REVIEW: ROMAN TOWN: THE PREMIERE ARCHAEOLOGY INTERACTIVE COMPUTER GAME FOR KIDS (CD)

ROMAN TOWN: The Premiere Archeology Interactive Computer Game For Kids (CD) 

Website:  HERE

 Ages:  K-6th grade

Cost: $39 (COUPON CODE: TOS2011, but you only have until February 21, 2011 ACT FAST!)

I say: Fun game for elementary children!

I received a download of Roman Town by Dig It! Games as a reviewer for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Crew review team in exchange for my honest opinions without monetary compensation. My opinions are my own.

We're one of those families that must be weird because we never had a game system~we didn't need one~we have our computers! It all began years ago, almost twenty in fact when that first computer came into our house, and they've never left~WE LOVE THEM~and today the computer is our communication, our schooling, our working AND OUR FUN~We LOVE computer GAMES!



Roman Town is an interactive computer game for children with colorful animated pictures that provide interest and fun to learn about ancient Rome after the eruption of Mt Vesuvius in A.D 79.  It features different games that can be played and all increase the knowledge of artifacts related to that period of history.  Wish that I had this when my kids were much younger. I will say that as teens, Roman Town is no challenge for them, but I can see that a child who has pretty good reading skills such as about 3rd grade although a younger child would enjoy pieces of it such as the dig part where the tools and workers are employed.  There is a good bit of reading required, and I'm afraid that a child who would enjoy the types of skills employed in this game system would find it too difficult to really enjoy the FULL educational value because they couldn't read the words, but an older child who could depending upon their games knowledge/skill just might not like it so much. While I like the animation, there is little multimedia effect in it~it just moves some...I'd like to have seen MORE! 



I played these games in my version of this system and found that it was challenging especially the 3-D puzzles and 2-D puzzles and the matching, but again if a child isn't a reader, while they would like the colorful graphics and appeal of the these kinds of activities, the reading ability and amount would most likely frustrate that same child. I had such a child with low reading ability who was average and above in other skills, but the challenge to find engaging activities that also increased knowledge was pretty difficult, just like finding good solid easy to read story plots in literature. Imagine teaching a teen to read with Dick and Jane!  Soo while I like the features of the information provided, the colorfulness of the program and that the content is addressed to the child in a fun storyline, I have doubts about ALL that reading.  But don't get me wrong, the information is good and informative. I would have liked to have seen a timer on the puzzles or some other kinds of challenges built in~dunno what would make it more interactive, but for a child old enough to do all the reading, it might not hold his attention for very long. For the younger child, the eye hand coordination will be worked well in using the mouse or touch screen with these games and if an adult or an older sib will help with the reading it will be a good fit.

All in all, wish Roman Town had been available just a few years ago with my kids~they would have loved it b/c they were soo into archeology at that time and dug up our back yard~woot!

The CREW is reviewing Roman Town and don't just take my word for it~Head             to ck them out!