Most days, you’ll find my 3 1/2 year old son, my 1 year old daughter, and I out exploring and discovering the world around us. With an abundance of spacious parks, hands-on museums, and amusement parks, there is definitely no shortage of things to do in Southern California. Because I like to be out and about much of the time, I have to build in some downtime. And, on those days when it’s raining or one of us isn’t feeling well, I’ll dig into my virtual box of ideas and activities for staying in. During the first year of both of my children’s lives, I limited the amount of time spent in front of the television. I was also purposeful about the content they viewed.
One of the few programs we have enjoyed is Baby Einstein. The company recently introduced their Discovery Kits, a new “interactive experience to help parents introduce babies to beautiful music, nature, and animals.” Nine Discovery Kits are currently available in three different levels of discovery (Experience, Explore, and Expression). Each kit includes a DVD, a music CD, and a picture book or Discovery Cards, designed to work together to help parents and babies discover music, nature, animals, and the arts.
Media, particularly that geared towards young children, should not be a passive experience. The Discovery Kits offer one product with the potential to engage parents and children in multiple ways. The DVDs contain a series of real (many of them beautiful and unique) world images and puppet shows set to classical music. The CD features music from the DVD and I like it for nighttime and nap time or for longer trips in the car because it’s very soothing. The board books and Discovery Cards reinforce the content viewed on the DVD and provide a tactile way for parents and babies to discover and learn. What’s helpful is that the kits offer suggestions on how parents can make use of the three components to engage and learn together.
I had the privilege of sitting in on a virtual round table discussion with Susan McLain, the general manager of Baby Einstein and Dr. Karen Hill-Scott, Ed.D. who consults for the company as an educator. Here are some of the most pertinent answers to questions you may have about the new Discovery Kits:
Q – I’d like to know where Baby Einstein stands with regards to the AAP’s recommendation that children under 2 not watch TV
A – Susan McLain: We respect the AAP, however, at the core of their concern is that screen time would replace time with parents. Research shows that the majority of families with babies are using screen content as platforms for play with their babies. The Discovery Kits are designed to provide an engaging way for parents and babies to spend time together which everyone agrees is highly important in the first two years.
Q – Can you discuss the benefits of the kits for both parents and baby?
A – Dr. Karen Hill-Scott: There are many benefits for both parent and baby with the new Discovery Kits. They are a great value because they include three ways to share new discoveries with baby at home or on the go. Parents can also make connections to the real world using the images and ideas introduced in the DVD, Book and/or Discovery cards. Most importantly the Kits provide parents and baby a fun way to spend quality time together.
Q – Is there an ideal frequency to use the discovery kits with your little one?
A – Dr. Karen Hill-Scott: The kits were designed to be versatile. They are designed to provide parents with multiple elements that you might use with your baby as part of your regular routine.
Baby Einstein Discovery Kits retail for $14.99.
No compensation was received for this post. A Discovery Kit was provided which helped facilitate this review.
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