"my states"

Mason has been learning the United States of America for a while now.  It started with a puzzle that we got, that just happened to be the USA.  He did that puzzle for months, I think I wrote another post about it already.  Then a couple of weeks ago I bought him a TAG United States map.  TAG (leap frog brand) is basically a pen that reads to you and it was designed for reading books, but this USA map came out and I thought it would be perfect.

Let's talk just a sec about this TAG system.  I just get kinda worried that this is not a good toy.  Mason loves it, and he reads The Cat in the Hat with it mostly (we have one other book for it, but he LOVES the Dr. Seuss books).  He got it for his third birthday, and it took me 5 months to actually give it to him.  Not because I couldn't find batteries (even though that part did take about two weeks), but because I wondered if it detracts from our book time together.  It is very nice that he can entertain himself for a while with the pen, and it is better than TV, but is it good?  I don't know the answer.  I just feel kind of conflicted every time he uses it.  I have tried to read with the pen with him, but I can't take it.  It is so annoying.  He wants to touch every character on every page to see what they will say (you just have to hear it for a few minutes, and you will know what I mean).  The best part of the TAG system is that it is really good for reading (umm, listening) comprehension.  There are "games" every couple of pages that ask you about things that are going on in the story.  He always gets all of these right, and I am always very impressed by it.  But still, I wish that it was me reading the books to him.  Not the pen.  Any thoughts?

But this map part of the TAG system is AWESOME.  He has learned so much from it.  Again, I could be naming all the states with him, but I can only take so much repetition.  How many time can you point to Washington without wanting to jab an ice pick in your eye?  Kindergarten teachers, homeschool parents... more power to you.  I have no patience.

TAG map, and it is two sided.  Awesome toy!

He always calls them "my states" and when we watch the news, he gets really excited when the weather guy uses his states to describe the weather.  He is very observant and will point out "my states" any time he sees the shape of the USA, which are surprisingly everywhere, when you've got eagle eyes out looking for them.

So since I am quite obsessive with all things, I had to get him one more map.  This one just hangs on our wall in the family room.  If I prompt him, he probably knows about 30 states, but here is a video of him just doing it all by himself: