Are your kids constantly grabbing your ipod or android to play games on them?
You are not alone.
But at least you can sneak in a little learning while they naively have fun playing on Mommy’s new toy. Here are some
free educational apps
that kids will have fun with and may not even realize that they are
learning a thing or two! Like this list? Check out our other
collection of Best apps for Kids.
Language – Educational Apps
(letters, phonics, grammar)
Android
50 languages
by 50 languages. Learn 50 languages for free using your native
language! 50languages.com contains 100 lessons that provide beginners
with a basic vocabulary. With no prior knowledge, you will learn to
fluently speak short sentences in real-world situations in no time. The
50languages method successfully combines audio and text for effective
language learning.
Hooked on Phonics
by Sandviks HOP, Inc. Games, lessons, and stories to get kids hooked
on phonics! I love the bulldozer game to “push” the correct letters
into words – so fun!
Dictionary.com Flashcards
by Dictionary.com. Study, learn and master words on your phone. Create
and play fun, tailored study programs anywhere, anytime. Create your
own or choose from over 70,000 flashcard decks, customize your study by
grade level, standardized test, or subject, select your study method –
audio pronunciation or definition matching, sync your online and mobile
app progress, and study offline without an internet connection.
iStorybooks by iStorybooks. Free story books with fun pictures, text, and audio for your little ones ages 2-8.
Practice English Grammar – 1
by CrowdUni. Practice English Grammar (Beginner Level) helps you learn
English grammar by practicing interactive grammar exercises. Practice
English Grammar (Beginner Level) contains many pages of grammar lessons
explaining the grammar topics of the tests. With over 500 questions in
16 topics, this app helps you practicing the basic usage of English
grammar in elementary level.
Speak Spanish
by Holfeld Apps. Most Apps or classes try to teach you 1000s of words
you will never need. This App teaches you all the phrases you will very
likely need! If you want to save time and money and just learn what
you’ll actually need while traveling, this App is ideal for you! Hear
& Learn the basics, how to say Hello,Thanks,Goodbye and more.
Duolingo – Learn Languages for Free by Duolingo. Learn Spanish, French, German, Porteguese, Italian, and English for free! <–iPad version linked below
iPad
ABC Ninjas
by Innovative Mobiles Apps. This might just be my favorite free app of
all time! Kids slice capital letters and lowercase letters by name or
phonetic sound. Kids will be begging to play this educational upgrade
from fruit ninja!
Spelling Magic 3 by Preschool University. Kids learn to spell 4-7 letter words with two syllables. Helps kids learn basic phonic rules.
Pinkfong! Kids Songs – Stories
by Samsung Publishing ltd. #130 Singalong songs, #90 Musical
Storybooks, and other fun games/coloring pages. The ABC phonics songs
look fantastic along with the adorable sticker books.
A to Z Music Videos with ABCmouse.com
by Age of Learning Inc. Help kids learn letters with these music
videos! As you earn tickets, you can unlock more and more videos for
kids to watch.
Phonics Genius
by Innovative Mobile Apps. This app is loaded with content. We are
talking over 6,000 professionally recorded words carefully grouped into
225 categories by phonics. Ages 1 – 6 Years Old.
Duolingo – Learn Languages for Free by Duolingo. Learn Spanish, French, German, Porteguese, Italian, and English for free! <–android version linked above
Phonics Tic-Tac-Toe Interactive Game
by Lakeshore Learning Materials. Children build language skills in a
fast-paced game of tic-tac-toe! Fun, interactive game explores vowel
sounds, syllables and more. For ages 6-8 years.
Sight Words List – Learn to Read Flash Cards & Games
by Innovative Mobile Apps. Help Your Child Learn to Read. Sight Words,
also known as the Dolch List are an integral part in learning how to
read. The Dolch Word list contains 315 words that are broken down into
appropriate age groups. It is important for young readers to be able to
instantly recognize these high frequency words in order to be proficient
and fluent readers.
