Price: free
Overall Score: 96/100
version reviewed: 1.1
reviewed:
What it is: pack of activities and games for strengthening early reading skills.
What you do with it: this app is very extensive: please see our video presentation (below)
What we liked: almost everything, from the concept to execution.
What we didn't like: couldn't find the option to turn off the sound, navigation could be a bit more consistent.
Appysmarts
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 3.99$
Overall Score: 93/100
version reviewed: 1.2.1
reviewed:
What it is: a pack of activities for strengthening early reading and writing skills.
What you do with it: the activities include: letter and word matching, letter tracing, letter recognition, word spelling, word grouping, reading aloud (using voice recording). Range, type and level of difficulty will depend on the chosen age settings (basic activities for ages 3+, medium difficulty for 4+, advanced for 5+ age group).
What we liked: the concept (combining learning with fun/game experience), the number of activities, the age level/difficulty settings, the range of learning material, excellent educational value, simple, non-distracting illustrations, audio instructions and clues, very good rewards system with stickers (related to the main educational activitie), information and help section for parents.
What we didn't like: you cannot choose a particular activity to practice it (only linear navigation). We wish there was more variety in the activities.
Bottom line: an excellent all-round package for developing and strengthening early literacy skills. Easy and fun to use. Well worth the price.
Appysmarts
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: free
Overall Score: 89/100
version reviewed: 1.4
reviewed:
What it is: phonics and spelling practice (320 words, 3 levels of difficulty + focus on one sound mode + 'movable alphabet' activity). The crosswords range from single words to 3 word crosswords.
What you do with it: using image clues spell the words by dragging the required letters into place.
The 'movable alphabet' activity lets you create and play with letters/words.
What we liked: the concept, good educational value (number and choice of words), easy operation, visual clues, many adjustable options, tips for parents.
What we didn't like: no proper 'progress monitor' (just a simple completed word counter. No rewards system (the 'interactive animation' with bubbles may not be sufficient to keep kids occupied).
Appysmarts
Android
Android
Android
Android
Android
Android
Android
Android
Price: 1.99$
Overall Score: 89/100
version reviewed: 1.03
reviewed:
What it is: a pack of 6 activities for early reading and writing practice (mostly 3-5 letter words and basic sight words).
What you do with it: set up and (optionally) configure the account for a child (range of activities and difficulty level). The activities include: tracing letters (trace letters with your finger), rhyming maze (connect the words that rhyme), phonics bridge (find the missing sound in a word), spelling stone (drag letters to the correct place to spell a word), sight birds (collect the sight words on the screen), word wall (find hidden words).
The difficulty level will be adjusted automatically as you progress.
There is also a simple rewards system with stickers.
What we liked:the concept, good educational value, simple but engaging tasks, wide range of early-reading/writing topics (spelling, phonics,letters,tracing etc), lively graphics and animations, spoken instructions, visual hints, multiple user accounts with customization options, locked out 'parent menu'.
What we didn't like: the activities can get repetitive after some time. We wish there were more activities focusing on phonics.
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 1.99$ (was 3.99$)
May contain `more apps` links
Overall Score: 88/100
version reviewed: 1.1.1
reviewed:
What it is:animated alphabet flashcards with letter sounds and phonics.
What you do with it: choose a picture with a scene containing several objects with names starting with a particular letter. Touch the letter to listen to it's name/sound. Touch the objects for words, animations, interactions, and sounds e.g. for the letter 'z' the zebra will kick the 'z', letter 'e' will pop out of an egg etc.
What we liked: the concept, very simple operation, no distracting elements, both letter sounds and phonics included, sounds and sound backgrounds, fun factor, kid-safe 'parents' menu, multiple user accounts with progress tracking.
What we didn't like: the male narrator could be more neutral. In some scenes the actions/animations get a bit chaotic.
Bottom line: a good app for introducing younger kids to the alphabet (but you may wish to check our video walkthrough or the lite version of the app first)
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 6.99$
Overall Score: 88/100
version reviewed: 2.0
reviewed:
What it is: an app for teaching the basics of reading (phonics) and writing.
What you do with it: trace the letters with your finger and then put simple words together.
What we liked: the concept, visual clues for tracing, overall quality of this app. The solution for accessing Parentzone menu.
What we didn't like: some of the 'reward' pictures can be too abstract or too difficult for children. This app does not offer too much variety and the child can become quickly bored (we suggest parental assistance). We didn't like the navigation and sound quality could be a little better.
There is a free version of this app for evaluation purposes.
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 4.99$
Overall Score: 88/100
version reviewed: 1.3.0
reviewed:
What it is: an app for improving spelling and reading skills, contains over 450 high frequency words divided into 42 lists organized by spelling patterns and difficulty levels.
What you do with it: choose the word set, then listen to the instructions and examples and try to spell words correctly using the on-screen keyboard.
What we liked:the concept, wide range of learning material, the way the learning material is presented (extensive use of text and audio instructions and hints), simple to use interface, support for multiple user accounts (with separate word stats for every user), support for American, British and Canadian English spelling, very high educational value.
What we didn't like: could be a bit more appealing visually, in addition to the help menu we would like to see some sort of instructions/guidance for parents.
Bottom line: an excellent choice for teachers and parents (you may want to check out the other apps from the 'Simplex Spelling' series, too).
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 4.99$
Overall Score: 88/100
version reviewed: 1.7.2
reviewed:
What it is: an app for improving spelling and reading skills, contains over 260 high frequency sight words divided into 26 lists organized by spelling patterns and difficulty levels.
What you do with it: choose the word set, then listen to the instructions and examples and try to spell words correctly using the on-screen keyboard.
What we liked:the concept, wide range of learning material, the way the learning material is presented (extensive use of text and audio instructions and hints, sample sentences), simple to use interface, support for multiple user accounts (with separate word stats for every user), support for American, British and Canadian English spelling, very high educational value.
What we didn't like: could be a bit more appealing visually. Navigation is not consistent. In addition to the help menu we would like to see some sort of instructions/guidance for parents.
Bottom line: an excellent choice for teachers and parents (we recommend the whole Simplex Spelling series of apps).
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: 2.99$
Overall Score: 87/100
version reviewed: 3.6
reviewed:
What it is: phonics and spelling practice (320 words, 3 levels of difficulty + focus on one sound mode + 'movable alphabet' activity). The crosswords range from single words to 3 word crosswords.
What you do with it: using image clues spell the words by dragging the required letters into place.
The 'movable alphabet' activity lets you create and play with letters/words.
What we liked: the concept, good educational value (number and choice of words), easy operation, visual clues, many adjustable options, tips for parents.
What we didn't like: no proper 'progress monitor' (just a simple completed word counter. No rewards system (the 'interactive animation' with bubbles may not be sufficient to keep kids occupied).
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
iPad
Price: free (was 2.99$)
May contain `more apps` links
Overall Score: 87/100
version reviewed: 1.0.4
reviewed:
What it is: an app for teaching letters, phonics and spelling (about 100 words).
What you do with it: drag the letters to the right place to spell the words (letter sounds/phonics practice). The words will be read aloud, and spelled either letter by letter or by phonics (depending on the mode). The advanced modes don't include the visual clues (spelling practice).
What we liked: the concept, quality graphics, easy operation, voice clues, additional interactive elements, overall 'look and feel' and quality of the app. Good educational approach (inclusion of both letters and phonics, choice of words). Good progress/scoring tool.
What we didn't like: range of words could be wider. The progress will not be saved when you close the app. Audio quality could be a little better. The activities are rather repetitive.
Appysmarts
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
iPhone
