Looking for safe, fun apps to make the most of screen time? It can be hard to wade through the app store to find quality options! Here are some of our family's favorites. This list covers everything from math to movement - I know you'll find something your kids will love!
|
Moose Math |
Free |
Khan Academy |
|
Moose Math is an education app designed for children aged 3-8 and based on the Common Core curriculum for Kindergarten through Grade 1. This app supports multiple user profiles and provides parents with report cards on their child’s progress through the five mini games that teach and reinforce basic math concepts. The fun and interactive mini games support student in addition and subtracting to 20, word problems, counting, addition and subtraction by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s, number recognition, pattern recognition, identification of colours and shapes, and comparison of items by size, shape, and colour. Children earn upgrades to customize their virtual community as they progress through the mini games. Further worksheets to support math skills are freely available on their website. |
||
|
Available on iOS, Google Play and Amazon |
||
|
Duck, Duck, Moose Reading |
Free |
Khan Academy |
|
Duck, Duck, Moose Reading is an education app created by the Khan Academy to help support early literacy education. The app is designed for children between 4-7 and support early literacy. Parent report cards are produced to help parent identify their child’s progress and areas which may require further practice and support. The app uses engaging mini games to teach consonants, long and short vowel sounds through letter recognition, letter-sound exercises, and word activities. As children progress, they earn animal stickers to decorate various habitats. |
||
|
Available on iPhone, iPad, Google Play, and Amazon |
||
|
Khan Academy Kids |
Free |
Khan Academy |
|
Developed by experts at the Khan Academy this versatile app allows children to explore a range of topics and skills. This app is designed for children between the ages of 2-7 and is based on common core curriculum for preschool through Grade 1. The app uses various mini games and a fully interactive library to allow children to engage with skills ranging from early literacy, writing, math, and social-emotional growth. The activities are designed to be open ended and include books, videos, games, and coloring pages. Children can choose to select their own activities independently or follow the dynamic learning path which the app adapts to each child’s pace and skills. |
||
|
Available on iOS, Google Play, and Amazon |
||
|
Artie’s Magic Pencil |
Free to try. |
Minilab |
|
Artie’s Magic Pencil is an engaging and interactive story based game which teaches children basic drawing skills. Developed for children between 3-6, this game follows Artie through a wordless story in which the child helps to solve obstacles by drawing simple objects in a dot-to-dot format. The game is very simple but engaging and helps children with fine motor control. The app is free to play until the half-way mark at which point it is 0.99 to continue to the end of the story. Once unlocked the game can be replayed. Minilab also offers free printable drawing sheets on their website. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
Artie’s World |
Free to try. |
Minilab |
|
This app is a continuation of the concept of Artie’s Magic Pencil and includes basic shape drawing for 40+ animals. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
Writing Wizard |
Free to try. |
L’Escapadou |
|
Designed to help children 4+ with fine motor control this app guides children through tracing exercises to refine pre-writing, printing, and beginning handwriting skills. C The app is free to download and try but to fully unlock all features costs 0.99-6.49 depending on how many features are unlocked and the platform used. When fully unlocked the app features 5 fonts and has fully customizable word lists as well as various pre-writing shape exercises. The app works by tracking the movements the child traces, which can be played back in parent mode to assess growth and challenges. The tracing sensitivity can also be adjusted to make the progress easier or more difficult. |
||
|
Available on iOS, Google Play, Amazon, and Windows |
||
|
Sesame Street Alphabet Kitchen |
Free to try. |
Sesame Workshop |
|
This app featuring Elmo and Cookie Monster is designed for children from 3-5 to practice early literacy and vocabulary building skills. The app is free to try but $3.99 to unlock all content. There are two modes in this game. In the first children help Elmo to decorate vowel cookies, and after creating their artwork can choose to share them. In the second mode children assist Cookie Monster in baking word cookies. Three- and four-letter words are available, and children must select the right vowel to sound out a proper word. The cookie is then magically transformed into an image representing the word, helping children to develop their recognition of letter-sounds and vocabulary. In the fully unlocked version, there are 90 possible words that can be created in this mode. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
PBS Parents Play and Learn |
Free |
PBS Kids |
|
This fully bilingual app (English/Spanish) has been developed for children from 3-6 for development and support of math and literacy skills. The app contains 13 interactive games and also provides tips and further resources for parents to support the development of skills. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
PBS Play and Learn Science |
Free |
PBS Kids |
|
This app allows children from 3-6 years of age to explore scientific concepts through open ended mini games. Topics that children can explore through this interactive app include water movement, buoyancy, weather, thermometer, light movement and shadows, and friction. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
The Wild Gang |
Free |
Canadian Wildlife Federation |
|
This app, developed by the Canadian Wildlife Federation, was created for children between 7-12 years of age to explore nature and animal sciences. Through games, including scavenger hunts, and real world adventures children can explore the diverse nature of Canada. The app also includes the classic Hinterlands Who’s Who videos and is fully bilingual (English/French). Children can collect nature cards and earn Explorer badges through the games and real world adventures. |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
Earth Rangers |
Free |
Earth Rangers |
|
This fully free app does require a parent activation, once activated a physical Earth Ranger kit is also physically mailed to Canadian families. The app uses real world missions based on conservation and environmental awareness for children to unlock avatars and badges. The app provides access to Earth Rangers podcasts and missions include subjects like recycling batteries, lowering thermostats, and reducing energy use. |
||
|
Available on iOS, Google Play, and Amazon |
||
|
GoNoodle |
Free |
GoNoodle |
|
This app, which has been used in classrooms across Canada and the United States, has a focus on keeping children between 4-10 years old active and moving. Video content includes dance, yoga, mindfulness, yoga, and more. The videos are very well made and appropriate for children, although there are some ads and sponsored content so supervised watching is advised. New content is added weekly. |
||
|
Available on iOS, Google Play, Amazon, and Roku |
||
|
Magic Timer |
Free. In-app purchases |
Disney |
|
Magic Timer is a wonderful app to help children with dental hygiene. It is created by Disney and powered by Disney/Marvel branded Oral-B products, but there are options to use the app completely free. Children of all ages can unlock stickers for brushing their teeth for the recommended 2 minutes, twice daily. Disney and Marvel characters can be unlocked either by scanning branded Oral-B toothbrushes and toothpaste or via in-app purchases. The scanning function can be tricky on older devices but overall the app is a great motivator to remind kids (and parents) about proper brushing techniques |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
|
Pokemon Playhouse |
Free |
Pokemon International |
|
A fun and interactive app for kids 3-5 who love Pokemon! This app is fully free to download and play. Through a series of mini games children raise Pokemon eggs until they hatch. Mini games include puzzles, stories, grooming, music, hide and seek, and dot to dot. The app has been created so that children do not need to be able to read to utilize it as a friendly narrator will give them all needed instructions. A simple but very enjoyable app for young children |
||
|
Available on iOS and Google Play |
||
Calgary’s Child Magazine © 2024 Calgary’s Child
