A few weeks ago I finally signed up Nathan for ABCmouse.com. I have seen it advertised about 1000 times, but just never gotten around to logging on. I was IMMEDIATELY impressed and Nathan jumped right in navigating around the website very easily. I have been so happy with all the site has to offer and Nathan has asked to play pretty much everyday! I would also like to disclose up front that ABCmouse.com did not offer me any form of compensation or product for this post, but I am an affiliate. I am choosing to do this because I am really excited about how much Nathan loves it!!
Here is a little breakdown of what ABCmouse.com is about:
- For ages 2-6
- 450 lessons
- 3000 learning activities
The lessons are broken down into 6 levels. Each level includes 4 Subjects: Reading, Math, The World Around Us and Art & Colors. Here is how they organize the levels:
Preschool (Ages 3+):
Level 1- 410 Learning Activities
Level 2- 425 Learning Activities
Pre-K (Ages 4+):
Level 3- 452 Learning Activities
Level 4- 535 Learning Activities
Kindergarten (Ages 5+):
Level 5- 655 Learning Activities
Level 6- 631 Learning Activities
The other great thing is they are constantly adding new games and activities to their curriculum!
Your child can complete the activities in the order of the Learning Path or they can jump around and complete activities in the order of your choice – and the system keeps track of what your child has done. They can also repeat areas/lessons that they enjoyed as often as they want! There is also a lesson builder section, that allows you to build your childs lesson plan. But, honestly, I haven’t used it. Being that the rest of the site is super easy and user friendly, I would guess that this area is no different. I just haven’t found it to be a need. I have been happy with how the lessons are set up.
Probably the best part of the site, at least to Nathan, is their reward system. When your child finishes an activity or lesson, they will earn tickets. The amount of tickets, depends on how difficult the activities/lesson is. They are then able to spend the tickets in the shopping center. Then they are able to go to the shopping center and buy things with their tickets. There is a Pet Store where they can buy animals and stuff for the animals cages, etc. There is also a clothes store, where they can purchase new clothing for their Avatar, etc.
As you can see in the picture – the earned tickets are being disposed on the right hand side of the screen!
Now, let’s get down to business – the cost! They do offer a 30 day free trial and then after that it is $7.95 a month or $79 a year. After just a few weeks of Nathan playing, I personally feel that the $7.95 a month is totally worth it! It gives Nathan something educational to do during Jeff’s nap time, right when it is the hottest point of the day. It is much better than him asking to watch a movie or show!
So, now let’s go through the site a little. I took all these images as screen shots from my sons account.
Main Start Page:
This is the page that pops up right when you log in. It is pretty self explanatory and labeled easily.
One of my favorite features of the entire site is that when you scroll over words it says it to you. So, that way Nathan is able to know what to click, just by listening. It makes it so he can navigate the whole site, without my help.
From there I’ll just highlight a few areas of the site that Nathan spends a lot of time at.
The Classroom:
The classroom is where you go to access all the Learning Activities, Learning Path and more easily. Most everything on the site can be accessed several different ways. The Classroom is the easiest place to go to access all learning activities organized by subject! Again, just scroll over something to learn what it is!
About Me Area:
From here Nathan can go through everything that he purchased. This really is his ‘pride and joy!’ He can change his Avatar’s clothes, go to his room and re-arrange his furniture or add new items he’s purchased and care for his pets, etc! It also allows me to easily see his Stats without having to login to the parents section.
Avatar Builder:
From his About Me page, Nathan can change his Avatars clothes, glasses, shoes, etc.
Bedroom:
Or go to his bedroom and hang out. He can move every item in his bedroom, including the window and door. He can bring in new furniture or items that he has bought or earned. You can also purchase other “scenery.” Their Avatar can go from their bedroom, to the beach, to space, etc!
Fish Tank:
He also needs to care for his fish. The water can get cold, so it notifies him when the water temperature is too low, so he can turn the heater on. He also has to feed them and clean the tank when it starts to get dirty.
