Last year my 6 year old daughter started learning chess both at home through playing with us and at school through an afterschool enrichment program.  Learning and playing chess encourage concentration, improve cognitive abilities and rational thinking, it is a great game for kids. Just because it requires concentration and staying power, so it was not necessarily her first choice of activity at home. I was lucky if I could convince her to play once a week, and I could see that… Read more

This space math adventure app is geared specifically to the 3-4 year old set. Kids get to help the peppy robot, Zorbit and his pal get to planet Earth while they build they pre-K math skills.   The adventure is divided into six different chapters that focus on Common Core Curriculum for preschool math—love that.  Kids have to complete each chapter and earn a star before they can move on to the next one, once all the stars are earned, Zorbit’s… Read more

Today we have another math app went free – Bugsy’s Math Quest.  It is a game that helps reinforce multiplication and division facts.  It is not a teaching app, but a game app that helps kids improve speed and accuracy. Like other Bugsy apps, it features the hamster Bugsy.  The game setting is similar to Bugsy in Math Kingdom.  The difference is Bugsy in Math Kingdom only covers Addition and Subtraction, while Bugsy’s Math Quest, covers Multiplication and Division. Kids… Read more

Sometimes, when I have an app to review and I want input from my kids, I have to gently nudge them to try it.  That was not the case for this app.  As soon as I had it downloaded, my son began making music videos. With Rok Out Concert, kids have four characters to begin their band.  Parents can buy four more but don’t worry, the app’s security measures for preschoolers ensure that your child will not purchase them without… Read more

When my son was young, we read together every day, at least at bedtime.  Once he gets to school age and is able to read by himself, we have not been reading together as much, not to mention read aloud together.  I wanted to re-start our reading together time, and found poetry being great to read aloud with kids.  They expose kids to sound and rhythms in addition the contents itself, and there are also many imaginary activities you can… Read more

Let’s just say I am a sucker for mice (its a family thing).  That however, is not the only reason I enjoyed Special Agent Magic.  He’s got a thing for cheese fondue and rescuing goldfish from young black and white cats. When kids first enter the app, they are prompted to make a secret agent ID card.  Kids don’t have to make an ID card to learn about the case but it sure does help them feel like a secret… Read more

Based on the hilarious book Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! and the series that developed after that, Disney has created the app entitled Don’t Let the Pigeon Run This App! The book by Mo Willems has been given recognition on the New York’s best seller list as well as landing a spot on the National Education Association’s “Teacher’s Top 100 Books for Children” list; so it’s no surprise this is a great app. This app allows your child… Read more

Bugsy Kindergarten Reading School is a learning app for early readers to learn and practice alphabet, phonics, and spelling.  If you have followed iGameMom for a while, you may remember another Bugsy app – Bugsy in Math Kingdom.  Bugsy Kindergarten Reading School features the same character – the cute hamster Bugsy.  It is currently free for back-to-school.  If you have an early reader at home, this is a great one to have. The interface of the app is very simple. … Read more

The Book of Holes is what I like to call a ‘progressive’ approach to explaining the way the world works by virtue of its holes. This App is based on a 2006 Children’s Book written and designed by Poul Lange, a Design Firm based in LA who creates among other things, book cover designs. In 2006, this particular book made the top 50 list of best designed books according to the American Institute of Graphic Arts. In other words, this… Read more

The developer Justin Holladay has created a great combination of story book and math activities in the app Jack and the Beanstalk. This app is in part an eBook which reads you the story of Jack and the Beanstalk and also in part a series of math activities throughout the story. Math is a fundamental part of cognitive development, helping to improve critical thinking skills, logic, and problem solving skills.  All of which are  strong foundations to a child’s development… Read more

Looking for a great app that makes learning about fruits and veggies fun? Then this app is just what you’re looking for. It’s for those early iPad/iPhone users: ages 18 months to 5 years. This puzzle app exposes children to various fruits and veggies. The game focuses on name recognition of fruits and vegetables as well as motor development while the child swipes the puzzle pieces until the image lines up. Puzzles are a great tool for helping children develop… Read more

I have introduced several book reader apps in the past, Sylvan Dell, Reading Comprehension Camp, to name a few.  Each reader app has its own unique features and reading range to attract different users.   Today I have another one I want to share, and of course, it has its own unique features that are going to be very attractive to many families.  It is so far one of the book reader covering biggest age range – from 2 to 12, it… Read more

Sneak a Snack is a fun interactive book app telling a story about a boy Alex who tries to solve the mystery of his missing snack. Alex comes home after school and fixes himself a huge snack. Just when he is ready to enjoy the food, his mom calls for help from upstairs. When he comes back to the kitchen, his snack is gone! He investigates all three pets, but none of them admits taking the snack. … It is… Read more

Mo Willems is best known as the award winning Author and illustrator of  kid’s favorites like Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, the Elephant and Piggie series and the Knuffle Bunny books. He now also has  a brand new app! Pigeon Presents: Mo on the Go! where you try to fill your sticker vault by playing mini games, drawing and dancing! The fun includes: Draw with Mo:  Use your imagination to turn a scribble from Mo  into your own doodle. A child can also play with a friend with one… Read more