Tim Atkinson's Blog, page 53
August 5, 2014
August 3, 2014
Top Free Places to Visit with the Kids in the North East
What's better than a great day out with the kids? A free day out with the kids of course! Luckily you can book a Travelodge for comfortable, good value family accommodation, before you head off to try out some of these great ideas for a fun (and free) day out:
Jesmond Dene
This park, in the east end of Newcastle, is a jewel waiting to be discovered - with a popular craft fair on Sundays, a coffee shop, a restaurant, plenty of space to play and even a petting zoo, which offers free entry. Jesmond Dene also houses the remains of Newcastle's oldest religious building, the beautiful, but now derelict, St Mary's Chapel. It's a wonderful place in which you can escape the hustle and bustle of the city and spend a few hours with the children enjoying the outdoors.
Bill Quay Farm
On the banks of the River Tyne lies Bill Quay Farm, a great little farm right near the heart of Gateshead. You'll get to see Longhorn Cattle, Tamworth Pigs, Hebridean Sheep, Scots Grey Chickens, Bagot Goats, as well as lots of cute and cuddly chicks and rabbits. If you want to stay close to the city, yet experience a little of the nature in the surrounding countryside without going too far, this is for you.
Druridge Bay Country Park
Not your usual country park, this beautiful area includes woodlands, meadows, a lake and even sand dunes and over three miles of glorious sandy beaches - it's a fantastic day out for all the family. Druridge Bay Country Park is a huge favourite among locals and visitors to the area alike - you can feed the birds on the lake, take a paddle in the sea, build sandcastles, picnic in the meadow, play hide and seek in the woods and try your hand at watersports on the lake, like sailing or kayaking. There are two playgrounds, a visitors’centre and a cafe, so you really can spend an entire day enjoying the area as a family – for free!
Paddy Freeman's Park
To the North of Newcastle city centre is Paddy Freeman's Park, a wonderful park in which to spend a few hours getting active with the kids. You’ll find tennis courts, bowling greens, playgrounds, a model boat club and a cafe to enjoy here.
South Marine Park
Situated in South Shields you'll find the South Marine Park. This is the place to relax in South Shields and has been for over a hundred years. It's hugely popular with families, walkers, runners and joggers who enjoy getting outside and enjoying the beautiful views. There are lawns, pathways, a bandstand, an art trail and even a miniature railway. Add to that the boating lake, feeding the ducks and the popular play areas and you'll have a sure fire hit with the kids.
It just goes to show that you don't have to spend a fortune on a day out with the kids, from parks and farms to museums and beaches, the North East has something for everyone.
Jesmond Dene
This park, in the east end of Newcastle, is a jewel waiting to be discovered - with a popular craft fair on Sundays, a coffee shop, a restaurant, plenty of space to play and even a petting zoo, which offers free entry. Jesmond Dene also houses the remains of Newcastle's oldest religious building, the beautiful, but now derelict, St Mary's Chapel. It's a wonderful place in which you can escape the hustle and bustle of the city and spend a few hours with the children enjoying the outdoors.
Bill Quay Farm
On the banks of the River Tyne lies Bill Quay Farm, a great little farm right near the heart of Gateshead. You'll get to see Longhorn Cattle, Tamworth Pigs, Hebridean Sheep, Scots Grey Chickens, Bagot Goats, as well as lots of cute and cuddly chicks and rabbits. If you want to stay close to the city, yet experience a little of the nature in the surrounding countryside without going too far, this is for you.
Druridge Bay Country Park
Not your usual country park, this beautiful area includes woodlands, meadows, a lake and even sand dunes and over three miles of glorious sandy beaches - it's a fantastic day out for all the family. Druridge Bay Country Park is a huge favourite among locals and visitors to the area alike - you can feed the birds on the lake, take a paddle in the sea, build sandcastles, picnic in the meadow, play hide and seek in the woods and try your hand at watersports on the lake, like sailing or kayaking. There are two playgrounds, a visitors’centre and a cafe, so you really can spend an entire day enjoying the area as a family – for free!
Paddy Freeman's Park
To the North of Newcastle city centre is Paddy Freeman's Park, a wonderful park in which to spend a few hours getting active with the kids. You’ll find tennis courts, bowling greens, playgrounds, a model boat club and a cafe to enjoy here.
