Froggy Boogie

The Discovery

I have to admit, I came across this game accidentally two years ago as my son randomly picked it up in a Barnes & Noble and insisted that we buy it. I really wasn’t planning on buying anything but as my son persisted more and more, shoving the box under my nose, I noticed an Oppenheim Best Toy Gold Award sticker on the game. I then justified the expense to myself and gave in.  So glad I did!

The Look

The game’s pieces are attractive solid wood packaged in an unusually sturdy cardboard box. There are eight adorable, bicolored froggies with places to put 2 eyes each-one with a frog underneath and one blank.  Although there are a good many number of pieces to the game, they are not hard to keep track of as the box is well designed in a compartmentalized fashion. 

How to Play

The players give each froggy two eyes, one that is blank at the bottom and one with a frog at the bottom. The child rolls the the colored die to see which frog's eyes they must investigate. The challenge of the game is to remember which eye is blank as that enables the player to advance their froggy from lilly pad to lilly pad.  The first one to go around the lilly pad wins.

Take a look at how the game is designed to be played here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbA_tH9Jwhc

Modifications and Skills 

According to the instructions, you are supposed to vary the positions of the eyes with and without the frog.  But that’s not really important now is it?

Memory: To help the child initially succeed, I really like the idea of putting the eyes in a fixed pattern.  For example, I'll have all frogs have the blank eye to the right, when just starting to learn the game or for younger learners. This will help build their confidence as it will be easier for them to remember where the blank eye is.

Shapes: When setting up the game you spread the lilly pads around the froggies in a circle.  My four year old son came up the with the idea of changing the shape of the lilly pads each time.  We alternate between circles, triangles, squares or rectangles.  If there were more pieces you could do more shapes but I think those four shapes are just about it for this game. 

Colors: The dice are a good size for any child and once they land, depending on what level the child is at, you can either tell him/her the colors that are indicated or you can give him/her an appropriate prompt for them to do it. 

Language: Once the colors are stated, I like to then verbally search for the correct froggy by asking, “Blue and yellow froggy where are you?” and also have the child do the same.  When he is found we can tell him, “I found you!” 

Short on time? Another beautiful feature of the game is that when you are under a time constraint, you can simply not put out all the given lilly pads and you shorten the game without sacrificing any of the fun or educational value.

I have to say I just love this game. There are not that many interactive memory games that hold a child’s attention like this one.  Also, the wood pieces are a rare treat.  I’m surprised this game is not more popular.  I don’t see it on the shelves at the typical toy stores but you can order it online at http://www.amazon.com/Distribution-Solutions-LLC-4102592-Orange/dp/B000NE3EYW  In my opinion it should be a staple in every kids’ toy chest.  What do you think?  What rating would you give it?

Rating (1-10)

Overall Rating: 9

Fun value: 9

Educational value: 10

Durability: 10

Cost: 9