Learn Times Table is a key stage for kids to get fluent in math. As my son’s math teacher told me, you want the child be able to memorize the basic facts, so he can tell you the answer without even thinking about it. This is not an easy job. Luckily, there are quite some tools helping kids to achieve the goal, MultiFlow is one of them. MultiFlow is an app to drill the kids on multiplication facts. There are… Read more

I can’t believe it is already time to think about Halloween. My son just got his Halloween custom yesterday! Here are some good Halloween themed apps. They are educational and kids friendly that young children can use. Trick or Treat Picture Me is designed for kids 2 to 5 years old. It lets parents add their child’s photo to this personalized book app and see them dressed up in adorable Halloween costumes such as a silly scarecrow, pudgy pumpkin and… Read more

Have you seen any of the Ice Age movie? Do you like them?  Now it is available on iPhone/iPod/iPAD.  Even better, for a limited time, it is FREE. This is a book app developed by iStoryTime, who also developed Wee Sing & Learn ABC.  With the initial download (now it is free), you get Ice Age story.  It is essentially a picture book with background music.  Both the pictures and the narration are authentic.  There are three options to read… Read more

Do you know you can send text, image, and video for FREE with iMessage?  iMessage is a free service from Apple.  Communications between iMessage users are free via WiFi.  You can have iMessage on iPhone, iPod, iPAD, and your MAC computer with OS X Mountain Lion. How to set up iMessage?   On iPhone, go to “Setting”, then “Message”.  You will see a screen like below.   Usually, iPhone automatically turns on iMessage during activation.  If not, turn it “On”… Read more

Scribblenauts Remix is a fun game that the whole family can enjoy.   I like it especially for the open-ended play.  There is no right-wrong answer.  You solve a puzzle in your own unique style. The app has a variety of brain-teasing puzzles.  The solutions to the puzzles are endless, so you can re-play the same puzzle again and again.  For example, the first puzzle is to grab the star on a tree.  The child can choose to cut the tree… Read more

If your kids study any type of music instrument, you probably have used metronome.  We had one, but it was broken.  Where shopping for a new one, I explored the App Store.  Metronome+ is the third metronome app we used at home, and this is a keeper. The reasons we like this one: The interface is very user friendly.  It is very easy to set the speed. The tempo is very stable. The sound is loud enough for the user to… Read more

Educreations is originally designed for teachers. It turns your iPad into a recordable whiteboard. Users can create an animated story, or a tutorial video, with pictures, adding notations on the pictures, recording voices, and, of course, writing on the board. You can use it teaching almost anything. Once you finish recording, you can share it with people of your choice through email, Facebook or Twitter. As a FREE app, it is a great teaching tool for teachers and home-school families… Read more

Even if you don’t like games or never played Angry Birds, you probably have seen those red birds somewhere – toy store, candy store, …  I have heard two completely different opinions about Angry Birds from parents.  Some think it is a great educational game.  Some believe kids are wasting time playing Angry Birds.  As you can guess, I am in the first camp.  I think Angry Birds is a great physics game.  If you are interested, here is an… Read more

Does your child know your telephone number? Are you having a hard time helping him/her remember your phone number?  Now there is an app for that.  After playing the Number Monkeys game, your child will be able to sing your telephone number. Before letting the kid play the game, you have to put in a correct phone number you want your child to remember. When kids are playing the game, they interact with a group of silly monkeys who encourage… Read more

Have you ever watched “Are you smarter than a fifth grader”?  Do you like it?  Now it has an app with the same name. This is a fun academic family game.  Any one started school can play.  Kids in first or 2nd grade may not be able to answer all the questions, but I am sure, there are some questions they can answer better than mom and dad. There are two ways to play the game: Normal Round and Play… Read more

The Opposites is a game app helping kids learn opposite vocabulary.  Kids will have a good time acquiring new words not even thinking about learning, because it is a game.  In addition to learning opposite words, kids also improve their hand-eye coordination and reading speed, because to win a gold medal they have to find the right word and tap on the word quickly. It is free now, but for a limited time. Introduction at the app store: An exciting… Read more

Creatures of Light is the companion app for the popular exhibition Creatures of Light: Nature’s Bioluminescence. The exhibition was run at the American Museum of Natural History in 2013. Introduction from American Museum of Natural History: The app “offers a close look at some of the extraordinary organisms that produce light. Enjoy interactive animations, photo galleries, and videos that reveal the beauty of this amazing natural phenomenon, how it works, and how scientists study it. Each chapter of the app… Read more

Do you like Scooby Doo? How about a free Scooby Doo app for kids? Scooby-Doo Who Are You is a book app from Hallmark made for their Interactive Story Buddy line. However, the app stays independent of the Story Buddy. If you have a Scooby-Doo Story Buddy and have it on while reading the book, you will enjoy the interactions between the app and the Story Buddy. If you don’t have the Story Buddy, you can still enjoy the app… Read more

The Oregon Trail is an educational simulation game teaching kids what it was like to be a pioneer traveling west in the 1800s.  It is based on the classic PC simulation game The Oregon Trail, which was created in the 1970s. It is a fun app that kids can play games and learn history at the same time. In the game, kids join a historic wagon train traveling west ward from Missouri to Oregon. To start, kids can choose who they want to… Read more