South Marine Park
Situated in South Shields you'll find the South Marine Park. This is the place to relax in South Shields and has been for over a hundred years. It's hugely popular with families, walkers, runners and joggers who enjoy getting outside and enjoying the beautiful views. There are lawns, pathways, a bandstand, an art trail and even a miniature railway. Add to that the boating lake, feeding the ducks and the popular play areas and you'll have a sure fire hit with the kids.
It just goes to show that you don't have to spend a fortune on a day out with the kids, from parks and farms to museums and beaches, the North East has something for everyone.
July 31, 2014
Happy Yorkshire Day!
Having just spent some time in that unique county, reminded myself of why it's justifiably proud and enjoyed some of it's stunning scenery, I can't let today's designation as Yorkshire Day go unmarked.
God's chosen county? Maybe. The friendliest people? Possibly. Best fish-n-chips? Undeniably...
Happy Yorkshire Day everybody!
God's chosen county? Maybe. The friendliest people? Possibly. Best fish-n-chips? Undeniably...
Happy Yorkshire Day everybody!
July 24, 2014
He is not missing...
I'm writing a book on the first war. (Who isn't... or hasn't?) But - and it's a big but - mine is about the aftermath, the immediate aftermath, when France and Belgium were slowly rebuilding and first the Army followed by the (then) Imperial War Graves Commission were burying and reburying thousands and thousands of bodies and slowly creating the vast memorial cemeteries that are now such a universal symbol of the human cost of war.
My protagonists - a group of soldiers eager for demob but kept on in Flanders after the Armistice - form one of the many companies whose unenviable task it was to search the shattered land for the missing, to exhume hasty battlefield burials and then to establish the now famous concentration cemeteries like the largest of them all, Tyne Cot.
It was a grim task. But many such men volunteered for the work (and not merely for the extra 2/6 a day). Some even remained in Belgium after demob and found work as IWGC gardeners. A sizeable British community in Ypres between the wars had its own school and church and remained there until the Germans once again invaded in 1939. Then came a hastily arranged and hazardous evacuation.
In the meantime, the monuments to the missing had been built. Massive structures like Thiepval, the memorial wall at Tyne Cot and, of course, the famous Menin Gate which was inaugurated by Field-Marshal Sir Herbert Plumer ('Daddy' Plum, one of the few high-ranking officers to have escaped the 'donkey' epithet and to have been universally respected by the troops) on this day, July 24th, 1927.
In one chapter of the book I'm writing the men - by now ex-army IWGC gardeners and labourers - gather at the Menin Gate for the ceremony (as actually happened - medals, but not uniforms, were worn). They listen as Plumer delivers his speech:
One of the most tragic features of the Great War was the number of casualties reported as 'Missing, believed killed'... It was resolved that here at Ypres, where so many of the 'Missing' are known to have fallen, there should be erected a memorial worthy of them which should give expression to the nation's gratitude for their sacrifice and its sympathy with those who mourned them.
At home in England, at the same time on that July Sunday morning, congregations gather in churches up and down the land to listen to one of the very first BBC outside broadcasts - a live relay from Ypres - and, perhaps, to follow the service in the specially-printed feature in the Radio Times.
You're not, perhaps, meant to be moved by your own words. (Although Dickens cried at the death of Little Nell.) But I find even my own modest description of that event, culminating as it did with the playing by buglers of the Somerset Light Infantry of the Last Post (the start of a tradition that continues, famously, to this day) followed by pipers of the Scots Guards playing the Flowers of the Forest lament as the men who fought there remember their comrades who died and are commemorated on those walls quite unusually affecting.
But then, that's down to the event itself, the memorial, and the men it commemorates. Just to see the 'intolerably nameless names' - almost 55,000 - filling the walls and arches of Reginald Blomfield's great edifice is moving enough.
It takes but a little imagination to appreciate the impact it must have had on those present that day, those for whom the countless names were living people, comrades, friends and of whom, at last, in the words of Herbert Plumer, the world could now say:
He is not missing; he is here.
***
You can read an extended extract from the beginning of this book on the Authonomy website.
