Disney launched ImagiCademy recently as a series of educational apps for kids age 5 and younger. Currently there are only two apps in the series: Art and Math. I only get chance to look at the art app. It has several creativity components in it. If you are looking for art apps for your toddler or preschooler and your child likes Disney characters, this would be good app to have. There are 5 units in the app. Each unit has… Read more

Noggin is a free app that provides subscription based streaming shows for preschool kids. With the subscription, kids can watch the full episodes of ad-free preschool shows, plus access to other educational videos. You have 7 days free service. At the end of the free trial, you can discontinue the subscription, or the app will automatically charge your iTunes account for the next month. It is a new service from Nickelodeon. The shows included in the app: Allegra’s Window, Blue’s… Read more

Do you have a Thomas and Friends fan at home? You will love this app – Thomas and Friends Watch and Play. This is the first app that lets users watch full episodes of the TV shows on iPad, iPhone or iPod. In addition, kids can watch clips from the show, and play games. When you open the app, you will see 4 parts in the apps: videos from the show, and 3 games. The 3 games are all based… Read more

Scratch Jr is a free app from the developers of Scratch at MIT. It is designed for younger children to learn coding. Different from other coding apps for young children, it encourages storytelling as well. With the many interactive functions, parents and teachers can use it as a customizable tool to teach kids many other subjects, such as following instructions, counting, coloring. When you first start the app, there is a tutorial video. I highly suggest going through the video… Read more

When kids start learning math beyond counting, they start to encounter math concepts that they need understand precisely the meaning, or they may have trouble. For example, they need know the meaning of “Angle”, and the differences between “Acute Angle”, “Obtuse Angle”, “Right Angle” and “Straight Angle”. It will be helpful if the kids have access to these math terms at home when they need help. Math Dictionary is a free online math dictionary designed for kids to look up… Read more

ABC Gurus is a fun alphabet app for preschool kids. It teaches both letter names and letter sounds. What makes this app stand out is the incidental learning design. Incidental learning is the learning happens by chance in connection with something else. In this app, kids will be creating alphabet characters, but during the process of creating the characters, they will have lots of opportunities to hear the sound of the letters, thus learn the letter sound unconsciously. This is… Read more

LeafSnap is a free app developed by Columbia University, Maryland University and Smithsonian Institute. It is a tree leaf identification guide that helps users identify trees with the leaves. You can snap a picture of the leaf, and the app will compare the image with the database, and tell you what tree is the leaf from. It is a fun app to have for your walking in the park. The most fun part of the app is the Snap part… Read more

YouTube has become more and more popular and more and more parents and teachers are using videos they find on YouTube as teaching materials for kids. Although there are so many great content on YouTube, parents worry about that kids may run into videos they are not supposed to watch. To solve the problem, Google launched YouTube Kids, where kids can watch age appropriate videos, and parents and teachers can have the peace of mind knowing all contents are child… Read more

JFK Challenge is a free app from The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. It is designed for school age kids to learn the history, particularly the two initiatives by JFK – The Peace Corps and The Space Program, via the combination of multimedia introductions and hands-on games. To start the app, kids can set their own avatar with a picture of themselves. They will watch a brief introduction of John F. Kennedy and the two initiatives. Kids can… Read more

Eli Explorer offers open-ended play to young children. It is an app for toddlers and preschoolers. Kids can freely explore in the forest, on the mountain, and at the cute bunny Eli’s home. I love it for its open-ended play. There is no levels, no rules, just exploratory play. Isn’t this how young children learn? When kids start the app, they will see the little bunny Eli sleeping on the cloud. Kids can wake up Eli by tapping on the… Read more

Zap Zap Fractions is a free app for kids explaining the basic concepts of fractions. I like the good visual help when the meaning of fraction is explained. If your children just start to learn about fraction, this is a great tool to help them to have a good understanding of the real meaning of fraction. The app has two parts: lesson and challenge. The lesson starts from a division, and shows to kids that fraction is essentially a division… Read more

Medelia is a free app helping kids learn about the history of Mediterranean cities. Kids visit the cities, learn and explore at their own pace. It is a fun way to learn history. There will be more cities included the app, but currently there are 3, and one city is free. When kids just start the app, they can create their own avatars. The created the character will be the one explore the cities. Currently the city that comes free… Read more

I listed iTrace app in the list of Best Handwriting Learning Tools for Kids, but have not had a full review. Today the app is free for limited time. I think it is a good opportunity to share a detailed review. If you are still looking for an app for kids to practice handwriting, this is a good one to use. If you are going to have kids practice handwriting on iPad, I highly recommend a child-friendly stylus. I like… Read more

Highlights is not a stranger to most parents. You can see their magazines in many places, like doctors’ waiting room or other kids places. Now Highlights are bringing their magazines to mobile devices so kids can have the fun on the go, no matter where you take them. I recently had a chance to take a look at the Highlights All About series. It is a magazine-style book series designed for preschool to early elementary school kids. You can have… Read more