I’ve partnered with SAY Media and Microsoft on this campaign and in the hopes of opening a dialog around the concept of kids and computers (and more specific to me toddlers and slates/tablets) to allow brands to connect with audiences around their passions in environments where they’re spending time and opinions are being shaped. What’s the best way to connect with your kids using a slate? I felt the answer is simply based on the game play… while I feel that watching a video is pretty passive interactive game play will teach them a little knowledge how to get into the next level and hopefully their way around technology environment – what would you answer this question as? http://new.conversations.typepad.com/co014e8641a931970d/what-is-the-best-way-to-connect-with-your-kids-using-a-slate. Full disclosure this post was Sponsored by ASUS Windows Slate.
Dora is getting ready for her big dance show in Dora the Explorer: Dora’s Ballet Adventures, a compilation containing four of Dora’s dancing episodes. Help Dora as she moves and grooves to her way to Dance School to find herballet slippers before her recital begins. Later, Dora and Boots lead a musical parade, have a fun-filled fiesta and celebrate Boots’ birthday! Created by Nickelodeon Home Entertainment and distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment, Dora the Explorer: Dora’sBallet Adventures will be released on DVD exclusively at Target on Tuesday, February 20, 2011 for the suggested retail price of $16.99 but Target also offers it online.
Dora the Explorer: Dora’s Ballet Adventures Episode Synopses:
Dora’s Ballet Adventure
Dora’s dance class is getting ready for a special dance recital and her whole family’s there to watch her perform. They just need to wait for the Delivery Duck to deliver their ballet slippers. But the Delivery Duck brings scuba flippers instead of ballet slippers! Dora and Boots must get the slippers before the recital begins.
Dora, La Músico
C’mon and join the musical parade! Dora and Boots are leading a parranda over the Piano Bridge and through the Singing Gate to free the instruments that were locked up by the evil Señor Shhh!
The Super Silly Fiesta
Dora and Boots are invited to the Big Red Chicken’s Super Silly Fiesta where there will be silly snacks, silly games, silly hats and even silly dancing. But, the Big Red Chicken lost his party cake! Dora and Boots set off to save the fiesta. After searching forever, they find the cake in the silliest place Big Red Chicken could have left it – on his head!
Surprise
It’s Boots’ birthday! Dora tells him that all of his friends are waiting at her house to give Boots a big party. To reach Dora’s house, they’ll have to climb a long flight of Stairs and cross the Troll Bridge.
How to win it… Contest ends 11:59pm EST. February 28th, 2011.
2 Lucky people will win Dora’s Ballet Adventures DVD! Tell us your favorite character on Dora and please include some method for us to contact you in the comment (twitter or email).
You get 1 extra entry for tweeting about this contest (you can do this daily). Must contain the following information: @NickelodeonDVD @dadarocks – http://dad.tc/fplMsz and you must also comment with the link to your twitter message.
Example: I want to win the #Dora Ballet DVD from @dadarocks & @NickelodeonDVD – http://dad.tc/fplMsz
Invader Zim is back to take over the world and all its annoying inhabitants in an all-new DVD with Invader Zim: Operation Doom. This brand-new set is filled with the top rated episodes from America’s favorite wacky friends – Zim, Gir, Dib and Gaz. It picks up with a mission of doom that isn’t going quite as planned, so watch and see if Zim finally succeeds! This set is an excellent addition to the InvaderZim collections from the Emmy®- and Annie Award®-winning show. Created by Nickelodeon Home Entertainment and distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment, Invader Zim: Operation Doom comes out today on DVD Feb. 22, 2011 for the suggested retail price of $16.99 in stores or you can find it on amazon.
Invader Zim: Operation Doom Episode Synopses:
The Frycook What Came From All That Space
While in school, a mysterious figure kidnaps Zim and takes him into space. It is revealed that this person is an Irken who was previously Zim’s jail master before he escaped in the first episode. Zim is put to work in a fast food restaurant on a snacking planet called Foodcourtia. Zim manages to escape before a massive amount of snacking causes the gravity to prevent anyone leaving the planet for 20 years.
