Baby Newton: All About Shapes

Learning the names of and differentiating among shapes is considered “core curriculum” for preschoolers, and this charming production--which combines computer animation, live-action puppetry, and film of “real world” objects to illustrate five basic shapes: circles, squares, triangles, rectangles, and ovals--fits the educational bill nicely. Wordlessly hosted by a computer-generated clown comprised of the featured shapes, the visuals are accompanied by the “Baby Einstein Music Box Orchestra” (soft synthesizer music) playing excerpts from Vivialdi's “The Four Seasons,” while a fun and funky Motown-style song called “I Know My Shapes” is added for fun. My only (minor) quibble concerned the film clips for the “oval” section, where showing a jellyfish from a certain angle is misleading, since they are really round (why not show true oval shaped examples, such as eyes, or a bulldozer's track, or a football stadium?). One small complaint aside, this is highly recommended for public libraries and preschools. Aud: K, P. (R. Reagan)