Playskool VideoNow Jr.

A different color for each viewing choice

The manufacturer’s guide identifies green as Play/Pause, red as Stop, blue as Previous and orange as Next. Two Open switches slide outward to release the player. With a suitable PVD seated and the case closed, the green button starts playback and can pause it for a moment.

Previous can bring the current track back to its beginning; pressing it twice goes to the preceding track. Next moves ahead. The guide includes both color and black-and-white VideoNow discs in the player’s repertoire, with older monochrome pictures retaining that appearance.

That pause-and-return pattern can become a shared conversation. A companion might ask, “What was the character looking for?” or “Which object did you notice by the door?” Let the child’s observation set the direction. Follow the matching guide for the actual player; an adult should supervise headphone use, including keeping its cord away from a child’s neck.

Direct a stop-go puppet show

Bring the four-button idea into a small live performance. This original Toysit activity uses drawings or ordinary puppets and large paper cue cards.

1. Make four cards: green for play or pause, red for finish, blue for revisit and orange for move ahead. Add words or symbols alongside the colors.
2. Invent three short scenes: a rabbit loses a picnic basket, asks a neighbor, then discovers the basket beside a tree.
3. One person acts as the performer and another holds up the cue cards. Agree that showing green during the action means freeze; showing it again means continue.
4. Use blue to repeat the current scene from its beginning. Use orange to jump to the next scene. Let red bring the performance to a friendly close.
5. Swap jobs and change the missing object. A repeat might reveal a clue the audience overlooked the first time.

These are rules for the paper performance, inspired by the player’s colored controls. The director and performer supply the story, its timing and its funny surprises.