VTech InnoTab Software - Brave Educator Review

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Common Sense Review

Updated December 2012

Merida engages kids in math, logic, and some archery

Common Sense Rating 3

Teacher Rating
Not Yet Rated

Price

$24.99

This grade range is a recommendation by the Common Sense Education editorial team, not the developer/publisher.

Grades

Pre-K-1

Platforms

InnoTab, InnoTab 2

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Subjects

Math

fractions
shapes

Skills

Critical Thinking

solving puzzles

Purpose

Targeted Practice

Standards

Common Core State Standards

You get to solve puzzles to help Merida's brothers.
To help Merida in her target practice, kid do some math questions.
As a creative activity, you can design your own tapestry.

Pros

This game offers solid skill-building, plus room for creativity, exploration, and problem-solving.

Cons

The range of math skills is a bit broad, and there's no way to track a child's progress with the game.

Bottom Line

Drawing on the popularity of Merida, this fun game challenges kids beyond simple arithmetic problems.

Christy Matte
Common Sense Reviewer

Common Sense Rating 3

Engagement Is the product stimulating, entertaining, and engrossing? Will kids want to return? 5

Kids will enjoy the way all the activities complement each other around the theme of Brave. Being able to design their own archery fields adds to the replay value.

Pedagogy Is learning content seamlessly baked-in, and do kids build conceptual understanding? Is the product adaptable and empowering? Will skills transfer? 4

The math and logic puzzles pair well with the material being covered, and the creative aspects give kids a sense of ownership over the experience.

Support Does the product take into account learners of varying abilities, skill levels, and learning styles? Does it address both struggling and advanced students? 3

Help options are plentiful, but there is no way to track how kids are doing within the game.

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How Can Teachers Use It?

Much like other titles of this type for this age group, it's best for quiet time, recess, a specific InnoTab station, or a reward for completed work. Brave can help reinforce addition and subtraction skills, although kids will need to be past the stage of requiring objects to count. The cooking activity can help kids develop observation skills, as well as introduce/reinforce the idea of fractions. The e-book language is challenging for early readers, but older/more advanced readers may benefit from being read to with the highlighted text.

What's It Like?

Editor’s Note: This game’s publisher, VTech, experienced a breach of parent and student data on November 14, 2015. Click here for more information.

VTech InnoTab Software - Brave is a collection that includes an e-book that roughly follows the movie plot, two creative activities, and three learning activities. Kids can help the witch cook by matching shapes and figuring out simple fractions. They can help Merida with her archery by solving math problems that include the addition and subtraction of two or three numbers. And they can use their logic and problem-solving skills to help the little brothers navigate the castle in search of a key. For kids who are feeling more creative, there's the option of decorating a tapestry or designing their own archery course.

Is It Good For Learning?

While not always completely organic, the learning is well-integrated throughout. The cooking activities are a wonderful way to illustrate fractions, as well as demonstrate how fractions are useful in a practical setting. Kids may be asked to cut a sausage into six parts and then add one-sixth into the pot. Kids can select an easy or difficult mode for each of the learning games, but there's no automatic leveling if they choose incorrectly. Helping the triplets find their way through the castle also gives kids the feeling that they're able to explore the environment. Players can also save up gems (or perhaps wisps!) to purchase additional items for the archery and tapestry activities, helping them plan ahead and think about saving/budgeting.