Review: Leapfrog Scribble and Write

Arlo has loved every single LeapFrog toy that he’s had. They are noisy and challenging – two factors that Arlo really likes in a toy.

One consistent trend I’ve found with LeapFrog toys is that they are quite instructional – Press this button. Clap your hands. Sing along with the song, etc. Arlo can’t get enough of this. LeapFrog definitely strike the right chord with his thirst for learning and being taught.

The Scribble and Write follows this same method of instructional learning. “Draw a line. Now press the red button. When you are finished, swipe the slider to erase”. When Arlo draws the number 3, he is encouraged to clap his hands three times.

The concept is very simple – you select a letter of number to draw, follow the direction of the flashing lights with the pen until you have successfully drawn the letter/number. There are two difficulty modes – at the moment the easier level is more than enough for Arlo (who turned 3 last month).

The screen is the same as a Magnadoodle, so no dealing with real pens and messy ink. The Scribble and Write is a great size to use as a travel toy.

We’ve had the Scribble and Write for just over a week and it’s been played with every day. (He’s actually playing with it as I write this up, and has been showing it off to all visitors to the house last week). Arlo seems to really like having his own personal teaching aid, and I can tell that he thinks the idea of learning to write is pretty special.

It’s hard for me to tell how effective the Scribble and Write is at actually helping young children practise writing letters and numbers – is Arlo too sidetracked by the flashing lights and talking to actually commit the symbols he is drawing to memory? It is impossible to tell at this stage. But I do think it is helping muscle memory, getting him used to holding and operating a pen, and getting him excited about the concept of learning to write – which, at just 3 years old, is all I would want for him. I’m sure the actual learning to write will follow naturally over the next year or two.

I’m not very keen on the thick plastic cord that attaches the stylus to the pad. It can make it tricky to hold the pen in certain positions. A more flexible cord would allow for a greater range of movement.

There is no freestyle mode where you can write without having to follow the instructions, but I guess this is easy enough to do if you just don’t turn the scribble and write on.

I was pleasantly surprised at the price of the Scribble and Write. I was expecting the RRP to be at least £5 more expensive. A £15.99 price tag makes the LeapFrog Scribble and Write great value as a gift and as a present for your own child.