The irony of writing a review of an educational game about grammar, named Grammar Police is not lost on me. The chance of getting pulled up on my own grammatical error is extremely high so I must concentrate on my writing as much as the app itself.
Grammar Police is an educational game to help pre-intermediate and intermediate English learners with the details of grammar, something that can be a challenge for people who have English as their first language let alone if it’s your second language.
The game states that it’s suitable for all ages but the cartoon style graphics are certainly going to appeal to younger age groups, which for the most part will be the ones that benefit from the educational aspect of this game.
The game alternates between two types of games. The first challenges you to complete a sentence in the appropriate tense from a selection of words presented on the screen. This is where the story part of the game comes in as the words are being carried by the Tense Gang and getting the right words will ensure that the Tense Gang are caught and that innocent bystanders are captured instead.
Before each level starts you are given the tense of the sentence and the first couple of words at the beginning of the sentence and is your task to complete the sentence appropriately.
Selecting the words can be a little tricky at times as the words overlap each other and you’ll find yourself waiting for the words to untangle themselves. It would also be nice for the tense to appear while you are playing the game, instead if you have forgotten the tense that you are supposed to be playing, you have to pause the game to find out.
The other game requires you to fill in the missing word from a sentence from a range of similar looking and sounding words. You have 3 lives for each game and failure to complete the task will result in the game ending.
Throughout playing this game the level types have remained the same each time I’ve played it, however no two sentences or missing words have repeated themselves which goes to show the large variety of puzzles in this game.
What is disappointing is that you can only play the game by playing through the levels in a linear way, there is no way to select individual levels should you wish to concentrate on a certain type of puzzle.
What is also missing is the ability for multiple players to play the game via multiple profiles, however one reason for this may be the OpenFeint integration which enables a variety of achievements to be unlocked as you play the game.
Grammar Police is a great way for your children to polish up on their grammar in a fun way and certainly make it more of a game rather than homework.
$0.99 (View in iTunes)
Category: Games
Released:Oct 18, 2010
Version:1.0
1.0 (iOS 4.0 Tested)
12.5 MB
Language:English
Seller:Chamira Fernando
© Arzon
Rated 4+
Requirements:Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iOS 3.0 or later
Math Bingo – Developed by Abcya, Math Bingo is an app with all different sums to solve. It covers addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. There are three different skill modes, easy, medium and hard and you can create your own character from a choice of 8.
The aim of the game is to get a row of five little bugs. To do this you answer a math question at the top of the screen and then find your answer within a table below. When you get a row of five you win.The game is timed so you can see how long it takes you to get your five in a row. You are also scored on the amount you get right and wrong and how quick. The lower the score the better you do.
Your child will also be rewarded for a high score with a Bingo Bug. They can collect these bugs and then interact with them. To do this they just tilt the device or tap them and they produce cute little giggling noises.
The game comes with great sound effects, clear and good sized buttons and numbers. The bugs will be loved by all children and scoring within the game encourages them to play over and over.This is an easy to play game for children, that encourages them to learn. It is lots of fun and it really doesn’t feel like they are learning maths! ($.99, View in iTunes)
Basic Math – Developed by Explorer-Technologies Basic Math is an app designed for children up to the age of 12. It helps them improve on the their math skills.
The app covers Addition, Subtraction, Division and Multiplication. At the start you can set the amount of questions you want to be asked. The default is 10. When you have chosen which type you would like to solve you are ready to start answering the questions.
On the screen is a chalkboard with a sum to solve. Below it are a choice of answers, all you need to do is tap on the answer. If it is correct you get a tick and if not a cross.At the end of the round you receive your results. It will tell you how many you got right and what your percentage is.
You then work your way through each sum type. If you like you can set the timer so you can see how long it takes you and then try to improve your time.The app is very basic in terms of graphics but it is all easy to use for any child and they could access it themselves very easily. There is no sound so no distractions and it is straight to the point and the focus is on answering questions.
The timer and scoring within the app again will encourage your child to retry and improve their score practicing as they go. (Free, View in iTunes)
Doodle Math – Developed by cbh_mobile Doodle Math is another app that is all about solving different sums.
