Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD

by:  Rev. James G.W. Fisher | The Toy Man® - Product Evaluation Specialist

Product Evaluation Summary Date:  10/26/2009

MathTutorDVD.com has created the Young Minds series of DVD's to introduce young children to the joys of learning Math at a young age. This DVD in Numbers and Counting teaches young children to count from 1 to 10 by way of engaging classical music, photographs, and video.

   Evaluation Summary - Category Ratings

	Trade Industry Sales Types Wholesale  Retail  Reseller  Online

	Safety / Quality Classifications

CE Marked	UL Approved	JPMA Certified
(Not Applicable)	(Not Applicable)
ASTM Compliant	eco-Friendly	eco-Conscious
(Not Applicable)

BPASafe™ (Complies with CPSI EN71)	Soluble Heavy Metals (Complies with ASTM F963/CPSIA 106)	Mechanical/Physical (Complies with ASTM F963/CPSIA 106)
	(Not Applicable)	(Not Applicable)
Flammability - Solids/Textiles (Complies with 16 CFR 1500.44/CFR 1610)	Labeling of Hazardous Art Materials (Complies with ASTM-4236/16 CFR 1500.14(b)(8) )	iWatchDog™ Approved (Complies with ICCS™ Certification Standards)
(Not Applicable)

* SUMMARY CODES: SN - Special Needs

Creative imagination plays an important role in the learning aspect of development for a child. As I have stated before in previous product evaluation summaries, even after adulthood, creative thinking and exercise of the imagination still retain the same level of importance and benefit. Young Minds - Numbers and Counting, is an outstanding example of taking a learning medium and stimulating the creative imagination and thinking in a child from infancy to 3 years of age.

Math Tutor, the creators of Young Minds - Numbers and Counting has created an actual Young Minds series of DVD's to introduce young children to learning math at an early age, long before the age level that most public educational institutions begin at. For many parents, they are not aware of the fact of how a child in the range of pre-natal to 3 years of age are at their most powerful period of absorbing knowledge. From our own in-house and independent evaluation, we have discovered that this DVD is quite applicable for use with SN children, yet you must keep in mind that our results with SN children were not completed in a formal clinical study.

Did you know that in that after extensive studies by leading scientists pertaining to infant and early childhood learning, it has been clearly established that children ranging from pre-natal to 3 years of age, have a preference to learning? After that period, their chemical processes of the brain begins to change and there is transition into aversion learning.

Once this transition begins, the child's affinity in learning begins to become more challenging. During the early years from pre-natal state, their learning is in a full immersion process. Young Minds - Numbers and Counting is designed to take advantage of that established fact and provide a child with full immersion in learning with numbers, counting, classical music, photographs, and video. This medium of content delivery allows a child to adopt their learning preference and adaptation of the information into practical use.

Have you had enough of the tech-talk and blab about the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD yet? Let's look at the DVD from a more simple perspective.

To start off with, each number which is covered in the lessons, is presented through multiple mediums of visual stimulation for a child. These consist of photographs, video, and animation. To capture a child's attention to an even greater level, numbers are animated to fly-in from off screen and show the child how to count by counting objects that they are naturally interested in.

For a child of the age range the content is designed to fit, animals such as frogs, horses, jellyfish, sharks, whales, and so much more are shown to the child and/or guardian along with the associated animal sounds. Learning of colors is approached by pointing out the color of objects on screen.

Here is a small sampling of the objects which are included in the experience for a child:

• Variety of animals along with animal sounds
• Fruits and vegetables along with their colors
• Machines that move such as trucks, airplanes, etc, along with the sounds that they make.
• Everyday objects such as crayons, toys, etc.

CAPTURING A CENTRAL IDEA TO TEACH

The central idea of this DVD is to teach children numbers and counting while teaching them the names of animals, machines, and other objects along with their associated sounds and colors simultaneously. This is a widely used and proven integrated learning approach which keeps children interested and promotes continued learning.

The entire DVD is set to rousing classical music pieces by:

• Bach
• Beethoven
• Mozart
• Chopin
• Brahms
• Vivaldi
• Pachelbel

IF THAT WASN'T ENOUGH...

If that wasn't enough, there's even more to see with some incredible bonus features which generates excitement and stimulation to critical developmental skills.

