Bob the Builder underwear in sizes 2T-6 sit in my boys' dressers. The Let's Count! with Bob the Builder
For awhile we had Bob the Builder in our Season Pass for the TiVo, but the Cat only watched one episode over and over and over again, which was the one in which Mrs Barbara Bentley creates a train room for her husband, the building inspector Mr. Bernard Bentley. The Cat loved the electric trains depicted (and of course Bob's cat Pilchard,) but I was a bit annoyed with Mrs. Bentley's submissive comments like, "Oh, I don't know, Bernard doesn't let me touch the trains..." But as Bob's business partner is Wendy, a woman, I guess I cannot delve into a whole gender-issue thing here. Besides, that isn't the point of this post...
Everyone seems to know about Bob. When the Cat was a toddler, my teenager cousins asked him if he was into Bob. "Can we fix it?" they asked, and answered with a smile, "Yes, we can!"
Spliggle may have watched a couple episodes, but he became addicted to other shows instead.
Both boys haven't been into Bob recently.
I wondered if that would change upon review of Bob the Builder: On-Site - Roads and Bridges
I agreed to review the hour-long DVD because I knew how Bob and his machines are a positive force for teamwork and can-do confidence. I was curious as to how the live-action would play into Bob's usual plotlines and morals.
When I first put on Bob the Builder: On-Site - Roads and Bridges
I didn't switch the DVD.
Splig started reading a book instead. After we picked up the Cat from school, he immediately became mesmerized. He asked for it over and over again. Soon, Spliggle become interested, too. He started asking for Bob instead of Barney. When I cued it up to see it myself (as I had been hearing it only, as the DVD player is behind my shoulder in the van and it isn't exactly safe for the driver to watch DVDs,) Spliggle came up immediately. "Oh! You watching Bob? I LOVE Bob! I want to see it! It will be so fun!"
Bob the Builder: On-Site - Roads and Bridges
Bob explains the different types of machines needed for each job and the basic process that needs to be followed for each job. Bob's characters are used as reference ("Tumbler is a special truck that pours concrete!") but then the real-life examples reinforces what the animation is meant to depict. ("Here's a cement truck. It is white but it looks a lot like Tumbler!")
Although the instruction is definitely educational, Bob's voice is friendly and upbeat. The background music is soothing. It isn't a typical "we have to learn something" set-up. There is enough "action" involved that the kids forget they are learning. For the littlest viewers, this DVD probably will be about the action-only; for older kids, they could come away from this DVD with a basic understanding of how roads and bridges are built (and why.)
The Cat explains that his favorite part is "The Little Truck" segment where the stages of building a road are reinforced: the poor little truck wants to drive on the road, but it hasn't been built yet. After Bob narrates the different stages of building the road and his machines complete the work, the little truck can finally use the road. But that happens after the over-enthusiastic truck sticks in the mud and bumps to exhaustion during the initial stages of the project.
In the end, both boys give Bob the Builder: On-Site - Roads and Bridges
Bob the Builder: On-Site - Roads and Bridges can be found at amazon.com
Posted by Karianna on February 15, 2008 12:28 AM
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