Vanderbilt Experts Choose Favorite Children's Educational Apps
Georgene Troseth, associate professor of psychology at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of education and human development and graduate fellow Colleen Russo, who conducts research with Troseth and their colleagues selected a few of their favorite children’s education apps for a variety of age groups.
They do not officially endorse any particular app and advise parents to choose wisely based on their child’s needs.
Reading and writing
Endless Alphabet (ages 3 and up)
Kids will have fun learning their ABCs and building vocabulary with the adorable monsters in Endless Alphabet.
Nosy Crow eBooks (ages 3 and up)
Nosy Crow eBooks offer a wide variety of both fiction and nonfiction interactive reading opportunities for children of all ages.
AlphaTots (ages 3 and up)
AlphaTots is a good resource for children just learning the alphabet.
Another Monster at the End of This Book! (ages 3 and up)
This interactive eBook begs players not to turn the page in order to keep Grover and Elmo from running into the monster at the end.
Elmo Loves ABCs (ages 3 and up)
Players learn the alphabet by tracing letters, watching video clips, coloring, playing hide and seek, working puzzles, singing songs and more.
Learn with Homer (ages 3-6)
A beautiful map on the main page draws the child into the world of reading.
Don’t Let The Pigeon Run This App! (ages 5 and up)
Based on the popular book series, children can either listen to a brand new story each time or create their own story by selecting multiple-choice options or speaking into a microphone in a “Mad Libs” format.
Book Creator (ages 8 and up)
Tapping into design skills and creativity, the child chooses images, places text and selects backgrounds for assembling their own book.
Math
Eddy’s Number Party! (age 4)
This counting game asks the player to help make Eddy the Dog’s birthday party special.
Gracie and Friends (ages 4 and up)
Gracie and Friends is a series of eight math-focused apps and curricula funded by the National Science Foundation.
DragonBox Algebra 5+ (ages 5 and up)
DragonBox is an effective way to sneak algebra into play without labeling the problems as “math.”
Slice Fractions (ages 6-8)
Children learn about fractions by slicing through lava and ice as they take an animated wooly mammoth through different levels of the game.
Motion Math: Pizza! (ages 9-11)
Problem-solving and math games are intertwined and part of the fun, as the player is responsible for their own pizzeria, from purchasing ingredients to running the store.
Computer programming and problem-solving
Kodable (ages 5 and up)
Kodable introduces children to the basics of computer programming through the FuzzFamily, who have crashed their spaceship on Smeeborg.
Move the Turtle (ages 9-11)
In this game, children move a turtle to collect a diamond by coding its location. Players are introduced to basic computer programming terms such as procedures, variables and conditional instructions.
Preparing for kindergarten
Busy Shapes (age 2)
Based on Piaget’s sensorimotor stage of development, the game starts with a hole and an object.
Cookie Monster’s Challenge (age 3)
This game encourages a child to develop their non-academic school readiness skills. The player helps Cookie Monster eat all his cookies while working on skills like self-control and following directions.
Beck and Bo (age 3)
This beautifully illustrated game follows a brother and sister through everyday life. Players drag and drop objects and characters to create new scenes. Creativity and logic are employed to understand cause and effect.
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