Sony, every baby team up for videos
Gerri Hunt -- Kids Today, 11/1/2005
New York— Sony Wonder has partnered with every baby co. to launch an innovative new learning system for infants.
"Eebee's adventures" is the result of the latest research on how babies learn. Rather than entertaining babies with bright colors and happy music, this collection of DVDs features real babies and parents and a puppet named eebee exploring everyday objects. It is shot from a baby's visual and developmental perspective.
From balls and blocks to containers and paper, the items used in the adventures are easy enough to find around the home, and are designed to encourage a baby's innate curiosity. And parents are able to gain insight into how and what their child is learning.
"While there are many infant videos that claim to be educational, we saw a need for a product that invites parents to have fun, [that] truly meets babies where they are developmentally, in a warm, playful and essentially human way, and [that] helps them to learn and grow together," said Stephen Gass, every baby president and "eebee's adventures" co-creator.
Gass created the eebee concept, along with educational expert Don Burton and a panel of advisors who specialize in early childhood development.
"Although listening to Mozart can be calming, and watching moving images drift across a screen might be mesmerizing, meaningful learning requires an actively engaged child," said Kathryn Hirsh-Pasek, eebee advisor and director of the Infant Language Laboratory at Temple University. "'Eebee's adventures' lets babies be babies... and recognizes that it's playing with ides, not memorizing them, that leads to understanding and growth."
The three DVDs in the collection target children ages 6 months to 2 years. They feature on-screen developmental tips, "play-by-play guides" and ideas for taking the adventures to the playroom floor.
In "Exploring Real Stuff," eebee and playmates explore a range of everyday objects. "All in a Day's Play" showcases the many teachable, unplanned and unscripted learning moments that fill a baby's day. And "Figuring Things Out" shows what happens when a child's newfound motor skills support natural curiosity and interest in making things work and achieving goals.
"Eebee's adventures" is initially being sold through amazon.com and SonyMusicStore.com, with a retail price around $12.50.
In November, they also became available on demand on Comcast as part of Select On Demand's Pre-K Kids channel; on Time Warner Cable as part of Oh! Baby and Kids on Demand; and nationwide on Kids Club, Mag Rack's on-demand television program for parents and their children.
The "eebee's adventures" series is shot from a baby's visual and developmental perspective.
