*Catchy titles aside, I don't actually believe that there truly are any "must-have" apps. Only Jesus and coffee fall into the "must-have" category. And maybe crochet. And scented candles. Maybe.
Last week I shared some of the apps my older boys are using for extra math practice over the summer, but my little girls use the iPads too, and I couldn't leave the younger set out ;) They get to join in the summer-school app fun too! So, while probably not "must-haves," maybe these apps are "would be pretty nice to have" for your preschooler or kindergartner! I think you should check `em out ;)
(Some of these I have recommended before, they're that good ;) )
Last week I shared some of the apps my older boys are using for extra math practice over the summer, but my little girls use the iPads too, and I couldn't leave the younger set out ;) They get to join in the summer-school app fun too! So, while probably not "must-haves," maybe these apps are "would be pretty nice to have" for your preschooler or kindergartner! I think you should check `em out ;)
(Some of these I have recommended before, they're that good ;) )
Drive About: Number Neighborhood (Artgig Studio)
This has been very popular with my girls this summer. Drive your car around the neighborhood to find different math activities to complete (number tracing, number identification, counting, ordering, etc...) unless the activities are on the water or under the water. Then you have to switch to a boat or submarine!! This is a fun one :) (Check out my previous post on math apps for elementary age kids to get info on bundle pricing for Artgig apps.)
TODO Math (Locomotive Labs)
Wow, the free version of this app has plenty of activities for your preschooler and kindergartner to practice math concepts. (Skills actually go up to 2nd grade, but you must pay for the high level activities.) Skills include counting, ordering, visual addition, patterns, reasoning, classifying, telling time, identifying coins, and more.)
Measure This (Clever Goats Media)
This is a simple app, by five-year old loves it, so I guess that's something :) The player is given early math "literacy" challenges, concentrating on concepts like biggest/smallest, most/least, measuring, and ordering by size. One of the things that I appreciate about this app is that it automatically speaks the instructions for each activity, so even my three year old can play it without needing me to tell her what to do for each challenge. Even as I type this, she's playing it with the older boys hovering over her, so it's clearly appealing to kids :)
Monkey Word School Adventure (THUP Games)
Also check out Monkey PreSchool Lunchbox and Monkey Math School Sunshine. These are favorites around here because, not only are the games fun, but the kids love building up their reward aquariums. (My only complaint is the monkey's voice is a little annoying, but Mom controls the volume, so it's not usually a problem ;) )
Shape - O ABC's (By Bellamon)
(I'm a Bellamon fan, so I've recommended their apps before!) Drag shapes and letter tiles to build pictures and corresponding words. You can even click on the rainbow at the top to change the color scheme of your puzzle. This app is so sweet! It's moderately customizable - you can turn off the sound effects and music, but the music is not annoying. (Cutem non-annoying music is one of the nice feature of Bellamon apps :) ) You can also allow for hints if your kiddo needs them, can switch from capital to lower case letters, and can adjust the muzzle difficulty.
Math Tree and Word Grab (also from Bellamon)
Math Tree is a sweet and gentle introduction to addition and subtraction. With Word Grab, kids get to practice beginning letter sounds and rhyming words with a fairly silly monster who rewards the player with equally silly antics after three correct activities.
This has been very popular with my girls this summer. Drive your car around the neighborhood to find different math activities to complete (number tracing, number identification, counting, ordering, etc...) unless the activities are on the water or under the water. Then you have to switch to a boat or submarine!! This is a fun one :) (Check out my previous post on math apps for elementary age kids to get info on bundle pricing for Artgig apps.)
 |
| Drive About: Number Neghborhood |
TODO Math (Locomotive Labs)
Wow, the free version of this app has plenty of activities for your preschooler and kindergartner to practice math concepts. (Skills actually go up to 2nd grade, but you must pay for the high level activities.) Skills include counting, ordering, visual addition, patterns, reasoning, classifying, telling time, identifying coins, and more.)
 |
| TODO Math |
Measure This (Clever Goats Media)
This is a simple app, by five-year old loves it, so I guess that's something :) The player is given early math "literacy" challenges, concentrating on concepts like biggest/smallest, most/least, measuring, and ordering by size. One of the things that I appreciate about this app is that it automatically speaks the instructions for each activity, so even my three year old can play it without needing me to tell her what to do for each challenge. Even as I type this, she's playing it with the older boys hovering over her, so it's clearly appealing to kids :)
 |
| Measure This |
Monkey Word School Adventure (THUP Games)
Also check out Monkey PreSchool Lunchbox and Monkey Math School Sunshine. These are favorites around here because, not only are the games fun, but the kids love building up their reward aquariums. (My only complaint is the monkey's voice is a little annoying, but Mom controls the volume, so it's not usually a problem ;) )
 |
| Monkey Word School Adventure |
Shape - O ABC's (By Bellamon)
(I'm a Bellamon fan, so I've recommended their apps before!) Drag shapes and letter tiles to build pictures and corresponding words. You can even click on the rainbow at the top to change the color scheme of your puzzle. This app is so sweet! It's moderately customizable - you can turn off the sound effects and music, but the music is not annoying. (Cutem non-annoying music is one of the nice feature of Bellamon apps :) ) You can also allow for hints if your kiddo needs them, can switch from capital to lower case letters, and can adjust the muzzle difficulty.
 |
| Shape-O ABC's |
Math Tree and Word Grab (also from Bellamon)
Math Tree is a sweet and gentle introduction to addition and subtraction. With Word Grab, kids get to practice beginning letter sounds and rhyming words with a fairly silly monster who rewards the player with equally silly antics after three correct activities.
 |
| Word Grab |
 |
| Math Tree |
Bugs and Buttons (Little Bit Studio)
We love all the Bug apps from Little bit Studio. In addition to Bugs and Buttons, I also highly recommend Bugs and Numbers, Bugs and Bubbles, and Bugs and Buttons 2. (We also have Bug Mazing and Bug Art, and they're enjoyable, but not as great, in my opinion.) You can actually purchase a bundle of all six apps by clicking here!! (It's $9.99 which is over a 40% discount.) The graphics and music on these apps are delightful, and the activities are fun and mentally engaging for preschoolers - things like number/color/type sorting, matching, pattern completion, letter matching, and tons more :)
 |
| Bugs and Buttons |
Happy Summer i-Schooling :)
You might also like...
I'm not sure how I managed to not find your blog until today, but I love it and I'm glad I finally did! Your toddler app suggestions are great - I downloaded my first toddler shop for my almost-3 year old this week, and the results for "best toddler app" on Google play weren't nearly as good as these.
ReplyDeleteHi Emily! Welcome! Glad to help out in the app department. Recommendations always have to be taken with a grain of salt since they're always just an opinion, right?!
DeleteHope you and your little one get to enjoy some of these :)
Thanks for stopping by and commenting!
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete