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CreateTruck

If you have a young person (3+) in your life that LOVES trucks, this may be an app for you. CreateTruck for the iPhone/iPad includes 18 detailed vehicles such as tractors, graders, backhoes, etc. First, choose your ride. An incomplete version of the vehicle will appear. Then it’s time to create. There are over 50 items in 4 categories (tires, arms, signs, and buildings) for you to add to your vehicle/scene. When you are finished, tap the forward button – you hear realistic engine sounds as the wheels & arms move. You can also save your creation to your garage. A suggestion for future updates would be for the app to include the names the vehicles. I know a lot of little people will love this app 🙂

CreateTruck is currently FREE for the iPhone/iPad.

CreateTruck - ToysTap

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Zoola First Words

First Words is designed for toddlers but would also be appropriate for ESL learners or children with language difficulties. It teaches 90 basic words in 6 categories: animals, vehicles, nature, clothes, at home. The illustrations/animations are colorfully done by Coleen Madden, an illustrator of children’s books. It is simple to use – just pick the category, listen to the word, watch the animation, tap the blinking hand for more animated action, then tap the arrow to move to the next word. In an update it would be great if the app spelled the word – highlighting each letter as it goes. That feature would extend the use of this app to a broader group. I would also like to see the capital letter dropped from front of the word – unless the word is a proper noun. This app is visually appealing & age-appropriate – adorable for little ones!

This app is for the iPhone and iPad. I downloaded it earlier this evening for FREE but it is now listed for $2.99. Check out the lite version to see how it works or keep reading my blog to find out when it becomes FREE again (for a limited time).

Highly Recommended!

ZOOLA First Words - Best kids Apps

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Buildo Museum

Download now for Halloween  – Buildo Museum is a spooky sticker book for kids. The goal of the Buildo series is to get  kids to thinking about creative story telling. Included in the app are 3 scenes inspired by ancient museums with 100 + stickers. Kids can scale, rotate and flip stickers to create a scene for their oral stories. This iPhone/iPad app is FREE for a limited time.

Buildo Museum Sticker Book - JAJDO AB

Also FREE for a limited time is Buildo History Sticker Book from the same series.

Buildo History Sticker Book - JAJDO AB

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Spelling – Learning Words & Vocabulary

This iPhone/iPad app is FREE for 24 hours. It normally costs $2.99. This spelling app has 3 levels with more than 200 words. Children are shown a picture of the word that they are to spell. The letters of the word are on tiles – some tiles are placed in the word and the other tiles are under it. The child’s task is to properly place all the tiles in the word. In level one, some of the words are sea, milk, wolf, house, street, fire, fox, koala…. no particular spelling pattern is emphasized. Generally, children’s spelling lists have something in common – short a words, words with ee or ea, adverbs ending in ly, etc. This app presents words in no sequence that would help children generalize about how to spell other similarly sounding words. Another issue I have with the app is that it capitalizes the first letter of every word. Children need to be taught that only proper nouns or words at the start of a sentence should be capitalized. I wish this app presented words more systematically because there is a value to making children think about how to properly place sounds in order to spell a word. Perhaps this app would provide useful practice for older ESL students.

Spelling - Learning Words and Vocabulary - Interface Consult GmbH

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Bubbling Math

Bubbling Math for the iPad helps students in grades 1 – 4 become proficient in basic math skills – addition, subtraction, multiplication, division. In the Task Configuration section of the app, parents/teachers choose the operations & the levels of difficulty (easy, medium, hard, expert). Descriptions tell specifically what kinds of problems are included in each level. The ability to customize what a child needs to practice makes this app very powerful. Another plus is that the levels can be set differently for each operation. The other powerful section of this app is the “parents section” where a child’s progress is reported by the date, the operations and levels practiced, the number right & wrong, the specific problems missed, and percent correct.

As for the actual game – there are 9 levels that unlock as the child makes progress. There are trophies awarded for doing well. The graphics and music are nicely done. The speed of the game can be adjusted  – slow, normal, fast. But…what makes this app stand out is the ability to truly personalize it. Unfortunately, I don’t think the app tracks more than one child’s data. The data can be reset but the results for the first child would be lost. Regardless, this app is great!

Common Core Standards met:

  • 1.OA.6 – Add and subtract within 20, demonstrating fluency for addition and subtraction within 10.
  • 2.OA.2 – Fluently add and subtract within 20 using mental strategies. By end of Grade 2, know from memory all sums of two one-digit numbers.
  • 3.OA.7 – Fluently multiply and divide within 100, using strategies such as the relationship between multiplication and division or properties of operations. By the end of Grade 3, know from memory all products of two one-digit numbers.

This app was FREE last week but is currently selling for $.99. Keep watching my blog to find out when apps are offered for free.

Highly Recommended!

Bubbling Math - TappyTaps s.r.o.

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Jack and the Beanstalk by Mindshapes

FREE app for the iPhone/iPad – this interactive read-along is a humorous, modern version of a classic tale. The animations & illustrations are delightful with interactivity on every page – really cute and definitely worth downloading!!

