The Parent Bloggers Network

Even if you haven’t been reading all of our PBN bloggers’ reviews of the Savvy Source website, the Savvy Quiz, and the LeapFrog Tag Reader - and you really should, because these reviews are outstanding! - I’m certain you’ve heard about the Savvy Source by now. This website is taking the parenting blogosphere by storm, and with good reason.

The Savvy Quiz widget that our bloggers uploaded to their sidebars links back to the Savvy Source website, leading directly to the quiz itself. Click through and “you’ll answer questions about your child’s ability to do things for himself, number recognition, language abilities, musical recognition, gross and fine motor skills, and more.” Then “at the end of the quiz, you’ll get a customized set of recommendations that is geared specifically for your child.”

The parents were all quite pleased with the quizzes themselves: “The most remarkable thing about the quizzes is the depth of information each quiz examines. I completed several quizzes on topics such as visual arts, language development, and science and honestly the quizzes were comparable to the therapy level questionnaires we answered when figuring out [my son's] developmental and sensory issues.“  The quiz questions were framed in ways that many bloggers hadn’t seen before.  For instance, “they can measure your child’s language development not just only by the vocabulary but by HOW your child communicates. (Example, can you child whisper? Does he or she emphasize certain words when speaking?)”

Also, the results are given in an objective manner.  This mother noted: “I was happy that the results of the quiz were presented honestly, without making me feel as though my parenting skills were inadequate in regards to my child’s early education.”

One blogger commented that “the quizzes don’t take too long, but you can save your results and finish later if you get overwhelmed.“  Another added: “The quiz data is stored along with the suggested activities, so it isn’t necessary to complete the entire quiz in one sitting or to memorize all the suggested activities.”

Finally, the Savvy Quiz is dynamic, so it’s worth repeating as children grow and learn.  As this mother enthused: “The best part? The Savvy Quiz changes with each new developmental stride!”

The recommended activities were fun for parents and kids alike.  One mother was amazed: “Savvy Source gave me 35 free activities to try with [my son]. Some of them were downloads, some were suggestions for fun things to just help [my son} improve his letter recognition and language skills."

Another had a great time with this suggested language activity:

"My child provides feasible answers to “What would happen if…” questions...now it’s one of my favorite activities to do with him.

“Julian, what would happen if our car got a flat tire?”
“We have to take it to the mechanic and he would fix it and then we will go back on the fweeway!”

“Julian, what if we run out of milk?”
“Then you will go to the store and get some more and I will eat Life cereal.”

“Julian, what will happen if we get to school and there are no teachers there?”
“Then you will read me some books, and then we will hear voices, and it will be a teacher!”

It has been fun to hear what he comes up with to these open ended questions, and we’ve turned it into a game we can do in the car or at dinner."

Finally, this blogger concluded: "Since doing activities is part of my whole motherhood gig, this site has been such a refreshing find. Everything you've ever wanted to do with your toddler and more - in one location. I plan to add my own ideas to it soon."

Across the board, parents were glad that they took the time to complete the assessments. As one mother described:

"This was really good for me to do. Like many women, I work full time and I sometimes rely on her preschool more than I should for skills development. I realized while taking the quiz that there are some areas that neither we or her school are addressing and there are really simple ways to encourage different ways to learn those skills. I was particularly intrigued by the suggestions for math and music, two concepts I'd thought we were focusing on but after looking at the recommendations realize I'm not doing as well as I could be."

The Savvy Quiz widget is currently sponsored by LeapFrog, an educational toy maker that all parents know and many of us love.  Their new product - the Tag Reader - was a runaway hit with the PBN bloggers and their kids.  One mother enthused: "My children absolutely love their LeapPads with the cartridges and books so I was sure they would love this system and they do!"

Both parents and kids thought the Tag Reader and the books were fantastic.  One mother and her kids had a great time with the audio: "It was neat to hear all of the different voices and inflections that the LeapFrog team chose - in particular, the Kung Fu Panda readers were hysterical.  Ozzie and Mack had my older kids creating nonsense rhymes, and listening to the reading of Chicka Chicka Boom Boom reinforced to me that I'd been reading it right all along."  Likewise, a father and son "both loved clicking the play button on each page to hear the story and taking detours into playing side games as well as hunting around for extra noises and music hidden on each page."

How does it work?  The Tag Reader itself is a pen that's "chunky and easy for little hands to hold, and so far I have yet to see it not recognize something on the page."  Another blogger went on to comment: "This little wonder pen, based on what icon your child grazes over, can ask varied questions too, thus checking on your kiddo's comprehension."  It reads individual words or all the lines on the page, depending on how the child uses it: "[My daughter] can go back and explore the words on the page at her leisure, which is especially cool and prolongs the reading experience.”

But the Tag Reader is more than just a high-tech gadget: “Aside from the reading and game playing, the TAG reader is designed to help you, the parent, follow your child’s developmental path.  You see, the reader remembers your child’s responses to game and quiz questions.  You can then connect the TAG reader to your computer and see where your child is on the Learning Path.“  This mother added: “It’s free and gives you access to such insightful information as which skills, stories and activities your child is most engaged with, as well as when your child has started playing with content above their grade level. You can even see the questions your child has answered during play.”

A couple bloggers hit a few bumps along the way.  One noted that “installing the program wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be and it took longer than expected to download and set-up. However, once that was done, everything worked perfectly.“  Another commented: “The only drawback I found was that the on/off button, which is at the top of the TAG pen, is quite sensitive to touch and was frequently turned off by accident.“  A third blogger suggested: “More classic books! I love the book selection,  don’t get me wrong, but I’m not so keen on licensed characters and it would be nice to see more classic books as well.”

One mother, who honestly wasn’t expecting to be impressed by the Tag Reader, wrote: “So color us shocked when, just hours after we powered up the “pen,” both of us were determined to buying more books for the system. It’s that good.“  So it’s worth trying, even if you’re skeptical.

A few parents pointed out how ideal the Tag Reader is for traveling.  One commented: “As an added bonus to moms and dads, it has a headphone jack so it would be a great take along item for a plane or car trip.” Another agreed: “Both boys enjoy having the books and wand in the van, a place where Mommy certainly can’t read a book but would like to encourage her kids to do so,” as did a third: “This is a terrific game for road trips, she can do it herself and was completely entertained. I liked it enough to order another book.”

Other bloggers saw some unexpected benefits to the Tag Reader.  This mother reported: “When [my son] started kindergarten, [his] biggest struggle was developing the muscles he needed to hold the pencil. Now, he’s happily engaged with his TAG, holding the TAG five or six times a day, building his muscles without even realizing he’s doing any work.“  She went on to note that “he seems to be more eager to read. He doesn’t see sitting down to open a book as a chore; he wants to sit down and the sofa and discover what the pages in this book have to show us. I was surprised, as I was afraid that all the bells and whistles from the TAG would make plain old books boring. Instead, the opposite seems to be the case.”

As writers, we all hope our children will love reading and writing as we do, so we look for ways to encourage that love.  This mother summed up perfectly the value of the Tag Reader: “With preschool right around the corner, this is a fantastic way to spark [my son's] reading and language skills.”

Be sure to check out the Savvy Source website, the Savvy Quiz, and the sidebar widget.  Let us know if you’re interested in getting code for your own sidebar widget - it’s a revenue generator!