Counting on Lemonade: sharp animation and varied educational methods from LeapFrog

We were provided with a copy for review purposes.  All thoughts are our own.

LeapFrog Letter Factory Adventures: Counting on Lemonade continues the re-opened factory with Leap and pals teaching preschoolers about basic concepts.  LeapFrog has done math in a couple of previous releases including Math Adventure to the Moon, Numberland and Numbers Away.   Counting on Lemonade spends a little too much time on the plot, but once it gets down to education it is much better than its predecessors.

In Counting on Lemonade the gang is trying to buy new books for their local library. After introducing all of the characters the math gets underway about 8 minutes into things.  The addition and subtraction is set up by talking about it and then having Quigly write it down and show the viewers what’s happening.  The more basic teaching of the numbers is also done by illustrating how many of whatever is being taught.

The DVD teaches the core concepts of addition, subtraction and counting to 20.  The running time is just under half an hour so it’s a good length to cook dinner or to let the kids wind down at the end of the day.

What makes Counting on Lemonade so much better than its earlier math DVDs is the animation.  The previous LeapFrog DVD, The Letter Rescue Machine Rescue Team sharpened the animation and made the characters have a more 3D appearance.  That same quality is in Counting on Lemonade.

The biggest improvement is that the DVD now includes a free ultraviolet download code to where you watch the video anywhere.  I hope that eventually all videos (and comic books) go this direction.  Right now, there are times that the physical DVD is important.  In a couple years when consumers fully go mobile the physical DVD won’t be that big of a selling point.

The Letter Factory Advenutres: Counting on Lemonade by LeapFrog is intended for ages 4-7 and has some sing along videos and curriculum commentary for parents also. Our kids loved this video and it continues the streak with our kids too.  They still watch the older LeapFrog videos on Netflix, but they prefer these two newer ones by far.