“Little Red Riding Hood” is an ebook app based on the classic folk tale. It’s the story of a little girl who finds herself in peril when she encounters a big, bad wolf on her way to visit her grandmother. This application made a strong impression on me for a few different reasons. First, I was shocked to experience this tale again as an adult. I found this “children’s story” as fitting a bedtime story as an R-rated movie: the girl and grandmother are tricked and eaten by a wolf, the huntsman saves them by cutting open then shooting the wolf; later, another wolf tries to eat them, so they set a trap and drown him. Sheesh… maybe I’m in denial, or perhaps I’m still suffering from PTSD after hearing this story as a kid, but I don’t remember it being so graphic and violent. Okay, so enough of my rant… on to my review. There are few positives and a few negatives. The introduction and directions for the app are clearly stated and make navigation easy. The illustrations are beautifully done with a soft and fluid quality, and each page is well-proportioned to the iPhone screen. Unfortunately, the English translation and narration of this story are poorly done. The text and narration are fraught with poor grammar and phrasing – undesirable qualities when teaching kids to read. I did notice that some iTunes user reviews gave high marks to the Chinese translation, so I wonder if the Chinese version is superior.

By App Feature, Preschool, Primary School, Reading, Reviews, Toddlers

The newly released picture book – “1 Little Boy” – takes a refreshing and innovative approach to interactive children’s applications. It is the original story of a little boy who goes on a fantastical journey and along the way is joined by a variety of animal characters from cherished classic tales. The app was carefully contemplated and executed with tremendous attention to detail. The text has a delightful sing-song rhyme and rhythm, the illustrations are remarkably attractive, and the narration is clearly and distinctly enunciated. You can interact with the story in several ways; you can touch each character to hear different sounds and expressions, touch the screen to have characters appear, and record your own voice to narrate the story. It’s a great educational resource, too. Kids are learning on several levels; they can read along with they narrator, they have the opportunity to count and recite numbers, and they can indentify different animals and their sounds. I’m HUGE fan of this application…”1 Little Boy” is a picture-perfect addition to our virtual bookshelf, and it’s an imaginative, refreshing, and amusing way to teach my son.

Animals, By Age Range, By App Feature, Counting, Preschool, Primary School, Reading, Reviews, Sounds, Toddlers

This unique application targets young kids who are acquiring basic vocabulary and early language skills. “Learn to Talk” facilitates lessons with 160 interactive audio flashcards developed by a speech pathologist and is thoughtfully designed to progress based on how toddlers typically learn patterns of speech and language. My son and I are currently working on the first lesson which is “high impact words”; these are comfort words and the first building blocks toward further language progression. Next, the application moves through label/object words, one word actions, and finally, to two word actions. The user should carefully read the directions to fully utilize the multitude of features offered as it extends the use of these cards and challenges children to master new skills. My son is developing language skills at a typical rate, but I can see how this would be an invaluable tool for caregivers working with kids who are developmentally-delayed or impaired, or with children in multilingual households. Overall, I’m a fan of this app but I must admit that I found it a bit challenging to navigate the interface settings and features. A young child might get confused and frustrated without the assistance of an adult helping them.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Language, Phonics, Preschool, Reading, Reviews, Spelling, Toddlers

“Preschool Connect the Dots…” is a phenomenal value with a whopping 200+ puzzles offered and a plethora of settings that allows you to customize the experience for different ages, interests, and skill/competency levels. At first glance, the screen is full of what looks like a flurry of random dots with numbers or letters, but once you start connecting them, a rough sketch appears. When you finish the puzzle, you’re rewarded with a picture that completes the sketch. My favorite features include the option to choose from five different puzzle themes/topics (e.g. animals, transportation), the high quality sounds effects and narration, and the multitude of learning opportunities offered. From an educational perspective, this app helps preschoolers sharpen skills including object identification and pronunciation, counting, letters (upper and lower case options). We look forward to many, many hours of fun and enjoyment connecting the dots.

