I am a huge, huge supporter of anything that will foster the love of books and reading in children. I believe the ability to read is one of the most important things we can help our children with. Far too many children have problems with reading and as a result struggle through school. They end up disliking school all together because it's just too hard for them to cope with all the other subjects such as math, science, history etc. All require the ability to read and understand what is being read.
I'm certain that I am not alone in my thoughts - the younger we start them on the road to reading the better off they will be. I jumped at the opportunity to start early with Boo as a result he already has a very deep love for books and reading. He'll practically beg to play with his "cards" - we have several different sets of phonics type cards. He also is constantly asking us to read a book. He has library of well over 1000 books and I swear we have read them all at least 20 times.
When I was given the opportunity to review for IBW Books - which stands for Interactive Book-Webscene - I jumped at the chance. I had heard wonderful things about the site but I was really interested in checking it out for myself. My little guy gets bored very easily and I am never certain what is going to capture his attention or not.
What intrigued me most about IBW was the fact that it combines the two things Boo loves best books and online interactive animations. I think the internet can be a wonderful tool for all children if used properly and under supervision. It just brings a whole new level of enjoyment to the learning process.
We received a Busy Preschoolers book - Celebrations of Letters G and H by Trish Kline and Mary Donev. We also received a KA Reader - 8 Coming Home by Trish Kline and Mary Donev.
The books and online interactions are in both English and Spanish, of course being Canadian I would have loved it to be in French but Boo also picks up a lot of Spanish as most of his favorite tv shows are US based and incorporate Spanish in to the programming so I just need to follow along and learn myself - lol!
The KA reader was a lot of fun - it has Dr. Seuss like rhyming and uses word pattern families throughout the story. The particular one we were given to read uses -ear, -og, -ond & -out. The entire story was filled with words such as ear, dear, bog, dog, bond, pond, out, pout, trout. Boo really enjoyed reading the story about a poor little frog who had lost all of his friends because of a dirty pond and how his two new friends, dog and hog, helped him clean it up and frogs old friends returned! Every second page or so, you could watch a cute scene from the story on the computer. The scenes included pop-up words from the word pattern families. To see one of the web scenes, go to www.ka-reader.com/8-4/
Once Boo realized that the computer and the book were working together he couldn't wait to see each scene. I think I found it as entertaining as he did!
The Busy Preschoolers Book we reviewed used poems, activities and crafts to introduce the letters G and H. (The complete Busy Preschooler’s Guide to Learning title includes all 26 letters.) It was also accompanied by an activity to complete online with complete instructions in English and Spanish. The Letter H activity with drop-down directions is here. www.busypreschoolers.com/h Each letter also has an ABC-Trace-123 activity that you do online. Which has the child tracing out the letter of the alphabet using cute little characters and arrows. Try it out for yourself by clicking and dragging the icons here. www.busypreschoolers.com/abc-trace/h The activities were fun as well as educational. 
I think IBW offers great programs! Boo loved it, so I'm seriously considering buying him some of the books for Christmas. This is something way better than a bunch of toys he'll just throw in the toy box and never play with.
They have other programs for older children as well such as Earth Academy 7 and Ghost Hunter. Make sure you check them out, they look very interesting as well.
There are order forms for the Books on the IBW website.
The wonderful people at IBW have offered one of my readers the chance to win their choice of either of the following prizes:
1. The Busy Preschooler’s Guide to Learning – fun activities built around the 26 letters of the alphabet, with step-by-step help to guide parents in how to use everyday situations to teach 105 skills their kids need before they walk in the kindergarten door. (Retail value $60.)
OR
2. THREE (3) KA Readers – beginning readers that use a new kind of storytelling where kids see an animation unfold at the close of every chapter! Dr. Seuss-like rhyming hooks kids on the fun of words. Online activities help parents assess a child’s reading and comprehension. (Retail value $60.)
Here's how you can win:
Main Entry: Must be completed first to enter the giveaway contest and before any bonus entries have been completed.
1. Visit the IBW website and leave a comment telling me which book or program you'd most be interested in.
Bonus Entries: Can be completed to earn extra entries into the giveaway contest.
2. Become a Fan of IBW Books on Facebook leave a comment telling me you are and don't forget your Facebook ID!
3. Follow me publicly on Google Friend Connect (right column) & leave a comment telling me you do. = 2 entries - make sure you leave 2 separate comments!
4. Subscribe to my blog by email (top right)& leave a comment telling me which email address you signed up with. = 2 entries - leave 2 separate comments.
5. Snag my button (top right) and put it on your site or blog! Don't forget to tell me where you put it so I can go and look! = 2 entries - make sure you leave 2 separate comments.
6. Blog about this giveaway with links back to this site and leave me a comment with a link to your post = 2 entries - make sure you leave 2 comments.
7. Follow me on Twitter and tweet about the giveaway - leave a comment with the link to your tweet. You can do this once a day and leave one comment daily. - 1 entry per day.
Copy & Paste:
Win IBW Books interactive, fun learning for your child - $60 value! http://bit.ly/X66rh
8. Become a Fan on Facebook and share the giveaway. Make sure you leave your Facebook ID in the comment!
9. Fav me on Technorati - leave a comment with your ID.
10. Share this giveaway on another site, forum, Mr. Linky etc. just make sure it isn't already posted - then leave a comment telling me where you posted it. One entry for each place you share the giveaway!
11. Enter any of my other current giveaways listed on the right - leave a comment telling me which ones you entered. One entry for each giveaway! Leave separate comments for each entry.
The winner will be chosen by random.org. and will be notified by email and will have 72 hours to reply or a new winner will be chosen.
Open to Canada & US
Ends October 12/09
Click Here To Refresh The Entry Form
Disclaimer:
I did not receive payment in any form for this review.
I did receive a sample of the product or service for testing and review purposes. This will in no way sway my opinion of the product or service. The review is in my own words and is my own opinion. Your results and opinion may differ.
