Category Archives: interactive book apps

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Sparky & The Case of the Missing Smoke Alarms

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sparky

FREE – Sparky & The Case of the Missing Smoke Alarms, an interactive book from Cupcake Digital. This educational app is perfect for Fire Prevention Week (October 5 – 11) because this year’s theme is Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives. Kids read along to help Sparky the Fire Dog® and his friends solve the mystery of Aunt Dottie’s smoke alarm. As they read, they will learn about the importance of working smoke alarms, what to do when a smoke alarm sounds, and how to plan an escape. There are also fire safety tips and fun interactions woven through the story. The story is narrated with highlighted text for emerging readers. The narration can be muted for kids who want to read the story on their own. The app also includes a game and a sing-along music video.

At the end of the story, there are resources for adults. There are two sets of questions about the story. The “Let’s Talk About” questions address literal understanding of the story. The “Let’s Think About” questions address extended meaning. The Parents’ Page connects adults to a collection of fire safety resources. The Teacher Page gives suggestions for using the app in the classroom. There is a page with information about the Common Core Standards addressed by the app. Print-outs and activities to supplement the story are available online at Sparky Home | Sparky The Fire Dog. What is not to love about this educational app? It seems to have it all – a cute story packed with interactivity, a great message about fire safety, a game, a sing-along video, connections to CCSS, and a guide for adults!

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sparky-case-missing-smoke/id869373998?mt=8&uo=4

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Even Monsters Get Sick

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Cute interactive story for the iPad on sale for only $.99 – Even Monsters Get Sick is a story written for kids 5+ about a boy and his pet monster. Kids can follow along or read on their own as Harry tries to discover what is wrong with his monster. The artwork is appealing and there are animations on every page. It is a nicely done story with a positive message told by Harry, the boy. Perfect :).

Even Monsters Get Sick - Busy Bee Studios

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Petting Zoo

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Petting

FREE again – Petting Zoo, an adorable app for kids and adults who are kids at heart. 🙂 This educational app combines the charm of Christoph Niemann’s humorous animations with state of the art technology as one scene morphs into the next. The app is simple to use – just swipe and tap the 21 animals to see how they react. The results are delightfully surprising! Kids will discover what an elephant would do in the bathroom, if a dog can breakdance, how monkeys play soccer, and more. This app is suitable for kids of all languages because there are no spoken words. It’s perfect for discussion and predicting what will happen next. It would also be great for story writing. A really fun storybook app – creative, silly, and sure to delight!

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/petting-zoo-animal-animations/id602773895?mt=8&uo=4

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Squiggles, Let’s Color, Miku’s Picnic, and Lazoo Zoo

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The FAB 4 (for young kids) – FREE and fabulously creative apps from Lazoo.

Squiggles is a FREE educational app for the iPad and it is ADORABLE!  Kids are encouraged to draw squiggles to create: rain clouds (to water flowers), waves (to help fish swim), wool (on sheep), cotton candy, etc. Once the squiggles are drawn, they press GO and the drawings come alive. The app includes an interactive storybook and an animated short which introduces the characters – Bobu, the monkey & Miku, the rabbit. It also includes 14 squiggle-ready drawing pages as well as a blank page for your child to create his/her own pictures. Tools included are stickers, markers, paint, chalk, a ketchup bottle, as well as 10 colors & a mystery color wheel. Work can be saved into the gallery of the parents’ section by pressing the piggy bank. This app is super cute!! It encourages children to be imaginative & creative – it’s one of my favorites! 🙂

Highly recommended!

Squiggles! - Lazoo Worldwide, Inc

FREE for a limited time – Let’s Color, another educational app that encourages creativity! The app includes an animated short in which the characters – Bobu, the monkey & Miku, the rabbit use their imaginations to turn triangles into a strawberry, a dog, a mountain, etc. Then kids are encouraged to color different things to complete a page: what is coming out of a hose, who is riding in the train, etc. Once the coloring is completed, they press GO and the drawings come alive. There are 17 coloring pages as well as a blank page for your child to create his/her own pictures. Additional coloring pages can be purchased within the app. Tools included are stickers, markers, paint, chalk, a ketchup bottle, as well as 10 colors & a mystery color wheel. Work can be saved into the gallery of the parents’ section by pressing the piggy bank. Another super cute app from Lazoo, a developer that encourages imagination and creativity. :)

Highly recommended!

