Hooked on Phonics Teams with Zizzle on Tech Toys

Say "Hooked on Phonics", and toddlers to seniors will recognize the successful program that has helped kids learn to read by phonetically deciphering words. The company is 20 years old this year, and is celebrating its anniversary in part by entering the educational electronic toy market, where it will compete with the likes of VTech and LeapFrog to win adults' educational toy dollars.

Zizzle, the Chicago-based toymaker, has teamed with Hooked on Phonics to create seven tech learning toys, ranging in price from $13 to $60. There are three Smart Sticks ($13 each)—letters and sounds, bilingual numbers, and bilingual colors and shapes (Spanish and English.) I've been playing with the bilingual numbers and the letters and sounds Smart Sticks. They are easy to hold in little hands, and the colorful plastic letters and numbers are easy to see and push for little fingers.

There's no breakthrough on the small, 1 ¼-inch LED screen; the simple black graphics are what you'd expect. But the voices and pictures are clear, and there are four games kids (ages 2+) can play to learn numbers, letter sounds, and colors and shapes. On the bilingual Smart Sticks, a simple switch at the bottom of the contoured handheld toy flips between English and Spanish.

The other toys in the line include:

• Musical Letter Twist ($20) - A carry-along toy that puts music to learning letter sounds.

• Phonics Word Master ($20) - With a full alphabet keyboard, this larger lap toy employs the Hooked on Phonics curriculum to teach beginning reading through letter names, sounds, and beginning spelling.

• Touch Screen Learner ($30) - This has the look of a kiddie PDA and has the largest LCD screen. It's a touchscreen and kids can use an attached pen to play the letters and sounds games.

• Get Ready to Read Activity System ($60) - The largest and busiest toy in the lineup, it has a keyboard, mouse, and three interactive books that help teach letter names and sounds, beginning spelling, rhyming, colors, and animals.

"This is all based on curriculum that works and is proven and parents look to that number one trusted brand," Zizzle CEO Roger Shiffman says of the Hooked on Phonics toy line, which is available at all major toy retailers.

If you live in one of ten major U.S. cities, you may be able to try out the toys should you come across the Hooked on Phonics Hop Across America bus, which begins its tour today in New York City.