To play the game there is a little monster on the left hand side and he starts walking across to the right. You have to answer the math question before it gets to the other side and then see how many levels you can survive.
I would say that this is not designed for young pre-school children it is more for school age and above as some of the questions are hard and you do have to answer quite quickly. You have three chances before the game is over. When it is over it will show the score and they can also submit their score to facebook if they wish.
This is a great fun game, it is teaching your child to answer math questions and to answer quickly. This is a good idea as I have noticed with my own child that at school they are encouraging them to answer the questions quickly and with out too much thinking about it and using their fingers. This game helps them to improve on this skill.
It is quite a challenge and it will appeal to any child. The graphics are in the doodle pencil style and the little purple monster is too cute to even come across as scary. ($.99, View in iTunes)
Park Math
Developed by Duckduckmoosedesign is aimed at 1- 6 year olds and will help in the learning of many math sums. It covers, counting, addition, greater than/less than, subtraction, sorting in sizes and patterns.
It is brought to you in the theme of a park which is bound to appeal to any young child. You join a little blue bear in the park and play the different activities. Tap on a kite to choose your topic, here are the activities:
1) Slide: Addition – You help duck climb up the slide and count as he goes.
2) Swing:Counting – Count the rabbit as it swings back and forth.
3) Seesaw : Greater than/less than – Balance a seesaw by adding and subtracting mice.
4) Apple Tree : Subtraction – As the apples drop learn how to subtract.
5) Bench : Sorting – Put the dogs in the correct size order. Put the numbers in sequence.
6) Sandbox : Patterns – Complete a pattern with the correct toy.
7) Picnic : Counting – Feed the hippo the correct amount of food items.
There are two skill levels to choose from depending on the child’s age. The app has animated graphics and are very appealing. There is also nursery rhymes playing as they go. It is a great app for young children and will keep them entertained and interested as they learn. ($1.99, View in iTunes)
Math Magic – Developed by Anusen Math Magic is a great math learning app with the chance of earning stickers as you go.
There are different skill levels to choose from depending on what level your child is at. Then you decide what type of math questions you would like to answer ranging from addition, subtraction, division and multiplication then start!
The question is shown on screen and the possible answers are shown below it. If you get the right one you get a tick and great encouraging words are spoken. The same goes if you get it wrong the voice says ‘you can do it’ and encourages you to carry on and try again.
As you go you will be rewarded with stickers for completing a certain amount of answers. This a great math app for a child who needs that extra push to motivate them. It is full of postive words and will make them determined to get the answers correct. ($.99, View in iTunes)
Popmath Basic Math – Developed by PopSoft PopMath is all about teaching children basic math equations. The app covers the four main sums and you can choose which one you want to play.
The game play is very simple. Bubbles are floating around with numbers on. Some of them will show a sum like 3+4 for example and others will just show a numnber like 7. You have to match the sum with the correct answer.
Once you have popped all the bubbles you will see your score and a great motivational message. You can then do that level again or move on to the next one. Each new level increases how many bubbles there are to match.
Every level also as a different background and everytime you pop a bubble it makes a popping noise. If you leave the game you can go back and restart where you left off or start back at the beginning.
This is yet another app that is very easy to use and play. It is one that children of any age can use easily without supervision and one that encourages them to keep trying and see how far they can get. ($.99, View in iTunes)
Is there a Math app you use with your child? Let us know in the comments below.
]]> https://touchreviews.net/6-best-iphone-math-apps-children/feed/ 4Faces iMake is a fun application created by Imaginemachine designed to let you show off your creative side. Have fun making faces with every day objects found around the home.
The theme of Faces iMake is simple, it is aimed at you taking a different look at the objects around you and seeing what you can create with them. Within the app are real pictures of objects most people will have around the house already. With these objects you then make a face of any kind. It could be funny, cute, evil, angry, scary anything really that you could possibly think of. You could even give it a little body!
