We were recently asked if we wanted to receive a copy of the new Twinkl original book Ronald the Rhino. Both my kids have already read the Twinkl original stories – Acorns and Bump into Space and enjoyed both of them so I thought a book copy of one of their original stories might be nice. I had no idea about the AR APP or how it would transform reading the book for my kids. I did not realize that by downloading a FREE App the kids would be able to see the animals in 3D (Yip you read that correct – you hold your device facing the book and Ronald and his friends come alive).
As you can probably guess the App was a massive hit with both my kids and yes I will admit it the adults in the house may have also played around with the App. The App works on the pages that have the blue square at the bottom (works on both the book and the eBook and Twinkl are planning on creating more resources that work with the App – we are waiting not very patiently for that – my kids are desperate for more). “It really is cool” – direct quote for one of the kids. My youngest (6 years old) did not want to put the book down. He read and reread the story just so he could use the App. And the story had some new tricky words for him so it was brilliant practice. He loved playing around with the App, getting the Rhino to move onto his feet or trying to get it go upside down – I am sure you can imagine.
The App is amazing and it is without a doubt a massive winner but the actual Ronald the Rhino story is also really sweet (you can also download it as an eBook – currently FREE to download). It is a lovely story about a Rhino who thinks everyone else has better qualities than he does. Luckily he has two lovely friends, Leopard and Snake who adore him and help him realise that he is unique and amazing just the way he is. It is a lovely story about accepting and appreciating how everyone is different.
It is well written with lots of rhyming words (my kids actually noticed the rhyming when they read the book and we had a chat about what makes them rhyme). And true to Twinkl’s style they have created a lovely rhyming poem activity which is perfect to use with the book.
It was the first time my youngest has ever tried to create his own poem and we loved the way they had set it out. He really got the hang of it (possibly a little too well as he is now trying to turn everything into rhyming sentences and I mean EVERYTHING).
We also loved the thought bubble resource
Really great for encouraging young writers. We are actually cutting ours out and using it to create our own mini-ronald-the-rhino-book.
My oldest is currently in a crossword craze so she also had a go at the crossword and the word search.
So yes the App in amazing and we LOVED it – and I really do mean LOVED the APP. But it is not the only good thing. The story itself is a winner and the kids are chuffed that they now have their own copy of the story on their bookshelf. And I have once again been impressed with the lovely story based resources that Twinkl have created for the story.
Twinkl did send me a free copy of the book in return for my review – all thoughts and opinions are my own. The book is part of the new Twinkl Book Club which they are rolling out (part of an add-on package or part of the Twinkl ultimate package and can also be bought from the Twinkl store for £3.59).
Please note prices and packages mentioned are valid at time of me writing this (if you have queries about the different packages please email Twinkl directly)
ofamily learning together 
We absolutely love this book too! Did your kids try “picking up” Ronald with their hands? If you angle carefully, you can just about get him to bounce on your hand! lol x
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