Bonus Features:

• Repeat Play
• Picture Puzzles
• Connect the Dots
• Name the Animal

What this all boils down to is a powerful product which is adopted for use in a learning curriculum not just by consumers, but by home school Mom's and teachers in nursery schools alike. The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD delivers the content which people are looking for in multiple realms of application.

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Independent Evaluator Reports

Obtaining An Independent Perspective...

In this section we will cover the "Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD" from the perspective of one qualified individual" in the specific field associated with the product being evaluated. To accomplish that task we have called upon the assistance of a top level industry professional who know his stuff and has the credentials" to prove it.

Our professional and independent evaluator has formed his own opinions from extensive analysis and produced a detailed, in-depth product evaluation report connected with his study and evaluation of the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD. The information to follow is comprised of excerpts from this same report which has been paraphrased in order to encapsulate the primary points being conveyed in the report. This approach provides a completely independent perspective from our own in the evaluation of the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD.

PRODUCT: Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD PRODUCT TYPE: Educational DVD PRODUCT SAMPLING OF OBJECTS USED IN LESSONS: Variety of animals along with animal sounds Fruits and vegetables along with their colors Machines that move such as trucks, airplanes, etc, along with the sounds that they make Everyday objects such as crayons, toys, etc.

Neuroscientist / Doctor of Behavioral Study, Ph.D.

"The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD provided an engaging educational agent to use in a limited duration clinical study of the structure and level of benefit from use of the DVD. I will address the results of the clinical study later in my report. For the present time I will point out some valuable points which make this DVD so unique and valuable."

"The content of the DVD is a combination of carefully synced classical music selections, colorful and detailed static images, video clips, and vocal narration specific to each image or video. For a child within the age range for which this product applies, they will not define the content of the DVD with complex thought processes to classify each form of media they are experiencing. They will interpret it more simply as an experience of visual and audible media which without their own own conscious thought, stimulates a preferential learning process."

"In my own assessment of the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD, it was of the greatest interest to me as well as my colleagues, how this DVD is differentiated from others we have seen introduced to the market. In our clinical study we took a group of children ranging from 1 month old to 3 years old, and along with their mothers allowed them to experience this DVD content and then two others of similar style of content, (names of other DVD's will not be disclosed.) The children and their mothers would come into the clinical lab once each day to experience the content of each DVD for periods of 15 minutes x 3". There was a 5 minute break between each DVD being played."

"What we discovered during this clinical study was a distinct difference in the mimic response level by all of the children between the three DVD's. With the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD the impulse to mimic the vocal sounds from the young child's voice on the DVD in comparison of the other two DVD's was virtually as strong as comparing night to day. With the other DVD's, the mothers and their children were responding more to the music and colorful images being demonstrated by their emotional reactions with minimal mimic response of any of the content."

"After reviewing the videotapes of the clinical study segments multiple times, I established without question that with the the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD, each of the children, the mimic response with each time a number was spoken, had a progressive increase in quality and accuracy. By the end of the study, both of the one year old children manifested a significant improvement in their vocal development well beyond question."

"With the other DVD's the response levels were in constant fluctuation. The music created one response then an animated image on the screen created yet another. While the other DVD's have their own unique benefits, they failed to create the visible mimic response which was accomplished with the the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD. The mothers were completely engrossed in the music and animation of the other DVD's yet the children were not responding as productively as with the DVD in focus in this report."

"The cognitive and critical skill development are of strongest concern and in answer to the question on your form, I would say undeniably that the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD does in fact contribute well beyond demand what is needed for substantial cognitive and critical skill development. Does the DVD represent a developmental stimulation which carries after-effects which are dominant and useful for any infant or toddler in the age group from which it was designed? There is no question that it accomplishes reaching that expectation and well beyond that."

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Consumer Hands-On Evaluation

Nothing is more powerful than hands-on experience by a consumer with a product when it is being evaluated. Based upon that fact we put every single product we evaluate at the mercy of consumers in a hands-on evaluation where anything goes. Shall we see how the "Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD" was seen with consumers? The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting is the kind of product we enjoy putting through the ropes with consumers as far as educational DVD's go. The reasoning behind this is because it is different. The key element of success in educational DVD's of this sort is to include ALL of the elements that are needed to educate a child, AND do so without becoming redundant and losing their consistent active response. With the participants of our spontaneous hands-on product evaluation, the "Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD" had the right combination of elements that captured their attention.