When you first start out with the app might I suggest you give the lessons a quick look first. These are videos each several minutes long and they show you ideas and give you little tips as you go along. Now I know for most people the idea of watching a tutorial first is quite off putting but this is a tutorial with a diifference. The video is presented by Hanoch Piven who also worked in conjunction with the app and it is his lesson and workshop you watch. The videos had me hooked and I ended up watching them all! The voice over, which I am presuming is Hanoch Piven, was entertaining and a pleasure to listen to. It really was like watching an art lesson, but it had humour in it and his voice and enthusiasm shone through making it great fun to watch.
So once you have had your fun watching the videos and learning the ins and outs it is time to have another giggle and see just how creative you can be. Start out by chosing the background for your work of art, there are lots of shades to choose so there is bound to be the one you want. Then you need to decide if you want to have a face shape already to place your items or whether to create one of your own with the objects. It is up to you there is no right or wrong way to do it. If you decide to go for a base for your face then there is a great choice of 27 different shaped faces to choose from.
When you have decided on your background and base for your objects you are then ready to place them on your piece of art. There are over 100 objects all in different catergories. Objects of food, toys, things from the kitchen, tools, school, buttons and finally letters of the alphabet. All the objects are in different sizes. When you place the objects down you can rotate them if you like. You can’t resize any of the objects but I think this is designed to be as real life like as possible. If you were doing this on an actual piece of paper with the object you wouldn’t be able to resize it. So instead you have to use a different object more to the size you are looking for. There is also the option to layer the objects on top of each other.
Once you have created your master piece you then save it to the gallery within the app. When it is in the gallery you can then assign it to a contact, save it in your iPhones photo album, email it or upload it to facebook for all your friends to see.
When I first started trying out this app I thought it was aimed at just children but when I watched the videos and then tried the app out several times I realised that it is a great app for anyone to show off their creativity. The objects are all photos of the actual items. They are colourful and very clear and a lot of detail as gone into each item and what size they should be. The UI (User Interface) is very good, the menu bar is a sliding bar with buttons and all very easy to use for any age. The app also has great sound effects when you press certain objects and a fun, quirky song playing in the background. There is the option to turn these off should you want to but to be honest they added even more entertainment to the app and are worth keeping on.
There is no limit to the amount of faces you can make. There are so many objects to choose from and face shapes that it is an app with many possibilities and one that there is no chance of getting bored of.
The Good
The Not So Good
Price: $0.99 (iTunes Store)
Updated: Apr 23, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.2
Size: 13.9 MB
Language: English
Seller: iMagine machine LLC
© 2010 iMagine machine llc and Hanoch Piven
Rated 4+
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Educational games for all ages are becoming more and more popular across all platforms and no more so than the iPhone and iPod Touch. 1 2 3 Sheep! falls directly into that market as it’s a simple counting game at it’s core but also teaches the basic controls of the touch-screen controls of the iPhone/iPod Touch.
The game has a farming theme and as the title suggests it concentrates on the farmers sheep rearing. The game is split into 3 sections each with there own game. The first is Helicopter and it’s a simple counting game where you have to count the number sheep in the different groups, this obviously will help the child’s counting skills but also as you move through the 4 levels the child will also learn to use the accelerometer as they take control of the helicopter as they hunt for groups of sheep that contain a certain number as dictated by the farmer.
It’s the friendly farmer that guides you through all the levels giving you instructions and telling you whether you are right or wrong. This is one area where the game is slightly mis-matched as the text that the child is expected read is a little advanced compared to the counting in the game itself. For the first couple of times at least the game will have to be played with supervision to teach the child the rules of the game.
Next is Round Up where you have four levels of sheep herding to contend with. Again not only will this help the child to learn division as they have to split the sheep equally amongst the various pens but it also teaches them line drawing on the touch screen as while you can send the sheep to their pens by touching them individually you can also draw circles around them to send whole groups of sheep to a given pen at the same time.
Each of the three games is split into 4 days making a total of twelve levels to complete, unfortunately as there is no scoring the replay value is limited as there is no way to compare prior scores with your latest.
The final of the three games is Jump where multiplication is the order of the day as you help your sheep dog make it to the truck by leaping on the sheep in multiples of the number given to you once again by the farmer, again like the other two titles the game is simple to learn and should be easy for any child to pick up, however also like the other two titles once the four levels have been completed there is little replay value to the game.