Hamster Cage:
Nathan also has two Hamsters (so far) – Hammie and Cheese! Nathan has to make sure they are well rested, fed and have plenty of water. He can also change their play tubing around and buy new tubing to make it longer or more detailed.
Map:
From anywhere on the site, you can click on the left hand side to access the Map. From within the Map, you can access everything. The Zoo, Learning Path, Shopping, Basics, Classrooms, Toddler Time, Library, Farm, and the Bedroom.
Learning Path:
All the lessons are done from the Learning Path. The Learning Path takes you through the Levels that you specify your children are ready for. Being that Nathan just turned 4, I started him at Level 1. He had never done anything on the computer, so I wanted it simple and easy for him at first. He is working his way through Level 1 super easy now – though he is still learning stuff. He has especially been enjoying the last couple lessons, because they are teaching about the Solar System and he hasn’t really learned about it before.
There are six sections to each lesson. At the end of each Lesson you earn a prize! Nathan always loves earning a prize. To redeem this prize, he would go to his bedroom and then put it in there (or any of his sceneries).
Zoo:
The square buttons on the side bar are more of the Interactive sections of the website. The Zoo and Farm are places where your child can just play around and explore or they can do lessons and activities. When you enter the Zoo, there is a Zoo Keeper that Welcomes your child.
Once you enter the Zoo, the Zookeeper explains where to click depending on what you want to do.
Shopping Center:
Got tickets?!? When your child has earned a bunch of tickets they’ll head to the Shopping Center to spend them. There are 4 stores for them to shop from; The Pet Store, Toy Store, Clothing Store and Furniture Store!
{Pet Store}
{Toy Store}
Well, I think that is a good start to showing you around ABCmouse.com! We (my hubby and I) are in the process of putting together a video showing our son navigating the site and explaining things as he goes! So, watch for that next week! It will be fun! Also, feel free to leave any questions you have about the website and I’ll do my best to answer them!
Have you tried ABCmouse.com? If so, what do you think? I’d love to hear from you!
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Investigations Toronto
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Sherri
I love ABCmouse.com. I had a few years ago and cancelled when our foster children went home to their mom. (NO problems with my cancellation.) I just signed up again so that my 3 and 4 year old granddaughters can play and learn on it. Admittedly I have not called customer service or had any problems with them over billing me. However my grandbabies love this website. They do their “homework” every time I have them. They do struggle on the desktop computer (they do not know how to use the mouse very well) so I have added the app to my iPad and Kindle so that they can use the touchscreen to do the activities. It is sad that the only reviews are the bad ones. But we will all complain LOUDLY if we feel we have received poor service. We need more of the people who are happy with the app to post!!
Pam
I would not recommend this application to anyone. It is a complete disappointment due to the many glitches I’ve encountered. First, my granddaughter has been stuck on the same lesson on the learning path for 2 days. I messaged customer service and described the issue over 24 hours ago and there has been no reply. Second, since we haven’t been able to move forward she has been trying other activities. She wanted to change her Avatar, but she was only given 2 options to change and each option had 1 selection. Once again she was sorely disappointed. Next we went to the zoo and chose the games option. She just turned 5 last month so we are in the Pre K level and the games are very limited and archaic. She was immediately bored. One can find a plethora of free games online that are both fun and educational. The games on ABCMouse have the sophistication of games from the 90’s. Bottom line I would not spend .99 cents on this application. It needs to move into the 21st century and needs a responsive customer service team.
Noel Evilsizor
BUYER
BEWARE
If you purchase an annual subscription it will be set to
automatically renew. ABCMouse.com does not send you a notification ahead of
time to let you know that your subscription is about to be renewed. I have a
lot on my mind and a lot of things happen over the course of a year, so having
the date I began my subscription at the top of my list is a ridiculous notion. Also,
ABCMouse.com refuses to give any sort of refund even if you cancel the very
next day after your subscription is renewed. So, now I am paying for a full
year of something my daughter no longer uses. This company could at least have
the common courtesy of notifying its customers BEFORE the subscription is
renewed instead of letting the customer find out when it appears on their
credit card bill.
