Leap Frog See and Learn Piano - See what all they can learn!
Written: Jul 19 '02 (Updated Jul 19 '02)
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Pros: Music, flashing lights, teaches colors and shapes and some instruments
Cons: No true volume control.
The Bottom Line: A great learning toy with lots to keep a child busy!
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| LisaDo's Full Review: LeapFrog See and Learn Piano Toy |
Note: I noticed when I looked at the picture that the keys on ours are in a different order. It doesn't matter, but I thought I would warn you up front. Thanks.
While skimming the shelves at Wal-Mart in our never ending search for a toy Zack doesn't have, I saw the Leap Frog See and Learn Piano. I had heard a lot about Leap Frog toys and knew it was a good brand. Our son, however, is 3 1/2 years old and looked to old for this toy. I reached out and hit one of the keys and the toy came to life! Our son has been hooked ever since.
The Leap Frog See and Learn Piano has a white face and the bottom is blue. It is shaped almost like a triangle. There is a little red handle in the top. It is all plastic. In the upper left corner of the face are some holes for the speaker.
Right in the center of the face is a circle of thin, red lights with a mirror in the center. One each side there are little blue rimmed circles, each containing a picture of an animal playing a musical instrument.
On the left side, on top, is a girl frog playing a flute. When you press the button she says, I'm Lilly. I love to play the flute.. You will also hear a flute playing. She has a red background for her button.
On the left, on the button on the bottom, is a raccoon. Well, I guess it could be a cat. You can't really tell since all you can really see are their faces. Anyway, he says, I'm Casey. I love to play the banjo.. This is accompanied with a banjo sound. The background of the button is green.
On the right side of the mirror, on top, is a frog in a red vest. He says, I'm Leap. I love to play the saxophone.". You also hear a saxophone playing. The background for this button is yellow.
On the right side, on bottom, is another frog, only he is wearing orange overalls. He says, I'm Tad. I love to play the piano.. You also hear a scale played on the piano. His background is blue.
Under the buttons and mirror is a green bar that goes across the toy above the keys. From left to right, first you will see the Leap Frog logo in white, raised letters.
Next you will see a slide area. There is a blue clef symbol and next to it is a red music note. The music note is in the blue area and is the on/off switch, as well as three other settings. The first setting is Off.
The second setting has three shapes in blue. One is solid, one has stripes and one is empty. This sets the toy to do colors and shapes. When this setting is chosen, you will hear a voice say, "Let's learn shapes and colors!".
The third setting has four blue music notes. On this setting each key hit will play a portion of a song. It will play several bars and then stop. When the next key is hit it will pick up where it left off. When this option is chosen, you will hear a voice say, "Let's play music!".
The fourth setting has a small keyboard. This is free form. There are four keys on the piano and this will free them up so a child can makes it's own music. When this option is chosen, you will hear, "Ready to make music? Come on!".
Next to the slide bar of options is a small red switch. It goes up and down. It is a loudness switch. There is no true volume control, but this will make it louder or softer and is marked like this: )) for softer, and ))) for louder.
The Leap Frog See and Learn Piano has four keys. The keys themselves are white, but each has a different color and shape on it. From left to right there are:
A red circle - When this key is pressed you will hear one of three things. You will either hear:
Music alone
"Red circle."
"Circles are round like wheels."
A green triangle - When this key is pressed you will hear:
Music alone
"Green triangle."
"I love the color green."
A blue square - When this key is pressed you will hear:
Music alone
"Blue square."
"The sky is blue."
A yellow star - When this key is pressed you will hear:
Music alone.
Yellow star."
Stars shine brightly."
Each key is it's own note. It also plays it's own different music when they are pressed. I believe the voice you hear is different with each key. The background of the animals, from what I can tell, match the key colors and that is the voice you will hear when the phrases are spoken.
When any key or button is pressed you will hear music and the red lights around the mirror will flash. There is no real pattern. They flash at random. Our son has a fetish with red flashing lights, so I think that is the main reason he likes this toy so much. That and he loves music.
The Leap Frog See and Learn Piano plays several different songs in the second setting. The ones I have heard and recognize are Where, oh, Were has my little dog Gone?, Pop Goes the Weasel, and London Bridge is Falling Down.
The Leap Frog See and Learn Piano is a very busy toy. It does quite a bit, and adds music and flashing lights as well, so they're learning, but it is fun. Not only do the kids learns about different instruments and their sounds, but also colors, shapes and even playing their own tunes!
The Leap Frog See and Learn Piano is nice in that if your child puts it down it will flash it's lights and you'll hear a voice say, "Time to play the piano!". If you child doesn't pick it up and play with it again, you will hear a voice say,"Thanks for learning with Leap Frog. Bye bye!". Then it shuts itself off, but will come back to life when anything on it is pressed.
While the Leap Frog See and Learn Piano is actually for younger children, it has kept our 3 year old Autistic son fascinated. We have had it for well over six months, and even though it is played with daily, I have only had to change the batteries once. A Phillips screwdriver is required to remove the plate from the bottom of the toy. It requires three AA batteries.
All in all this has been an excellent choice. While there is no true volume switch, you can turn it to low and it isn't overly loud. I have learned to tune it out. It makes our son happy and helps him with colors and shapes. It was an excellent find!
www.leapfrog.com
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 15
Type of Toy: Baby Toy
Age Range of Child: 12 to 36 Months
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Epinions.com ID:
LisaDo
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Member: Lisa D
Location: Back home in Indiana!
Reviews written: 552
Trusted by: 273 members
About Me:
Proud SAHM, Navy wife and member of SHLEPS!
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