Let's Color! - Lazoo Worldwide, Inc

Miku's Picnic

Also FREE for a limited time – Miku’s Picnic, an adorable interactive story designed to support creative thinking. Kids join Bobu, the monkey & Miku, the rabbit on a chase after some jumping beans. The two need help capturing the beans before they bounce away! Along the way kids learn about using their imaginations and creative problem solving as the Bobu & Moku use “Squiggles” to… make a car go faster, make springs to get to the top of a tree, make binoculars to look for the beans, make a rocket zoom to the moon, and more. This educational app has 2 reading modes – “Read to Me” and “Read it Myself” as well as an option to record your own voice as the narrator. The story ends with a link to the FREE Squiggles app for kids so kids can “take a turn” drawing. I love the way Miku’s Picnic encourages kids to use their imaginations to solve problems!

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lazoo-mikus-picnic/id652945863?mt=8&uo=4

Lazoo ZooFREE for a limited time  – Lazoo Zoo, another fabulous educational app from the developers of Squiggles. KIds help out with snack time at the zoo where there are 10 animals (lion, ape, chameleon, giraffe, hippo, whale, crocodile, crab, bird, & penguins) to feed. But Lazoo Zoo is not your ordinary zoo, so its animals react in extraordinary ways – the giraffe’s spots change according to what it’s fed, the ape tosses the food it doesn’t like to others, and more! Kids can even create their own foods to feed the animals. And, Lazoo Zoo has a photo booth where kids can snap their picture with their favorite animals. How cute is that?! 🙂 Check out the trailer at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L564yPHM3No&feature=youtu.be

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lazoo-zoo/id727786503?mt=8&uo=4

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Oscar Goes to the Zoo

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Oscar Goes to the Zoo

FREE for a limited time – Oscar Goes to the Zoo, a “You Tell Me” story. In this story, a cute little dachshund goes to the zoo and wonders what it might be like to be the different animals that he sees there. In the end he discovers that he likes being himself. Cute story!

“You Tell Me” stories are designed with some special features: 1. They incorporate WordWinks into the story. WordWinks are questions and comments written in red italics. To maximize children’s understanding of the story, teachers often add comments/questions as they read aloud. WordWinks are meant to model that teacher voice. 2. They have a “Retell, Record & Share” section. Kids are asked to order 4 scenes from the story then record their own version of the story to share with grandparents or friends. 3. If you register, you can receive a FREE Oscar Goes to the Zoo activity book by email.

If you have a preschooler or early reader, check out this e-book. I love that it emphasizes “thinking about reading.”

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/oscar-goes-to-the-zoo/id587648796?mt=8&uo=4

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Goodnight Safari

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FREE  for the iPhone/iPad, Goodnight Safari is a sweet bedtime story. Kids (ages 2-4) help the animals of the savannah complete their evening activities in 7 interactive scenes –  a giraffe eating dinner, a monkey climbing into bed, a hippo taking a bath, etc. Optional counting & color activities are available as an in-app purchase. Very sweet story for a peaceful end to your child’s day. 🙂

Recommended!

Goodnight Safari - Polk Street Press LLC

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Three Little Pigs – A Play

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FREE again – Three Little Pigs – A Play for the iPhone/iPad for kids 4+. An updated version of the 3 Little Pigs is presented as a play starring Mitch, Clara, Ran, and Clarence Bear. The book is brightly illustrated and the characters respond when they are tapped. The background music and narration are nicely done. The book can also be read alone. The story generally follows the traditional tale – the first pig builds a house from straw, the second pig builds a house of sticks, and the third pig builds a house of bricks. All of the pigs get away (rather than the first 2 being eaten) and wolf runs away yelping in pain. The first 2 pigs learn the lesson: Take your time and do your best. The story ends with the first 2 pigs starting to rebuild their houses in the spring – this time with bricks, of course!

