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Product Spotlight: Wild Cards

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I learned about Wild Cards on the Handbook of Nature Study last month and knew we had to check them out for ourselves.

I was particularly interested in the Backyard Birds set, which includes full-color photographs of common backyard birds, along with fun facts about the birds – all wrapped up in a familiar card game format. Think “Go Fish” meets your favorite backyard bird guide.

Wild Cards, created by the women at Birdcage Press, were designed to make learning more fun and engaging for kids. The Wildlife and Nature card sets include such titles as North American Birds, Dinosaurs, Sea Creatures, Mammals, and Reptiles and Amphibians. (There are decks available in other categories including art, air and space, and history.)

We field-tested three sets of Wild Cards, including 52 Amazing Places: National Parks, Backyard Birds and Bugs. To provide a level playing field, we decided to compare how each deck fared with a game of  “Go Fish.”

Here’s a little info about each of the three decks we field-tested.

52 Amazing Places: National Parks

This mostly traditional-looking set of cards includes 52 national parks divided into categories such as canyons, mountains, caves, deserts and the like. Each card features a color photograph of a park along with fun park facts.

  • Includes 52 playing cards
  • Cards suited for any favorite card game
  • Suitable for all ages
  • Price: $9.95

Wild Cards: Backyard Birds

The Backyard Birds deck was created in association with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and features images from leading wildlife photographers. Cards are divided into groups such as songbirds, woodpeckers, hummingbirds and more. This set also comes with a guidebook filled with tons of information about each of the featured common backyard birds.

  • Includes 36 playing cards & a 32-page fact book
  • Cards suited for Memory, Old Maid & Go Fish
  • We had fun learning which birds were in which categories
  • Suitable for kids 6+
  • Price: $12.95

Wild Cards: Bugs!

The Bugs! deck of cards have no numbers, instead highlighting a variety of types of bugs, including ants, caterpillars, spiders, beetles and more. In addition to the info provided about the species on each card, this deck comes with bonus cards on what the bugs eat and where to find them.

  • Includes 48 playing cards plus bonus fact cards
  • Cards do not have numbers on them; suited for Memory, Old Maid & Go Fish
  • Some names are a little tricky for new readers to pronounce, making “Go Fish” a little … interesting!
  • Not for the faint of heart (or non-bug fans) as you’ll be holding tight to vibrant images of creepy crawlies
  • Suitable for kids 5+
  • Price: $9.95

The Nitty Gritty on Wild Cards

When I asked The Explorers for their verdict on which set of cards they liked best, they were no help. “All of them,” was their response.

Luckily, we were able to come up with a few reasons why. All three sets of cards are made of quality material and feature gorgeous color images. There was lots of oohing and ahhing – even with the Bugs! deck. And although each of the decks are geared to the over-5 crowd, The Little Explorer (who is a couple months shy of 4) had lots of fun playing along. He also enjoyed finding matching pairs on his own.

Wild Cards make for a great rainy day activity, are perfect for travel and camping, and would be a fun gift idea for Easter baskets.

My one complaint? The larger-than-average size of the cards makes them a little hard to shuffle, and hard for little hands to hold.

The Giveaway

I’m thrilled that the nice folks at Birdcage Press are providing me a set of each of these cards to give away. That means one set of cards for each of three lucky winners!

To enter, leave a comment below telling me which set of cards you’d like and why. Good luck!

  • This giveaway will run through midnight PST on Wed., April 4, 2012.
  • You must include an email address with your comment. Entries without an email address will not be included.
  • This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only.
  • The winner will be chosen using the nifty random number generator at random.org.
  • Winner will have 24 hours to reply to my notification; if I don’t hear back after that, I’ll pick another winner.

Note: I was given three complimentary sets of Wild Cards to field-test in exchange for providing my honest review with you. Read my disclosure policy for more information.

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About Debi Huang

Los Angeles based family nature expert sharing family-friendly outdoor trips in LA since 2009.  Contributor at NaturePlayTrips.com.

Comments

  2. K Hopper says

    A tough decision, but I'm gonna have to go with the national parks one. I want to visit many of the parks with my kids, and those cards would be real handy.

  3. mamabubblering says

    I would love the national park ones. We&#39;ve been talking about places we would like to visit and I think my son would be interested to learn abou new places.<br /><br />Katie<br />mamabubblering@yahoo.com

  4. Anonymous says

    I would get a handle on Bugs! without feeling creeped out. <br /><br />Mntnmover1@yahoo.com

  6. Eva Varga says

    Awesome cards! We&#39;d love the National Park set as we are avid explorers of the parks and have recently moved – new parks are thereby awaiting us – and we are planning a trip to Yellowstone &amp; Grand Tetons in May 2013. Thank you!! eva_varga at me dot com

  7. enbartlett says

    I think I would like the National Parks one best. My kids already have some field guides to bugs and birds but we haven&#39;t been very many places outside our state yet so I think the National Parks set would show off the variety of beautiful places around our country. Thanks!

