For those of you who have been around NerdFamily Things for a while, you know that we love Jumpstart software. So I was very stoked when we were approached to review their new Wii game, Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii (just hit stores June 15th). I have to admit, I wasn’t sure how crazy everyone would be about this game because we just got a Wii Fit and it has been a huge hit over here. I wasn’t sure how a non-balance board physical activity game could measure up. But since it was rated E for Everybody, I figured I couldn’t go wrong. But I shouldn’t have been concerned at all! All 4 of my children loved it!

So here is the basic layout of the game. There are 15 different sports games in 11 different arenas. Brooke Burke takes you through playing different sports using the Wii remote and nunchuck. Before you start any sport she has a little instructional video that she explains how to work the controls and it does a close up on her hands actually doing it. I love that it repeats until you choose to move on to the actual game (what can I say, my kids sometimes need the repeats;).

Then they play fun games with Brooke Burke encouraging them. The games themselves are animating in fun environments. The kids get to pick out which one they want to use. They get choices like a Bug’s View, Outer Space, Volcano, and lots more. When they are done with each game they get a score and a count of how many calories they burned. Let me just say, these games can really give them a workout. My 7 year old was sweating after she did a race!

One of my favorite things is that they get exercise but they don’t have to use the balance board. When my kids get real wrapped up in sports it is hard to make sure they don’t jump on the Wii board. But with Jumpstart Get Moving Family Fitness Wii they can jump and run without hurting themselves or the equipment (and it is good for them!). Now like any video game, it takes some practice to get the hang of the controls. My 9 year old had to practice a bit to throw the football just right, etc.

My 1 real problem, you can not have someone playing this anywhere children who are supposed to be doing homework are;). They all start rooting for each other and get sucked in. But the up side is that when we are playing, the kids don’t have trouble waiting their turn!

Oh, new part of my reviews. The kids each want to have their favorite part listed;).

NerdBug (9): Likes the Football Throwing game because you get to throw and avoid defenders.
NerdPie (7):  Likes the Bug’s Life View because it makes the running race very fun.
Nerdling (5): Likes the boxing because he gets to use both the remote and nunchuck (though you can will all the games;).
NerdPud (3): Likes that she gets to run.

We are going to be using it as a guaranteed PE! It is a great “recess” activity for when they need a break from sitting so they can come back and concentrate! So we loved it, and for about $30, we think it is a great family present, especially for us homeschoolers!

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of JumpStart Get Moving: Family Fitness at no cost by Knowledge Adventure in order to test the products’ abilities and give my own personal opinions on it. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided.