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Moving Christmas

moving christmas

Just released on December 1, Moving Christmas is currently FREE for the iPad. This e-book has 40+ pages of interactive fun with special sound effects & music. Christmas is in trouble because global warning has melted the ice at the North Pole. With Christmas only a month away, Santa calls on Frank Duffy, Mover of the Impossible. So Duffy and his dog, Bricks, fly off to the North Pole to take on the challenge of saving Christmas. Love this app! First of all, it’s a fun, smart story – written so it can be enjoyed by kids & adults. It has great whimsical illustrations by Max Micheli who has created for Disney, Nickelodeon, and more. The narration is wonderful but there is also the option of reading the book on your own. Rich in language, this book would be perfect to share in the classroom in so many ways. Use for a lesson on character traits, a lesson on inference (as the story setting changes), language lessons on similes, adjectives, and more!

This story is obviously the first in a series as there is an introduction to Frank’s next adventure at the end of this one – Frank is going to move Area 51. 🙂  I am looking forward to more from this developer!

Moving Christmas - Trusted Cape

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Arthur Christmas Movie Storybook

FREE for a limited time for the iPhone/iPad – Arthur Christmas Movie Storybook. The story explains how Santa delivers all those presents in one night by showing Santa’s secret high-tech operations at the North Pole. However, one present is accidentally left behind and Arthur, an unlikely hero, is called upon to deliver it. This interactive storybook features original content from the movie. Kids swipe across selected pages to make the characters/scenes come alive – very cool feature! The book has 3 options: read to me, read to myself, and autoplay. Also included are story-related, interactive activities: lull the lions, snowy Arthur, and wrap the bike. Download it today before the price goes back to $3.99.

Arthur Christmas Movie Storybook - zuuka incorporated

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Christmas Apps

FREE Christmas apps that you may want to download. Happy Holidays 🙂

Where is Santa Lite – Santa Tracker is FREE for the iPhone/iPad. The app keeps track of where Santa is and how long it will be before he arrives at your home. When using the “Where is Santa” page, it scans the world every 60 seconds to locate Santa and report on his activities. For instance, “Santa is in the North Pole and he is helping Mrs. Claus in the kitchen.” When using the “My Home” tab, it shows the location of your house and tells how many days, hours, minutes, and seconds it will be before Santa arrives. Beware – there are ads at the bottom of this app that are easy to click and will take your child to the app store. Teachers could use the app to make up math problems with the information given. Have kids convert days into weeks, days into hours, figure out the exact time he is scheduled to arrive, etc. Kids could write a story about what Santa is doing on a particular day, illustrate a timeline of what Santa has been doing for a week, etc. – lots of cute possibilities. Parents can use this app with kids to check on Santa daily – cute way to count down the days to Christmas!

Where is Santa Lite - Santa Tracker - Super Kiddo Studio

‘Twas the Night Before Jasper’s Christmas is FREE e-book for the iPhone/iPad. Jasper the dog and Smiley the cat are the stars of the classic tale. Kids can read the book to themselves or read along as it is narrated. In the read along mode, chimes let kids know when to advance to the next page. Background music (We wish You a Merry Christmas) can be turned off or on. The pages are not interactive but they are cutely & colorfully illustrated – appealing to kids. And, at the end of the story is a matching game. Beware – there are ads at the top of each page that are easy to click and will take your child to the app store. Cute FREE book – worth downloading 🙂

Twas The Night Before Jasper's Christmas (FREE) StoryChimes - Siena Entertainment, LLC

 

From the developers of Toca Boca apps comes this FREE gift for the holidays: Toca Hair Salon – Christmas Gift. Kids can go into the salon to groom Santa and/or his favorite Christmas tree, Topzy. They can use the tools in the salon to style their hair – cut it, comb it, make it grow, shave it, color it, and drag decorations into it. Great sound effects are also included in this fun app. Kids or parents can take a photo of the finished creation and save it to their camera roll. If parents wish, creations may be posted on the Toca Boca Facebook page. The developers have also built-in options to turn off sounds, pictures, and news. What a great springboard for creative writing – give Santa a whole new look and write a story to go with it. Thanks to the developers for a gift that inspires kids to be creative 🙂

Toca Hair Salon - Christmas Gift - Toca Boca AB

And if your child LOVES the above app, you may want to look into Toca Hair Salon which usually sells for $1.99.

It works the same way but it has 6 characters and  more tools than the Christmas version. Great creative fun!!

Here’s the link:

Toca Hair Salon - Toca Boca AB

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Snow Globes 3D!

FREE for Thanksgiving – Snow Globes 3D! for the iPad. Get this fun interactive e-book to start the holiday season. Kids explore 7 different snow globe scenes with interactive surprises that are activated by tapping. And…when the iPad is tilted, snow floats around the scenes! Kids visit New York City to help light the giant Christmas tree . They also search for animals in a snow-covered forest, visit Santa & the elves while they load the sleigh, fly through the air with Santa & his reindeer, and more. The book can be read in 2D or 3D. In order to view the book in 3D, red/cyan 3D glasses are needed. The 3D glasses from a movie theater will not work. There are also 3 options for reading: read to me, read to myself, and autoplay. Nicely done app  – sure to delight your little ones 🙂

Snow Globes 3D! ~ 3D & 2D interactive storybook - See Here Studios LLC

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The Artifacts

FREE for a limited time – The Artifacts for iPhone/iPad is a fabulous story for older kids. Asaf is a boy who collects many things – antiques, treasures from other people’s trash, caterpillars, etc. When his family moves, his collections are left behind. He is not permitted to collect things in his new tidy bedroom. So instead, Asaf begins to collect thoughts – imagining all sort of wonderful things. Kids interact with the story in many fun ways: tap the screen to make Asaf’s collections appear, help find treasures on trash day, race with leaf-munching caterpillars, rub-to-reveal Asaf in a wizard’s basement, and more. I loved the variety of interactivity in this app!

Teachers can use this story in so many ways. It contains rich vocabulary – perfect for a lesson on context clues. It also provides great opportunities for creative & imaginative writing. But the best thing about this book is its message. It encourages kids to imagine, read, think, and learn 🙂

Highly recommended!

The Artifacts - Slap Happy Larry