I think these maracas are really neat. One maraca doesn't "do" anything except make typical shaking sounds. The other maraca has the option to count, say colors, or make "music" sounds when the maraca is shaken. This can be done in english or spanish, which is a great option. The top of the maraca that "does" stuff lights up different colors and plays a constant music in the background. My daughter got these for her first Christmas. She likes to shake and bang them together, but I think she will really appreciate them more in months to come (she's 11 months). I think these will be a great, fun learning tool once she is a little older. I love the way the colors change and the size is very easy for her to hold. They are a bit heavy though, so you may want to keep brothers/sisters/dogs away if your child is in the hitting stage!! Leapfrog rarely disappoint, and they sure didn't with this fun and unique musical toy!

ayungeberg

Washington, KS

I have 14 month old twins so we have a lot of toys. ALOT OF TOYS. But there are a few of them that are amongst our favorites and the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas are one of them. My kids received them for their first birthday and right away, there were a lot things we liked about them. 1. The maracas are just the right size for little hands. They aren't too heavy and they are easy to shake! My daughter runs around with them and if you say "Shake, Shake" she stops and shakes them like crazy. 2. I love that only one of the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas is battery operated. Its nice that one of the maracas makes electronic sounds but one of them is a good old fashioned maraca instead of all lights and noise. 3. Another thing we like is that there are so many options on the battery operated maraca. They light up, they play music, they count, its so much fun! And just when I think we have heard all of the options on the maraca, a new one comes up. 4. I love that the maracas are portable. Some of our toys are big and bulky but these ones slide easily into the diaper bag. As a result, I can take them to grandma's house or to a friend's house and they don't take up much room 5. The next thing we like about the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas is that they encourage sharing. Since there are two of them and two of my kids, I use the maracas to teach both of my kids that its important to share a part of your toy with another child. 6. The final thing we like about the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas is that they can be used by either a boy or a girl. Wse have boy girl twins and its hard for us to have gender specific toys. Instead, it makes life easier when the toys we have are enjoyed by both children. The Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas go great with the Learn and Groove musical drum. I like that these kinds of toys encourage my children to be creative and musical. The best part about this is that they are almost like different kids when they are exposed to music. I mean, they are great kids (aren't everyone's kids great!?!) but when we play music for them, they spend less time crying and fighting and more time laughing, dancing and enjoying their music. This enjoyment of music is encouraged with the use of the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas. They are one of the first toys my child recognizes by name (Although we call them the "Shake, shakes") but they play with them so often that they can pick them out of the toy box very quickly. Although there are a lot of good things about the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas, there are a few things that I do not like. These items are: 1. The noise of the battery operated Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas can be loud and kind of distracting. The noise of the maracas can drown out some of the other singing or talking that might be going on 2. The Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas do not automatically shut off after a period of non-use. The downside to this is that they are always on. Always. Unless you turn them off. So if the child leaves them on the floor and moves onto another toy, the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas will continue playing their music over and over. The downsides to the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas, however, do not outweigh the benefits. The benefits of the maracas will light up the face of any child and the exciting music and lights that come from the maracas provide hours of fun. The final thing that my kids love about the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas is that the battery operated maraca lights up. If your kids are anything like my kids, they love things that light up. The tip of the maraca changes color with each shake of the maraca and my children shake the maraca sometimes just to see it light up. The color change feature of the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas makes it interesting to play with. We even let them take it into a dark room and shake it and watch the color changes. The Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas is one of those toys that grows with your child. My twins are 14 months old but I expect them to play with this toy for many months to come. Right now, they are enjoying the noise and lights but as they grow older, they will understand and interact with the songs more and maybe even create a pretend band using the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas and the Leapfog musical drum as their instruments. I love seeing my kids play with the Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas and it makes me happy to know that this toy is fostering their creativity and their muscial talents. It lets them explore their musical side and develop a love for music. I think this is a toy that any child, boy or girl, would love to play with.

dgroves21

North Royalton, OH

My child has a LeapFrog Learn and Groove Drum that I gave an excellent review, and while I like the LeapFrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas, as does my child,  I am not AS fond of them as the drum.  Basically one maraca is battery operated and lights up, plays music, and counts.  The other maraca doesn't light up but has beads or something inside to make the traditional "maraca sound."  Like the drum, the maracas have an English and Spanish setting.  Any one of the three play settings can be in English or Spanish.  One play setting counts each time the child shakes the maraca.  One setting changes the color on the top of the maraca and the color is announced each time the maraca is shaken.  The last setting plays music and makes silly sounds each time the maraca is shaken.  Honestly, I think this is actually my favorite setting.  The maracas are durable and colorful, fun and educational, I just don't find them as interesting as the drum.  So far my child likes them, but it remains to be seen if they're a toy that will still be played with a year from now.