In my classroom I used different versions of the same fairy tale/folk tale for studying story elements as well as comparing & contrasting. This would be a good version to compare with the traditional tale of the Three Little Pigs since its setting is in modern times. Kids can look for evidence to prove that the story takes place in current times. They could also use Venn diagrams to compare the traditional tale to this version or other versions that they have read. This app could be used to reinforce several comprehension skills.

Recommended!

Three Little Pigs - A Play HD - C&B Unlimited

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Reading Rainbow

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Happy Birthday, Reading Rainbow – 31 years old today, June 6, 2014!!

Reading Rainbow is a library of over 200 books and videos for kids ages 3 – 9. This educational app is FREE to download but requires a subscription ($9.99 per month or $29.99 for 6 months) for full access. Once you subscribe, your children (up to 5 per family) will have unlimited access to the interactive books and video trips. This app is similar to the award-winning Reading Rainbow television series that was on PBS from 1983 – 2006. It even features the same host – Grammy winner, LeVar Burton. In less than a year, over 2.5 million books/video field trips have been viewed with this app!

After installing the app, kids fill out their profile (name, age, kinds of stories they like to read) and may choose one free book from one of the 6 themed island in the sky. The books are professionally read and feature “Read to Me” or “Read on My Own” options. They are lightly animated and include interactive activities that add to the story. A sticker rewards program motivates kids to read. There is also an individualized tracking system so parents can see books selected and minutes read for each child.

I must admit, I downloaded this app because of nostalgia. My kids grew up watching Reading Rainbow and we all loved it.I am happy to say that the appeal of Reading Rainbow today is the same as it was almost 30 years ago – Reading Rainbow provides kids with quality authentic literature. If I had a child/ grandchild (ages 3-9) or if I were still in the classroom, I would subscribe without hesitation. What a fabulous resource!

Highly Recommended!

Reading Rainbow - Reading Rainbow

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Collins Big Cat Story Creator Apps

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From the primary literacy specialists at Collins Education comes Collins Big Cat Story Creator apps and they are currently FREE for the iPad. Collins Big Cat is a reading series used by over 9000 schools in The United Kingdom. Titles included are: Playing Story Creator/Around the World/ Farmer’s Lunch/ In the Garden/ It Was a Cold,Dark Night/ My Bike Ride/ The Steam Train/At the Dump. These 8 apps normally sell for $3.99 each so take advantage of this great offer if you have young readers/writers in your life.

These educational apps, geared towards children ages 4+ or 5+, include an animated story (with hidden surprises on every page) and a story creator. The story creator allows the child to transfer what they just read into writing. Children can create their own story using the scenes, characters, etc. from the book. There is also the option to record the child’s newly created story. Nicely done for young readers/writers!! These apps were the winner of the BETT 2013 Primary Digital Content Award.

Highly recommended!

Playing Story Creator

Playing Story CreatorCollins Big Cat: Playing Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

Around the World       Collins Big Cat: Around the World Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

The Farmer’s Lunch       Collins Big Cat: The Farmer’s Lunch Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

In the Garden       Collins Big Cat In The Garden Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

It Was a Cold, Dark Night       Collins Big Cat: It Was a Cold, Dark Night Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

My Bike Ride        Collins Big Cat: My Bike Ride Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

The Steam Train       Collins Big Cat: The Steam Train Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

At the Dump

At the Dump   Collins Big Cat: At the Dump Story Creator - HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

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2 Kidztory Classics: Little Red Riding Hood & The Ugly Duckling

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little redFREE for a limited time – Little Red Riding Hood and The Ugly Duckling, interactive versions of two classic tales. Kidztory apps can be read in two modes – read to me or read by myself. The artwork is very appealing – simple, bright, & colorful. LIttle Red Riding Hood is narrated by a child with no grandmas or wolves harmed in this version of the tale. As kids read along they will enjoy finding the cute animations and sounds on every page. And, every Kidztory storybook app shares a gentle lesson for life. Add these two classics to your digital library today – you won’t be sorry!

Download links:

Little Red Riding Hood: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/little-red-riding-hood-kidztory/id444927406?mt=8&uo=4

Ugly Duckling: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ugly-duckling-kidztory-animated/id425599237?mt=8&uo=4