Career Day
It’s career day at school and Dib has been paired with an idiotic paranormal investigator named “Bill”, while Zim goes to work at a fast food restaurant called McMeaty’s. However, after discovering Zim is moulting due to a planetary equinox, Dib tries to convince his new mentor to help him expose Zim. The moulting process, while disgusting and explosive, only lasts a few seconds, so it is crucial that “Bill” pays attention. The expert, however, is not interested and Dib must trick him into going to the restaurant. “Bill” is distracted and fails to see Zim moult. After moulting, Zim is fired from McMeaty’s.
Battle-Dib
Dib desires to do a presentation about Zim for a meeting of the Swollen Eyeballs, a secret society that attempts to track down aliens and other such paranormal beings. The society requires that he must have a permission slip signed by his father, Professor Membrane, before he can do this though. Professor Membrane has a television show and Dib must endure various trials (including a Thunderdome) to gain access to his father. Dib fails the trials, but is successful in getting his father’s signature. However, he cannot give his presentation as he lost his suitcase during the trail (which contained proof of Zim’s alien heritage). This is the first of the three episodes to not feature Zim.
The Nightmare Begins
The Irken race is having a great assigning for Operation Impending Doom II, where all Invaders are assigned a planet to conquer. Zim is not invited, as he nearly destroyed the planet Irk during Operation Impending Doom I; yet turns up anyway, and hoping to never deal with him again, The Almighty Tallest send Zim on a fake mission to the edges of their known universe and issue him a dysfunctional Standard Information Retrieval unit who called himself “G.I.R.”, where they hope he will die/be lost and never found. Unfortunately, there is a planet called Earth on the outskirts of the Irken universe, and whenZim finds this world he assumes this is the subject of his “mission”. After arriving on Earth, Zim attempts to fit in and fools everyone except his schoolmate Dib, a young paranormal investigator, who vows to capture Zim and prove that he is an alien.
Gaz, Taster of Pork
Dib discovers that his electronic spell drives still have two credits on them, which allow him to cast spells. Not knowing what the spells would do, he casts one on his sister Gaz instead to see what would happen. The result of the spell is that Gaz tastes pigs no matter what she eats, apart from hot dogs. Gaz threatens Dib’s life if he doesn’t reverse the spell, so he and Gaz go to another dimension to request the spell be undone. Gaz answers three questions correctly and the spell is reversed. Dib, however, is stuck cleaning toilets with brushes on his head, as part of a deal he imposed on the creator of the spell.
Vindicated!
Dib sees the school’s counselor, Mr. Dwicky, about his problems at school, and Dib tells him about how Zim’s an alien trying to take over the Earth. Surprisingly Mr. Dwicky says he believes him and that he wants to help him out. He later reveals to a colleague that this is just a ruse to get Dib to trust him. They trick Zim into thinking aliens are coming to meet him in the woods to give him super weapons but after a while of waiting, Mr. Dwicky reveals he doesn’t really believe Dib. At that point some real aliens turn up and offer to take Mr. Dwicky with them. As he loved aliens as a child he jumps at the chance and Dib is left behind with nobody else believing him.
The Voting of the Doomed
Zim decides to use the school’s election to gain power, so Dib becomes the manager of his opponent to try and stop him. Zim streaks ahead after making many promises to the students that are crazy, but wins them over anyway. Dib counters this by using a mind control device on the child who’s opposingZim so he can debate with him properly. Dib’s candidate wins the election, but the school faculty brings him to a lab where they (very painfully) remove his individuality and free will, making him nothing more than a mindless figurehead for the oppressive school. Needless to say, Dib is not pleased, as it would have been Zim who would have met this fate if not for Dib’s efforts.
Hobo 13
Zim requests more powerful weapons but the Almighty Tallest do not want to give them to him, so he is sent to the deadly training planet Hobo 13 to prove he is worthy of the new equipment. Zim, through extreme selfishness and sacrifice of his teammates, surprisingly gets to the end of the trials. The commander, who is appalled at how Zim has acted, decides to take Zim on in a ring-fight, but Zim manages to beat him by using the power from his opponent against him.