What the game does offer however is the fact that it’s compatible with the App-titude online assessment which claims to be able to relay the scores of your child to their teacher providing that their school has signed up. How wide spread the sign-up to App-titude is can’t be ascertained but more can be read about it here [app-titude.com.au]
At $2.99 I would expect a little more replay value for my child to use this game, perhaps if your childs school is linked up to App-titude then it would be better value for money.
The Good
The Not So Good
Price: $2.99 (iTunes Store Preview)
Released: Mar 12, 2010
Reviewed Version: 1.0
Size: 6.3 MB
Language: English
Seller: App-titude Learning Pty Ltd
© 2010 App-titude Learning Pty Ltd
Rated 4+
Requirements: Compatible with iPhone and iPod touch. Requires iPhone OS 3.0 or later.
Pogg [rating: 4/5]
As a teacher I am always looking for the latest technology to integrate into my classroom. I took a risk this year and decided to fill an iPhone/iPod touch with educational games for the students to use independently while practicing important skills and strategies. Thus far it has been a complete success. So successful that I plan on adding more devices to the classroom full of the most engaging and thought provoking apps available. While in the process I thought it would be helpful to other educators and parents to read reviews of educational apps.
The first educational app on my list to review is Pogg. Pogg, a cute green alien is the star of the show. He hops, reads, draws, hides, claps, eats and anything else you tell him to do. There are two modes in this game, Spelling and Picture Mode.
Spelling mode starts by asking “What should Pogg do now?”. Using the virtual keypad, the player types in a basic word and watches Pogg complete the task. For example, if I type “jump”, a short movie clip would display Pogg jump. Kids can experiment and practice spelling all sorts of words while watching their new green friend show off his talent by demonstrating the action or flaunting the item. This is an exciting way for kids (2-8) to work on their phonemic awareness independently while having fun.
Picture Mode displays all of the Pogg animations available on icons. The player touches an icon and watches while Pogg demonstrates. For example, if the icon says “bell” a clip of Pogg ringing a bell will appear. This mode is perfect for those emerging spellers or young kids to little to spell. Currently there are 30 different clips of Pogg with a spelling dictionary of approximately 300 word/phrase combinations. The developer plans to release many more as free upgrades.
This game has inconceivable graphics that appeal to kids of all ages. This is a wonderful addition to the currently available educational apps. In the future it would be nice if different sections were added. For example, word families, basic sight words, Dolce word list according to age, more advanced words etc. Pogg is sure to amuse while educate the young ones for hours at a time. Two thumbs up for this champion.
Price: $.99
The Good
The Not So Good
Reviewed By: Dana Sperling
Redeem Pogg Promo Code!
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Pogg iPhone Game for Kids
The first educational app on my list to review is Pogg. Pogg, a cute green alien is the star of the show. He hops, reads, draws, hides, claps, eats and anything else you tell him to do. There are two modes in this game, Spelling and Picture Mode.
Spelling mode starts by asking “What should Pogg do now?”. Using the built in keyboard, the player types in a basic word and watches Pogg complete the task. For example, if I type “jump”, a short movie clip would display Pogg jump. Kids can experiment and practice spelling all sorts of words while watching their new green friend show off his talent by demonstrating the action or flaunting the item. This is an exciting way for kids (2-8) to work on their phonemic awareness independently while having fun.
Picture Mode displays all of the Pogg animations available on icons. The player touches an icon and watches while Pogg demonstrates. For example, if the icon says “bell” a clip of Pogg ringing a bell will appear. This mode is perfect for those emerging spellers or young kids to little to spell. Currently there are 30 different clips of Pogg with a spelling dictionary of approximately 300 word/phrase combinations. The developer plans to release many more as free upgrades.
This game has inconceivable graphics that appeal to kids of all ages. This is a wonderful addition to the currently available educational apps. In the future it would be nice if different sections were added. For example, word families, basic sight words, Dolce word list according to age, more advanced words etc. Pogg is sure to amuse while educate the young ones for hours at a time. Two thumbs up for this champion.
The Good
The Not So Good