My protagonists - a group of soldiers eager for demob but kept on in Flanders after the Armistice - form one of the many companies whose unenviable task it was to search the shattered land for the missing, to exhume hasty battlefield burials and then to establish the now famous concentration cemeteries like the largest of them all, Tyne Cot.
It was a grim task. But many such men volunteered for the work (and not merely for the extra 2/6 a day). Some even remained in Belgium after demob and found work as IWGC gardeners. A sizeable British community in Ypres between the wars had its own school and church and remained there until the Germans once again invaded in 1939. Then came a hastily arranged and hazardous evacuation.
In the meantime, the monuments to the missing had been built. Massive structures like Thiepval, the memorial wall at Tyne Cot and, of course, the famous Menin Gate which was inaugurated by Field-Marshal Sir Herbert Plumer ('Daddy' Plum, one of the few high-ranking officers to have escaped the 'donkey' epithet and to have been universally respected by the troops) on this day, July 24th, 1927.
In one chapter of the book I'm writing the men - by now ex-army IWGC gardeners and labourers - gather at the Menin Gate for the ceremony (as actually happened - medals, but not uniforms, were worn). They listen as Plumer delivers his speech:
One of the most tragic features of the Great War was the number of casualties reported as 'Missing, believed killed'... It was resolved that here at Ypres, where so many of the 'Missing' are known to have fallen, there should be erected a memorial worthy of them which should give expression to the nation's gratitude for their sacrifice and its sympathy with those who mourned them.
At home in England, at the same time on that July Sunday morning, congregations gather in churches up and down the land to listen to one of the very first BBC outside broadcasts - a live relay from Ypres - and, perhaps, to follow the service in the specially-printed feature in the Radio Times.
You're not, perhaps, meant to be moved by your own words. (Although Dickens cried at the death of Little Nell.) But I find even my own modest description of that event, culminating as it did with the playing by buglers of the Somerset Light Infantry of the Last Post (the start of a tradition that continues, famously, to this day) followed by pipers of the Scots Guards playing the Flowers of the Forest lament as the men who fought there remember their comrades who died and are commemorated on those walls quite unusually affecting.
But then, that's down to the event itself, the memorial, and the men it commemorates. Just to see the 'intolerably nameless names' - almost 55,000 - filling the walls and arches of Reginald Blomfield's great edifice is moving enough.
It takes but a little imagination to appreciate the impact it must have had on those present that day, those for whom the countless names were living people, comrades, friends and of whom, at last, in the words of Herbert Plumer, the world could now say:
He is not missing; he is here.
***
You can read an extended extract from the beginning of this book on the Authonomy website.
July 21, 2014
The FGM Rose
A couple of days ago I was approached and asked if I'd like to write a post and host this video. Even without watching the video, I agreed. I'm aware of the campaign and support it wholeheartedly. Indeed, I'm glad of the chance to help spread the word.
But I was a little unsure what to write. Other posts I'd seen followed the 'Because I'm a Girl' theme and I clearly can't compete with that. But I'm a dad of two daughters and - as I've written before - nothing in my life has made me appreciate so keenly the position of girls and women in society, the dangers faced, the hardships endured and the ignorance and evil that has to be overcome.
Having now seen the video, I think it speaks, powerfully, for itself. I hope it isn't regarded as being something of a cop out to allow it to do just that. Please watch it. Please share it. The campaign - by Plan UK - launches today with this short film made by Marmalade Film & Media.
125 million girls and women the world over are living with the consequences of being cut. Plan’s Because I am a Girl campaign has so far reached 58 million girls worldwide and its projects in Africa and Asia have proved that knowledge of the harmful impact of Female Genital Mutilation as well as an understanding how it is linked to discrimination against women and girls can help to end it.
And we can help too.
Please share.
But I was a little unsure what to write. Other posts I'd seen followed the 'Because I'm a Girl' theme and I clearly can't compete with that. But I'm a dad of two daughters and - as I've written before - nothing in my life has made me appreciate so keenly the position of girls and women in society, the dangers faced, the hardships endured and the ignorance and evil that has to be overcome.
Having now seen the video, I think it speaks, powerfully, for itself. I hope it isn't regarded as being something of a cop out to allow it to do just that. Please watch it. Please share it. The campaign - by Plan UK - launches today with this short film made by Marmalade Film & Media.
