Learning Resources GeoSafari® Jr Talking Space Explorer Review
DISCLOSURE – THIS ITEM WAS GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW. ALL THOUGHTS AND OPINIONS ARE THE REVIEWER’S OWN.
Reviewed by Jenna Farmer
Learning Resources® UK | Educational Toys & Learning Games for Kids
The perfect gift for your space lover.
We are big space lovers in our household, with a four year old that loves nothing more than to talk about planets and the solar system. We’ve read planet books and watched TV shows on the topic, but we’ve been looking for something to take my son’s love of all things space to the next level, so we were so excited to receive this GeoSafari Jr Talking Space explorer.
This telescope isn’t designed for your little one to gaze into the night sky, instead it’s created in collaboration with scientists to educate, entertain and inspire your space lovers. Through easy to navigate instructions and buttons, young astronomers can flick through a wide range (in fact, more than 120) images and videos of space, as well as listen to a plethora of facts or answer quiz questions about the planets and beyond in quiz mode. It’s all voiced by Emily Calandrelli, the star of Netflix’s ‘Emily’s Wonder Lab’, an educational programme to help make science fun, who narrates fascinating facts and quiz questions, creating an ultimate show-and-tell experience all about space. It says 4 upwards, and I think this is the kind of product which will grow and grow with a child. I have a 7 year old niece who I know would also really enjoy using this and the range of modes and facts about space means it has a wide range of potential fans!
We were really excited to unbox the talking space explorer, and it only took a few minutes to set up. We simply needed to screw on the legs and add our own AA batteries (3 are required) and we were ready to roll. Your child simply needs to look through the two holes to the talking space explorer screen and then select which mode (such as facts or quiz) and topic you want to use (such as galaxies, cosmic events and the solar system). Scroll along with the chunky left and right arrows. If a button isn’t touched for a minute or two the device will tell you it’s ‘taking a rest’ and then ask if you’re still there before finally switching itself off. It’s really durable and well made, meaning you could even use it in the garden in summer months, and you don’t need to worry about heavy hands, like you may with a regular telescope!
Initially, it did take some prompting to get my son focused and looking through the two eye slots but he was soon engaged with the telescope and learned a lot. This device would be particularly good for home schooling, or just educating children in the wonders of science and our solar system in a different way to traditional books. Whilst my son spent 10-15 minutes at a time playing with this, I can easily see this occupying him for much longer as he gets older and his thirst for science knowledge continues.
The GeoSafari Jr Talking Space Explorer is a fun, interactive and educational toy that will inspire your child to want to learn more about the stars, galaxies, planets and more for years to come.
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £100
This product can be purchased from Learning Resources here.