Product Review: Stoplight Golight vs. Time Timer Plus, tested for Classical Conversations Foundations

To complete this review, I received both a Stoplight Golight Timer and a TimeTimer Plus in exchange for my honest opinions.

I am a mechanical engineer turned stay-at-home mom to our two boys (5 and 2), and tutor /teach a CC class of 4 and 5 year olds as well as homeschool my 5 year old. I looked at a variety of similar timers and you can read about my pros/cons for each here- http://freshtomorrow.blogspot.com/2014/09/timer-review-time-tracker-visual-time.html. I contacted the companies of my top two and both were wonderful to send me their product to test out in our Classical Conversations Foundations classroom and at our home. Each timer was tested in our class and at my home over the course of two weeks. 

In the classroom, I:

• had parents operate them while I presented the new grammar, 
• used as a visual reminder for the kids during their 3-minute presentations, 
• watched the kids response to the visual and auditory alarms at the end of each 4, 3 and 30 minute segment,
• noted how appealing the timers were and how easy they were to operate/mess with. 

At home, I:

• utilized it for keeping my 5 year old on task during his independent school work, 
• made chores a game by having them race the timer, 
• used it as a cooking timer, 
• ensured the boys brushed their teeth long enough, 
• helped keep them on task getting ready for bed and ready for reading time, 
• used it as a visual to help to my boys in getting ready to walk out the door.

Stoplight Golight Timer 

(suggested retail $30)

Stoplight Golight Timer at Amazon.com

  I really liked the look of this timer. It was a little cumbersome to set the time but the necessity of having to push two buttons simultaneously made it very resistant to the kids tampering with it. The timer has to be set by counting how many hours until as opposed to entering a time (example: 8 hrs vs 7AM) which could be challenging for lengthy countdowns (it has 24 hour capacity) and the lights do seem backwards for some activities; the red light stays on during timing and green comes on when time's up. There is an optional alarm button (just be sure the alarm icon shows up in the digital display). You can also suspend the time (which was great for bathroom breaks, etc.) and the kids really liked watching the red light switch green (although sometimes they were too focused on that and not paying attention to the task).

  All my kids wanted to see the yellow light work so I did have to explain several times that the yellow light is only there for decoration. I think incorporating the option to activate the yellow light as a warning ("X" seconds to go etc. ) and/or a single audible beep would be helpful to help reassure them that they won't miss seeing the light turn green and get them stay focused. Perhaps the yellow light could be suspended to conserve battery life if the plug is not being used, although I found I did not use the battery function since all of the tasks were stationary (and I was a bit nervous having them drop it if carried). It does seem to be constructed of heavy plastic, but we have hardwood and tile floors at home and the school has tile/concrete- so a drop could be detrimental if it hit just right! I had several kids requesting we use the timer in class- it was a big hit.

  At home both my 5 and 2 year old boys enjoyed using it. I was impressed that my 2-year old understood: red means stop, green means go! It really came in handy for limiting TV time, helping keep the boys on schedule as they tend to get side-tracked easily (brushing teeth, getting ready for bed, completing chores, etc). I found with the child-proof controls I didn't need it, but there is a nail hole in the back if you want to hang it on the wall.

  I think overall, I would use this timer primarily at home. It's great to set the timer for my 5 year old son's math or new grammar lessons at home. I don't have to worry about him messing with the time and he has a visual of when he's finished. If he needs to get up and go to the bathroom, all I have to do is pause the countdown until he returns. At school, because it automatically resets to 0:00 (not the previous set time), it was frustrating during teaching as having to reset it to 4 minutes repeatedly just took too much time out of our instruction. With Classical Conversations, we only have 4 minutes to present each New Grammar topic: History Sentence, Latin, Math, Science Sentence, English, Geography, 7 new Timeline cards- and repeat multiple times, so we must move fast! However, it works great for the 30-minute segments- presentations, science experiments, art and music, and previous new grammar review. 

 

Time Timer Plus 

(suggested retail $30)

Time Timer Plus at Amazon.com

  This timer was very easy for my parent helpers to use- just turn the knob to the number of minutes you want and walk away. It doesn't have a lot of variability: there is no ability to pause or to set for longer than 60 minutes. However, it does have an audible alarm with an adjustable volume (which can be turned off). I love the having the visual progression of time elapsing- perfect for ensuring I stay within my 4 minutes to present each New Grammar topic: History Sentence, Latin, Math, Science Sentence, English, Geography, 7 new Timeline cards. Quick to reset the timer to 4 minutes and repeat multiple times- I just asked one of my classroom moms sit it somewhere I can see it in the back of the room and reset when needed. 

  It also works great for the 30-minute segments- presentations (3 minutes per kid), science experiments, art and music, and previous new grammar review. Again, a mom can easily set it for me and I can focus on teaching and glance at it to see how much time I have remaining. The kids liked it but I found that we had to be careful as the they could easily mess with it and change the time (or repeatedly turn the knob to set off the alarm- and yes we had several who very much enjoyed trying to sneak back and try this during class). It only uses batteries so I'm not sure how long before I go to class, discover that it's not working and have to replace them, so I'm playing it safe and carrying a spare pair of AA in my school bag.

  At home, I have used it for a kitchen timer and also tried using it for keeping my boys on task. It's a great kitchen timer- portable, easy to set and shows elapsing time (which I find helpful to coordinate multiple dishes come out at the same time). It didn't work well for keeping my boys on track- simply because there were no child-proof controls and my 2- year old kept snatching it and messing with the knob. Perhaps I could solve this by placing it on a high shelf or hanging it on the wall by the handle as there's no nail hole in the back. I also noticed that I had to be careful transporting it as the alarm would go off unexpectedly if the knob got moved at all (to which I solved by turning down the audible alarm but that could potentially drain my batteries).

  In summation, I preferred the TimeTimer Plus for my classroom needs but the Stoplight Golight timer for home use. The TimeTimer Plus turned out to be the perfect solution to to keep my class running smoothly. Definitely better than trying to use my iPhone as a 4-minute timer or keep glancing at the clock. It is pricy at $30, but competitive for what's on the market and I feel it more than pays for itself over the year by reducing my stress to stay on task. Note: I would not discount the Stoplight GoLight Timer if you are not a CC Foundations tutor and looking for a fun and practical way to help you keep you kiddos on task at home.