Math – Educational Apps
Android
Edukitty Preschool
by Cubic Frog Apps. The games for kids include, but aren’t limited
to: matching games, 3D alphabet, Biggest/smallest, Left/right, up/down,
find the color or shape all while earning a sticker that you collect at
the end of the game. Parents can customize the choices kids have by
eliminating the games that might be too challenging or hard for
their child.
Geometry Eye
by iauro Technologies. Play this game and see how accurate your eyes
can observe the things.GeometryEye shows series of geometry figures
which needs to be adjusted to make geometry shapes or to find out some
geometrical properties like angle bisector,in-circle of a triangle,line
midpoint etc.
Kids Math Lite
by Explore in Android. Kids Maths Lite is a great app perfect for
preschoolers to learn about numbers and counting. The kid can have hands
on following activities: Learn Numbers- Choose from Play mode, previous
and next buttons, Count and tell, Find missing number, Find bigger
number, Find Smaller number, Learn number names, Find a match- play the
popular fun memory game to match numbers, Draw and Learn- Practice to
draw the numbers within the stencil with color of your choice.
Kids Numbers and Math by
Intellijoy. Wouldn’t it be just wonderful if there was a simple game
for children that made learning numbers and basic math skills enjoyable?
There is! It’s called Kids Numbers and Math. This app is great for
learning numbers, choosing max/min number, addition, subtraction,
finding a match, and even advanced exercises.
Math Formulary
by anjokes. Simple access to all math formulas with the Math Formulary
App! Math Formulary covers all mathematical formulas that are usually
used in the school and the university. Where necessary graphics are
included to depict and explain the topic better. The content is
organized into following groups: Basic Arithmetic, Algebra, Analysis,
Geometry, Trigonometry, Analytical Geometry, and Logic.
iPad
Endless Reader
by Originator Inc. I have to include this app because it’s one of our
favorites. But, they now only allow a free preview with a fee to
purchase all of the words. This is worth the free trial though as kids
learn a fun way to spell and hear the sounds that each letter makes!
This is one of the few apps that I would actually purchase after
previewing.
Splash Math
by Study Pad, Inc. This free educational app reflects common core
standards in Grades 1-5 (although, they make other free apps for other
grade levels – just look in the “more apps by Study Pad,inc.” when you
click on this link). Track your child’s progress, collect animals as
rewards to make your own world, and see explanations of wrong answers.
King of Math Junior by
Oddrobo Software AB. The free version includes counting, subtraction,
and addition quests that earn you points as you become a true math King
or Queen! Perfect for kids 6 and older.
Ace Kids Math Games HD
by Brain Counts. Easily teaches kids how to Count, Add, and Subtract
VISUALLY using fun animations with a prize reward system for completing
each level.
Line ‘em up
by Classroom focused software. Designed to help kids learn number
order by placing tiles from least to greatest. Place 10, 15, 0r 20
tiles at a time and start with any number between 1-13.
Pizza Fractions: Beginning With Simple Fractions
by Brian West. Ranked a top 100 iPad education app in the United
States, May 2011, Pizza Fractions offers a simple, visually-based
introduction to fractions for elementary school kids. In chef’s pizzeria
your child masters the concept of naming simple fractions using pizza
picture examples. Designed for grade levels 2-6, Pizza Fractions
provides introductory practice with fractions in an approachable
game-like environment.
Rocket Math
by Dan Russell-Pinson. Math can be fun! Build your very own rockets
and fly them to the stars with Rocket Math! While your rocket is
floating weightlessly in space, the real fun begins! Play one of the
many fun math missions. Each mission has touchable objects floating in
space, including stars, coins, 3D shapes and more! Earn a bronze, silver
or gold medal and also try to beat your high score. Missions range in
difficulty from even/odd numbers all the way to square roots, so kids
and their parents will enjoy hours of fun while learning math.
Tangram XL
by NG. Simple version of popular Tangram designed with kids in mind.
