Favorite Apps

Now that I am the proud owner of many many Apple "i" products, I have to populate these products with Apps from the App Store.

Not just for Productivity. Clearly.
But also for entertainment.

Not just for me. But for those around me.

Today, I will be talking about Kid Apps that I am enjoying letting my kids use in a few spare moments.

I am not a big fan of "Screen Time" for my kids. We have pretty strict rules about television and video games around here. And the ipad and iphone are not different.

But, like a lot of parents there are times when it is simply convenient to hand over the device and let the kids have some downtime playing a game or two. That I have selected for them.

On the ipad we love:
Albert
http://itunes.com/apps/alberthd



It is a really cool game that literally our whole family LOVES. It is challenging. And it is NOT Angry Birds.

Another one that I like to use is:
My Spelling Test

Asher doesn't "LOVE" this one but I like to let him build his spelling tests of the week in the app. He records his voice saying the word. Then he types in the word. And once the test construction is complete, he takes the test.
I think it really helps him to "get" the concept of spelling on a variety of levels and instead of just rote writing words on a piece of paper in engages him. And he gets to use the iPad. Which he likes. Bribery. Use it wisely my friends.

Spell Free

My final app suggestion today is one called Happly
It is almost a platform for kids and family.
You sign your kids in. And then suggestions are preselected based on their age that are appropriate to link to information all over the internet from YouTube, video games, and informational sites that kids that age would like.
The catch is, your kids can't navigate from looking up something about dinosaurs. To then finding out what adults think dinosaur sized "body parts" are. If you catch my drift. I hate handing over my iPad or iPhone and thinking that my kids are just two clicks away from things that I would NEVER lets them see or know about otherwise.

The app developer came to create the app because his kids learned the f-word after watching some videos on YouTube and kept clicking on the right hand side. Next thing you know...

This site is really fun because you as an adult can navigate it and leave "messages" for your kids on sections that you think they would particularly like. Also, they have fantastic photography from National Geographic throughout.

Here's another review if you don't believe me:
Tech Crunch