Penelope the Purple Pirate: This app was adapted by PicPocket Books from a book of the same title written by Melissa Northway. When Melissa contacted me about a possible review, here's how she described it: "My little girl was the inspiration to write about a feisty redhead who likes to go on adventures with her friends. At the same time, teach children the importance of treating others with kindess and respect. Each of Penelope's friends have some type of disability that the parent or educator can discuss if they choose to. At the end of the book are fun facts about the sea creatures, discussion questions and activities for the home or classroom." The story is a great one and the app is just right for this type of tale. Nothing too flashy, instead it features helpful audio corresponding highlighted text as well as a few extras in the form of animation and audio sounds.
FirstWords Deluxe: FirstWords Deluxe is one of several toddler learning games by Learning Touch. Other titles include FirstWords Animals, FirstWords Spanish, and FirstWords Christmas to name just a few. The twins and I tried out the Deluxe version along with a Halloween version and found them both to be a lot of fun while subtly reinforcing basic letter and reading concepts. While I can't attribute any one game to teach the boys to read, I can say that a few great educational games such as this one must be seeping in here or there. Just yesterday one of the boys was able to show me on my keyboard the first letter in his name as well as the first letter in his twin brothers.
Paper Town Friends: We wanted a dress-up game that wasn't just for girls and this app by Robin Rosenthal was the first one we found that fit that category. Instead of dressing girls in high fashion outfits like many of the other dress-up options, this app currently allows kids to dress one of six paper cut-out style animals. There are currently about 150 clothing items one can use in play. We hope our love for the apps will inspire Robin to add more animals and even more outfits.
Toy Story Read-Along: Just one of many many options from Disney Publishing Worldwide is the Disney favorite Toy Story. This particular one is available free in the iTunes Store and makes a great addition to any Woody and Buzz fans eLibrary of book apps. We love that it features the movie voices along with the music.
Jingle All The Way: Both twins received Jingle an interactive story buddy stuffed animal made by Hallmark last Christmas from my brother and sister-in-law. They loved it! The stuffed Jingle interacts to the physical book you receive when it is read aloud. He barks and such, it is really cute. The downside was the twins at age 3 needed an adult to read the book for them to enjoy it fully. Not anymore! This app subs in by reading the story when mommy is busy or just can't read it for the 15th time in a row. Thank you! Thank you! And if you don't have Jingles, it's still a terrific story that can be enjoyed.
Elmer and the Lost Teddy: This month we are featuring another app from Oceanhouse Media digital book (omBook). They've taken author David McKee's beautiful story and illustrations and transformed into an interactive book app aimed at readers in preschool through grade 2. Here's the summary: One night, Elmer hears the sound of crying. It's Baby Elephant and he can't sleep because he has lost his teddy. Elmer lends Baby Elephant his teddy for the night and searches for the lost teddy the next day. His cousin, Wilbur, gets involved in the search and plays a joke on Elmer as usual, but one that helps Elmer find the missing teddy bear just in time for bed! One of my twins is teddy bear OBSESSED so this story always has him on the edge of his seat until the bear is found. Hopefully Elmer and Wilbur are on stand-by to help if Declan's bear "Chippers" ever goes MIA.
Red Riding Hood: Red Riding Hood is a part of the Auracle line from Auryn. The app is based on a famous fairy tale about a young girl and a big bad wolf. In my book it is required reading for the preschool set much like King Lear is for the H.S. crowd. I loved the vintage illustrations and better still the twins liked them too. Auryn really does seem to have an eye for what will adapt beautifully.
Scribble Kid: Once your child has unleashed their inner artist, they'll need plenty of blank canvas and markers to keep them busy. We like how easy this app is to use at the youngest ages and that it includes a few basic shapes one can use to get started.
*Please note we were provided with review copies of some of the above mentioned apps, however the opinions expressed about the apps are our own.