kcol09

Undisclosed

We got the Leap Frog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas when my daughter had her first birthday party. She really liked the music and the colors, and I really liked that it counted in English and in Spanish. I was disappointed to find that only one of the maracas was battery operated and made music and changed colors. Basically this means that only one of the maracas gets played with, and the other one really isn't that interesting to her. They are made with very durable plastic and have withstood the damage that 2 small children can inflict on their toys. I am also pleased with the fact that they don't seem to suck the life out of batteries too quickly. Overall the Leap Frog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas are a great addition to any young childs home "band". My children love them, I have given them as gifts, and I would recommend them to anyone who is looking for a fun, musical, learning toy for their child.

gymnastjen78

Seattle, WA

My 20 month old received this as a gift for Christmas and she loves them!  The one maracas is just got some small beads in it and is like a traditional maraca.  The other maraca works on colors, numbers.  The can be in English or Spanish language as well.  All the children in the family love them, even my oldest my four year old.  It is very entertaining.  They walk around with them for fifteen minutes at a time just listening to the songs and switching between the English and Spanish words.  One great benefit to the maracas is that you can change the noise level on the maraca.  It can be soft or loud depending on what you prefer.  I usually choose the soft because there are always other things happening and that way it isn't too distracting.  Only one maraca is battery operated so that will help save on batteries.  The music is fun and catchy so it is a great toy for teaching young children.  A great toy!

stufforstine

Fremont, NE

I am big into the educational games and toys and was so happy to find the LeapFrog learn and groove maracas in working condition at my local thrift shop. My daughter was around 11 months when I got it for her and she is two years old and still shaking and learning with her maracas. I love this toy a lot. it has teached her how to count in spanish, no lie, I walked in on her repeating the spanish counting along with her maracas, the top part of the maracas lights up. it has been thrown, steped on, kicked and it still works like new. it is a very entertaining and educational toy that every kid would love for years..................................I have picked up a pair of maracas for a couple kids on my shopping list this year and I am confident that they will love it. LeapFrog makes great, high quality toys for little ones, the relail price is very good, kids will be entertained for hours

bugze

Latonia, KY

My 13 month old daughter loves, loves, loves the LeapFrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas!!  She has already been playing with them for about three months and I'm sure she will love than for many more!  She loves turning on the maraca and shaking it to make the maraca count, say colors and make noises.  She loves all the colors it shows and the noises it makes, I love that it's fun and educational for my daughter.  With every shake of the maraca, it counts from one to ten, goes through the colors, or makes odd noises depending on the setting it's on.  I love that it is in english and in spanish so she's also learning two languages.  It also has a volume control which is nice so it's a bit lower.  After a bit, it drives Mom insane!  I do wish both of the maracas were battery operated.  Only the one is and it seems to confuse her that one isn't.  She doesn't play with that one as much. The price is really low on these as well.  This toy is well worth it in my opinion! 

mrsbird1129

Novi, MI

My daughter loves music.  She loves to dance and "sing" (she is nine months old).  I picked up these LeapFrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas because she loves her Learn and Groove Music table.  I thought she might like these too - and I was right - she crawls all around the house with her maracas in hand.  Well, she really only carries one around, as only one of them is interactive - which is a bummer.  But the one that IS interactive is great - it has lights, sounds, music - it counts and does colors - in both English and Spanish.  Essentially this is a smaller, condensed version of the musical table.  It has a lot of the same features/music - just on a smaller scale.  If your child is into music, he or she will love to shake, shake, shake the maracas!  What I really like about this toy is that it's durable.  My daughter is at the age where she loves to throw everything in sight.  We've had some near misses, but even after being thrown numerous times, the maracas are holding up just fine!    

kirkn12

Syracuse, NY

My son got this toy for Christmas last year, when he was around 9 1/2 months old.  He loved them then and he still, at 20 months old, loves to play with them.  There are two maracas in the set, one that just shakes with some beads inside, the other uses batteries and playes music and talks and counts to ten.  The one that talks and makes music, of course is more fun, and is the one he prefers.  But he does love to play with the set of them.  My daughter who is 4 actually likes to take them to play with too, both of my kids love music, and love to pretend they are musicians in a band.  These Leapfrog Learn and Groove Counting Maracas are perfect for our children, who love everything music.  Plus, with the counting I think it is helping my son learn as well.  Just the other day we were counting with my daughter and I said one, two, and he said three!  I was so surprised when I heard him say it, because I didn't realize he knew any numbers.  I recommend the Leapfrog Maracas to anyone with a small child!

mandyc81

Port Charlotte, FL

This is a great learning toy for any tot!  The maracas are fun so your baby can shake shake shake them!  Not only are they lots of fun to play with and shake they have three settings where you can have numbers, colors, and instruments that play whenever you shake them.  My toddler just loves his leap frog maracas.  They are very durable and have been dropped numerous times and still work like the day that we got them!  There is also a spanish option if you want to teach your child spanish at a young age like many leap frog toys.  Another thing that I love about them is even though them make a lot of noise there at two noise settings.  There is a lower volume as well as a higher one.  Leap frog was really thinking when they made these.  This toy is great as well if you have multiple children over and you have several different leap frog toys.  They can all play together and make music and dance together!  Nothing is cuter!

beckyjwebb

Milan, TN