	The images to the left and right and below are all from the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD. The image to the immediate left is an introduction, to the first lessons. A similar looking image is shown with the progression from one set of lessons to another. The image to the immediate right is a screen capture of one single frame from the animated transition from one image to the next. The images below are scaled down screen capture images from some of the lesson content in the DVD.

The location for the spontaneous hands-on product evaluation for the the "Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD" was not our usual one location event. Instead, we took the DVD to a local mall in Los Angeles, a public school and a learning center in Las Vegas, NV.

A point of very keen interest to all of us was how the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD produced a far different response from parents and children than similar products which have passed our evaluation. I will emphasize the word "similar" due to the fact that the DVD may have some similarities to others yet still remain unique.

Unlike other DVD's of this category class, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD maintained 100% attention by the child participating in the evaluation whereas the mother or guardian averaged around 71%. This proved all the more so how the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD was very effectively designed to reach the specific target audience intended. Although parent/child social-interaction is important, children of this age group are in total immersion with their learning and living environment combined. For children out of the target age group and adults, the learning curriculum doesn't spark the response level as promptly or as good.

What we found to be of the greatest significance was how that with the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD, participants waiting their turn to experience the DVD, were quite patient and waited for their turn with excitement or were just, plain fascinated.

In our reviewing of the consumer hands-on feedback forms which the participants filled out, there was no room for doubt that the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD was one of the most innovative educational products we have evaluated to date. Simple, basic, and contributing so greatly to the development of critical and cognitive skills, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD proved it's full value in the spontaneous hands-on evaluation.

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD passed this segment of our evaluation with quite a following of mothers whose children were graced with the opportunity to enjoy working with this DVD. Did the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pass this segment of the evaluation process? Yes, it did so and then some!

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A Sampling Of Category Ratings

A small sampling of the individual category titles & rating scores from the complete product review itself for this product are featured here. The categories which have been selected to be featured in this product evaluation summary for public view, specify some of the primary points of how and why that specific rating score was reached.

• If a product is inducted, a product evaluation summary of the complete review is published for public view.
• When a score has been assigned to a category rating, it has been through a thorough validation process to ensure accuracy and no inflection of bias.
• If a product scores an overall category evaluation rating average of [2] Stars or lower from the complete review results, it fails the evaluation and is not inducted.
• Information for products which do not pass our evaluation is confidential and is shared only with the company submitting the product.
  

The Featured Category Ratings for this Product Evaluation Summary are listed below.

CONTENT QUALITY: Rating Level - [5]

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pulls its weight in this category for CONTENT QUALITY. Unique unto itself as an incredible masterpiece of a learning medium. When you consider the outstanding and well balanced compilation of visual and audio content to stimulate not just a child's mind, but their emotions as well, there is no way to lose! The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD provides a substantial contribution to critical and cognitive skill development which will encourage not only repetitive use, it will also provide the means for an easy transition into a new DVD is which is designed for the next age group to follow this one.

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD has the necessary elements to stimulate critical skill development in a child in a subtle approach as they are being stimulated on multiple fronts. The more a child experiences the sound and visual display of the DVD, there is a constant level of further advancement in the most important areas of a child's developmental skills. The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pulls a perfect score of [5] in this category for CONTENT QUALITY.

CRITICAL SKILL DEVELOPMENT: Rating Level - [5]

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD provides a substantial contribution to critical and cognitive skill development which easily eclipses many other products of similar nature. The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD undoubtedly contributes in more than just a substantial manner, rather it is so strong in this area that the word "substantial" doesn't even do it justice. The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD comes flying through the gates with a perfects score of [5] in this category for CRITICAL SKILL DEVELOPMENT.

EDUCATIONAL VALUE: Rating Level - [5]

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pulls the stops out in this category for EDUCATIONAL VALUE. In all consumer hands-on evaluation as well as in-house and independent evaluation, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD was seen as a source of creative stimulation which envelopes a child's experience on every level imaginable. While creative stimulation is quite valuable in education, the actual response levels were clearly evident as being well beyond the norm for all age groups in the clinical studies and spontaneous consumer hands-on evaluation.

