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Hunter and his Honeycombs
Top: Hunter examines his Honeycomb cereal box.
Our grandson Hunter really enjoys his Honeycomb cereal. To add to his pleasure, and to his education, Post Cereal has recently added a program to keep his interest at the breakfast table.
There are 24 hockey cards available to collectors in the program; however, Hunter is more interested in the boxes. Six players from the Canadian Hockey League are pictured on the boxes. He can spend as long as it takes to devour a couple of bowls, studying the boxes intensely. Therein lies the education factor
Without a doubt, he has learned a lot of language from cereal boxes in his seven years. Last year, Post introduced its hockey program, and that was just fine for him. While he ate, he asked about pronunciations, particularly about names uncommon to him. For example, one of the players featured on the boxes this year is Connor McDavid. That is no problem for him, especially since he has an uncle David; however on the Shreddies box is Laurent Dauphin. That was arrived at with some difficulty, as it contains one of those consonant blends, and the “au” vowel grouping pronounced as an “o” in French.
It’s a “Hooked on Phonics” lesson in the kitchen. The other players on the boxes, you ask? Sean Monahan, Josh Morrissey, Frederik Gauthier, and a namesake for him, Hunter Shinkaruk. Helping him with all of those names has been a good lesson to begin with. Add to that the other 18 players in the series, and there is a heap of learnin’ going on.
I can personally vouch for the exercise. Cereal companies have been featuring sports cards in their promotional programs for years. When my children were young, Wayne Gretzky was featured in a program. The whole concept began in 1960 with the Post Company. In 1961, they featured baseball players from the major leagues on the back of the boxes, to be cut carefully from the box. The Mantle and Maris cards have increased in value many time over, fetching more than $1,000 in fine condition.
I checked on this year’s Post Collection on one eBay site. The Connor McDavid card was advertised for $14.95, plus shipping, taxes, and handling, of course. I found an easier way to get McDavid’s card, and it does not cost a dime. Inside the box is a special number. I got on the proper Post site, entered the number, and qualified to receive Connor’s card, as well as three cards from other CHL stars. I was informed that I would have to wait up to six weeks for my cards. Wrong. They arrived in a little cellophane package in a fortnight. In a short period of time, I had the cards for Hunter’s collection.
There are 24 cards in the program, requiring six numbers from the boxes. They feature players from the three CHL leagues: Ontario, Western, and Quebec.
You will find all of the pertinent details on the boxes. There are also Sugar Crisp, Honey Shreddies, and Alpha- Bits in the program. It is a very easy way to encourage a seven-year-old to start his or her day.
Bon appétit.
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