My Favorite Apps - Part 3

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Sorry for the delay in finishing this series on my favorite iPad apps.  Today I will focus on the ones most enjoyed by my 3-year-old, but if you are interested in the ones I prefer or the ones most used by my 5-year-old, click here.

Educational Apps (She has many more loaded that she occasionally plays, but these are her favorites.)
iReading books  (There are tons of these.  She can follow along as the story is read, and some have some extra activities.)
Bob Books  (I've been amazed at what all she has learned just playing around.)

Coloring Apps

There are lots of these available.  She goes through periods of really enjoying them.

Just for Fun

Anything by Toca (We have Tea Party, Hair Salon, and Doctor, so far.  She LOVES all of them!)
MyPlayHome (another big winner)
EasyBakeTreats  (Who wouldn't enjoy making and decorating their own cupcakes?  Both of my children enjoy this one.)

I have paid for several of these, but many I have gotten for free.  Again, I recommend AppShopper (or something similar) as a way to track when apps go on sale.  I have many more in mind for Megan that I'm watching for a price drop.

What apps do you recommend for preschoolers?



This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary Other days: A Wise Woman Builds Her Home

My Favorite Apps - Part 2

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One of the main reasons I began wanting an iPad (or similar tablet) was because of the many educational apps that were being used by other homeschool moms and school teachers.  I had hoped that, at the very least, they would provide an educational diversion for Megan while I was working with Nathan, and vice-versa.  It has far exceeded my expectations!

Truthfully, I use the iPad more than anyone.  Last week, I wrote about some of my favorite apps that I use personally.  You can read about those here.  Today I'll focus on the ones that Nathan (age 5 - Kindergarten) uses most frequently.

Geography:

Stack the States
Stack the Countries
Nathan and David love to play both of these together in the evenings.  Megan even gets in on the action!
Google Earth
We love "flying" to the different countries that we study and being able to "visit" key landmarks.

Math:

Nathan is in Kindergarten this year, so most of these focus on basic addition and subtraction.
Math Bingo
He loves to play with the Bingo Bugs when he completes a round.
K12 Counting Coins
K12 Counting Bills & Coins
Math Fact Blaster (very basic "flash card" type of app)
Math Garden
This is a fun way to build speed on the basic facts of addition and subtraction.
Motion Math Hungry Fish
Motion Math Zoom (great for learning about the number line)

Astronomy:

NASA
This is a beautiful app with lots of information, NASA TV, videos of launches, etc.
GoSkyWatch
Hold the iPad over your head and the app will tell you what stars, constellations, etc. are located above you (or on the other side of the Earth you if you hold it down).

Phonics:

Word Bingo (same premise and company as Math Bingo above)
Sound Sorting (grouping words by beginning consonant)
Tic Tac Toe Phonics
Simplex Spelling
Montessori Crosswords

Other:

King's Apps Telling Time (basic, but effective)
Build a Train
Nathan LOVES this one.  You create your own train, choose a track, and watch it run while you make different sounds, toggle the track switches, and adjust the speed.
Trainyard EX
This one involves using logic to lay out the track that will get the train(s) from the start house to the destination, going around obstacles and avoiding other trains.
Creationary
This one is by Lego and involves spatial reasoning.
Simon Says
Still a classic.  :)

We have others, but these are the ones that he either chooses or I assign for him to do in order to work on a specific skill that we are building.  The vast majority I got for free.  Most others have a Lite version that you can try out before deciding whether or not to pay for the full version.  (I have quite a few more on my AppShopper Wish List, and I'm waiting for the price to drop.)

These are all iOS apps, and most can also be used on the iPhone or iPod as well as the iPad.  My guess is that most have counterparts for Android tablets and phones.

Got any recommendations for me?  I'm always looking for new ones.

Stay tuned for My Favorite Apps - Part 3 (The Megan Edition)!



This post is linked up to one or more of the following blog parties.  Check them out! Monday: Menu Plan Monday on I'm an Organizing Junkie, Wednesday: Works for Me Wednesday at We are THAT Family, Friday: 5 Minute Friday at The Gypsy Mama, Company Girl Coffee at Home Sanctuary

My Favorite Apps - Part 1

image from img.skitch.com

Those of you who are my Facebook friends know of the consternation I went through over choosing a tablet.  I finally bought a 1st generation iPad from someone on craigslist, and I have no regrets.  I love it!  And my kids and husband do, too.

I love finding lists of recommended apps, so I'm hoping you do, too.  Today, I'm going to start with the ones I use myself.

These are in no particular order except for this one: AppShopper.  Using this app can potentially save a person quite a bit of money over time.  I put in a Wish List of apps, and then it notifies me when the price changes on the app.  Also, within AppShopper, you can see the price history of a particular app.  So for example, if I see that the price has been $1.99 for the past two years, I know it's probably not going to change anytime soon.  On the other hand, if I see that it drops down to $0.99 every couple of months (or better yet, FREE!), then I know it will be best to wait it out.  Genius!  There are several similar apps out there that may also be wonderful, but this is the one I use and love.

Commercial over.

Here are the obvious ones that I love (all FREE!):

Pandora (Christmas music whenever the mood strikes?  80s music all the time?  Yes, please.)

Facebook (although I still primarily use my desktop)

Netflix (app is free but requires a Netflix subscription)

Kindle (I can now check out library books for Kindle.  Plus there is now a Send to Kindle app for desktops for sending pdfs (e-books, anyone?) straight to my Kindle.)

Weight Watchers Mobile and WW Kitchen (apps are free, but you will need WW e-tools to use any part except the included recipes)

Notes (I have used this for packing lists, prayer lists, and I'm reading off of it now as I type out this list. :) )

Less obvious ones (most also free):

GoTasks (This syncs directly to my Google tasks list on my desktop.  I love that I can make lots of different lists - color-coded - that can be viewed separately or all at once.)

FreeBooks (HUGE selection of books, especially classics.)

1000Gifts (This app created by Ann Voskamp of A Holy Experience is a gratitude journal.)

Weather + (I'm a weather junkie.  We bought the full version to add lots of cities from around the world.  It helps to make some of the faraway places we have studied in geography feel more "real.")

Pulse feed reader (It won't show all of the blogs I follow, but that's kind of a good thing.  It helps me to focus on the ones I most care about.  Please add mine.  hehehe)

ShowMe (Awesome for teaching.  I have already used it this term in helping some of my online students.  It allows me to "write" on a whiteboard, record the writing as well as my voice, and then creates a link I can send to the student.  Wonderful!)

Games I'm now addicted to:

Bees&Flowers

Bumpling (I have the free version now but will probably break down and get the full version soon.)

7 Words

I have downloaded many more apps, but some I haven't really used much or at all.  I'll be sure to post more if I discover some really great ones.

Later, I'll be posting my favorites for the kiddos.  What are your favorite apps?  Please share!