Mobile Advent Calendars

Most of us are familiar with Advent calendars. The most common form has scenes with windows numbered 1 through 24, with a window opened each day from December first until Christmas Eve. In these modern times, there are lots of Advent calendars available for iPhone and iPad, and it is fairly easy to find them. Advent officially starts tomorrow, on Sunday 2nd December, but most Advent calendars will start today.

Advent Calendar 2012

I was lucky enough to win this one in a code drop on the JustKidsApps Facebook page, but it is one I’d be happy to pay for as it is simply beautiful.  I love the enchanting illustrations, the music, the stories, and the activities, which my children and I can enjoy together.

A Charlie Brown Christmas – Loud Crow Interactive

If you are a fan of the 1965 classic movie, A Charlie Brown Christmas, then you are going to love this story app from Loud Crow. I’ve been waiting all year to review this one, as it is one of my favourite apps ever, and one of the first apps I ever purchased.  I rate it highly, not only in terms of supportive features for early readers, but for entertainment value as well.  

Happi Papi Literacy Apps

Happi Reads and Happi Spells are two fun literacy Apps from Happi Papi.   Although I have the English versions, international versions are available in alternative languages, depending on which country’s iTunes store they are purchased (more information below.)

Happi Reads

Happi Reads is a variation of a flash card activity where children read a word and then match it to one of three pictures.   Children are clapped and cheered, and receive a fruit token for correctly identifying each word.  Once six tokens have been collected, the game ends with children tapping a large picture if the fruit to “eat it.” The feedback for incorrect answers is an “uh-uh” noise.  Children don’t get a second attempt at the same word, but they move on to a different word without a penalty.  The logic behind this is that the designers thought that, if kids were to get a second chance at the same word and picture set, they would start guessing instead of really making an effort to read the word.

Schools A to Z – the Essential Homework App

I have been remiss in not reviewing this  App earlier as it is a must for parents of school-aged children.  It has been on my iPad for some time now, and it has been in my “going to get to ” list, however I’ve dipped into it a lot lately, so I really need to share it with you.  School A to Z is a free App from the NSW Department of Education and Communities.  Their School A to Z website aims to:

” create an online community with comprehensive homework and ‘school life’ support for parents that is easy to use, relevant and engaging.”

The school A to Z App gives parents access to some of the content on the site and will be a welcome resource for any family of school-aged children.

Benjamin Bunny Pops Out with Peter Rabbit just in time for Easter

Illustration from children’s book en:The Tale of Benjamin Bunny (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter will have its 110th birthday this October (Personal Trivia:  it was published just days after my paternal Grandmother was born) and it is just as fresh and wonderful for children today as it was at the beginning of last century.  It is a must-have book for the family bookshelf.  There are a few electronic versions available, including several on the iTunes App store, but today I’m just going to look at the treatment Loud Crow gives it in their version PopOut! The Tale of Peter Rabbit. The great news is that its sequel, PopOut! The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, was recently released.  Another Beatrix Potter Tale has also been given the Loud Crow treatment with PopOut!  The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, equally as fabulous.

If you can imagine a delightful vintage Pop-up book, then you’ve pretty much got the picture.

Moo Media goes Mobile – Four Picture eBooks your children will love

Today I’m sharing not one but FOUR children’s picture ebooks that have been beautifully translated into the eBook format by Loud Crow Interactive. Four of Sandra Boynton’s beautifully illustrated stories are now available as eBooks for iPod, iPhone and Android. The series is perfect for young children.

Features

Sometimes you come across an App that does everything you want it to do.   The features of each book read like a list of everything I could wish for in a quality children’s eBook.

MathBlaster Hyperblast

MathBlaster Hyperblast is a drill and practice app and covers addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. It is an arcade-style game where you tilt the device to progress through a spacey-looking tunnel, shooting various targets to earn points and avoiding obstacles.  You can select from three levels of difficulty for the arcade part of the game.  The Math drill and practice part occurs every so often when your path through the tunnel is blocked up by a  multi-armed robot.   The robot asks a series of Math questions and the answer is selected by tapping on one of the numbers in his hands. You can customise the App in terms of Math ability, however the highest level of Mathematics required would still be in the junior primary level, for example addition questions only go up to 24.  You can also select from three levels of difficulty for the arcade part of the game.

Just Grandma and Me by Mercer Mayer

Sighhhhhhhhh – I love this App. It is one of the best story apps for children that you will find and has everything you want: lovely story, great illustrations, some interactive elements that enhance the reading experience, and great narration. There are three modes for reading: Read to Me, Read It Myself, and Autoplay.