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Hands-On Learning Fun with Osmo – Review

Learning can be done in so many different ways thanks to technology. Devices are now giving a helping hand to kids to improve skills various areas they would learn at school. Osmo is a system that brings hands-on learning to kids with the use of a device. Osmo asked my family if we would like to try a system out to see if we could have hands-on learning fun. We were really excited to see what we could discover with this system!

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Osmo Genius Starter Kit boxed.

How is Hands-On Learning fun with Osmo?

The Osmo Play System is combines digital gameplay with physical interaction for children to experience fun and learning. The twelve games they have available teach creativity, computer science, and drawing. Users must have either a compatible iPad or Fire tablet to use this system (we received a system compatible for the iPad for this review).

Below are the products we received from Osmo:

  • Osmo Genius Starter Kit (compatible with iPad and Fire Tablet)
  • Coding Jam
Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Osmo Genius Starter Kit and Coding Jams game boxed.

Getting the learning off to a “genius” start

There are a lot of fun kids can have with Osmo’s Genius Play System. There are five games kids can get lost in fun playing while learning. These games are Tangram, Words, Newton, Masterpiece, and Numbers. 

Each game helps children to gain new skills or improve upon learning skills. What is interesting about this kit is that Osmo is able to see and react to your child’s real-life moves. A great feature of this system is how kids are rewarded for completing games. It is cute and amusing, encouraging kids to want to keep learning through play.

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Osmo Genius Starter Kit items.

Hands-on spatial and visual learning

Getting kids aware of how shapes can be manipulated in different ways is important for learning. Tangram from Osmo helps to improve on this skill in a tangible way. Kids move around seven shapes into different configurations to create fun images.

My daughter had a ball manoeuvering these shapes around. The mirror above the playing surface helped the system let my girl know if she was getting close to putting the pieces in the right spot and when she had successfully put each image together.

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Tangram game.

Word learning at its funnest

My girl is great at reading words, but she could use a bit of assistance when it comes to spelling them. The Words game is a great tool to help her improve on spelling, as well as her vocabulary.

The games my daughter played were really fun. The system helped her to begin to recognize how words are formed. She was then tested by racing Uncle Fred to spell different words with the tiles. I liked that the system was able to recognize whether tiles were in the way or if they were the incorrect ones in a word. It allowed her to focus on spelling the words faster.

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Words game.

Physics fun for children

Newton brings fun to learning the basics of physics for kids. Users have to guide bouncing balls falling on the screen to a drop in a specific area. The game becomes more difficult as you progress and when you include objects like the Osmo Tangram shapes. A download of this game onto your device is required before playing

The Osmo Pad may be used (not included in the Genius Starter Kit), or any blank white surface such as a sheet of paper or cardstock. We found this game to be interesting. As my daughter moved the lines by erasing the lines, she was able to redirect the balls on the screen. It is a wild game to play!

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Newton game.

Getting your numbers in order

Math is an area I would love for my kids to become better at. Numbers is a math game that helps kids improve their counting skills using number and dice tiles.

My daughter loves swooshing the number tiles underneath the mirror to get the correct number combinations or to complete equations. I loved how the system could see if the tiles my girl used were the right ones. She has a blast playing this games.

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Number game.

Drawing fun at hand

Drawing past time for my daughter. She loves to create pictures for stories she dreams up or for presents to gift to our family. Masterpiece is a game that allows users to learn how to draw pictures by having images as lines to trace. A download of this game onto your device is required before playing.

This is my daughter’s favourite game to play! She traced the lines of many images to create works of art she could colour in. The cutest part of this game is seeing a video of her creating a work of art in a time lapsed video she is able to share with loved ones. We have to peel her away from the tablet to get her to stop playing this game.

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Masterpiece game.

Dance to the coding

Coding is an area of learning my daughter is excited about jumping into. Coding Jams helps to broaden the learning fun! This game is separate from the Little Genius Starter Kit and is sold separately. Users can compose their own arrangements using Osmo’s Building Blocks into patterns and sequences. 

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Coding Jams game boxed.

Coding Jams is a perfect game for my little one to play! She got right into putting some of the blocks together to create cute arrangements and dance moves to play out. My daughter could play with this game all day! She really loves seeing the results of her coding on the screen. It is really fun to see!

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Girl playing Coding Jams.

Learning hands-on fun kids will love

My daughter is constantly asking to go on our tablet after using our Osmo Play System to improve her learning skills! Each game challenges and entertains her while having objects give her hands-on learning. We love how intuitive the system is to give her assistance when she needs it. The rewards and little extras engage my daughter to want to keep learning through play. It was a great early gift for my family to receive as an early holiday gift!

Hands-On Learning Fun with OsmoPin
Hands-On Learning Fun with Osmo

Are you curious to find out more about Osmo? I visited their website to discover more ways to learn and play! We also are following Osmo on their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube pages to find out what’s happening with this great product!

Disclaimer: I received the Osmo Genius Starter Kit and Coding Jam from Osmo to write this review. The views I share are my own.

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Comments

  1. I’m sure that my grandson would love this but I’m not participating since I’ll be gone soon, a shame but that’s now it is.

  2. My daughter would love learning from them all, but the one I would be most happy to have her learn from is the Numbers game – she needs a little help with math, and something fun like this would be beneficial.

  3. My son would love osmo! He is on the autism spectrum and loves blocks. I could easily see this becoming a new favourite toy!

  4. Elijah would enjoy Explore the world of Disney with Osmo Super Studio! What child doesn’t love everything Disney!!!

  5. I love the coding game. My oldest son is very interested to code different games, even I am not sure, if he likes more game part rather than coding itself 🙂

  6. My younger grandchildren would enjoy the Hands-on Play with Numbers. It would be a fun way for them to learn addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.

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