Give Your Kids the World with Little Pim

Hola, me llamo Randi y hablo muy poco español.
Je connais un peu de français, mais je peux chanter la chanson Barney.

Wait, timeout, translation please?!

Hello, my name is Randi and I speak very little Spanish.
I know a little bit of French, but I can sing the Barney song!

I will admit that knowing the Barney song in more than one language has come in handy from time to time, even more so with my little ones. Just don’t tell my junior high French teacher that her form of mildly embarrassing in-class punishment is actually useful. Shh! Then again, now that I think about it, this may just be a good task to try out at home. Unfortunately, when it comes to using my foreign language skills in daily conversation, I would be more likely to use a translator on my phone than actually speak. I always remembered the basic and silly things. I can (obviously) sing goofy songs, count, recite the colors, introduce myself, name few objects, etc. but I am horrible at holding a conversation with someone in anything other than English.

Of course, when it comes to my own children, I (like any other good parent) want better for them. Our society has continually grown on cultural terms and it is in everyone’s benefit to keep pace. I was at my son’s pre-school show when it hit me. The class of 4-to-5 year old children introduced themselves one by one and then sang a song for the crowd of parents… in Spanish! In pre-school! I didn’t get my first taste of a second language until late middle school and, even then, they were just beginning to introduce the new curriculum to the lower grade levels. Most people (until now) didn’t begin learning to speak other languages until hitting high school. Why is that? Children learn and absorb things (especially languages) much better when they’re young.

The most current scientific research has shown that babies, toddlers and preschoolers are uniquely equipped to learn one or more languages with ease.

Think about it… you taught your child to say “mama” and “dada,” right? Well, why not include “Mamá” and “Papá” or “Mère” and “Père?” Most of us don’t bother to because we don’t even know where to begin. Thankfully there’s help.

I recently had the opportunity to try out a wonderful children’s company that focuses on broadening language skills for kids. Little Pim uses the brilliant platform of children’s books, DVDs, CDs, and Word & Phrase flash cards to teach little ones the basic foundations of new languages.

Although there is no “official language” here in the US, English is primary but closely followed by Spanish as a second. I know that, in the workforce, having the knowledge of a secondary language is a huge plus not to mention extremely helpful. We got a head start on the Spanish in our home with the Little Pim Complete Spanish Gift Set.

Picking up on the tiny bit that he learned in school, our oldest has been having a blast building his bilingual vocabulary. Our youngest has begun to despise the phrase “tres minutos,” due to our new switch in languages for time-out chats. The kids have gravitated toward the books more so than anything. There are a ton of adorable little flaps and tabs for the kids to lift, slide, play with, and learn from.

The DVDs are great, too! Our set has all six Spanish DVDs and the kids were able to learn from all of them. The full set of DVDs includes:

• Eating & Drinking
• Wake Up Smiling
• Playtime
• In My Home
• Happy, Sad and Silly
• I Can Count!

They have been able to learn a majority of the basics thus far and look forward to, still, learning more. The videos hold children’s attention just as well as any cartoon but, with this, they are learning lifelong skills. Check out a tidbit of the Little Pim program here:

The Little Pim CD is just as adorable as the rest of the set. The Spanish Bop disc has fifteen tracks of catchy Spanish songs for the little ones to enjoy. I’ve added one extra song to our learning adventures from my own prior knowledge and, together, it has caught on with the kids. I’ll find them walking around the house randomly singing bits and pieces of these songs. They find it fun, and I love that they love it.

The flash cards (unfortunately on backorder at the moment) look to be a child’s favorite part of the set. I know that my little ones love flash cards in general but having the added bonus of a new language would, likely, make them irresistible. The simplicity of a single picture and its brief description not only teaches the child valuable visual skills but also helps them with reading as well as linguistics.

The sight-and-sound repetition of looking at a photo, watching a DVD, listening to a CD, reading the words, and speaking the terms gives them a better grasp on things. Sure, I could tell them that “manzana” means “apple” and “galleta” means “cookie” but five minutes after doing so, the only thing that will be on their minds is snack time. I’m thrilled to have had the opportunity to try out this amazing product because, when it came to secondary languages, I didn’t know where on Earth to begin – for myself or the children. This has actually turned into a family event, despite Little Pim being geared toward those that are 6-years-old and younger. I am brushing up on the old and learning new things right alongside my little ones and that just makes it all the more fun.

BUY
The Little Pim products can be purchased online through their website as well as from many retail chains and bookstores (Target, Walmart, Toys R US, Barnes & Noble, etc.) nationwide.

PLAY
Since we are living in a fast paced, electronic world, it is only right that Little Pim keeps pace, right? The Little Pim curriculum is also available on iTunes and for LeapFrog products.

CONNECT
The Little Pim company is quite social as well. You can keep up with them on a variety of platforms – Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram – for all of the latest news, products, special discount offers, giveaways, and more.

The awesome folk over at Little Pim were even kind enough to send me a French Gift Set as well. Little Pim is currently available in ten different languages. Yes, ten! We got to play around with, both, the Spanish and French versions but the rest of the options include German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Hebrew, Russian, and (since Little Pim is a worldly company) English.

The addition of our 3-DVD French set, has given us the ability to not only become bilingual but, now, multilingual! Doing so has also helped me in being able to tell you “Bonne chance!” No idea what that means? No worries. Let me clue you in. Drumroll please…

“Good luck!” Now you, too, can give your children the world with the extraordinary gift of language. Eighty MPH Mom readers have the chance to win a Little Pim 3-DVD Gift Set right now!

THE GIVEAWAY:
One (1) winner will receive a Little Pim 3-DVD Gift Set in their preferred choice of language.

Giveaway open to US residents only. Ends 8/18/13. ARV of $59.95.

*Randi received the above product(s), free of charge, to facilitate this review. All opinions are those of reviewer only.

No purchase necessary. Open to residents of US only. Giveaway ends August 18th, 2013 at 9:00 p.m. (PST). ONE ENTRANT PER HOUSEHOLD/IP Address! We check all entries – cheating will not be tolerated.

Winners will be chosen randomly by Rafflecopter, and winner’s name will be displayed on the Rafflecopter widget within 3 days of end date. Winner will be notified via email and must reply within 48 hours. If no reply has been received within that time frame, a new winner will be chosen. Please make sure you check your spam folder, as we are not responsible for lost winning email notifications. Winners name(s) will also be posted on the Eighty MPH Mom Winners List within 2 weeks of drawing.

**By entering this giveaway, you confirm that you have read and agree to the Eighty MPH Mom giveaway rules. Prize will be shipped directly from sponsor or their PR Agency unless otherwise noted. Sponsor reserves the right to limit one prize per person/household {of this item/prize pack}. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery of prize {although it is usually much sooner}.

This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook. We hereby release Facebook of any liability. Odds of winning: The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. All prizes will be awarded. Void where prohibited by law.