Animals, By Age Range, By App Feature, Counting, Language, Phonics, Preschool, Primary School, Puzzle, Reviews, Sounds, Toddlers

“The Tortoise and the Hare” is the classic tale where the slow and perseverant Tortoise wins the race against the jaunty and overconfident Hare. It is the third animated storybook by the talented maker of “The Little Red Hen” and “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” and lives up to its predecessors. This series of storybook apps truly sets the bar for children’s ebooks for the following reasons: the illustrations that are rich, inviting and beautifully executed, the narrator has a sweet, melodic voice, and the stories are beyond entertaining – they also impart valuable ethical lessons to our little ones. My son and I love how the books are interactive allowing us to click on the characters as we read with the illustrations coming to life with whimsical expressions and sounds. The only limitation is the language option. While other Kidztory storybooks have multiple language options, “The Tortoise and the Hare” is currently offered in English only.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Just For Fun, Language, Preschool, Primary School, Reading, Reviews, Toddlers

8 Planets Pro has discovered a unique niche with an educational science game uniting astronomy and game play. The application includes four games with topics including: planet names, spelling, “black hole” (planet identification), and matching. The design of this application makes it an especially powerful learning tool since each “game” or level of play builds on the preceding activity, thereby reinforcing what has been taught/learned and challenging the knowledge in a new way. For example, the first game introduces each planet by name, position from the sun, and illustration. The following game shows a picture of each planet and a partial spelling, reviewing what has just been taught. The last two games playfully quiz the player with games focusing on identification and matching. Each game independently can be hours of entertainment, but collectively these games form a cohesive, instructive and illuminating science lesson. I’m amazed at how a creative approach to learning can invigorate a seemingly dry topic. Stargazers will unite and delight over 8 Planets Pro.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Matching, Preschool, Primary School, Reviews, Spelling, science

When we travel, I always make certain we have access to a white noise device to make sleeping easier and to help drown out all the unfamiliar sounds. I’ve purchased a few soothing sounds off iTunes and I loop them on my iPod. With “White Noise Baby”, I have 17 different sounds at my fingertips and instead of looping them, I listen continuously using the timer for as much time as I’ll need. There are various sounds offered with some being repetitive (grandfather clock, heartbeat) and some monotonous (hair dryer, air conditioner, car ride). This app also offers a few extra features like “baby tips” for sleeping and safety, and a mesmerizing baby rattle. I like that I can play this application while it’s docked to my speaker set, or I can play it at sufficient volume independently. I noticed that the Apple Store reviews for this app are polarized and users seem to either love it or hate it. “White Noise Baby” is a functional, simple, and straightforward app that offers several white noise sounds that will help soothe a young child. If this is what you’re looking for, then this app will most likely work for you.

By Age Range, By App Feature, For Parents, Health, Preschool, Reviews, Toddlers

The Queen Bee storybook app is adapted from the classic Grimm’s fairy tale. It’s the story of three brothers who go in search of adventure and face difficult challenges to win the heart of the princess. In the end, it’s the slow, “simpleton” brother who prevails by showing kindness and goodwill toward others. The application interface is intuitive, the text is easy to read, and the narration is nicely paced. I appreciate the moralistic lesson and positive message this story exemplifies for children. It’s formatted like an actual book with two pages of illustrated scenes represented on the screen at once. In fact, it looks much like a scanned book rather than original illustrations and it doesn’t scale well. I can’t help but think the book could be enhanced by representing just one scene per page. Regardless of the formatting, the Queen Bee by Storychimes is a welcome addition to the realm of storybook apps.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Preschool, Primary School, Reading, Reviews, Toddlers

My son is just learning to talk and there are five words he says clearly and often: NO, fishy, apple, mama… and Elmo. Needless to say, we were thrilled to learn that Sesame Workshop Apps recently came out with an app starring our furry, red friend. To play “Elmo’s Monster Maker”, we first select a monster buddy and customize it with eyes, nose, and a hat. We then have the option to “play” with our monster by taking a picture, watching it dance, or goofing around with Elmo. There is an alluring and intimate quality to this game… a sense of inclusion where Elmo and the monsters embrace us in the fun rather than feeling like observers. This can be partially attributed to the production that uses only interactive video clips that engage directly with the audience. The monster’s dress-up options are ultra-silly with some outlandish choices, and the dance party feature has toe-tapping, themed tunes that can match the style and mood of your monster. This isn’t an educational app per se, but it’s certainly a lot of pure, clean FUN… Elmo-style.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Just For Fun, Middle School, Preschool, Primary School, Reviews, Toddlers

The children’s application Bumblebee Touchbook offers two main features. The first is “read and book” and the other is “watch a movie.” The book section is interactive and educational, while the movie portion is a 3-D animated short featuring adorable bumbling bees. When my son and I first played this application, I expected a passive book reading experience; we soon learned it was much more of a teaching tool with learning activities focusing on word recognition and counting. The lessons are concise and simple, but exquisitely done with graphics that have Pixar-like quality and charm. We especially enjoy the bumblebee movie, set to Tchaikovsky’s classical tune “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies”, which is reminiscent of my favorite Disney films “Fantasia”.

By Age Range, By App Feature, Counting, Music, Preschool, Reading, Reviews, Toddlers