We were so thrilled when the wonderful folks from MathBlasters and JumpStart contacted us with the opportunity to do a review of their website.
Since Heather’s kids aren’t so little anymore, I got the opportunity to have my son Ian be our little Guinea Pig and accept the MathBlaster Mission!
I could tell you all about how much fun he has had on this site and how excited he gets while he is playing it but, well, I realized that no description I could write would adequately convey his experience.
So I thought I would just let you hear it straight from Ian himself!
He’s quite a character isn’t he?
I promise that was NOT scripted in any way!
Would it be even possible to script that?
And, in fact, Ian really does ask to play Math Blaster every single day. He is allowed a small amount of computer time (once homework and chores are done) and while we firmly believe that technology can provide awesome learning opportunities, Math Blaster is the first site he has been on which has made learning so incredibly fun! He really isn’t even aware that it is happening as he is playing. That’s the best kind of learning experience in my book!
Now, here is the thing about this website….it is really, really cool!
REALLY!
Upon entering this alternate universe your child gets to choose their own name and embark on several different training exercises before they are ready to accept their Math Blaster Challenges. Think “Star Wars” with a dose of math thrown in here and there!
As an Alien Wrangler, your quick thinking
will help you hold on tight and show that alien who’s boss!
And in the Galaxy Grand Prix, touted as “the fastest galactic racing game ever” your kids are able to race on tracks created by other “Blasters“.
Those are just 2 examples of the many awesome adventures your child can have!
In addition, you will have access to another fantastic world where fun and learning go hand-in-hand.
Geared towards children ages 3-10, this award-winning online experience combines learning with a customizable virtual world where kids are encouraged to “master the skills needed to succeed in school and in life, through exploration, discovery, and learning”.
And this is where Ian dubbed himself “Jim Silly Legs“!
Now, I have to be honest here. I am what you might call…ahem…
Mathematically Challenged
And if there had been something like this for me when I was younger, I would have absolutely benefited from it. Of course, we didn’t even have access to computers until I was in middle school and that was all pre-World Wide Web.
Just think! I could potentially have been some kind of a Math Genius!
You can stop laughing now Mom and Dad…and Heather…and my husband.
My son, on the other hand, readily admits that Math is his most favorite subject in school.
I think I only have maybe a couple of more years before he realizes that he is smarter than his mother in this department! So, you can imagine his eagerness when it came time to try out this new program for himself.
I think I only have maybe a couple of more years before he realizes that he is smarter than his mother in this department! So, you can imagine his eagerness when it came time to try out this new program for himself.
As a mom, I am especially enjoying having access to Parent Controls and keeping up to date by visiting the Math Blaster and Jump Start Blogs as well as their Facebook page. They are even so hip and cool they have Math Blaster Mobile Apps for the iphone! If your child’s going to “borrow” your iphone to play games, it might as well be educational ones!
We have been hesitant over the years to allow our kids too much access to video and computer games and so we have really limited their availability in our home.
But, we have also found that as Ian has gotten older, he is starting to get a bit bored by some of the “younger” sites. And these are the ones where we are, of course, the most comfortable having him play!
This has been a predicament which has left us with only a couple of choices that we have been able to agree on. Basically, what he has deemed “cool and fun“!
Math Blaster has been the perfect compromise and he is truly finding new layers to this website every time he plays.
And now for the
GIVEAWAY!!
The good folks at Math Blaster are offering a
Three Month Membership
a $25 value which includes membership to Jumpstart as well
a $25 value which includes membership to Jumpstart as well
to one lucky friend of the Picket Fence!
We are going to make it super simple to enter to win this fantastic prize.
- (Mandatory) 1. Leave us a comment and tell us about the child in your life who might benefit from winning this membership. And, while you’re at it, let us know whether you would consider yourself a “Math-y” person or not and why.
- (Optional) 2. “Like” Math Blaster on Facebook.
- (Optional) 3. Tweet or post on your Facebook page about this giveaway just copy this tweet: A Math Blaster Review & Membership Giveaway from @meetuatthefence! http://tinyurl.com/445gg7m
That’s THREE possible entries to win a Math Blaster membership!
Giveaway will be open through Sunday May 1st at midnight!
Good luck and may the Math Blaster force be with you!
“Disclosure: I was provided with a membership good for Math Blaster and Knowledge Adventure at no cost by Knowledge Adventure in order to test the products’ abilities and give my own personal opinions on it. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided.” Our full disclosure policy can be found on our disclosure page.
Looks great. I’m a School Psychologist and see such a need for kids to have educational programs that are fun. Can’t wait to see more of this.
Vanessa, Ian is such a cutie! This sight looks great, my kids went on a similar math sight that they loved but I am definitely going to ck this one out!I think my 9yr old son would love it! Thanks for sharing this info with us, Martina
How awesome Vanessa! I will have to ask Jack if he knows about this site. What a cutie pie!
I actually have several kids that would benefit but I will single out Jake. I think he would LOVE this site! He is in 1st grade and really likes math. He is about to learn his times tables and what a fun way to do it! I am not a “mathy” person, just did what I had to do to graduate, lol.
My son Lane is a math wiz. His math skills blow me away. He is 6 and can do math addition and subtraction in his head fast than I could. He loves play games on the computer and I like finding fun, yet educational ones for him. That way he is learning and doesn’t realize it.
My seven-year-old son would love this membership! He says math is his favorite subject (besides recess & phys. ed. anyway!).
Math came pretty easy to me until Geometry. I haven’t done “complicated” math for so long, it’s like a foreign language to me now!
Thanks for hosting this giveaway!
I also “liked” them on facebook!
Great! We homeschool and haven’t heard of math blaster. Can’t wait to check it out.
I also liked them on facebook. – Jennifer
I love that boy! I especially love the silly faces part and when he says its going to cost a lot of money!! I was laughing 🙂
We will have to check Math Blasters out.
Your son is so cute!! This would be great for my almost-6 year old. He is smart but likes to learn HIS way (don’t we all?) and I have learned that for him that’s through technology. I can do flash cards for months without him learning a single thing, but if he plays a computer game or watches a movie of the same subject he’s fluent in a day. This would be so perfect for him!!
Oh and it would be perfect for me because I suck at math!!! So I’m not the best at teaching it! 🙂
I would love to win this for my granddaughter. She is really bright, but all helps. I am terribly math challenged so I think this is a great idea.
vikkinay@yahoo.com
What a sweet, sweet post. I loved your interview with your son!! Well, my nominees are my older son and older daughter. They’d love this!! They both like maths…and so do I!!
Sarahx
Both my boys would LOVE this Vanessa! Keeping fingers crossed for them!:) We never join any site we have to pay for. Call me frugal or just plain cheap!:)
I could watch him talk all day……What a smart little cutie pie!!!
My grandson would like this! Thanks for stopping by my blog Vanessa and for your kind comment on my photos and lemon cake recipe. I want to try some of the cake recipes you posted. As far as the photos go, oh my, I had no idea what I was doing in the earlier days of my blog, and I’m still learning every day.
Vanessa, MY grandson would like that. Oh, wait, Ian IS my grandson!
Ha. This was great. My favorite part was your little giggle at the end!
this would be amazing, I have a 5, 8 and 10 year old who could use it. Heck, I bet my 14 year old would have fun. what a great give away.