Kasey the Kinderbot

Kasey the Kinderbot is an educational toy learning system designed, developed, and sold by Fisher-Price, a wholly owned division of the Mattel Corporation, nominated for the Educational Toy of the Year award in 2002.[1] Because of its strong commercial sales, Kasey was reported as an important item in the balance sheet of Fisher-Price.

Kasey the Kinderbot
TypeEducational toy
Inventor(s)Michael J. Freeman
CompanyFisher-Price
CountryUS
Availability2002–present
Official website

Fisher-Price marketed Kasey the Kinderbot (robot) as able to teach 40 skills required for pre-school-readiness[2] and built learning skills by teaching kids to look at things in new ways.[3]

History

In 2002 Fisher-Price introduced the Kasey the Kinderbot (pictured center) Educational line of toys that was capable of teaching 40 learning skills to pre-schoolers including basic math, reading, and science.[4] "Kasey, which speaks English, Spanish, and French was Fischer-Price's first preschool electronic learning aid, a category of toys that has ballooned in recent years as parents scramble to give their children an edge well before they enter preschool".[4] Kasey has moving eyes, head, waist, arms and hands all of which are coordinated to its voice and LCD display screen. According to Fisher-Price Kasey incorporated the use of a special learning circuit for reinforcement and education.[5]

In 2004, Fetch the Phonicsbot was introduced for phonetics education, and Toby the Totbot was introduced for younger children.[6][7]

When initially introduced in 2002 Kasey had 8 programs planned. These were released over a period of 18 months starting mid-2002 till December 2003.[7]

Kasey is an updated version of the 2-XL Robot both within the "smart toy" genre.[8]

In start, Kasey had a smaller number of programs as compared to 2-XL as they were more complex to develop. Where 2-XL programs only had to coordinate audio tracks for each button response, the programs for Kasey had to coordinate the Kasey voice with respective button responses in addition to the lights, movement, the LCD screen animation and menus, etc.[7]

These programs are color-coded as per their category. These include, red for Languages, green for Science, blue for Math and yellow for Reading. Introductory cartridge that is included with Kasey labeled "Kasey the Kinderbot" is purple. The introductory program stored directly in Kasey. This allows Kasey to go to the default program as the introductory one in case the cartridge slot is left empty.[7]

Kasey teaches forty different learning skills.[2] The line was expanded in 2004 with the introduction of Fetch to concentrate on teaching phonics, and Toby to educate younger children. Both toys expanded the Kasey the Kinderbot line and had lower price points. Kasey was reported as an important item in the balance sheet of Fisher-Price because of its strong commercial sales.

Kasey was based on an interactive robot concept licensed from American educator, CEO and inventor Michael J. Freeman. Freeman, was the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer (CEO) of ACTV Inc.[9][10]

Kasey the Kinderbot won the Oppenheim Gold Seal award for 2003, Best Toys of 2002 from Parents Magazine, Best of 2002 from Nick Jr. Magazine, among other awards and recognitions.[11][12]

Educational programs

The Kasey educational programs were digital cartridges:[7]

  • Languages: French (2002)
  • Languages: Spanish (2002)
  • Math: Addition & More (2003)
  • Math: Numbers & Counting (2003)
  • Reading: Focus on Phonics (2003)
  • Reading: Words & Sentences (2003)
  • Science: Living Things (2002)
  • Science: Wonderful World (2002)
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See also

References
  1. Inc., Toy Industry Association. "2002 TOTY Winners". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  2. "Toy Fair 2002 New Products: F - I - Gifts & Dec". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  3. Pearson, Steve (February 8, 2002). "Toy Trends". CBS News.
  4. "Learning Can Be Fun, At Least for the Makers Of Electronic Toys". The New York Times. 27 November 2002. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  5. "Mattel and Fisher-Price Customer Service". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  6. Scott, Sharon M. (2009). "Robots". Toys and American Culture: An Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p. 264. ISBN 978-0-313-34799-3.
  7. "World of 2-XL: Kasey the Kinderbot". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  8. "General Information". 12 March 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  9. "Liberty Media and ACTV in Web TV Deal". The New York Times. April 15, 2000.
  10. Kipps, Charles (August 2, 1989). "Advanced widescreen tube unveiled; NEC, Sarnoff, Thomson show ACTV". digitalcollections.library.cmu.edu. Variety.
  11. Inc., Toy Industry Association. "2002 TOTY Winners". Retrieved 1 January 2017.
  12. "Fisher-Price Reports Strong Retail Sales For Kasey The KinderbotTM". Fisher-Price press release from November 27, 2002. Retrieved August 4, 2017.
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