Each TOY or GAME has a STORY to share with kids.

Today, it’s SIMON’S turn to tell its story (with a little help from Grandma Sharon)…

WHAT is SIMON:  Official definition:  SIMON is an electronic, table-top memory game consisting of four large buttons of different color lights and sound tones in a sequence that the player must match.

Grandma Sharon’s SIMON is the Keychain model that my grandkids absolutely love.  This SIMON can be taken anywhere and played anywhere (well, except maybe in fine-dining restaurants that don’t welcome kids anyway).

WHO invented SIMON and WHEN: In 1977,  Ralph H. Baer and Howard J. Morrison filed a patent application for the microcomputer controlled game. Lenny Cope also worked on the prototype and programming codes in the development of SIMON.

As the story goes, Ralph and Howard loved the idea of Atari’s Touch Me game, introduced in 1976, but they disliked its irritating, non-harmonious sounds.  They set about to create a device that was pleasant to listen to while playing… kind of like the tones of a bugle.

Ah, ha!  The rest is toy history.

WHY is SIMON called SIMON: SIMON was originally named Follow Me by its inventors, but changed to SIMON by Milton Bradley Company.  The name SIMON is in reference to the children’s follow game, Simon Says.

Do you remember those flashing red, blue, green and yellow SIMON lights, the sounds of your memory at work… and that signal telling you that you hit the wrong colored button?

Grab a SIMON today and share the fun with your kids and grandkids.  Listen for the harmonious bugle-like sounds, now that you know how important these sounds were to SIMON’s inventors.  Keep in mind that the programming codes were developed back in the 1970’s!  Wow.

Enjoy your trip down MEMORY lane… and join me here each day in July for TOY STORIES on 365 Days of Literacy for Kids! A little fun, a little learning and a little “ta-dah!”