Money Reviews

Created by a volunteer math aide in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Moneywise Kids contains two simple, fun games that will help kids understand how money works, in terms of dollar value and spending power. In the first game, Bill Maker, kids take turns rolling the dice and earning dollars that are commensurate with the numbers that come up: roll a 2 and a 6, for instance, and you get $8. As they accrue wealth with each turn, players exchange smaller bills for larger ones until someone winds up with $100. In the second game, Bill Breaker, each player starts with $100 and earns more money with each turn, but players must also draw "moneywise markers"--bills for such real-life expenses as food, medical care, and taxes--and make payments along the way. And watch out for those hard-luck chips that mean big bills. The player who collects all six markers and still has $100 in savings is the winner. The game is lively and only lightly competitive, with an accent on grasping the mysteries of dollars and cents. --Tom Keogh

Well-designed with lots of terrific detail, Learning Resources' Calculator Cash Register completely satisfies a young child's hunger to play with bills, coins, cash drawers, and big numbers. The chiming cash register features a built-in solar calculator as its keypad, thus allowing kids to act as bankers, shopkeepers, and accountants all at once. A large cash drawer holds life-sized bills in four denominations (1, 5, 10, and 20), and four coin holders make room for embossed plastic pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters. There is even a credit card slot that dings when you correctly slide the faux VISA card through it. A suggested-activities booklet is included. Requires a 1.5V button cell battery (included) to make the chiming noise. No assembly required. Winner of awards from Dr. Toy, FamilyFun Magazine, and Oppenheim Toy Portfolio.

Searching for new thrills in your pursuit of pure capitalist success? If you can limit at least some of your ambitions to a board game, you're in luck. Monopoly is here, and with integrated Internet connectivity, you can now challenge other Monopolists worldwide.

The classic game--updated for the PC--still gives you all the satisfaction of being the proprietor of Park Place and Boardwalk. It also lets you weasel your way out of jail with a thin excuse for a card in your (virtual) hands. Keeping to the visual appeal of its 1930s characters, the software also boasts animated versions of favorite board pieces.

While Monopoly is obviously a strong choice for a family of players, don't kid yourself that you'll beat the game every time in solo play. If you're not paying close attention, the package's superior A.I. engine is likely to see that you'll wind up broke. This is a rare success story of a classic game that makes the jump to a new medium. The creators of Monopoly deserve a firm handshake and slap on the back, and a big roll of funny paper money. --Jennifer Buckendorff

The Barbie Shop With Me Cash Register proves once again that Barbie is the coolest. Made durably and in Barb's trademark colors (pink, hot pink, purple, white, etc.), this is a sleek number that can be operated on the floor, bed, or tabletop. It features four realistic ways to buy noodles, yogurt, and toilet paper. Option 1: A "clerk"--either a child or Barbie--scans the bar codes of included price tags. Option 2: You can manually input the price of items. Option 3: Items may be scrolled down the register. Option 4, which is, by the way, your humble writer's favorite: Make up your own prices! Get "Barbie Discounts" when you use your savings debit card. The Barbie register comes with a slew of accessories, including 18 scannable price tags, play money, play credit/debit cards, a keypad, built-in microphone, and a 120-item shopping catalogue offering everything from Barbie-brand jeans to junk food. The machine features a high-tech hand-held scanner and LCD on the register, which shows a customer's subtotal, item number, unit price, and total. You get everything but a receipt. Hmmm.

A built-in microphone allows your child to make store announcements and call for price checks and item voids. This heightens the interaction this toy was built for, since Barbie's voice simulates the real shopping experience enough already. "Cash or charge?" she asks in a perky tone. Tip: If you don't pay up at once with your Barbie greenbacks or American Express-like credit card, you'll be harassed. We writers found ourselves fumbling through our own wallets, trolling for coupons. Barbie prompts the shopper throughout the entire process ("Seventeen dollars and twelve cents... No... seventeen dollars and TWELVE cents."). And parents--there's no volume control. If you just happen to sneak a play while your kid's eating lunch, well... everybody in the house will hear if your card is over the limit. Just kidding. But it's best to use Barbie's credit cards anyway. This kind of hectic shopping experience makes adults really appreciate the online shopping experience, but kids will love it so much they'll forget it's just a pretend play toy. Register comes with all accessories, manufacturer's warranty, a real grocery store coupon for a kid's treat, and the four required AA batteries. --Diane Beall

Everything costs, and the monsters in this funny LeapPad story prove it. They have to figure out how much coinage it'll take to buy their favorite pet, and your child will help. LeapPad's multisensory, experiential interface makes kids--even those just getting used to school--want to count as well as big kids can. With Monster Money, kids see, hear, say, and touch throughout the story, retaining new information, and enhancing learned information, like counting, adding, currency, values, and more. The book teaches early math skills in a thoughtful, preoperational learning format that kids will think is fun, not work.

It's simple to use (just insert the cartridge and book into a LeapPad, and use the attached stylus to hear information), but this system is an innovative technology that provides entertaining, effective learning, designed by a Stanford-trained reading expert. As well, the system has been credited with the TMA's Educational Toy of the Year and People's Choice awards.

Two notes: Make sure the LeapPad book you get is appropriate for the child's educational level; this one should be a challenge for kids up to age 6. As well, know that some LeapBooks work on both LeapPad and LeapPad Pro, like this one, but some books only work with one system. --Diane Beall