The URL below shows that I am not the only person unhappy with their customer service, or lack thereof.
http://preschoolers.about.com/u/r/od/technologyentertainment/fr/Abcmouse-Com-Review.htm
Kevdogg
Beware these people are Thieves signed up for 1 dollar for the first month and 3 days in I was charged 91 dollars stay away lots of free stuff on internet to teach your kids
Kim
Be careful to cancel your subscription after the year, if you are concerned about the cost and increase beyond $80/yr. My kindergarten son enjoyed the site for about 9mo, and then we discontinued using it. I just realized that they have been charging me $19.95/mo for past several months through our Paypal account. I contacted them and asked them for refund beyond the $80, explaining that I didn’t know (remember??) that I had to cancel after a year or they would increase he cost and keep charging indefinitely. I did not receive any type of notice after a year that we would continue to be charged monthly and at a higher rate. I also explained that we have not used the site for 6-9 months and asked them to verify this by reviewing our account. I hope I can update this with happier news soon, but at this point they are refusing to issue any type of refund so this ended up being a very expensive mistake on my end for the amount of time we used it.
ANGRY MOTHER
I signed up for ABCmouse about 6 months ago. I cancelled my subscription since November 2013. It is already March 2014 and THEY ARE STILL CHARGING ME. I tried calling their hotline to speak to a representative, but all I get is a voicemail, NOT A REAL PERSON. Mind you, it’s been well over a WEEK and they still have not replied. I have nothing negative to say about the content in the website because my son loved it. JUST GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY! THIEVES!
Sue
I am having a similar experience. I signed up for a year subscription. They charged me $19.95 for the first installment, then claim that my bank began to refuse their submissions for payment for the 2nd and 3rd installment, so rather than contact me, they just began charging me the full price of $7.95 per month and never stopped, never notified me of any change in terms or that the year was up to cancel or continue. Now they are claiming this is my bank’s fault.
Jennifer MommyLifeAfterPh.D.
WE LOVE Abcmouse.com and use it on our iPad and computer, though I think it works on the iPhone too! Here’s the review I wrote:
http://mommylifeafterphd.blogspot.com/2014/01/product-review-abcmousecom.html
chris
DO NOT sign up for ABC mouse! When you try to cancel (it’s not easy to find the link), they keep stealing your money every month thereafter. After you cancel watch your account closely. Call your bank after the first month that they steal from you, and give them your cancellation date, and confirmation number, and be prepared for it to pop back up again after six months. They are no different than the thugs that walk down the street looking for unlocked cars to steal.
Mom of 3
I’m thinking about this for my son. We are not happy with the school system and his teacher. We are considering homeschooling him. How much time is spent each day on the site with your child?
KrissyBug
I know this was posted almost a year ago but I was wondering a couple things about abcmouse (i stumbled upon your blog here because I was searching for reviews on abcmouse). My daughter is 5, getting to the end of her kindergarten school year and she’s really struggling with reading. No amount of help her teacher/school and I are giving her really seems to be helping so a friend brought up that they saw an advertisement for ABCmouse. So I’m looking into it. Most reviews seem good, all the bad ones (which are about 1 out of every 50 that I read) are about billing issues unfortunately. Since you’ve used it for a while by this time, I’m hoping you can answer some stuff! Is ABCmouse set up so I can choose my daughter’s age but then choose what she’s having a hard time with so it gives her an easier level than her age so she can work up to her age level from there? Then, if I can set it up to a level that’s “below” her age and find it’s too easy for her, can I change it back again easily or is it pretty much that you set up the levels at the beginning and then the child just has to work through up to the level that’s good for them? Also, will the games (I think my daughter may not always want to do very much of the lessons) areas still help her learn even though they’re technically games? Thanks so much! Every little bit of info helps!
