Zingo! 1-2-3
Build early math skills with ThinkFun's newest game, Zingo! 1-2-3.
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Contact the ThinkFun Education Department
Tanya Thompson, Director of Education Programs
tthompson@thinkfun.com
Charlotte Fixler, Education and Curriculum Specialist
cfixler@thinkfun.com
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Introducing Zingo! 1-2-3, Plus GNU Improvements to Two ThinkFun Favorites
Charlotte Fixler is the Education and Curriculum Specialist at ThinkFun Inc.
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With its fast-paced game play, Zingo! 1-2-3 makes number learning fun.
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I am thrilled to share exciting developments in our family of early learning games!
First up is the release of Zingo! 1-2-3! Designed to build number sense and early math skills, Zingo! 1-2-3 provides an entirely new challenge from the language arts-based Zingo!
We Heard You!
Over the years we've gotten loads of suggestions from parents, teachers, and kids for ways to improve our Zingo! and What's GNU? games, and we've listened! Last year, we went through massive amounts of feedback and found several recurring themes. To share a few:
"Make Zingo! tiles double-sided!"
"Loading the tiles back into the Zinger is a pain"
"What's GNU? is too tough for the youngest players"
"There is often no way to make a word in What's GNU?"
"Word Cards everywhere make this overwhelming for my 5 year old!"
Using these suggestions and more, the product development team explored all possible updates. Having tested countless prototypes and ideas firsthand, I can confidently say that the refreshed versions of these two games are greatly improved as a result! Updates include:
Zingo!
- Double-sided tiles!
- Easy reload slots let players pop tiles in the Zinger as they play! No more tiles on the floor and clean up is a snap!
- New tile and image distribution means a winner every time!
- Instructions feature new options for game play!
- 2-sided cards offer distinct levels of play. For beginners, the green side is less competitive. Image distribution on red cards means more competitive play, and players must be quick to have a shot at victory!
What's GNU?
- 2 levels of play! Early readers use green cards feature 2 printed letters and fill 1 missing sound to complete a word. Advanced players use the red side and fill in 2 letter sounds.
- New letter distribution for maximum word building opportunities!
- New rules for younger players make the game less overwhelming, and instructions offer numerous game variations!
- Red vowels highlight spelling patterns
See these "GNU" updates for yourself in our online What's Gnu game.
For these and all products, making sure we get things exactly right is about the truth of the game play itself. Obviously packaging, graphics, etc. are important, but the most stunning box means nothing if the game inside doesn't inspire players to stretch their thinking! This commitment to ensuring every game is not only as fun as possible, but also genuinely fosters the development of thinking skills, that drives our rigorous testing process conducted "in the field" (aka classroom!) by yours truly!
As you can see, your feedback drives the development (and re-development) of everything we do, so ideas and comments are always welcome — please feel free to email me anytime!
And finally, a huge thank you to the many teachers and students who tested these new games!
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