As I have mentioned a few times before, I am a long-time fan of Highlights and their magazines. It started when I was a child. I clearly remember being excited whenever I would see the latest issue of Highlights magazine in a waiting room. I would devour it from cover to cover. Now, my son has the chance to fall in love with them. For the past several months, he has been receiving their Puzzle Buzz magazine and loves them! And now we have been lucky enough to receive an issue of Highlights’ Which Way USA subscription. (Note: I have to tell you that we received this in exchange for an honest review, but the subscription is really so awesome that I would have recommended this even if it weren’t given to me.)
What is it?
Which Way USA is a pretty awesome geography-based puzzle book club. Highlights has created a product that makes use of print materials AND digital activities, making it perfectly adaptable for just about anyone! It gets kids involved in our nation’s geography by giving kids the chance to explore the 50 states at a nice pace of two states each month.
Your child will join two young adventurers- a boy named Tripp Wilson and a girl named Scout Sanchez (see what they did there – trip and scout?)- in a race across the United States. Along the way, they visit famous cities, parks, museums, zoos, and landmark. Your child collects points by completing the activities, and these points add up to help Tripp and Scout win.
They explore the states through fun activities in their puzzle books as well as online. There’s even a fun competitive aspect to it as they compete against a comical collection of characters. They get to pick their team and their opponents and then see who has the sharpest puzzle skills. It is a fantastic and fun learning tool. And that, to me, is the best of both worlds. I firmly believe that kids learn the most when you make the subject fun and interesting. Which Way USA does both!
The puzzles are great and your kids can get some hints from the state map. Also, the answers are in the back of each book, so if they can’t figure it out, then they do have the option of looking the answer up – which helps to teach them something new in addition to reinforcing what they already know. Score!
Here is a quick one minute video about Which Way USA
Who is it for?
This book club is designed for ages 6-12. However, there are activities in there that my 4 year old was able to do and enjoy. He really loves puzzles and there are a lot of them in the activity books. He also loved pouring over the maps as I read out facts to him. I personally think that this is a great product for homeschoolers and for any child that wants or needs to learn about state geography, but wants to learn in an interactive and fun way. You get a new set each month and each one includes two states, so you can easily spend 2 weeks at a time learning about all of the U.S. states. It would be a great way to supplement any other geography-based activities or lessons they are learning in school, at home, or on their own.
What comes in it?
Every 4 weeks, you will receive a new shipment of Which Way USA that includes:
? Two 32-page state books and accompanying full color state maps
? Access codes for exclusive online play at WhichWayUSA.com
?Collectible state license plate tags
?Bonus Game Guide and Key Tag ring with first shipment
Sorry about my craptastic picture, guys! My computer decided to reformat my SD cards, and now my camera no longer recognizes them. This pictures is courtesy of my not so awesome webcam. I will upload better pictures for you guys later. 🙂
How did you and Christian like it?
Christian and I give this two thumbs up. Each! Christian loved going through the activity book and doing as many of the activities as he could. He also was really intrigued by the state maps, pointing things out as I read the facts aloud. Just as an FYI as far as the state maps, one side is a colorful, illustrated map of the state that includes fun facts and general info about the state (capital, flag, state bird, state motto, major cities and their populations, historical highlights, famous people, etc). On the back are pictures of some of the famous landmarks with fun, fact-filled commentary from Tripp and Scout.
I loved the wide variety of different puzzles that they offer. Some of the puzzle types are:
?Hidden Pictures (Christian loves these)
?Mazes (He loves these even more)
?What’s Wrong (He thinks these are hilarious)
?Word Searches
?Matching (he enjoyed these as well, though they were a bit more complicated than the ones he is used to)
?Scrambled Words
?Coded Messages
?Number Puzzles
?Logic Puzzles
?Word Puzzles
?Quizzes
The digital experience is also really fun and engaging. You or your child can set up their account. Don’t worry, they have to provide an adult’s email address to complete the process and are advised NOT to use their real name as their username. They even even set you up with a parent account to manage your child’s account. I thought that was a nice touch considering the dangers of the internet. After that, your child can pick their team and their opponents. Then the games begin!
Why should I buy it?
Well, as your child completes the challenges, they will benefit in a variety of ways:
?It will boost their confidence when they get answers right.
?It will reinforce and give them plenty of opportunities to practice important school and life skills, such as problem-solving, reasoning, analytical, reading, spelling, logic, concentration, math, attention to detail, visual perception, following directions, and decision making.
?It will build their knowledge of state geography.
?It will introduce them to map reading and give them a chance to practice (boy, I wish I had learned that skill. My knowledge doesn’t go very much past knowing the difference between north, south, east, and west, lol!)
In addition to all of this, there are even more benefits:
?The maps are useful beyond Which Way USA. They can keep them for reference as they progress through school.
?You don’t have to do the puzzles all in one day. Between the print and digital activities, you could easily stretch it out over a couple of weeks.
?If you have more than one child, they can work together on the puzzles, so it can be a group activity.
Again…
Where can I buy it?
Are you as convinced as I am that this is a fantastic learning tool? Do you want to place an order for the kids in your life? If so, check out the offer below!
Offer Details
FREE State Set, PLUS a Game Guide and Key-Tag Ring, with your first shipment!
- Receive 2 State Sets about every four weeks
- First shipment: $6.95, plus $2.45 shipping and handling
- Subsequent shipments of 2 State Sets each: $6.95 per set plus $2.45 shipping and handling
- Your credit card will be conveniently charged with each shipment
- You may cancel at any time and your satisfaction is guaranteed
Ready to order? Swing on over here!
To order by phone call 1-800-962-3661
How do I get updates on other products?
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