Skip to main content

Detective Dot



I saw a post by a mum about a resource to help with coding. Not surprisingly, I jumped with joy and went along to purchase this resource. I possibly faltered for a moment or two, is this wise? I asked myself, will it sit on the shelf like a lot of my ambitious yet spontaneous purchases? Well, only one way to find out! So off I went, through the www to https://www.detectivedot.org
The website itself is lively and full of information, but the 'secret package' is absolutely brilliant!
The mega pack




I decided to purchase the product (the wavering lasted about 30 seconds) , and went for the mega pack. It looked like there was a lot more, and I needed to make sure there was at least something my 7 year old son could do (assuming he didn't like this!)

 The megapack contains not only the book, but business cards, mission cards and his very own I.D card-that is a huge hit on its own.
The mission cards alone have provided hours of fun (and we've only looked at the first 2!)
It's great to see the children can email their pictures, fantastic way to encourage and motive the little ones! My son can't wait for morning so he can get designing and emailing!
Detective Dot -the book 

The book is so well written, it is easy to read, but more importantly I thoroughly enjoy how terminology used in technology has been introduced and explained. The building blocks of coding are knowing the ins and outs of things like viruses, algorithm and so on. There is a lovely glossary at the end too.






The story itself is fantastic. It's based on a girl, who is the main character (the detective). Through her footsteps we are guided through coding and all that is involved in coding. 
We've loved reading through the book so far, and I am absolutely thrilled to see how it easily incorporates coding, and how by the end of the book children will have a sound knowledge (including adults like me!)
Quality
As parents of kids, even the paper matters! Thin paper pages don't last long, especially with younger curious siblings. The book has fought the storm without a tear in a page! It is high quality paper, making it very sturdy and hopefully will last coming storms. The mission cards and other extras are all card, so no need to worry about accidental rips, or even creases (takes a little more effort to crease card quickly!)
Packaging 
If you order something for your child, you want them to feel the excitement from the word get go, or in this case, as soon as the mail hits the rug. It is packaged with all that in mind.
The top secret envelope and the enclosed letter are such a fantastic idea. My 7 year old has found it much more exciting this way. It has definitely added an air of importance and given him a boost of 'I am special'...so excellent work team!

Definitely a 10/10 for this!

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Yipee adventure box - bug hunting theme

Yippee adventure box - bug hunting theme box  We  received  the marvellous Yippee  adventure box to trial, and after having enjoyed the  activities  with both 7 and 3 year old,  I  felt a review was worthwhile.  Yippee boxes are  designed  to encourage science,  technology, engineering, art and maths (STEAM), and 'To  facilitate fun and special family  experiences.' Upon opening the 'Bug box' both kids were  overwhelmed   with  the contents and eagerly dived in, so off we were, on our yippee  adventure! What's in the box? The bug box arrived with two categories of activities, 'Bug homes' and 'Go on a bug adventure'.  Bug homes Bug homes activities  were all about that, making, creating and designing homes for  little  creatures. The  first  activity little person dived into was, making his  spider web and spider. The activities can be easily carried out by children, except using the scissors..
Post a Comment
Read more

Fusha House arabic

I was kindly offered the opportunity to complete a free session using FushaHouse arabic. Arabic has been a language that I've always wanted to learn, and it's also a language I've been passionate about. As little person has taken to writing and reading in English, Arabic was the second language I wanted him to learn. When learning a language, it is important to find resources that are easy to use, especially for younger learners. Over time I have tried so many books, apps and websites, but if the resource isn't exciting or encapsulating, young leaners loose interest very quickly. There is nothing worse than spending so much money and zero use. Nevertheless, I believe we have found a resource that ticks all the boxes. FushaHouse offers interactive learning, it is also child user friendly and the pace enables children to feel at ease, without feeling overwhelmed very quickly into the process. A lot of language resources seem to very quickly move on from basics to
Post a Comment
Read more

Endangered animals activity pack

We recently received this wonderful fact filled pack from Archiboldclutterbuck (to read more about Archiboldclutterbuck  resources click here). Contents and what we think The pack is made up of an activity booklet and a poster. The poster is a great visual tool; with in depth (but not overbearing-too much to read) information about 6 critically endangered animals across the globe. Each animal is listed with a fact file (for instance type of animal, habitat etc), and reason as to why they are critically endangered. For each animal listed there is a beautiful photograph; I do believe having photography in such posters and texts is important , as it really does bring the whole concept and idea to 'life'. We love the poster as it's a great size, vibrant and easy to understand, with all the vital information but without too much to read, making it a perfect poster!  The activity pack is what you would ideally expect when teaching endangered animals. Learning fo
Post a Comment
Read more