“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

As you’ll learn about me through my reviews, I’m fool when it comes to quality memory and matching games. I’m delighted to say that the educational game “Floating Memory” makes me a foolishly happy gal. In some ways, this application is no different than most standard memory games – you pair objects (in this game it’s sea creatures) and collect points to work your way through progressively difficult levels. What’s different about this game is that the pairs are in frenetic, floating bubbles that are in constant motion adding to the challenge… and the excitement. I can listen to my own iPod songs while I play, and I often find myself entranced in the meditative and addictive nature of this game. Floating Memory is best suited for skilled matching game enthusiasts, older kids, and adults, and it’s a fabulous way to focus your concentration and sharpen your memory while having a good time.

By Age Range, By App Feature, High School +, Just For Fun, Matching, Middle School, Primary School, Reviews

This math-based application joins arcade game fun with simple addition and subtraction problems. To play Math Bumpies, you pick your tropical superhero likeness, and then tilt the iPhone/iTouch to navigate your way through the ten destinations on Math Island. Along the way you’ll see math problems; when you see a choice of answers, tap on your character to jump and bump the correct answer to acquire points. The game can be played in three modes (easy, medium, and hard) and is geared for kids age six and up. It appears best suited to children who already have a working knowledge of addition and subtraction and are looking to improve their math proficiency. It truly offers adventure, with challenges including shark infested waters, snow storms, walls of fire, and quicksand. Of all the math apps I’ve experienced, Math Bumpies feels much more like a heart-pounding video game than a means for learning. It’s no doubt this game will appeal to a child’s desire to have fun… and a parent’s ambition to enrich their child’s intelligence.

By Age Range, By App Feature, High School +, Just For Fun, Math, Middle School, Primary School, Reviews

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

Poke, tap, and slide the colorful illustrations and the world of the Itsy Bitsy Spider comes alive. This skillfully-crafted application is made by Duck Duck Moose, the award-winning production company who brought us two other preschool songs-apps, “The Wheels on the Bus,” and “Old MacDonald.” This particular rendition seems to top the others with its endless critters and even more interaction to rouse a toddler’s curiosity. It promotes exploration and can facilitate as a learning tool when caregivers and children experience and talk about it together. My favorite feature is the chatty fly Chloe who buzzes around the periphery of each scene offering helpful tidbits of information about nature and the environment. I also like that my son and I can record ourselves singing. What a find! The Itsy Bitsy Spider is epic entertainment!

Animals, By App Feature, Just For Fun, Music, Preschool, Reviews, Toddlers, nature

This application features the talking dog from the PBS Kids television series Martha Speaks. Dog Party is comprised of four games: Chow Time, Doggie Dress Up, Martha Says, and Pop Quiz. All of these games – with the exception of Doggie Dress Up – are educational and aim to hone keen observation, vocabulary, shape recognition, and word comprehension skills. Beyond the multitude of learning opportunities, this app provides a value with four games in one, the production quality is excellent and visually pleasing, and the canine characters are captivating. It’s clever and fun, and makes us giggle. My son and I can’t get enough of the enthusiastic dog tongue that licks the plate clean during Chow Time!

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

Skizzle is a game that allows you to make a puzzle from a picture in your photo library, Google images, or one taken on-the-spot. You can choose skill and mode settings from easy to hard, and there are timed options so you can compete against yourself or a friend. What’s super-special about this game is that you can send a mystery puzzle photo to a friend or family and they need to solve the puzzle to view the picture. What out-of-town relative wouldn’t want to unscramble the latest adorable pose of your little one? Anyone who enjoys puzzles will love this app and children will exercise important skills such as problem solving, flexible thinking, and deductive reasoning while having fun. I find the option to customize the puzzle by taking a meaningful image especially clever, appealing, and attractive. Send a puzzle picture to a loved one and they will have two great joys and discoveries in one – what a treasure!

Creativity, For Parents, High School +, Just For Fun, Middle School, Preschool, Primary School, Reviews, Toddlers

It’s Pickin’ Time! That means you need to choose your assigned veggie out of the garden patch without accidentally pickin’ the wrong piece of produce. That’s all, huh? Not so fast….this game falls into that simple-yet-brilliant category and just about everything about this app is beautifully crafted and executed. The graphics are colorful and vivid, the interface is easy to use, instructions are clear, prompts are easy to navigate and the twang of the bluegrass music is upbeat and cheerful. Have I yet mentioned how addictively fun it is to play? Beyond entertaining, this game also helps to hone memory and dexterity, as well as color and shape identification. This is the first app I’ve experienced from the developer Iconfactory and I can’t wait to load more. This is a quality buy and well worth every penny.

Counting, For Parents, High School +, Just For Fun, Middle School, Preschool, Primary School, Reviews, Shapes

The Family Matters app contains a variety of entertaining and thought provoking questions and activities that can be used to promote compelling conversations or to just entertain. Topics are tailored for use in different venues such as a restaurant, a doctor’s office and a car/road trip. This app helps to promote more than lively and entertaining discussions within families; the open-ended questions and activities can also help to facilitate creativity, imagination, critical thinking, and a better sense of understanding for all participants. It’s one of the few apps I’ve experienced that’s all inclusive – not just one or two players – and it’s appropriate for young and old alike. Not all of the questions or activities in Family Matters will resonate with every user, and there aren’t a lot of bells and whistles with the interface, but I’m certain most people will find value in what this simple yet brilliant app has to offer.

(As a side note, in December, Weiner Family Studios will be donating half of all proceeds from the sale of Family Matters to Ronald McDonald House Charities. Their goal is to support families who want to spend time with their sick children during the holidays.)

Creativity, For Parents, High School +, Just For Fun, Middle School, Preschool, Primary School, Reviews

The premise of this game is simple: tilt your iPhone/Touch back and forth to catch as many falling ice cream scoops as you can while avoiding the pesky vegetables that are trying to ruin your dessert. Accidentally catch three veggies and your game is over. Honestly, this is one of the most mesmerizing and addictive games out there and appeals to adults and kids alike. I find myself entranced by the dreamlike ice cream truck themed music and encouraged by the audience cheering me on as my scoops reach higher and higher. Beyond pure entertainment value, this game sharpens hand-eye coordination and helps attune risk assessment skills. When it comes to Scoops, I’m insatiable; it’s absolutely Dee-lish!

For Parents, High School +, Just For Fun, Middle School, Primary School, Reviews