Walk For Your Lives
Zim is doing time related experiments on Dib, but the experiment explodes. Dib manages to escape but he is “slowed down” and can only move very slowly. Also produced is an explosion, which is also exploding very slowly. Zim decides that the explosion needs to be put into the city cesspit to stop it from exploding and destroying his base. After some frustration and against the advice of GIR and the computer, Zim decides to throw Dib into the explosion to cause it to speed up. The explosion then explodes at normal speed.
Mysterious Mysteries
Dib goes on his favorite TV show Mysterious Mysteries to tell the world the story of Zim and to share a video of Zim he had filmed. To Dib’s surprise, Zim, GIR, and Gaz also appear on the show to tell their sides of the story. They each tell their own versions, which are then performed in reconstructions on the show for the benefit of the viewer. The presenter of the show decides that Dib and Zim are crazy and tells the viewers that nobody will ever know what truly what happened in the video, leaving Zim’s cover saved, once again, by the show’s character’s stupidity. Although he shows signs of insanity himself, the show received strong ratings because “people love crazy”.
Future Dib
Professor Membrane constructs an energy-creating device and Zim gets the idea to sabotage it to destroy the world. Dib realizes that he must stop Zim, but during his preparations he discovers a version of himself who is beaten up and hurt lying in his bed. This version tells Dib that he is from the future and he needs his help to stop Zim, as he’s too weak. So Dib goes to where future Dib told him to go, but it is a trap set by Zim, and the future Dib is in fact a robot controlled by Zim. Dib is stuck in a cage with a monkey while future Dib goes to the starting of the energy device to destroy it. Gaz is annoyed by Dib and beats him up, preventing him from causing the destruction. She then realizes he is a robot after one of its robotic eyes pops out. Zimquickly gets over his loss and decides to watch the real Dib getting tormented by the monkey.
Plague of Babies
Zim fears that a human baby has seen him out of disguise. Believing the baby to be a threat to his mission, he attempts to interrogate it, only to discover that it is in fact an extraterrestrial monster that, along with others of its species, has been stranded on Earth since the destruction of its spacecraft years ago. The aliens attempt to steal Zim’s ship, but by exposing them to a field that induces stupidity, generated by GIR, Zim is able to incapacitate them and pass them off as human infants once again.
Bloaty’s Pizza Hog
Dib is kidnapped by Zim and taken to a station orbiting Earth for torture and vivisection. Gaz is forced to go to save him so as to be in time for a rare family dinner at her favorite restaurant. Gaz nearly decides to let Zim attempt his experiment of taking out Dib’s organs but thinks that Professor Membrane wouldn’t allow them to go to the restaurant without reassembling Dib, so Gaz releases Dib and takes an escape ship that Zim foolishly guides them to. Zim takes chase in another ship but is taken down by Gaz’s superior flying skills (most likely due to her gaming skills such as in NanoZIM). Gaz, Dib and Professor Membrane meet at Bloaty’s Pizza Hog and are about to enjoy their meal when Zim bursts through the door. Dib protests that he should finish Zim off but Gaz left him strapped on a platform and he could not move. But Zim is terrified of the crudely mechanized singing animals and runs back out the door.
How to win it… Contest ends 11:59pm EST. February 28th, 2011.
2 Lucky people will win the Invader Zim DVD! Tell us your favorite character on Invader Zim and please include some method for us to contact you in the comment (twitter or email).
You get 1 extra entry for tweeting about this contest (you can do this daily). Must contain the following information: @NickelodeonDVD @dadarocks – http://dad.tc/fNbBDl and you must also comment with the link to your twitter message.
Example: I want to win the #InvaderZim DVD from @dadarocks & @NickelodeonDVD – http://dad.tc/fNbBDl
The sky’s the limit as DisneyToon Studios proudly announces PLANES – a spectacular, full-length CG animated comedy action adventure movie for everyone set high above the world of CARS.PLANES will introduce an entirely original and hilarious crew of daredevils from every corner of the globe and draws inspiration from the immensely popular Disney•Pixar’s CARS world. PLANES will arrive on Blu-ray™ and DVD in Spring 2013.
