JumpStart Explorers - PC Games

Designed to give children in the 5- to 8-year-old age range an introduction to past events and cultures, JumpStart Explorers mixes entertaining animations with educational activities. Each of CJ's nephews and nieces has used a time machine to hide in the past. To find the wayward tadpoles, players must navigate mazes, identify items that belong in the time period they are visiting, solve puzzles, and search complicated scenes for clues to the whereabouts of the runaways.

JumpStart Explorers is a comparatively simple game, an excellent starter game for kids new to educational software. The tasks included in the various activities cover a range of skills, from following directions and counting to elementary geography. While some of the activities are more learning drills, others are purely for fun. In Egypt, for example, players wrap CJ in a mummy's bandages and remodel the Sphinx.

Older children may find this game's challenges too easily solved, the structure of the search for the tadpoles a bit repetitive. Additionally, its soundtrack is the type that will make parents cringe: loud and repetitive, with overly chirpy dialogue. For younger kids, however, this varied collection of games and scenes is sure to be a big hit, one that will send them back in time again and again. --Alyx Dellamonica

Amazon.com Product Description
This game lets kids explore a world of history with a series ofexciting adventures. Kids climb to the rank of Master Explorer as theycomplete five expeditions. They will travel to North America with thePilgrims, explore the pyramids with King Tut, be the first to set foot onthe South Pole, uncover the civilization of the Incas, and sail to Asia.Along the way is plenty of fun learning about ancient cultures, navigation,geography, and problem solving. There are new 3-D JumpStart characters tomeet, songs to sing, and printable offline activities and games.

The time to ignite your child's interest in history is right now, while the window of opportunity is wide open. Child development research indicates that children are most receptive to learning at a young age. JumpStart's early learning products take advantage of this window of opportunity and offer children a solid foundation for future skill development.