GoGo Kabongo is a new website which helps children develop pre-reading skills through games and activities. Their goal is to help children develop the cognitive abilities that are necessary for reading:
- Attention and Focus
- Memory Skills
- Successive and Simultaneous Processing
- Visualization
- Planning
- Comprehension
GoGo Kabongo currently has 3 habitats, which are bought individually with a one-time fee of $4.95 per child. (This is an on-line game, but access to each habitat is purchased with a one-time fee, not a subscription.) Each habitat has 3 games, with 6 different levels that automatically advances as your child's abilities improve.
Children design their own character to play the games. As they earn points in the games, they can also design their own tree house, skate park, and create a comic book with stickers. The website is colorful and fun! My 7 year old son was able to maneuver the website on his own, though my 4 year old daughter needed help at times. It worked best to have an older sibling sitting near enough to help her when she required help.
At first glance, a parent may wonder how these games teach reading skills. GoGo Kabongo provides a helpful learning skills chart which shows which PRE-reading skills are being practiced in each habitat and game.
GoGo Kabongo sends a weekly update email to the parents which includes a summary of your student's progress that week, as well as ideas for learning activities you can do with your child. The website includes a Parent Center with activity ideas, your child's progress report, articles, and even printables.
ElCloud Thoughts
When I joined GoGo Kabongo it was easy to set up the system for our family. I first created my parent account, and then I created accounts for two of my children. They immediately had access to two of the 3 habitats, but I had to "purchase" access to the next habitat for them. (As reviewers, we did have a code to use to make the third habitat free, but we had to go through the checkout process.) This process was simple and we had no problems with it at all!
My 4 year old and 7 year old both enjoyed GoGo Kabongo. We did limit their time on it for two reasons. One was related to our satellite internet and its usage limits, and the other was because after they'd been on it for awhile it would freeze up the browser. Since that frustrated older siblings who were working on different things in those browsers, we didn't allow daily play.
I'm not a big fan of website games for kids. This is largely because we have satellite internet. It's on the slower end of high speed internet, and we have to be careful not to exceed our usage limits. However, I also don't like subscription-based websites. I LIKE that GoGo Kabongo has a one-time fee for each habitat and you can try it out with a free habitat (or two if you join now) before buying more. Since you receive a weekly email of your child's progress, you can see how soon you need to buy a new habitat. If your child is still at level 2, you know they still need to practice those skills. You can wait until they reach level 5 or 6 before purchasing a new habitat for them.
I don't think that GoGo Kabongo is necessary for my children to learn to read. Most parents can teach these skills through everyday life with their children. However, some children may need extra help with these skills, and some families may be looking for online games with educational content for their children to enjoy. With that in mind, I do think that GoGo Kabongo is fun, and unlike many other on-line games, it has educational benefits for children not yet reading, or not yet reading well.
Sign up at GoGo Kabongo now and get two habitats FREE ($10 value). This offer is only available for a limited time. Access to each new habitat can be purchased for a one-time fee of $4.95 per child.
This item was provided free for our review as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew. We received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion. Visit the TOS Homeschool Crew blog to read more reviews on this product by other Homeschool Crew members.
Trusting In Him,
April