125 million girls and women the world over are living with the consequences of being cut. Plan’s Because I am a Girl campaign has so far reached 58 million girls worldwide and its projects in Africa and Asia have proved that knowledge of the harmful impact of Female Genital Mutilation as well as an understanding how it is linked to discrimination against women and girls can help to end it.
And we can help too.
Please share.
July 13, 2014
It's childcare, Jim...
It was 58 years ago today that Dr Benjamin Spock (no, not that one!) published his landmark book, 'The Common Sense Book of Baby and Childcare'.
It was an instant success: in the first six months it sold over half a million copies and has been selling ever since. It was blamed by various preachers and politicians for the permissive society, political unrest and paternalism, as well as other crimes that don't begin with 'p'.
But all he did - and in a reassuringly conversational tone - was to tell parents to trust their own instincts and to put the child first. It's pretty standard stuff today (although his views on some things, such as placing sleeping babies on their front, have since been proved to be bad advice). The book still sells well (at the time of Spock's death in 1998 over 500 million copies... if only my modest efforts in the genre could match that!). It has been translated into almost 40 languages and - aside from the Bible - is the biggest-selling US book of the twentieth century.
I wish...
Prior to Spock the main approaches to childcare tended to ignore children's emotional needs and usually followed a rigid timetable (two years and a day? Time for potty training!) That most parents (and parenting authors) now appreciate that children develop at different rates and have important emotional needs is largely thanks to Spock.
It's childcare, Jim, but not as we knew it.
It was an instant success: in the first six months it sold over half a million copies and has been selling ever since. It was blamed by various preachers and politicians for the permissive society, political unrest and paternalism, as well as other crimes that don't begin with 'p'.
But all he did - and in a reassuringly conversational tone - was to tell parents to trust their own instincts and to put the child first. It's pretty standard stuff today (although his views on some things, such as placing sleeping babies on their front, have since been proved to be bad advice). The book still sells well (at the time of Spock's death in 1998 over 500 million copies... if only my modest efforts in the genre could match that!). It has been translated into almost 40 languages and - aside from the Bible - is the biggest-selling US book of the twentieth century.
I wish...
Prior to Spock the main approaches to childcare tended to ignore children's emotional needs and usually followed a rigid timetable (two years and a day? Time for potty training!) That most parents (and parenting authors) now appreciate that children develop at different rates and have important emotional needs is largely thanks to Spock.
It's childcare, Jim, but not as we knew it.
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July 9, 2014
Win a family pass to Lollibop!
Build it, paint it, climb it…. LolliBop, the UK’s biggest kids festival, is back!
We went for the first time last year, when the event was held at the Olympic Park, and loved it. This year's festival for the under 10s takes place at Hatfield House, August 15-17 and the all star line-up includes some of the hottest names in children's entertainment including Justin Fletcher, Mr Bloom, Mister Maker, Lazy Town and Sam & Mark on the main stage, plus live shows from Chris & Pui, Postman Pat, Scooby-Doo, Swashbuckle & many more.
Creative kids will love the new 'Join In with Southbank Centre' area with plenty of dress up, make and take and workshops. We also have a brand new active zone with footballing from Tottenham Hotspur, baby ballet, an old fashioned sports day and martial arts. Other highlights include Bear Grylls Survival Academy, LolliKitchen, LolliBooks and special areas featuring Thomas & Friends, a Disney Silent Disco & Skylanders Trap Team.
Hatfield House is easily accessible by road, or rail, just 20 mins from London Kings Cross and has ample parking on site. The whole programme is for the under 10s and tickets are on sale now priced £20.00pp http://www.lollibopfestival.co.uk/
We’ve got one family pass (four tickets) to give away to this brilliant festival. Entry is via the Rafflecopter widget below and the deadline is next Tuesday, July 15th.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Terms & Conditions · The competition closes at 12:00am on Tuesday 15th July 2014 · We have one family pass to giveaway. Each pass admits 4 people, one person in the group must be aged over 18 (NB children under the age of 12 months do not require a ticket) · The winning family can attend on the day of their choice, either August 15, or August 16 or August 17. The date must be specified at time of confirming the prize · Travel and accommodation are not included · The prize is non-refundable and no cash alternative will be offered - The prize is non transferable and ID will be required at time of collecting the ticket wristband upon arrival - The prize includes all events and activities at LolliBop but not food and drink from any stalls or bar.