Avoids unnecessary design and decoration to keep kids attention over
important geometric concepts that the game develops. The pieces are
handled naturally following the movement of fingers as much to move them
or turn them both at once.
Science – Educational Apps
Android
3D Brain
by Dolan DNA Learning Center. Use your touch screen to rotate and zoom
around the interactive brain structures. Discover how each brain region
functions, what happens when it is injured, and how it is involved in
mental illness. Each detailed structure comes with information on
functions, disorders, brain damage, case studies, and links to modern
research.
NASA
by NASA. Come explore with NASA and discover a huge collection of
stunning images, videos, mission information, news, NASA TV and featured
content with the new NASA App for Android.
iPad
Animal Fun
by Brian Pfeil. Animal Fun is a simple animal learning program for
children. Children learn about animals by seeing and hearing the sounds
an animal makes. It combines an easy-to-use interface and fun sound
effects to entertain children while they learn.
Peterson Backyard Birds by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Identify over 160 backyard birds of North America. Displays similar birds for fast comparison!
GoSkyWatch Planetarium – the astronomy star guide
by GoSoftWorks. Easily and quickly identify and locate stars, planets,
constellations and more with a touch or by simply pointing to the sky.
Have fun with family and friends discovering the images in the night
sky. Go outside and explore the night sky.
Periodic Table of the Elements
by Kevin Neelands. This is a standard periodic table of the elements –
a necessity for anyone interested in or even exposed chemistry.
However, the version differs in that instead of cramming all the
information for an element into one little square, you can select a
chemical attribute and have the entire chart color coded to plainly show
how the different elements vary with regard to the selected trait.
Science 360
by National Science Foundation. The National Science Foundation’s (NSF)
Science360 for iPad provides easy access to engaging science and
engineering images and video from around the globe and a news feed
featuring breaking news from NSF-funded institutions. Content is either
produced by NSF or gathered from scientists, colleges and universities,
and NSF science and engineering centers.
Games – Educational Apps
Android
Kid Mode: Free Games and Lock by
Zoodles. Fun and educational games for kids under 8. From live Seasame
Street videos to games categorized by age, this app is not only fun to
play, but safe because of it’s parental lock feature. <– iPad version
linked below
Puzzle Games for Kids
by Puzzle and Machup Games. Kids can choose from five different
puzzles to solve. Finally puzzles that you can do while your traveling
with kids without puzzle pieces falling all over the car or airplane!
Sound Touch Lite
by SoundTouch Interactive. Kids touch a cartoon image and see a real
photograph of the image while hearing the sound it makes. Kids will
love seeing things come to life in this app!
iPad
Zero to Three – Let’s Play
by Shufflepoint Inc. A great resource for parents and caregivers, this
app is full of ideas for keeping babies and toddlers entertained.
Search the app by age or by time of day like commuting, chore time,
etc.
Stack the States
by Freecloud Designs Inc. Such a fun game to learn the different
states in the US. Answer questions and stack your states up to the
checkered line to win – I can’t wait to play this one myself!
KidMode: Free Games and Lock
by Zoodles. Fun and educational games for kids under 8. From live
Seasame Street videos to games categorized by age, this app is not only
fun to play, but safe because of it’s parental lock feature.
<–android version linked above
Jack and Jill: A Toddler Adventure
by Tiger Stripes LLC. Kids walk through an adventure with Jack and
Jill as they complete puzzles, sing-a-along, sailboat races, search and
see games, and more!
Abby Monkey – Preschool and Kindergarten Educational Learning Adventure Games by CFC s.r.o. Patterns, shapes and puzzles for kids! Adorable games for kids to play and to learn from.
Leo’s Pad: Preschool Kids Learning Series
by Kidaptive Inc. Interactive, learning stories for kids up to age 6.
Kids join Leonardo di Vinci on his adventures. I love that they suggest
offline activities to revisit core lessons within the app!