"....Verdict The best parts of this database—videos and games—can be found for free online or on most smartphones but perhaps not quite as well-organized. This resource occupies a unique niche. It’s a solid product for children who are a little bit past enjoying Eric Carle and Sandra Boynton online games but still too young for Scholastic Go! (formerly Grolier’s), a dense collection of academic material. Although this is a less-than-stellar package overall, librarians might find the games and videos, as well as the nonfiction sections, worthwhile."—Jess deCourcy Hinds, Bard High School Early College, Queens, NY
School Library Journal, Nov. 2014
http://www.slj.com/2014/11/reviews/digital-resources/reaching-a-range-of-users-from-the-youngest-to-the-oldest-reference-online/#_
"Early childhood education is a hot commodity these days. Continuing research confirms that very young children benefit from being exposed to age-appropriate stimuli, including electronics and technology. As a result, there has been a steady increase in sites and applications aimed at this emerging demographic. World Book’s Early World of Learning, an online e-book and activity platform intended for preschoolers, consists of four main components. “Trek’s Travels” offers narrated e-books specifically created for the site that address basic concepts, including numbers, colors, and opposites. Individual words are highlighted as they are read by expressive adult voices (in English or Spanish). The accompanying detailed illustrations go beyond basic cartoons, providing the stories with a recurring cast of characters who reinforce concepts across selections. Brief video clips and photos provide additional examples. Related activities include interactive games (“Concentration,” “Put the Story in Order”); sliding tiles; multiple choice; and sorting activities. The “Print and Do” option offers printable activity sheets to further engage users. “Welcome to Reading” offers Lexile-leveled fiction and nonfiction e-books. These brief selections reinforce emerging literacy skills (phonemic awareness, phonics, vocabulary). “Know It!” is an interactive picture encyclopedia. Users click on question marks surrounding subjects (e.g., dinosaurs, occupations, seasons) to access pop-up facts and information bits. Content has been aligned to state and national learning standards. “Early World Classics” presents a selection of downloadable nursery rhymes, fairy tales, and traditional songs (many sung by a charming classroom chorus). The site features an engaging interface and intuitive navigation. Pages have been optimized for iPads and tablets. Users receive encouragement through voice prompts, pages that automatically advance, and immediate feedback (such as green check marks, red Xs, audio “Uh-ohs!”). Parents, teachers, and librarians will appreciate this age-appropriate, noncommercial suite of offerings. Toddlers and preschoolers will enjoy the array of engaging and stimulating activities. This updated and enhanced product continues to deliver."
— Kathleen McBroom, Booklist, Sept. 2014
"Our family had the opportunity to try out the World Book Early World of Learning. This is an online learning program for preschoolers and kiddos in early grade school. The World Book Early World of Learning was made by experts to enrich the classroom curriculum, not replace it. So, this is a wonderful after school or weekend activity, especially with the winter months fast approaching! There are three sections to the World Book Early World of Learning. The first, Trek's Travels offers narrated stories, interactive games, and original videos that teach critical early childhood themes, including numbers, shapes, colors, opposites, and more. Each of Trek's books are also offered in a Spanish version. The second section is Welcome to Reading. This section in the World Book Early World of Learning provides leveled reading practice to develop and strengthen phonics, vocabulary, phonemic awareness, and comprehension skills. This site incorporates The Lexile Framework® for Reading to make sure every child meets with success. Finally, there is Know It. This offers a richly visual interactive encyclopedia that will captivate early learners with non-fiction topics of interest and importance to them. Throughout the program, there are videos, printables and many other things to keep your child captivated. It is a great online program to have. " -Nonperfect Parenting blog
"I took a spin through World Book’s new Early World of Learning. It’s now optimized for iPads (although my test run was on my PC) and offers three interactive learning environments designed for easy integration into classroom and library programming. These environments are:
Trek’s Travels
Welcome to Reading
Know It
The interface is extremely bright, colorful, and interesting. It offers users the ability to read, play, watch, and print and do various activities. I enjoyed the video and audio that included an assortment of voices – males and females with a variety of accents and local dialects. The text included read along features, highlighting each word as the narrator read it. Information was delivered in small pieces, which seems great for kids. Navigation was easy and intuitive.
Some of the features of the new product include:
• Rich collection of educational, interactive games.
• Robust collection of educator resources, including an educator guide and print-and-do activities.
• Configurable settings and measures by The Lexile® Framework for Reading in Welcome to Reading and Trek’s Travels.
• All stories in Trek’s Travels are available in both English and Spanish.
• Correlations to Common Core, state, and provincial standards."
-Sue Polanka, Aug. 12, 2014
http://www.libraries.wright.edu/noshelfrequired/2014/08/12/world-books-new-and-improved-early-world-of-learning/#more-7015
Report card
Installation: A
Content/Features: A
Ease of Use: A
Product Support: A
Recommendation: This program should be an enormous help for educators trying to get students to practice reading and build vocabulary.....I highly recommend that teachers explore this program and consider using it in the classroom. Highly recommended.
Multimedia & Internet@Schools, JULY 2010
World Book
is focusing on preschool through early elementary children with the launch of
this site. The focus is teaching students to read through short stories, songs,
nursery rhymes, games, and coloring. Some of the short stories follow the same
character through many adventures while others talk of historical facts. There
are favorite nursery rhymes and songs; song lyrics can be followed along using
the colored cursor. Large categories are broken down into short videos. For
example, the Animals category has short videos on elephants, baby birds, and
pit vipers. There is a Games section where children search for matching pairs,
put a story in order, and practice sorting. All of these sections combined help
children learn to read in an interactive, fun, and enticing environment. There
is information and tutorials on each section to aid adults working with
children. Ellen Spring, School
Librarian, RSU#13 Schools, Rockland, Maine
Recommended – Library Media
Connection Jan/Feb 2015