We went for the first time last year, when the event was held at the Olympic Park, and loved it. This year's festival for the under 10s takes place at Hatfield House, August 15-17 and the all star line-up includes some of the hottest names in children's entertainment including Justin Fletcher, Mr Bloom, Mister Maker, Lazy Town and Sam & Mark on the main stage, plus live shows from Chris & Pui, Postman Pat, Scooby-Doo, Swashbuckle & many more.
Creative kids will love the new 'Join In with Southbank Centre' area with plenty of dress up, make and take and workshops. We also have a brand new active zone with footballing from Tottenham Hotspur, baby ballet, an old fashioned sports day and martial arts. Other highlights include Bear Grylls Survival Academy, LolliKitchen, LolliBooks and special areas featuring Thomas & Friends, a Disney Silent Disco & Skylanders Trap Team.
Hatfield House is easily accessible by road, or rail, just 20 mins from London Kings Cross and has ample parking on site. The whole programme is for the under 10s and tickets are on sale now priced £20.00pp http://www.lollibopfestival.co.uk/
We’ve got one family pass (four tickets) to give away to this brilliant festival. Entry is via the Rafflecopter widget below and the deadline is next Tuesday, July 15th.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Terms & Conditions · The competition closes at 12:00am on Tuesday 15th July 2014 · We have one family pass to giveaway. Each pass admits 4 people, one person in the group must be aged over 18 (NB children under the age of 12 months do not require a ticket) · The winning family can attend on the day of their choice, either August 15, or August 16 or August 17. The date must be specified at time of confirming the prize · Travel and accommodation are not included · The prize is non-refundable and no cash alternative will be offered - The prize is non transferable and ID will be required at time of collecting the ticket wristband upon arrival - The prize includes all events and activities at LolliBop but not food and drink from any stalls or bar.
July 6, 2014
Win Burts Crisps River Cottage EPA hamper
Ok, so England’s chances in this year’s World Cup have been dashed, Andy Murray's out of Wimbledon, England lost the test series to Sri Lanka and the British Grand Prix will probably be won by an ex-Fin driving a German car.
Fear not, as you can still enjoy the summers remaining sporting spectacles whilst snacking on a pack Burts Chips and drinking some thirst-quenching River Cottage EPA brews. The sport's fan pack includes a large sharing bag of Guinness Rich Chilli Beef, Sea Salted and Vintage Cheddar and Spring Onion variety crisps, two bottles of River Cottage EPA and Burts Chips branded beer mats for the ultimate in sporting sustenance.
To enter, all you have to do is enter via the Rafflecopter widget below, sit back, and wait (whilst dreaming of those wonderful crisps and that lovely, golden ale...)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Fear not, as you can still enjoy the summers remaining sporting spectacles whilst snacking on a pack Burts Chips and drinking some thirst-quenching River Cottage EPA brews. The sport's fan pack includes a large sharing bag of Guinness Rich Chilli Beef, Sea Salted and Vintage Cheddar and Spring Onion variety crisps, two bottles of River Cottage EPA and Burts Chips branded beer mats for the ultimate in sporting sustenance.
To enter, all you have to do is enter via the Rafflecopter widget below, sit back, and wait (whilst dreaming of those wonderful crisps and that lovely, golden ale...)
a Rafflecopter giveaway
LEAPFROG UNVEILS NEW LEAPPAD™3 AND LEAPPAD™ ULTRA XDi
Billed as 'the perfect tablets for kids' and 'Sleeker, faster and packed with more features than ever before' the soon-to-be-launched LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra Xdi promise - just like their predecessors - to be kid safe, kid tough and kid smart. Here's the press release in full:
LONDON, UK, June 24, 2014 — LeapFrog, the leader in educational entertainment, today unveiled the latest additions to the award-winning line of LeapPad™ tablets, LeapPad™3 and LeapPad™ Ultra XDi.
