Not long after my 4-year-old son began doing book reviews on my blog (the best part of this blog, according to some), he had an idea.
“I know, Dad. We could review a toy! We could review a yo-yo!”
I emailed the folks at Duncan, not sure if there even is such a thing as a “review copy” of a toy, but, lo and behold, we got a yo-yo in the mail this week. Below, my 4-year-old son reviews it. Before we could profitably use it, we shortened the string, using this video to guide us, although the packaging did include instructions for that. Here’s my 4-year-old son now, in order of his observations as he played with it:
I’m not really good at using a yo-yo because I just learned.
In response to his two-year-old brother’s “Is it mine?” “Nope, not yours. It’s mine. So don’t play with it.”
I don’t think I can do it, Daddy. This is too hard for me. It’s good! But I don’t really know how to use it yet.
It’s a good knocker. It’s a good yo-yo.
I’ll tell you how it works. You roll it up, once you already use it first, and all we have to do is just get it up to your hands and pull it down and then bring it back up. That’s the end. That’s it.
(Later) It’s really easy to use.
(Later later) I can’t really do it! This knocker’s not very easy. I got to go to bed. Good night!
The folks who gave us a yo-yo for review (thanks!) emphasized that it’s for ages six and up. I see the wisdom in their age recommendation. Perhaps when “my 4-year-old son” becomes “my 6-year-old son,” we can have another go. For now, he’s finding other ways of having fun with the yo-yo, racing through the house and dragging it behind him.
UPDATE, three days later: See his original artwork (a yo-yo) here.
Words on the Word 