In Word World, set in a lush landscape filled with funny barnyard animals, the messages are clearer: because each animal is graphically spelled out, kids can watch as the letters P-I-G form that porcine creature. Even the scenery gets in on the act- a barn, a tree, a splash in the lake. When animals take time to build a word (always a moment of great expectation and jubilation), you can actually witness the little wheels working in the viewers' heads. After just one viewing, a 4-year-old who's always struggled with her letters volunteered to spell a new word: B-O-X. Presents don't get any better than that. --Entertainment Weekly**GOLD AWARD, PARENT'S CHOICE AWARDS 2008** Seven animated animals are the main inhabitants of Word World,where words come to life. Showing pre-readers how individual letters make sounds, and the sounds combine to make words, are Dog, Frog, Bear, Pig, Sheep, Duck, and Bug, whose bodies are made up of the letters that spell their names. In WordWorld, a house is shaped like (and from)the letters H-o-u-s-e, and the barn is shaped like its spelling-even a sand dune is made of yellow brown letters that spell DUNE. The amount of thought and detail that is in each episode means there is always something to watch for on repeated viewings, even when the initial lesson of each episode has been learned. A definite must see for family or preschool viewing. --Parent's Choice Awards