Both tablets focus on the key qualities parents are looking for in their child’s first tablet experience: access to hundreds of top-quality educational apps, books, games and videos, highly durable construction and incredibly safe web browsing straight out of the box. LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi provide access to LeapFrog’s Learning Library of world-class games and apps designed or approved by LeapFrog’s team of learning experts. Plus, with features like shatter-safe screens to the most kid-appropriate web experience through the LeapSearch™ browsing tool, LeapPad tablets offer the perfect first tablet experiences for kids.
LeapPad3 is the fastest, highest-performance five-inch tablet ever from LeapFrog. With kid-safe web, Wi-Fi and a new capacitive touchscreen, LeapPad3 is the perfect combination of performance, durability and safety. LeapPad3 has 4GB of memory - enough to store 20,000 photos – as well as two mega-pixel front and back cameras and video recorders, and a built-in lithium ion rechargeable battery so the exploration and creativity never ends.
Parents also have the choice to go large with the LeapPad Ultra XDi, LeapFrog’s seven-inch Wi-Fi tablet. LeapPad Ultra XDi builds on the success of the award-wining LeapPad Ultra which was recognised as one of the must-have Christmas toys for kids among top retailers in 2013. LeapPad Ultra XDi offers the ultimate multimedia experience kids and parents want with a high-resolution touch screen, 8GB of memory - enough to store 40,000 photos - and access to hundreds of downloadable apps. LeapPad Ultra XDi also includes front and back mega-pixel cameras and video recorders, a rechargeable lithium ion battery and an on-board MP3 player so kids’ music is right at their fingertips.
“Parents searching for their child’s first tablet are confronted with many choices that say they are designed for kids or have access to a library of ‘educator-endorsed’ content. However, on closer inspection these tablets may be fun but lack the essential deliverables parents are looking for in a safe educational experience for their child,” said Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos, director of LeapFrog’s Learning Team. “LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi offer parents the perfect introductory tablets that are high-performing, and have access to a kid-safe web experience designed for a child to explore their passions and interests along with a learning library of high-quality games and apps. Parents can feel confident that when they hand their child a LeapFrog tablet, whether a LeapPad3 or LeapPad Ultra XDi, they are providing the perfect first tablet experience designed for kids – full of learning and packed with fun.”
Since pioneering the children’s tablet category in 2011, LeapFrog’s award-winning LeapPad tablets have received more than 40 accolades from parenting and industry organisations, and been recognised by retailers’ as a top must-have for Christmas.
The Best Educational Content
LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi tablets provide access to LeapFrog’s Learning Library of more than 700 games, apps, eBooks, videos, music and more all designed or approved by LeapFrog’s team of gaming and learning experts. LeapFrog is the only children’s tablet maker to employ a full-time in-house team of learning experts, all with PhDs in various specialties including education, child development and educational psychology. LeapFrog games draw from 2,600 skills across core subjects like reading, maths, science and creativity, and seamlessly blend LeapFrog’s comprehensive curriculum into age-appropriate gameplay and videos that keep children learning. With LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi, every child can learn and play in a way that is appropriate for them. Select games in the LeapFrog Learning Library personalise the learning to each child, automatically adjusting the level for just the right challenge.
Super Kid-Safe
LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi learning tablets have been designed specifically for kids. With built-in Wi-Fi and LeapSearch™, powered by Zui™, a kid-friendly web environment of videos, games and more that have been pre-screened by LeapFrog’s learning experts, parents can rest assured every web-based content experience is safe and age-appropriate. LeapSearch is an innovative browsing tool that allows kids, including those that are not yet reading, to explore web content in an easy and safe way by categorising content based on topics.
LeapPad tablets are also equipped with safe wireless peer-to-peer chat and gameplay. Children with LeapPad3 or LeapPad Ultra XDi tablets can play together using the included Pet Chat and Pet Pad Party apps, or extend the fun with multiplayer games such as LeapFrog Kart Racing, Roly Poly World, Arturo's Bug Adventures and Go Gopher Go apps (sold separately).
Kid-Tough Design
Built kid-tough with special impact zones to insulate and protect the tablet, LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi have been thoroughly drop tested, impact tested and compression tested in LeapFrog’s Quality Lab to ensure that it not only keeps functioning, but remains safe for a child as they play on their tablet. The shatter-safe screen prevents glass from coming loose and is sealed with a silicone gasket for extra energy absorption for worry-free fun at home or on the go.
