V Tech Storio with Toy Story 3 - Review!

I have to say that Isabelle is very lucky, as we have been sent the new V Tech Storio with Toy Story 3 for  a review. I have been thinking about getting her one for a while, as she will be starting school in September, so it came at the right time. I love reviewing products I would buy anyway, as it can show if I would have done the right decision to spend money on them.

And what did we think of it? 

Isabelle had no school yesterday morning, so the best time to show it to her and test it out. She was very excited when she saw the box, as there are the characters from the Toy Story 3, which she has seen. I opened the box and read the instructions, while she was nervously waiting for me to get it ready for her. So first I inserted 4 AA batteries, luckily we had some at home, as they were not included. The instructions were pretty easy to follow and soon we were exploring all the great features. 

Isabelle has just turned 4, and they have been learning some letters at school, but she cannot read yet. She loved following the story and turning the pages over, also touching the screen and listening to the funny noises. I think it is very clever that you can press each word and it will say it for you again. Also when listening to the story, the words that are being read are highlighted in different colour, so your child can clearly see what exactly is being read. As I have said, she cannot read yet, but this can be very encouraging to introduce letters in words. She loved spotting letters she knows.

Next was playing the games. Of course she loved that. Some of them were a bit too difficlkut for her age group, but it is supposed to be for children between 3 and 7 years, so there must be something for every age group. She got a bit annoyed when she couldn't play some of the games, so we had a little chat about learning, and that one day she will be able to read and play all the games. She seemed to understand, and continued playing the games, she was able to do. I loved the smile on her face when she was doing well. She is definitely very competitive, we can see it more and more often, and when she is not good at something, she is sad and frustrated. But that's part of learning, and as a teacher myself, I am trying to stress the strong points of hers to encourage her learning.

These are the key features:
• Interactive animated storyteller
• Watch the Story and Reading Games modes
• Story Dictionary lets children check the meaning of difficult words
• Parent friendly extras include reading records and progress tracker
• PC and MAC compatible
• Comes with Toy Story 3 storybook cartridge

And our verdict?

From the pictures above you can see how hard she was trying to master the games, and I can tell you, it wasn't easy to get a picture of her looking at me...as she just wanted to play with it. The first thing this morning she said was: "mum, I need to read my story on my computer (that's what she calls it), can I, please?" 

So that's her answer to the question, and I can just say, I would definitely recommend it, and it is worth every penny. It's a great investment as it is not just a toy, but mostly encourages learning!