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Parent Guide &
Instructions
Make Reading Skills Click in Ways That Stick!
Combining active tile play with memorable animated learning activities, the WORDLAUNCH™ system
launches children on a learn-to-read carnival adventure that teaches through sight, sound and touch.
Thirteen learning activities quickly move children from identifying letter names and sounds to building
and reading four-letter words!
GETTING STARTED
Installing the Batteries
Note: Batteries are small objects. Replacement of batteries must be done by adults.
Make sure the unit is turned off.
Locate the battery cover on the bottom of the main unit.
Using a Phillips screwdriver, loosen the screw on the battery compartment to remove the battery cover.
Insert 4 AA (called LR6 in some countries) alkaline batteries, following the polarity (+/-) diagram in the
battery compartment.
Replace the battery cover.
Tighten the screw.
Connecting the WORDLAUNCH Learning System
Make sure both your TV and your WORDLAUNCH system are turned off. Connect the base unit to the
TV by plugging the white and yellow cables on the unit into the matching color/colour video and audio
input jacks on your TV set. Turn on your TV and your WORDLAUNCH system.
For TVs without audio/video inputs outside of North America: Connect the included SCART connector
or Euro-connector to the SCART input on the TV. Plug the colored/coloured cables on the unit into the
matching video (yellow) and audio (white) input jacks on the SCART connector. Set the TV to video mode.
GETTING READY TO PLAY
Turn on the system by sliding the On/Off switch to the On position.
Multiplayer
At startup, your child will be given the option of playing alone or with a friend. In two-player games,
players take turns to see who can build the most words.
Sign In
The WORDLAUNCH system will store the game information of up to three players. Each time a player
signs in, the system will remember the number of words he or she has successfully spelled, the number
of gold tokens earned, the rollercoaster created and the level that the player has reached in each game.
This enables children to return automatically to the level where they left off—and to show you how many
words are on their ‘life list’ of every word they’ve learned!
Welcome to WORDLAUNCH!
Round 1
Players are asked to identify and place letters in the Word
Machine by either their names or sounds. As letters are
added, animated letters appear in the bumper cars on screen.
When the fi nal letter in a CVC word has been added, your
child can hit the Whammy button to see the bumper cars
bump the letters together to form words.
Bonus Round
Your child’s goal is to collect as many gold tokens as possible
before the time runs out! Players drive one of the bumper cars
using the Whammy button as a gas pedal. If another car gets
in the way, players have to release the Whammy button to avoid bumping the other car—or get bounced
back to the beginning!
Round 2
Speed round! When your child hears a word, he or she must fi nd the bumper car with that word printed
on its side and press the Whammy button to win a token.
Level 2: Whirly Word Cups
Combining Consonants
In the second level, children learn to build and read four-letter
words with beginning or ending consonant blends.
Round 1
Players are encouraged to identify and place letters in the
Word Machine by either their names or sounds. As letters are
added, animated letters appear in the whirly cups on screen.
When all four letters have been added, your child can hit
the Whammy button to see the whirly cups spin the letters
together, creating a dizzily blended-together word.
Bonus Round
Four whirly cups whirl as carnival music plays! Players have to hit the Whammy button as soon as the
music ends to stop the spinning cups. If the button is hit in time, a gold token pops out of one of the
cups. If the button is hit too late or too early, your child will see a silly animation instead!
Round 2
Speed round! When your child hears a word, he or she must fi nd the cup with the right word written on
it. When the right cup slows to a stop, your child can press the Whammy button to win a token!
Level 3: Magic Silent
E
Show
Long and Short Vowels
The third level teaches long and short vowels by showing
your child what happens when a silent
e
is added to the end
of a word.
Round 1
Players are encouraged to identify and place letters in the
Word Machine by either their names or sounds. As letters are
added, animated letters appear on stage. Once the magic
silent
e
has been added, your child can hit the Whammy
button to see the magic show. Letters will say their sounds,
and then in a poof of magic dust, silent
e
will transform the vowel sound and the word!
Bonus Round
Players must hit the Whammy button each time they hear the cymbal crash. A rabbit will hop out of the
magician’s hat and grab a gold coin!
Round 2
Speed round! When your child hears a word, he or she must look for the right spelling in magic clouds of
sparkly dust and press the Whammy button to win a token!
1. Follow the on-screen instructions to sign in.
2. To add a new player, choose the star on the Sign In screen.
3. To remove or replace a player, choose the X on the Sign In screen. This option is only available when
all three player spots are being used.
Level and Game Selection
As your child advances through each level, the WORDLAUNCH system will automatically track his or
her progress and adjust the pace within each game to keep your child engaged. Players can return
to their favorite/favourite games or try new challenges by simply selecting a carnival location from the
Game Selection screen.
The fi rst time your child plays, you may want to help select the activity that represents the appropriate
learning challenge. There are four options on the Game Selection screen:
HOW TO PLAY
In each game level, your child can choose between Game mode and Explore mode.
Game Mode
The Game mode includes two curricular learning rounds separated by a bonus mini-game. In the fi rst
round, your child is asked to fi nd letters by either their names or their sounds, and to use them to build
three- or four-letter words. Round 2 is a “speed round” that reinforces the curriculum learned in Round 1.
In between, players are rewarded with a fun, fast-action mini-game in which they can win gold tokens to
build their very own rollercoaster.
Explore Mode
Explore mode encourages your child to practice/practise building words. Your child can add one to four
letters of his or her choosing and hit the Whammy button to hear them sounded out. If the word is on the
recognized list of 2000+ age-appropriate words, your child’s Word Count score increases by one. If the
word is a nonsense word, the WORDLAUNCH system sounds it out and rewards your child’s creativity
with an animation.
Build-A-Coaster
Players can go to the Build-A-Coaster area at any time to buy loops, climbs, dips and more speedy
tracks using the gold tokens they’ve earned. Each time they add a segment, they can send a car
careening around their very own coaster creation!
LEARNING LEVELS
Level 1: Bumper Cars
Blending Sounds into Words
Understanding that words are made of individual sounds, and that sounds are represented by letters, is
an essential step in learning to read. The fi rst learning level helps children sound out and build simple
consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) words.
All images in this Parent Guide are representative of gameplay only and do not refl ect actual screen pixelation.
Play 13
carnival-themed
activities and
learn essential
reading skills.
Organize/organise
and store the letters
in the alphabet tray.
Place letters in the
smart-reader slots to
build 3- and 4-letter words.
On/Off switch on
back of product.
www.leapfrog.com
Bumper Cars
(Level 1)
Whirly Word
Cups
(Level 2)
The Magic Silent
E
Show
(Level 3)
Build-A-Coaster
Reward Game
Use the up and
down arrows to
navigate the game
screens.
32 letters include
a
to
z
, plus extra
e
,
o
,
l
,
m
,
d
and
p
, so you can spell
words like
mom/mum
and
dad!
Press the Whammy
button to launch your
answer to the TV. The
letters will animate to
build a word!
Pause the game.
