When my daughter was about to start school for the first time I softened the blog with a fun DVD featuring Tad’s first day of school. You know, Tad, the cute LeapFrog frog? He and his friend Lily bounced around a classroom showing off all the things my baby would be discovering for herself in just a few days.

That video was a staple in our house for weeks. I already loved LeapFrog, but this only cemented my belief that they really knew what kids need.

Later I learned that LeapFrog builds toys backwards. Instead of starting with a cool concept and manipulating it to tie in an educational component, they start with the educational component and, with the help of educators, grow it into an awesome concept. Neat, right?

This year LeapFrog is jumping into the learning-to-read arena.

Well, no, that’s not true. LeapFrog has been in that arena forever – impressively so, but they are mixing it up a bit with a fun new game for their Explorer, their newest hand-held game console.

LeapSchool Reading innovates in that it allows a custom path to reading. Instead of serving up a “one-size fits all” game, this game allows the child to focus on areas that they’re passionate about (or at the very least interested in). Five friends — each with a different interest from music to cooking – guide the games and make learning to read fun. And as we all know, they don’t even realize they’re learning when they’re having fun! (Learn more about the game and get to know the friends on the LeapFrog LeapSchool site!)

My 6-year-old is a pretty good reader already, but the 4-year-old is desperate to teach herself so she can catch up. She latches on to any reading game we give her and keeps impressing us with her ability to sound out letters and words. With LeapFrog and LeapSchool we might be a step closer to having a really early reader in the house!

This post was sponsored by LeapFrog as part of the Fill the Backpack campaign. As always the thoughts, opinions, and stories contained in the post are mine and mine alone.

If you missed it, check out the Fill the Backpack giveaway of the year – $750 worth of awesome back-to-school goodies to make your year sweeter.
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