Dora and ballet – could there be a more perfect combination for a four year old ballet fan? We saw the adverts last week at my in laws and my daughter got so excited, not realising that we don’t have access to Nick Jr. So I was really pleased to get hold of a review copy of Dora’s Ballet Adventure. My daughter watched this after a long week at school and it bridged the gap between dinner and bath time really nicely. Surprisingly the twins, who are 15 months also watched it.
The episode follows the traditional format with Dora having to find her ballet slippers in order to take part in her dance show, with the help of her map and backpack. Delivery Duck has delivered scuba flippers instead of ballet slippers – which prompted a discussion of rhyming words. The thing I like best about Dora is it encourages the little ones to join in rather than sitting passively, there was jumping like a rabbit, counting singing and dancing which we all performed together. The songs are really catchy and got all the girls dancing – after a couple of watches I’m sure we’ll be joining in too.
Dora is a good show to watch together as there are lots of things to talk about. We discussed which is left and right and why Dora sometimes speaks a different language, and why Boots smiles so much (he’s eaten lots of bananas apparently). There is a simple structure to the stories where Dora goes to three different venues. Although, this makes them less enjoyable for adult viewers, this is great for children who enjoy the repetition. This is reinforced at the end of each episode when the children are asked to recount their favourite part.
Episodes run all this week. Here is the schedule:
Today: 10.30 and 5pmSunday 2nd October 1pmMonday 3rd October 8.30am and 4.30pmTuesday 4th October 10amWednesday 5th October 2pmFriday 7th October 4.30 There are some great activities on the Nick Jr website – some fun games, crafts and colouring – all with a Dora, ballet theme.
Disclaimer: I received a review copy of the DVD. The views expressed in this review remain honest and impartial.