Availability
LeapPad3 (RRP £89.99, for children 3-9 years old) will be available in green and pink and LeapPad Ultra XDi (RRP £119.99, for children 3-9 years old) will be available in green and pink online and at major UK retail locations on 28 July 2014. For more information, visit http://www.leapfrog.com/en-gb/product....
LONDON, UK, June 24, 2014 — LeapFrog, the leader in educational entertainment, today unveiled the latest additions to the award-winning line of LeapPad™ tablets, LeapPad™3 and LeapPad™ Ultra XDi.
Both tablets focus on the key qualities parents are looking for in their child’s first tablet experience: access to hundreds of top-quality educational apps, books, games and videos, highly durable construction and incredibly safe web browsing straight out of the box. LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi provide access to LeapFrog’s Learning Library of world-class games and apps designed or approved by LeapFrog’s team of learning experts. Plus, with features like shatter-safe screens to the most kid-appropriate web experience through the LeapSearch™ browsing tool, LeapPad tablets offer the perfect first tablet experiences for kids.
LeapPad3 is the fastest, highest-performance five-inch tablet ever from LeapFrog. With kid-safe web, Wi-Fi and a new capacitive touchscreen, LeapPad3 is the perfect combination of performance, durability and safety. LeapPad3 has 4GB of memory - enough to store 20,000 photos – as well as two mega-pixel front and back cameras and video recorders, and a built-in lithium ion rechargeable battery so the exploration and creativity never ends.
Parents also have the choice to go large with the LeapPad Ultra XDi, LeapFrog’s seven-inch Wi-Fi tablet. LeapPad Ultra XDi builds on the success of the award-wining LeapPad Ultra which was recognised as one of the must-have Christmas toys for kids among top retailers in 2013. LeapPad Ultra XDi offers the ultimate multimedia experience kids and parents want with a high-resolution touch screen, 8GB of memory - enough to store 40,000 photos - and access to hundreds of downloadable apps. LeapPad Ultra XDi also includes front and back mega-pixel cameras and video recorders, a rechargeable lithium ion battery and an on-board MP3 player so kids’ music is right at their fingertips.
“Parents searching for their child’s first tablet are confronted with many choices that say they are designed for kids or have access to a library of ‘educator-endorsed’ content. However, on closer inspection these tablets may be fun but lack the essential deliverables parents are looking for in a safe educational experience for their child,” said Dr. Jody Sherman LeVos, director of LeapFrog’s Learning Team. “LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi offer parents the perfect introductory tablets that are high-performing, and have access to a kid-safe web experience designed for a child to explore their passions and interests along with a learning library of high-quality games and apps. Parents can feel confident that when they hand their child a LeapFrog tablet, whether a LeapPad3 or LeapPad Ultra XDi, they are providing the perfect first tablet experience designed for kids – full of learning and packed with fun.”
Since pioneering the children’s tablet category in 2011, LeapFrog’s award-winning LeapPad tablets have received more than 40 accolades from parenting and industry organisations, and been recognised by retailers’ as a top must-have for Christmas.
The Best Educational Content
LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi tablets provide access to LeapFrog’s Learning Library of more than 700 games, apps, eBooks, videos, music and more all designed or approved by LeapFrog’s team of gaming and learning experts. LeapFrog is the only children’s tablet maker to employ a full-time in-house team of learning experts, all with PhDs in various specialties including education, child development and educational psychology. LeapFrog games draw from 2,600 skills across core subjects like reading, maths, science and creativity, and seamlessly blend LeapFrog’s comprehensive curriculum into age-appropriate gameplay and videos that keep children learning. With LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi, every child can learn and play in a way that is appropriate for them. Select games in the LeapFrog Learning Library personalise the learning to each child, automatically adjusting the level for just the right challenge.
Super Kid-Safe
LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi learning tablets have been designed specifically for kids. With built-in Wi-Fi and LeapSearch™, powered by Zui™, a kid-friendly web environment of videos, games and more that have been pre-screened by LeapFrog’s learning experts, parents can rest assured every web-based content experience is safe and age-appropriate. LeapSearch is an innovative browsing tool that allows kids, including those that are not yet reading, to explore web content in an easy and safe way by categorising content based on topics.
