Price: $4.99


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Murky Reef 1st – 2nd Grade Reading, Science and Math Review

Our Review

Murky Reef 1st – 2nd Grade Reading, Science and Math is an excellent learning app for critical thinking as well as specific topics such as science, math and reading comprehension.

Parents will appreciate how this app incorporates the Common Core standards for Grades 1 and 2 while keeping children engaged and entertained, especially as children prepare for school to start again soon and need to begin to get back to the business of focusing on school work.

Murky Reef is a collection of 22 interactive games which teach a great deal about the animals of the coral reef as well as include math, logic and language exercises.

The look of this app is appealing with simple, animated sea creature characters, sometimes with included interactions as well. Narration leads players through these game activities that have a nice level of variety, both in subject matter as well as interactivity. One can follow through this app, continuing from one activity to the next as well as choosing favorite sections from a menu. It is also nice for adults to see a report of children’s progress through this app.

Murky Reef includes the re-occurring characters of Puff, a puffer fish and narrator of this app, as well as a hungry shark named Ogge, on which these games are focused, as Ogge is always looking to attack the other fish in the sea. Correct answers will allow Puff to shoot lava at Ogge to keep from attacking, creating a fun level of suspense and a fun way to time these mini-games.

This app also includes a nice reward for collecting fish related to the areas achieved in this app, allowing one to learn more about these sea creatures as one adds to his collection.

I think this app is a very nice choice for first and second grade students, but I think younger children, with the aid of an adult could also enjoy this app as well as slightly older children or those with delays who may need educational apps for a specific age. This app may be geared towards 6-9 year olds, but it will not condescend to older children who need extra help in any of these subjects.

I do wish, however, that the answer could be displayed if time runs out and Ogee attacks. Personally, I have really enjoyed these mini-games, especially those involving reading and listening comprehension, as well as the included videos from YouTube available if one is online. However, I had trouble deciphering the directions from the “Hidden Addition” and “Hidden Subtraction” as these areas worked in ways that were counter-intuitive to my thinking, although the math being taught here is quite useful. Because of this, although “help” sections do exist for these mini-games, I wish there was a feature which demonstrates the basic game play of these areas.

Even with this note, this app is great for families, especially those who home school as well as those in typical school settings. Teachers will especially appreciate the ability to set up accounts for up to ten children, keeping their progress separate as well individually selecting the speed at which Ogee attacks, thus personalizing the level of difficulty.

For these reasons, it is easy to recommend Murky Reef 1st – 2nd Grade Reading, Science and Math as a great interactive learning app, especially for those who would like to incorporate Common Core standards into their children’s daily lives.

dataAugust 9th, 2012 by Amy Solomon Share

Application Detail

Murky Reef : 1st - 2nd Grade Reading, Science & Math

Murky Reef : 1st - 2nd Grade Reading, Science & Math


Download on iTunesDeveloper: Frolyc
Released: 2011-09-30 00:00:00
Price: $4.99

Description from the Developer

Murky Reef is unique in seamlessly blending reading, science, language arts, math and critical thinking skills with interactive and engaging game play ALL in one app!
For ages: 6-9 years
Also recommended for kids 9 years & up with cognitive developmental delays

Awards:
★Murky Reef is EdTech Digest Awards 2012 finalist in mobile apps category.

What people are saying:
★Famigo APProved with 5-★ rating!!
"Murky Reef is one of the best critical thinking apps."

★TheOnlineMom.com: Featured as "App of the Week"
Awesome educational app, consistently capitalizes on “teachable moments”, retains its high entertainment value by engaging the user’s imagination.

★AppsForHomeSchooling.com gives 5-★ rating!!!
"Murky Reef is an incredibly fun educational app that really draws children right into the action."
View video demo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkOSK6pwsqk

Features:
✦ True 21st century multi-media learning using informational text, interactive graphics, audio, curated & safe videos and of course games!
✦ Interactive play in a coral reef with shark, pufferfish, cleaner fish and more.
✦ Math & Language Arts content aligned with Common core standards.
✦ Carefully structured questioning that fosters critical thinking.
✦ Progress report across activities and across skill set.
✦ Ideal for classrooms with support for 10 student profiles.

More features:
✔ 22 cross-curricular games that are fact-filled and fun.
✔ Thrilling interactions - Make shark teeth fall off, inflate a pufferfish, make an octopus squirt ink, touch jellyfish and more!)
✔ Win sea creatures and learn tons more about each of them

Topics covered
In Science:
* Coral reef ecosystem
* Habitat, prey-predator relationship
* Interesting sea animals like pufferfish, cleaner fish etc.
* Sharks - types, habitat, fascinating attributes, body anatomy
In Math:
* Number sense (Can you count, compare and compose numbers?)
*Arithmetic (Add & subtract 1-20 quickly. Use sea stars and sea snake number line to answer!)
* Number patterns (Counting in 2s, 5s, 10s, 100s, forwards & backwards counting)
* Addition/Subtraction grid (Analyze a grid, do mental math & spot the equation)
In Language Arts:
* Read and be quizzed on comprehension
* Words & letters. Perceiving & discerning letters in various words (Did you realize that 2 words can have common letters but differ in just 1 letter? Think ROSE and SOAR! Compare and deduce.)
* Spot rhyming words (Do BAT and COT rhyme? You tell me...) from a large list of word families.
* Sight word search (Can you find the word ABOUT lost in this grid of letters? Spell and find!)
* Vocabulary (This app is all about sea creatures. Turtles have “fl_ppers”. What is the missing letter? Think & spell)
* Sentence structure & composition (Sentences start with capitalized letter & may end with a period. Now create a sentence!)
* Game on word synthesis (Do you like anagrams and crosswords? Here is a simplified version for your thriving kid! Challenge her/him!)

Skills addressed
* Mental Math & Math Facts( with & without manipulatives)
* Logical deduction
* Vocabulary
* Reading and listening comprehension
* Analysis & Application of knowledge

NOTE on videos: The videos are carefully curated and are kid-friendly. Playing the videos requires Wi-Fi connection.
NOTE to teachers: This app is designed with Bloom's taxonomy in mind as applicable to 5-8 year olds. We have addressed 4 levels of Bloom's taxonomy - knowledge, comprehension, analysis, and application through various activities in this app. Please feel free to provide your critical and valuable feedback.
You can learn more about Murky Reef and the design goals behind the games at http://frolyc.tumblr.com/

Privacy Disclosure: We do not collect personally identifiable information. We do not have links to social media, ads or in-app purchases. We have links within the app to the Frolyc website & to email us. View our privacy policy at www.frolyc.com.

Screenshots

(click screen shot to enlarge)