Lkl
Look up Funnix my son was a non-reader at the beginning of Kindergarten he is now reading fly guy books with a little help he is six and was a late talker.
erica
Thank you for this post, it is very informative! I just today signed my daughter up after seeing the tons of commercials and ads on various parent sites and even though its only the first day of our 1 month trial I think the $7.95 is very worth it for the excitement my daughter had just out of the first hour! I love love love the easy to use mouse training, my daughter too has only ever used touch screens so this training tool is vital for her to use our home computer. Loving it already and thanks again!
teatab7
Yeah, you can find other reviews just like this on the web. Clearly ABC Mouse isn’t confident enough in their word of mouth, so they’re putting these “reviews” out to sell people on joining. The honest (not paid for by ABC Mouse) reviews seem to often talk about how the company keeps billing you even if you tell them to stop, that they will not give refunds, and they do this even if you sign up for their “free” trial.
Personally, I am more concerned that, of the images I have seen, there does not seem to be an appropriate level of diversity shown with the characters. Maybe it’s different if you actually sign up; I’m just going by screenshots posted online.
johnlisa02
I think this comment is funny because we did not receive a penny from ABC Mouse for writing this post. If we had we would have disclosed it in the actual post. Not sure what your problem or experience with ABC Mouse is but you obviously have some bitter feelings towards the company. Our experience has been positive. Please don’t spout ignorance and attack us and our integrity for no reason. If you sincerely have had a negative experience and would like to share it you are welcome to in a more positive way. We are all about helping Moms but this kind of comment doesn’t help anyone.
Elizabeth
I signed my son up for ABC Mouse earlier this year right before he turned 4 but he was only intered in the hamster and didn’t want to do “school”. I am thinking about trying again now that we have actually started homeschool pre-k.
Laurie
would it work on an iPad? My son is not quite 2 and isn’t proficient with a mouse as I let him use the iPad.
Jasmine
Thanks for posting this! I’ve been curious about ABCMouse myself. My daughter will be 2 in Sept and I was thinking of using it as part of our homeschooling, but I was afraid of her getting too addicted to the computer! =P What do you think? Is 2 yrs old too young? How long does your son usually stay on with all the activities that are available? Have you tried StarFall.com? I am wondering how it compares.
Thanks!
Jasmine @LearningWithMom.wordpress.com
overthebigmoon
Jasmine- I think as long as your daughter can navigate a mouse, then she won’t have a problem. She may not be able to navigate around the entire site right away, but you will be able to her into sections of it and she can stay on work on the curriculum. I actually haven’t tried my barely 2 year old on it. He’s still pretty content just watching his big brother. I know that within the next few months he’ll start wanting to give it a try though! Nathan at 4 could play for hours honestly. I generally let him play for an hour or so a day. It hasn’t really been an issue to wear he has become at all addicted or constantly begging for it. He is always excited when it is computer time though!
As for Starfall.com. I have put my son on the site, but he got bored very quick. It wasn’t as self explanatory, so he would get on a page and not really know what to do. And, it just wasn’t fun. It was a lot of clicking and waiting.. clicking and waiting. He wanted to interact a bit more. I am BY FAR more impressed with ABCMouse.com!
Thanks – Pam!
Jasmine Flores
Thanks so much for your response! I will definitely be looking into it more. (My daughter gets bored with StarFall, too. =P Thankfully I’m not subscribed!)
overthebigmoon
Jasmine – Right after I posted that last comment I remembered there is a section on the ‘Map’ called Toddler Time. We had never really explored at section of the site, because Nathan is 4. I just went and check it out real quick and it is the area you will want to start your daughter in. It will give her simple activities that will allow her to learn to use the mouse better. For example in one of the Bubble Games… all it requires them to do is click the bubbles. Where in Nathan’s version of the game, it asks him to click all the Bubbles with the Letter “B” (or whatever letter they are working on) on them. I will spend a little more time later today when I am working exploring that section of the site and add a little section to this post. So, check back late tonight or tomorrow for more info! Thanks!