other subjects through a detective narrative. A deluxe edition upgrade is now available on disk and CD-ROM from Broderbund (IBM, Macintosh compatible;
$79.95) that features 256 color displays and three times the number of clues as the regular Carmen.
FutureKids` Turner also put in a vote for Time Riders in American History by Learning Company (IBM compatible; $59). In Time Riders, kids try to foil Dr. Dread`s plan to conquer the world by changing history; it covers some 145 events in our nation`s past, touching on figures from Columbus to Harriet Tubman. –
