Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper

System: Nintendo 3DS Release date: 12/09/2014

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Video: Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper

Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper on Nintendo 3DS and 2DS will help your child build their English vocabulary through fun exercises in reading, writing and speaking, and is based on the Oxford University Press books, Floppy’s Phonics: Sound and Letters.

Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper is a study series on Nintendo 3DS and 2DS to help children practise their letters and sounds, and has been designed especially for younger children and their parents or guardians to use together.

The software will help your child build their English vocabulary through fun exercises in reading, writing and speaking, and is based on the Oxford Reading Tree series, Floppy’s Phonics. These books use the synthetic phonics method to introduce all the sounds of the English language, and centre around the beloved characters Biff, Chip and Kipper, as well as Floppy the dog. Oxford Reading Tree is used in more than 138 countries worldwide, and now via the many fun and intuitive features of Nintendo 3DS and 2DS, it is presented in a more interactive way than ever before!

There are three volumes in this software series, all of which use the same phonics method as the books on which they’re based. There are eight levels of increasing difficulty and each software volume covers several of these levels, containing the equivalent of over 30 Oxford Reading Tree textbooks!

Vol. 1 (Levels 1, 1+ and 2)

At Level 1 children focus on the sounds they hear around them in daily life – at school, at home, in the park or in town.

Levels 1+ and 2 move onto practising the actual sounds (phonemes) and also start to introduce some alternative spellings of certain sounds.

Vol. 2 (Levels 3 and 4)

In Level 3 children continue practising new sounds and are introduced to more alternative spellings of certain sounds.

Level 4 revises all the sounds already introduced, before moving onto further alternative spellings as well as different pronunciations.

Vol. 3 (Levels 5, 5M and 6)

By Levels 5 and 5M children put together their knowledge of all the alternative spellings and pronunciations they have learnt so far. The exercises help children reinforce the link between sounds and the different ways they can be written.

At Level 6 the emphasis is on increasing your child’s confidence and fluency through reading a range of Non-Fiction books.

As a parent or guardian, actively sharing the experience will help your child engage with the software. You will be able to track their development, offering support if they have questions, or demonstrate challenging sounds as they advance in their studies.

The title comes packaged with a useful guide for parents which contains detailed information on how the software works, and provides helpful tips on how to help your child get the most out of it.

_{Please note: this software does not support 3D images.}

This description was provided by the publisher.

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In the case of games that use cloud streaming technology, a free launcher application or demo can be downloaded.

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In the case of games that use cloud streaming technology, a free launcher application or demo can be downloaded.

Please make sure you have enough storage to complete the download.

The details of the offer are displayed based on the country settings of your Nintendo Account.

The Nintendo Account Agreement applies to the purchase of this content.

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© IE Institute Co., Ltd. Illustrations © Alex Brychta 2014 The characters in this work are the original creation of Roderick Hunt and Alex Brychta who retain copyright in the characters. Trademarks are property of their respective owners.

The Synthetic Phonics Method

Oxford Reading Tree holds an unrivalled position in early years learning. Millions of children have learnt to read with Biff, Chip and Kipper, with approximately four-fifths of schools in the UK using the series and a readership that spans 138 countries.

Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper on Nintendo 3DS and 2DS uses the Oxford Reading Tree series, Floppy’s Phonics. This step-by-step synthetic phonics method was designed by educational experts, and will help familiarise your child with the letters and sounds they need to read and write English.

Using this approach, each letter sound (phoneme) is introduced so your child can practise putting them together to form complete words. For example, with the word ‘fish’, they will say each sound from left to right and then blend them together to form the word:

Some sounds are made from two or more letters, such as ‘sh’ or ‘th’. There are around 44 'phonemes' in the English language which are represented in writing by different letters or letter combinations, called ‘graphemes’. The Floppy’s Phonics programme covers all these sounds and letters.

Learning Exercises

The software series is divided into three different volumes, and each one covers several different reading levels to help your child learn their letters and sounds in an easy and natural way, while still providing a challenge. At each level, your child will listen, record and write using the fun, interactive features of their Nintendo 3DS or 2DS. As they progress they’ll earn rewards that encourage them to achieve more, such as a Stamp Book and Vocabulary Cards. They can even share their development with other players through StreetPass!

