Doodlecast Pro is a neat tool that can be used for many purposes. It can be a presentation tool, if you have a project to share. It can be a storytelling app for kids to tell a story. It can be a teaching tool for anyone trying to explain something with visual aid.  It is an app allows users to write or draw on the screen while explaining the drawing or writing. The app records the whole process, including the visual and… Read more

We like to watch movies as a family. When you have a good movie for kids, these movie watching experience can be very educational. Last month we started using Netflix again.  I really liked Netflix movies stream program.  We tried Netflix a couple years ago, but discontinued due to concerns that my son may be exposed to some content that are not appropriate for his age.  Now with the new feature Kids Movie, we decided to give it another try… Read more

123 Ninja is a number game app helping kids recognize numbers and improve hand-eye coordination.  The game play is very similar to Fruit Ninja. In this game, kids slice on numbers instead of fruits. On the open screen, you can tap the big Play button to start the game right away.  However, if it is for kids, I suggest you go into the setting section first. It is at the top right corner of the open screen. It requires you… Read more

PicPlayPost is a photo video collage app.  What makes it different is its ability to have videos in the collage and many editing capabilities right inside the app.  It is free today for limited time. Like most collage apps, PicPlayPost has a good selection of collage frames. You can also change the frame ratio. By default, it is 1:1, but you can change the ratio 4:3, 3:4, etc. Within the big frame, you can drag the edge of each picture… Read more

Tellagami is a free storytelling app for kids.  It lets you create and share a short animated story called Gami, a fun app kids will love to use.  It is free on app store. Kids can create an animated story in 3 simple steps. First, they can customize the storytelling character. Features they can choose from are: gender, skin tone, hair style, eye colors, clothing, and emotions. Next, kids can choose a background for their story.  They can choose one from those… Read more

I am very excited to find a great free app goREACT. It is designed by the Museum of Science and Industry, Chicago. It lets kids explore the chemical reactions of different elements on mobile devices – safe and fun! It is not only a good learning app for middle and high school students, with the visual and interactive features, it is also a fun exploratory app for younger kids, even kids in kindergarten or preschool, as long as parents are… Read more

MoMA Art Lab is a creative art app from Museum of Modern Art. It helps kids learn about modern art: how to create and how to appreciate the art. It is free for a limited time. When kids first open the app, they will go through a tutorial how to use the app, which is very helpful.  Once they finish the quick tutorial, kids are free to explore and create.  The creation part is very intuitive.  At the bottom of… Read more

October is National Bullying Prevention Month. Having heard many stories about bullying, and nowadays, cyber bullying, and how much kids involved suffer from the experience, we, as parents and educators, should all work with our kids, help them gain skills in recognizing bully behavior, and be equipped with strategies on handling bully situation. Many times, it is hard to bring up a discussion about bully with kids, so today I want to share some resources that will make the talk about… Read more

Have you ever played tangram? The traditional tangram is a 7 piece puzzle game, each piece in a different shape, such as square, triangle, diamond. Using the 7 pieces, you can create endless pictures and patterns. We used to play with it a lot. There are many variations of the game now, and Dragon Shapes: Geometry Challenge is a great app that expands the original idea to a full array of 50 shape puzzles. Kids will learn to recognize different… Read more

Earth 101 for iPAD is a beautiful 3D model of the entire earth, with tons of geographic features and landmark information. Upon opening the app, kids will see the globe. Spinning the globe, kids can visit different areas on the earth. Tapping on any place brings up information of the area or the feature, such as the Atlantic Ocean, the London Eye. The information available depends on the zoom level.  When you zoom in, you can see more features and… Read more

Recently I had a discussion with a friend about games and education. I believe games are not all bad. There are many good games out there. As long as being used wisely, games can help kids learn in many areas. I have discussed this topic in several articles on iGameMom, two of them are How to Teach Physics with Angry Bird and Tiny Tower: What Can You Teach Your Child. Today I share more game apps that are educational and you will be happy kids are playing. 10 Free Game Apps that… Read more

I always like simulation games, because they offer open-ended play, kids gain skills in problem solving and creative thinking. They are usually easier for parents to get involved and play together with kids.  Some of my favorites are Tiny Tower and Oregon Trail. I am really excited to find out Dinorama is free today.  It is a simulation game designed for kids, with no in-app purchase.  In the app, kids will create and manage their own dinosaur theme park: buy land; build buildings… Read more

Does your child like science? Or are you looking for some science learning material for your curious-minded kids?  Today I found 3 wonderful science apps that are just set to free – the three apps in Science Through Photography series: Life, physics, and Earth. They are available for both iOS devices and Android. They are also available on the web. All three apps are designed with children in elementary school in mind. For younger kids, parents have to read the… Read more

Math Mathews: Mental Math is a math game app helping kids on math facts.  It is fast paced and fun, with story built in.  Kids who like games will like this app. The objective of the game is to help Captain Mathews and his crew get to the heart of the Temple of the Earth. Along the way kids have to solve math problems, collect coins and keys.  I like the design of the app that kids not only have… Read more