  8. Mary @ The World Is A Book says

    These cards are cool! We just got the annual National Park pass so I&#39;d love the National Parks set as we explore more parks this year. Although, I may need to get the backyard birds since we have a birdfeeder. Thanks for hosting the giveaway. mary[at]theworldisabook[dot]com

  10. Anonymous says

    Hi there!<br />Three months ago, we moved from Philadelphia, PA to Saint Paul, MN. My two boys (age 4 and 6) were sad to leave their home and friends behind, but already in this short time here in MN, we have started to love the outdoors very much. We are adventuring in one of the many parks and around the lakes every weekend and the boys love to get their hands dirty, digging and treasure

  11. Anonymous says

    Wow! Great giveaway! They all seem so neat! My daughter would be lucky to get any of them! We are starting a bird journal! She is fascinated by bugs! Seriously, can&#39;t choose! Just pick me! She loves science &amp; nature! <br />asthetahoerolls@yahoo.com

  12. simonize says

    I would really like the birds as I am a Montessori preschool teacher, and the more I know, the more I can share the love of the outdoors!

  14. Adventure Bee says

    National Parks! We are about to head out on a 2 month excursion of visiting the National Park Systems of the west coast and we&#39;d love to have a card game to keep us busy that also features our passion (we are NPS Passport Stamp Collectors).<br />CoreyAnn<br />coreyann [AT] adventurebee [DOT] net

  15. perikeet says

    I love the National Parks set!! I &#39;m such a fan, And love to learn about each park (seriously you should see my stash, DH will tell you I&#39;m nuts LOL)<br />:-) Christina <br />perikeet at yahoo dot com

  16. Anonymous says

    All look beautiful, but think the Birds would work best as we&#39;ve been trying to identify birds in backyard and around town (other than pigeons, hummingbirds and crows that is!) adbw17@yahoo.com

  17. Anonymous says

    Geeesh, do we have to decide? I have a 2 year old who flys through the flashcards geared towards 4-5 year olds! I&#39;d love to actually challenge him and make him think about things! Hmmmm, I guess I&#39;ll pick the birds! (Hubby says the bugs)! <br />Great Site, Kimberly<br />rugh_kimberly@yahoo.com

  18. Anonymous says

    BIRDS! I am teaching a whole unit on Birds/Tress this summer and these cards would be great for my lesson.<br />Thanks!<br />tara<br />tara.lowen1@gmail.com

  27. Anonymous says

    I am torn between the bugs and the national parks. We are taking a road trip around the perimeter of the US and my &quot;theme&quot; is bugs. We are going to pluck the bugs off the front of the car, put them between some contact paper and while we continue driving, they can look at the bugs thru their magnifying glasses. These cards would be an extra added bonus! tianapage(at)yahoo(dot)com<br

  28. Katie says

    I love the National Parks because it really shows how landscapes can be so different in different parts of the world. (I like the Bugs and Birds, too because you could really use them in your backyard adventures! going.va@gmail.com

  30. Kris says

    I would love the National Park Set. These look so fun!<br />Kris<br />chattykris@yahoo.com

  32. Kathy Rogers says

    Bugs! I&#39;m a docent at the L.A. Zoo (I found your blog through a Google Alert when you posted about your trip to the LAIR) and I show bugs sometimes in the small animal shows.

  33. Dawn Suzette says

    Thanks for the great review. We would LOVE the bug set. If we win we would have you ship it to Maine! :)<br />Great fun!<br />dawnsuzette(at)gmail(dot)com

  34. Stephanie Ozenne says

    I totally want the National Parks cards, though they all look awesome! I&#39;m always wanting to get my kids&#39; input on places we could go visit, but they don&#39;t want to sit and look at websites with me. I think the cards would be perfect! stephanie(at)ozenne(dot)com

  36. Kristin says

    What a great giveaway! I would be very interesting in throwing my name in the hat for the bird cards. My 5 year old son just can&#39;t get enough of birds! We recently bought 2 parakeets and a conure so we could get a little more up-close-and-personal with the feathered friends. We also have a birdfeeder outside of our kitchen window, but we don&#39;t have a convenient way of identifying which

  38. Kathleen says

    We would be happy with any of the 3. We love backyard birdwatching…my 7 year old is becoming quite the expert. We love bugs…comes with working in a nature center (not sure all my kids are on board) and we would love to learn more about our National Parks! Thanks so much for offering the opportunity. Love everything you post!<br />Kathleen in PA<br />kgg305@comcast.net

  39. Mel says

    Hmm… they are all so tempting. I&#39;d pick the park cards, but I think the boys would like the bug. So, I&#39;ll go with Bugs!<br />Thanks for hosting this giveaway.

  40. Mountain Mama says

    I think the National Parks ones are great because we are about to move to one of those parks! (Yellowstone :))<br />Thanks for a great giveaway! mountainmamatales(at)gmail(dot)com

  42. Cathy says

    I think my nephew would love Bugs as a birthday present (I&#39;d take any set for our house, but just planning ahead!)