Find the sheep!
Product Review: Usborne First Words chunky flashcards
Our local Wise Owl book shop stocks a great selection of early learning products. Recently we picked up a set of Usborne Look and Say flashcards. These “first words” flashcards are printed on chunky card, ideal for using with a toddler. I know there’s a whole trend towards teaching your baby to read – but that wasn’t our goal with these flashcards. I feel Little Man has plenty of time to learn to read in years to come, and right now, I’d rather concentrate on exploring the world with him, watching him learn to run and climb, and watching him learning his first language skills.
Up to now, he has been more interested in learning to move than learning to communicate. But lately, his comprehension is coming along in leaps and bounds. He clearly understands the majority of what we say to him these days, and he’s starting to show interest when we name things. So that’s where the flashcards come into play. They show bright colourful pictures of 3D models, which according to the Usborne website, have been created by illustrator Jo Litchfield. Beneath each picture is a single word in a large clear font. The back of the card shows the word on its own.
We use these cards in a variety of ways, depending on what Little Man is in the mood for. Sometimes, he sits on my lap, and I read through the cards with him. We usually talk about the pictures while we do this, pointing out interesting things in them. His favourite way to play though is the Treasure Hunt game. I pull out a card, show it to him, and read the word, and then he tries to find the object in the room. We usually pick cards like “ball”, or “car”, or “book” for this game. Sometimes he finds the object in question, and other times he wanders off with the card and finds a safe place to store it!
We also use the cards to play a matching game. I line up some of his farmyard animal toys – the sheep, cow, dog, and cat – and pick out the cards with those items, and then I ask Little Man to show me which item goes with each card. Again, some days he seems to get this game, and others he likes to just pick up the cards and look at them.
I’m finding the cards great for building his vocabulary, and I think that later they will be good for teaching him to read his first words. The packet also includes instructions and ideas for using the cards – but the recommendations seem to have been written with older children in mind. Then again, the age recommendation on the Usborne site does say 2+, so that isn’t so surprising!