The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD establishes a clear-cut example of educational value which is literally infinite in measure. After discussion with our independent evaluators and in-house evaluators it was determined that the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD easily fulfills the high educational demands that people are looking for in a DVD such as this. The primary point which the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD has to offer is how it is not a single product with which loses value once a child is beyond the age group for which it was designed. It is the first of a series of educational DVD's with which a child can easily transition from one to the next.

There are multiple perspectives with which to look at what is the definition of this DVD's contribution to educational value. After reviewing all evaluation results and independent evaluator reports, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pulls a perfect score of [5] in this category for EDUCATIONAL VALUE.

MARKETING VALUE: Rating Level - [4]

The marketing value with the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD was a challenging task establish a fair and accurate final score. In the video tapes and what we witnessed personally in the hands-on evaluation segment, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD drew plenty of attention with several mothers even mentioning they already were using one of the DVD's from the Math Tutor DVD product line already.

There was another perspective to take into consideration though. With so many other companies touting how great their product is, corporate buyers have more of a challenge determining which educational DVD's are the best way to go. Well established branding of quality and effectiveness, as well as excellent marketing development is needed to take a product all the way to the top. The Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD is well above average in its scoring in the category for MARKETING VALUE.

Despite what an outstanding product it is, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD came out of the fray with a well above average score of [4] in this category. I must admit though, we all agreed that if we had a .5 score to add to our current scoring structure, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD would be awarded that extra .5 in this category evaluation.

RESPONSE LEVEL: Rating Level - [5]

The response level with for kids with the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD is well beyond anyone's expectation. The smoothly structured combination of content assures a steady flow of interest from a child. The response level in all hands-on evaluations by children and family members were well beyond the norm and constant. Infants were literally engrossed in the imagery and sound with some even beginning to develop a mimic response of the numbers they were seeing and hearing. As the DVD progressed from one chapter to the next, the infants and toddlers were completely enthralled. the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD pulls a perfect score of [5] in this category for response level.

VISUAL APPEAL: Rating Level - [5]

The visual appeal for the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD far from lacking. The DVD packaging was well above average while the content of the DVD itself was such a perfect balance of labors and educational value. The colors, images, and video clips draw an infant or toddlers attention with a unique sense of comfort and captivation.

The diverse variety of objects, videos, and colors from each chapter featured in the DVD were instrumental in keeping a child's attention from all target age levels, creating a visually appealing environment for a child. Combining the visual appeal of the packaging and content, the Young Minds - Numbers and Counting DVD proved it's mettle and passed this category for VISUAL APPEAL with a perfect score of [5].

EVALUATION RESULTS - From evaluation for induction into "The Toy Man® Product Guide"
Overall Rating:  5	Seal of Approval: Approved	eco-Recognition™ Seal: Not Eligible	Award of Excellence: Approved	eChoice™ Award: Selected

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	Since 1971 "The Toy Man® Seal of Approval" has served as an emblem and standard for professional recognition of a product or online service having met the globally recognized evaluation standards of The Toy Man® Product Guide.   This emblem was first established in 1971 by the International Parenting Institute™. It is modeled after the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval®", an emblem of recognition for products which meet the globally recognized high standards set forth by the Good Housekeeping Institute®.

THE TOY MAN® PRODUCT GUIDE AWARDS "The globally recognized awards that are received by a limited few... and give a product the well earned recognition it deserves!"
	The products and online services which become recipients of "The Toy Man® Award of Excellence" acheived an evaluation category rating average of [5] Stars, the highest level of rating available on a 1-5 scale evaluation model.  The average is based upon the overall average from all applicable evaluation categories, not just the 6 evaluation categories featured in this summary.

"The Toy Man® Award serves as an emblem of recognition for products & online services that contribute substantially to positive skill growth and/or productivity.  ( This includes books, CD's, DVD's, consumer electronics & accessories, recreational games and equipment, home furnishings, juvenile, software, toys and specialty. ) This distinguished award is exclusive as well as unique, with the editor's signature which represents a product being selected as an . PLEASE NOTE: The eChoice™ Award images which were used from 1971-1984, 1984-2007, 2007-April 2010 have been retired. Although the former versions of the eChoice™ Award have been retired, they still remain valid.