Exercise Categories

There are four exercise categories in Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper:

Sounds and Letters

Look & Listen (Levels 1 to 5M)

Look & Listen builds connections between sounds and images. Your child will look at a picture, then tap the Touch Screen to hear the word. At later levels, showing the word written alongside the picture and sound builds links between spelling patterns and sounds.

Listen & Tap (Level 1)

This exercise practises the sounds learnt during Look & Listen by asking your child to find the right sound in a picture scene from the Oxford Reading Tree series. It encourages your child to learn how every sound is related to an object, event or feeling.

Say the Sounds (Level 1) and Try Saying It (Levels 1+ to 5M)

In Say the Sounds, your child will have a go at repeating the sounds they have heard, developing their understanding of the sounds they hear every day. In Try Saying It your child practises pronouncing words with the sounds they have already learnt.

Same Sounds (Levels 1+ to 5M)

Same Sounds shows your child how the same sound appears in lots of different words, and that a sound can be spelt in different ways (for example rain and day). In higher levels, your child will also encounter two different sounds that are spelt in the same way (for example school and chef).

Listen & Write (Levels 1+ to 5M)

In Listen & Write your child will practise writing the sounds they have been hearing and saying by following the examples shown on the screen. Each time an example is written correctly, a tree on the top screen will grow a little.

Listen & Choose (Levels 1+ to 5M)

In this exercise your child will listen to a word and then search for the matching object in the picture. Listen & Choose offers a way of practising all the sounds and words in each book, before your child is ready to move on to the next book.

Fiction

Story Time (Levels 1+ to 5)

Now your child has practised all their sounds and letters, enjoy reading the exciting adventures of Biff, Chip, Kipper and Floppy! The story is read aloud, and your child can read along with the voiceover at their own pace.

Read Aloud (Levels 1+ to 5)

Read Aloud lets your child practise their reading skills by reading the story out loud, sentence by sentence.

Story Questions (Levels 1+ to 5)

Time for a little quiz about the story you and your child have just read! Questions about the story will appear on the top screen, and your child can answer by choosing one of the options on the Touch Screen.

Do You Remember?

Practise the key words from the story in Do You Remember? Your child must listen carefully to a word, and pick the right option from those shown on the Touch Screen.

Try Writing It (Levels 1+ to 5)

In this final exercise your child has to put together everything they have learnt about the correspondence between sounds and letters! Listen to a word, then use the stylus to write it on the Touch Screen, letter-by-letter.

Non-Fiction (Levels 1+ to 6)

The Non-Fiction books provide your child with an enjoyable and interesting way to learn more about the world and at the same time practise their reading skills.

Let’s Sing (Levels, 1, 3 and 5)

Increase your child’s confidence through entertaining songs. You and your child can choose to just listen, but singing along will certainly be more fun! You can also tap the instruments along to the music using the Touch Screen.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the role of the software?

Phonics Fun with Biff, Chip & Kipper teaches your child sounds, letters and words in English, building and expanding their vocabulary. It offers playful practise material that features beloved and approachable characters, with each book comprising multiple exercises that use many of the fun, interactive features of Nintendo 3DS and 2DS.

What are the benefits of the software for the child?

The software offers a fun and engaging way to learn from a young age (3-7) as your child uses their Nintendo 3DS or 2DS to listen, record, write, and sing. They can study at their own pace without the pressure of a traditional learning environment, and there are interactive exercises with motivating rewards, such as a Stamp Book, Vocabulary Cards and Rule Cards.

What are the benefits of the software for the parent?

As a fun way to study together with your child, Nintendo 3DS features support The Phonics Method, improving your child’s understanding of the relationship between visual information on the Nintendo 3DS screen, and audio information coming from the Nintendo 3DS speakers. Additionally, for non-native English speakers, studying together is a natural way to support your child, while improving your own skills.

The Phonics Method is widely supported and promoted by the UK government as the preferred method to learn English from an early age. It provides a structured study approach, with a gradual rise in learning level, which reflects the order of exercises in the Oxford Reading Tree book series.

Download version (Nintendo 3DS)

System

Nintendo 3DS (European version)

Release date

12/09/2014

Age rating

TBD

Languages

English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese

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