Choo Choo Time! is one of those apps your young child will not be able to put down! Simply a train running through the countryside — it captures attention like no other. Check out the video for the gameplay. This is a fun app for the very young to perhaps 5. Kaylin liked watching the train and clicking on the animals to see what they would say. It captures the attention and is somewhat mesmerizing…
Fun – 5
Attention – 5
Learning – 1
Total = 11
I have had the review of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star by OneApp Application Studio for sometime. It was one of those apps that I was sure my 3 year old could like if she had enough time to learn about it — I was right! It took some time, but Kaylin really likes the app and sings along. She still cannot follow the keys when the music is playing, but that just gives her some time to spend with the app in a few months or a year.
This app is also nice to place in the room when your child is going to sleep. Just turn it down and let it play!
I give it a 4 for fun, a 3 for Learning, and a 5 for attention for a total of 12. I think the score could go up if she could actually learn to play the song, but as you can see in the video, she is more concerned with signing and banging on the keys.
Rain Go Away ABCs is another great alphabet learning app. It makes learning the ABCs easy and fun. My 3 year old has known her ABCs for sometime now and still enjoys the application. The tips are a neat feature that give you ideas of something to do if it is actually raining. We live in Phoenix, so we actually go out in the rain when it rains!
Learning – 5
Fun – 4
Attention – 3
Total = 12
Check out the video for more information about the app:
If you liked our review of First Words Animals by Learning Touch, then you will really like First Words Deluxe! It includes the same game play, but with Animals, Shapes, Colors, items in the home, vehicles and all words. I like the last one all words. This keeps my 3 year old going for a long time!
The existing review stands. Great gameplay with the scrabble like interface and the repetition of the letters and words is outstanding! You cannot beat an audible and visual game with an actual tactile movement. This means your kid learns while playing.
In this case I give it an updated 5/5 for attention. The additional categories make this an app that lasts a while! And she keeps coming back to it.
So Attention 5/5, Fun 4/5, Learning 5/5 for a total of 14!
My 3 year old really like to spell and letters in general. She has really taken a liking to First Words Animals by Learning Touch. It is a simple game where the scrabble like letters are scrambled at the bottom of the screen and the animal is shown at the top. If you touch the animal a voice tells you what the animal is. You can then grab the letters to match them up to the word – scrabble like.
It may seem simple, but this game is really well done. Not only are there a lot of animals and the potential for many more with updates from the developer, but also the way the letters are pronounced and repeated along with each word is fantastic as a reinforcement for learning.
This game is suited for ages 2- 5. I give it an attention of 4, fun of 4 and learning of 5 for a total of 13.
Picking up this game is a must!
Captain Duck by Harper Collins is one book in a series of books involving Duck. My daughter loved the story and liked the app. She was immediately entranced by the voice and the story:
She had a bit of a hard time figuring out the navigation, but she is 3 and the swipe is somewhat new to her. This was quickly overcome in a matter of days.
I give the app an attention of 4, Fun of 4 and learning of 3.
That is pretty good! Check it out here:
http://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/captain-duck-by-jez-alborough/id376171463?mt=8
The SpongeBob Square Pants app is one of those apps you love and hate. My 3 year old loves the app and it takes up a bunch of her time. She likes to play with Sponge Bob and make him look silly and add our photos to his background (watch the video).
We hate this app because it is really annoying. You need to turn the volume down. How can you deny your little one a fun app with little educational value when they really like to see their little yellow square buddy dressed up how they like?
BlueOnionSoft makes a few baby apps. Baby Apps All-In-One is a grouping of four of those apps into one. A great deal at 1.99 at the time of this writing. You can see in the video:
.
Your child can learn about animals, numbers, sounds and shapes and then be quizzed on those items. It is fun and rewarding for you and your child. My 3 year old loves the app and probably spends at least 10 minutes at t time on the various activities.
There is a fair amount of learning potential in the app and this alone makes it worth the $1.99
You can check it out in the iTunes store here:
(iTunes Link)
iMoo (itunes link) from Panda Cub Productions is a nice remake of those little sound apps you used to see in the stores like KB Toys. You would pick them up as a kids and tip them over just to hear the sound they made. Well Panda Cub Productions has created a nice app for just that.
You can see in the video that you have the option of a several Cow sounds and you can record your own. You actually do need to tip the app to get the moo to play – just like the real thing.
My 3 year old was disinterested in the app, but my 9 year old thought it was a blast and was rolling on the floor laughing. It is a nice party gag too. Fun in meetings or on a phone call with the boss perhaps?
This is for any age range, educational value is nil and time spent on the app is simply minutes, but it is worth the price in my opinion!
Fun!
Sound Shaker by Tickle Tap Apps is a fun and appealing app for young kids. On the screen your child can choose an instrument then press the screen to make a sound ball of that instrument. Only one instrument at a time. Adding many balls of sound lets the iPhone have something to work with. The balls drop to the “bottom” and the fun begins. You shake the iPhone to get the balls to make noise!
You can fling the balls and press for a longer period of time to make a slightly different sound too, but the fun is in the flinging and shaking.
Did my 2 1/2 year old like it? Yep. It took a bit longer to get the hang of and the interest wasn’t there as quickly as the other app from Tickle Tap Apps that we have reviewed, but this is still a nice addition to their line.
What does she want next? My 8 year old wanted to record her own voice and also enjoyed the app for a while. It is one of those fun apps that adults and kids can enjoy for a period of time.
Here is how I rank it:
Learning: 2/5
Fun: 5/5
Attention Capture: 3/5
Total: 10/15.
**Updated 11/20/2009**
Here is how I rank it:
Learning: 2/5
Fun: 5/5
Attention Capture: 5/5
Total: 12/15.
I had to update the scores since over the past week my daughter has really grown to love this app. She has discovered that if you hold down on the screen the sounds turn to an egg and hatch a bird. She loves it.
** end update **
Age: 5 and under (as recommended by the publisher: 3-5)
Publisher is: Tickle Tap Apps
iTunes Link is here: Sound Shaker
Video: