Kid Art
Price: USD 0.99
For ages: 2-6
This parent-designed app is great for younger tech-heads. The super-simple controls are designed with little hands and first-time users in mind. Kids can draw a range of school- or sea-themed scenes. They can also drop, move, and resize animals in their drawings. Saving pictures is easy and to erase – just shake your iPhone.
Animalia
Price: USD 3.99
For ages: 4-8
Based on the beautifully illustrated children’s book by the same title, the Animalia app brings this classic into the digital era. Just like in the original storybook, the aim of the game is to find Graeme, a little boy who spends his time hiding amidst the highly detailed scenes of this animal wonderland. Learn the names of the animals and hear them roar, squeak and squawk. Zoom in on illustration details, and spend hours searching for Graeme – he’s never in the same spot twice!
abc PocketPhonics
Price: USD 1.99
For ages: 3-7
Parents and educators alike love PocketPhonics. Designed and reviewed by teaches in the US and UK, it teaches kids the basics of reading and writing using the synthetic phonics teaching method. Children will learn 30 letter sounds such as letter-combos like "sh" and "ch," while honing their writing and spelling skills. Best of all, it’s fun to use and the positive feedback keeps kids progressing through the program.
eliasZOO
Price: USD 1.99
For ages: 0-2
We all remember flash cards, don’t we? Well, this is a flash card app for the next generation. Babies and toddlers can flip through 22 illustrated animal cards, poke them to hear what noise they make as well as see what each animal is called. To help maintain their interest, each animal is animated (without being too over-the-top). A good vocabulary builder for little ones, and a great way to keep them occupied whenever you’re waiting in line somewhere.
Virtuoso Piano Free
Price: Free
For ages: 3-8
Virtuoso Piano Free is a great app for kids who are learning the piano – or for those who just like to make noise. Offering six octaves, the quality of the grand piano sound makes you feel like you’re playing the real deal. Kids can also practice five different chords. If you’re looking for more features like tuning, adjustable reverb, advanced metronome and recording, the full version (Virtuoso Piano) is available for USD 0.99.
Story Patch
Price: USD 4.99
For ages: 5-10
This picture story app is an excellent choice for elementary school children. Kids can design and write their own masterpieces from scratch or use a themed template (a good option for younger kids) to help them. Over 800 images are included and kids can even import their own photos. When they’re done, they can e-mail friends and family their story as a PDF file. Definitely worth the comparatively high price tag.
Math Drills Lite
Price: Free
For ages: 5-10
It’s not the prettiest or most colorful, but for actual teaching ability this app ranks highly. The Lite version (full version USD 1.99) teaches basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division skills using number lines, wooden blocks, facts and hints. There’s also a feature that allows kids to solve problems using their fingers (or at least a digital representation of them). The review mode is particularly helpful and allows parents to see where their kids are struggling and succeeding.
Montessori Crosswords
Price: USD 2.99
For ages: 3-8
Designed by two home-schooling parents, this app is easy to use, well-illustrated and has lots of opportunity for interaction. Great for kids who are learning how to read and spell, this app offers 300 word-image-audio combinations, which are in turn classified into three levels of phonetic difficulty. The possibility for repeat play is endless and the increasingly difficult puzzles give this app a long shelf life.
Dinosaurs: The American Museum of Natural History Collections
Price: Free
For ages: 7+
The first official app from the American Museum of Natural History allows you to explore the Museum’s giant fossil collection. Delve into the archives and uncover hundreds of interactive photos and renderings. You can also read up on where each fossil was found as well as the paleontologist who discovered it. Dino-enthusiasts of all ages will love this app.
TeachMe: Kindergarten
Price: USD 0.99
For ages: 3-5
With this app, kids can learn sight words, addition, subtraction and spelling under the guidance of Mimi Mouse, an animated teacher character. The coin reward system is very effective: For every three correct answers, kids earn a coin, and they then use their coins to "buy" stickers. Once they’ve collected enough stickers to make a scene, kids can e-mail their creation to Mom and Dad or use it as wallpaper. Bright, colorful and intuitive, this app makes learning fun. Parents will appreciate the extra customization and performance history review features.
Just for Fun
Cut the Rope
Price: USD 0.99
For ages: 5+
Description: A seriously fun, seriously addictive puzzle game. The aim is to get Om Nom to the candy but it won’t be easy.
Pictureka!
Price: USD 1.99
For ages: 6+
Description: Find hidden objects fast within wonderfully crazy cartoons scenes. It’s a race against time. Multi-player available.
Angry Birds
Price: 0.99
For ages: 5+
Description: No apps list is complete without this addictive favorite. 225 levels of brute force, it’s birds versus green pigs and the birds are set to come out on top.
Adora Dear
Price: USD 0.99
Ages: 3-10
Description: Dress up Adora Dear, choosing from 100 different patterns and 150 different clothing items. You can also print out your creations to make paper dolls.
Depict
Price: USD 0.99
Ages: 6+
Description: Depict is an online Pictionary game played with friends or strangers. This app provides users with a fun mental workout.
Don’t Have a Smartphone? Try These Websites:
www.webkinz.com
Ages: 5-12
Description: This is a virtual playground for your kids. In this world, your online pet needs to be fed and played with, and there are games and educational quizzes to be played and items to be bought.
www.pbskids.org
Ages: 4-12
Description: Elmo, Clifford, Curious George – they’re all here ready to teach your kids in an extremely well-designed and playful way.
www.howstuffworks.com
Ages: 10+
Description: This site takes questions like "How evolution works" or "How daredevils work" and answers them using clear and concise language. It’s a great site for curious minds.
www.brainpop.com
Ages: 12+
Description: A site packed with colorful videos that enthusiastically explain anything from the law of conservation of mass to how Dickens came to be famous. Younger kids can check out www.brainpopjr.com.
www.freerice.com
Ages: 8-14
Description: A vocabulary quiz in which for each right answer given, ten grains of rice are donated to the World Food Programme. It gets harder as you go along.