Recommended!

Jack and the Beanstalk by Mindshapes - Mindshapes Limited

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i Learn With Boing: Savannah Adventures

For a limited time, all i Learn With Boing apps are being offered for $.99 and i Learn With Boing: Savannah Adventures is FREE.  These apps are geared towards 3 – 6 year olds. All i Learn With apps have the option for children to register so that they can earn rewards to play with on Planet Boing (a FREE central app that goes with the i Learn With series). Parents can also track their child’s progress if the child registers.

i Learn With Boing: Savannah Adventures has three math games: counting, ordering, and calculating. In the counting game, kids are asked to help the meerkat make soup by matching the pictured amount of ingredients with the written numeral (1 – 20). If kids touch any of the items, the total is named. Instead, I wish app counted the items (for kids who still need that) with the option to disable. In the ordering game, kids guide a frog across the pond by choosing the next number (1 – 20). The ordering doesn’t always start at 1 and there is variety in this game. Numbers may be ascending, descending or in a simple pattern (by 2’s or 10’s). In the calculating game, kids add the correct number of ostriches to a truck to reach a total. This game can be played alone or with a friend. Overall, this app is cute and nicely done. It would be fun for young kids who already know their numbers and are ready for some beginning math skills. The i Learn With program is brought to you by the developers of PBS KIDS PLAY and CBC Wonderworld online learning programs.

Common Core Standards met:

  • K.OA.2  – Add and subtract within 10, e.g., by using objects or drawings to represent the problem.
  • 1.OA.6 – Add and subtract within 20, demonstrating fluency for addition and subtraction within 10.

Recommended.

i Learn With Boing: Savannah Adventures! - Tribal Nova

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The Opposites

The Opposites is currently FREE for the iPhone/iPad. Designed for kids 7+, this app requires the matching of increasingly difficult pairs of opposite words. There are two sections of the app: dictionary and play. In the dictionary section, words are listed next to their opposites. To learn the meaning, students just tap on the word and a definition appears. There are 10 levels with 100+ words per level. In the play section, words are pronounced by a boy or a girl as they appear in bubbles and float towards the top of the screen  Kids are to tap pairs of opposites as they appear – which makes the words turn a color then pop. The goal is to match 12 sets of opposites  – which completes the level. A bonus round then appears in which the student has 20 seconds to match up an entire  board full of opposites. This app starts off simply but becomes quite challenging in the later levels. It could be used for differentiating a lesson and/or for helping students grow their understanding of antonyms.

Common Core Standards met:

  • 4.L.5 – Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings. c.Demonstrate understanding of words by relating them to their opposites (antonyms) and to words with similar but not identical meanings (synonyms).
  • 5.L.5 – Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings. c. Use the relationship between particular words (e.g., synonyms, antonyms, homographs) to better understand each of the words.

Recommended!

The Opposites - Mindshapes Limited

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Avatar Books: Cinderella, PeterPan, Alice in Wonderland,

These three books from Avatar Book collection for the iPad are currently FREE: Alice in Wonderland, PeterPan, Cinderella. Using these apps, it is really simple to make your child the star of a fairy tale. Just take your child’s picture/use an existing photo, adjust the photo to fit the face line, then watch as your child’s avatar becomes the main character of the fairy tale. The brightly illustrated story is read aloud by a narrator. Because there is no option to read it on your own, it feels more like a movie than a book. The narration is fine but the words are not highlighted for kids to follow along. The appeal of this app is that your child becomes the main character. If you think your child would enjoy that….try one!

AvatarBook Cinderella - JDF Cinderella

AvatarBook PeterPan - JDF PeterPan

AvatarBook Alice in Wonderland - JDF Alice in Wonderland

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Curious George at the Zoo

Curious George at the Zoo is currently FREE for iPhone/iPad. Designed for preschoolers, this app has kids helping Curious George wake, clean, and feed animals in the zoo. Introduced by the Man with the Yellow Hat (of course), the app then asks your child where he/she would like to go. But, buyer beware  –  there is only one section of zoo (Sunny Safari) included with the initial purchase of the app – normally $.99.

There are 5 animals for kids to learn about in this app – the hippo. giraffe, lion, parrot, and elephant. First they wake the animal up, then they clean it and feed it – fairly simple activities. Also included are age-appropriate video clips about each animal. Kids can play a game (Safari Showers) and collect stickers.

I have always loved Curious George books – the stories are timeless and can be enjoyed by kids from preschool through first/second grade. The simplicity of this app makes it most appropriate for Curious George’s youngest fans (2 – 3 year olds). I am disappointed that kids are given “a choice” of where they would like go in the app when there is only one area available without additional purchases. Choices are presented in a cute pop-up book but 3 out of 4 pages are covered by a huge “tap here to purchase” button. It feels similar to having the candy in the checkout line of the grocery story. That being said, if you have 2 – 3 year old that loves Curious George, you may want to download this app.

Curious George at the Zoo for iPad - Houghton Mifflin Harcourt