LeapPad tablets are also equipped with safe wireless peer-to-peer chat and gameplay. Children with LeapPad3 or LeapPad Ultra XDi tablets can play together using the included Pet Chat and Pet Pad Party apps, or extend the fun with multiplayer games such as LeapFrog Kart Racing, Roly Poly World, Arturo's Bug Adventures and Go Gopher Go apps (sold separately).
Kid-Tough Design
Built kid-tough with special impact zones to insulate and protect the tablet, LeapPad3 and LeapPad Ultra XDi have been thoroughly drop tested, impact tested and compression tested in LeapFrog’s Quality Lab to ensure that it not only keeps functioning, but remains safe for a child as they play on their tablet. The shatter-safe screen prevents glass from coming loose and is sealed with a silicone gasket for extra energy absorption for worry-free fun at home or on the go.
Availability
LeapPad3 (RRP £89.99, for children 3-9 years old) will be available in green and pink and LeapPad Ultra XDi (RRP £119.99, for children 3-9 years old) will be available in green and pink online and at major UK retail locations on 28 July 2014. For more information, visit http://www.leapfrog.com/en-gb/product....
July 4, 2014
Smile!
Be quick! Today's the day. It's the barbecue summer.
Apologies to those not living in the south and east of England but believe me, we've had our share of rain this year as well as storm and tempest, fire and flood.
Now, I don't know about you but I'm rather good at barbecuing... I can do all manner of meat and usually do it quite well and - furthermore - nobody's yet been poisoned.
But... what do you do with it, to accompany the meat? Salad, yes. Of course. (Except I personally can't stand it.) Bread, yes - necessary: how else to eat those burgers and to make those hot dogs. Then what?
I'm at a loss. Which is where these limited edition McCain Roasted Garlic wedges come in. Made from specially selected potatoes and boasting an on-trend roasted garlic taste for added flavour they're a perfect addition to any barbecue.
Don't they look good? And believe me, they taste good too!
But that’s not all!
Don't worry if it rains. Because courtesy of McCain you can still put a smile on your little one's face - literally - thanks to the latest offer on packs of McCain Smiles and McCain Mini Jackets.
By entering two unique codes, from special packs, and visiting www.smilesonplates.co.uk you can upload a photograph of your choice to be printed on one of a range of hardwearing melamine plates, bowls, cups or coasters. Perfect for your children’s teatime place setting.
The exclusive on-pack offer is available now... BUT! (It gets better) I also happen to have a couple of codes to give away, giving two lucky readers a head-start. Simply enter using the rafflecopter thingumy below. Usual rules apply.
And if you can, and whether you've barbecuing or not, enjoy the weather.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Apologies to those not living in the south and east of England but believe me, we've had our share of rain this year as well as storm and tempest, fire and flood.
Now, I don't know about you but I'm rather good at barbecuing... I can do all manner of meat and usually do it quite well and - furthermore - nobody's yet been poisoned.
But... what do you do with it, to accompany the meat? Salad, yes. Of course. (Except I personally can't stand it.) Bread, yes - necessary: how else to eat those burgers and to make those hot dogs. Then what?
I'm at a loss. Which is where these limited edition McCain Roasted Garlic wedges come in. Made from specially selected potatoes and boasting an on-trend roasted garlic taste for added flavour they're a perfect addition to any barbecue.
Don't they look good? And believe me, they taste good too!
But that’s not all!
Don't worry if it rains. Because courtesy of McCain you can still put a smile on your little one's face - literally - thanks to the latest offer on packs of McCain Smiles and McCain Mini Jackets.
By entering two unique codes, from special packs, and visiting www.smilesonplates.co.uk you can upload a photograph of your choice to be printed on one of a range of hardwearing melamine plates, bowls, cups or coasters. Perfect for your children’s teatime place setting.
The exclusive on-pack offer is available now... BUT! (It gets better) I also happen to have a couple of codes to give away, giving two lucky readers a head-start. Simply enter using the rafflecopter thingumy below. Usual rules apply.
And if you can, and whether you've barbecuing or not, enjoy the weather.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