“We had such a great time exploring the world of ‘Cars’ over the course of two films, so it seemed only natural for us to see where our imaginations would take us in a film where planes were the main characters. By expanding the Cars world, ‘Planes’ gave us a whole new set of fun-filled situations and a great opportunity to introduce some fantastic new characters,” commented John Lasseter, Chief Creative Officer, Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios.
“The team at DisneyToon Studios has done such an amazing job creating a heartfelt story filled with great comedy, adventure, and emotion. I know audiences are going to love taking off into the wild blue yonder with these daredevil characters, as they experience a whole new kind of animated adventure.”
PLANES takes off with an international cast of the fastest air racers around, in a comedy packed with action and adventure starring Dusty, a small town dreamer who longs to enter the most epic around-the-world air race … despite his fear of heights. With the help and support of a fleet of new and hilarious characters, Dusty wings his way into the biggest challenge of his life.
Baseball: How To Play The Game: The Official Playing & Coaching Manual of Major League Baseball [Amazon] by Pete Williams. As spring training has just got underway, we’re reminded that its time to start thinking about little league too (like how I made that jump?!). In all seriousness there are books that are just designed to look super pretty and gather dust on a coffee table, this isnt one of those books. This books puts the best of the best Major League Baseball players right into an educational break out of drills, tips, advice and coaching. From every aspect of this game there is a superstar right there giving you basic advice, talking about tips and highlighting key points for playing that position.
The comprehensive guide has fully illustrated with action photos of MLB stars illustrating key points and drills for each defensive position, this book also includes special tips from MLB players on batting, base running, the rules of the game, and coaching. This will be an indispensable resource for anyone who wants to coach or play the game.
It really covers it all: Batting, Pitching, Base running and sliding, Specific drills for playing all defensive positions, Coaching and rules, Offensive and defensive strategy. Partial list of Big League tips on How to Play the Game: Tony Gwynn (hitting), Sammy Sosa (judging fly balls), Bernie Williams (playing the outfield), Mark Grace (approach to hitting), Alex Rodriguez (fielding ground balls), Jeff Bagwell (hitting), Roberto Alomar (fielding ground balls), Jaret Wright (pitching mechanics), Edgar Renteria (how to play SS), John Lackey (improving your pitching), Carlos Delgado (mastering 1B), Rocco Baldelli (basic approach at plate), Cristian Guzman (fielding ground balls), Danny Kolb (good approach on the mound), Dontrelle Willis (pitching strategies), Torii Hunter (playing the outfield), Jason Marquis (pitching with control), Chone Figgins (sliding), Orlando Cabrera (improving your game), Gary Bennett (becoming a better catcher), Ervin Santana (pitching under pressure), Mark Teixeira (playing 1B), Ryan Howard (hitting), Joey Gathright (playing the OF), Troy Tulowitzki (succeeding at the plate), Joel Zumaya (pitching with poise), Josh Johnson (pitching with confidence).
How to win it… Contest ends 11:59pm EST. February 25nd, 2011.
You must comment telling us who would you want to learn from? please include some method for us to contact you in the comment (twitter or email)
You get 1 extra entry for tweeting about this contest (you can do this daily). Must contain the following information:
@dadarocks #MLB #Baseball – http://dad.tc/hpF7Fy and you must also comment with the link to your twitter message.
Example: I want to win a #MLB #Baseball How to play the game book Thanks to @dadarocks – http://dad.tc/hpF7Fy
You get 1 extra entry for becoming a Fan on facebook –facebook.com/dadarocks you must comment that you’re a fan (and leave a little note on the wall)
You get 1 extra entry for suggesting to your friends to become fans of DaDa Rocks (and leave a little note on the wall) — under the logo of DaDa Rocks is Suggest to Friends name
You get 1 extra entry for subscribing to our Feedburner digest mailing (right side subscribe by email) – you must also comment that you’ve subscribed
You get 1 extra entry for becoming a friend on Google Connect (right side below facebook box) – you must also comment that you’ve become a friend
You will have 24 hours to reply before we pick another winner!
Disclaimer: Thanks to Universe Publishing for the prize for this raffle. It’s also limited to the USA too.
