Sarah Ann, our three year old daughter, wanted one thing for Christmas this year. She wanted an i-touch (i-Pod touch) like her brother’s. The day after Christmas I’m searching the web for games and educational apps.
Sarah’s favorite app so far is WeetWoo! http://www.weetwoo.com/. The folks at WeetWoo have created an easy to use interface for kids to find age appropriate videos on the web. They’ve included everything from ABC songs to Phineas & Ferb music videos.
Keegan, her nine year old brother, likes Pocket God and Angry Birds. In Pocket God you control a world of islands. In the game you can reek havoc upon the inhabitants of different islands by summoning dinosaurs or literally turning their world upside down. In Angry Birds you slingshot birds at pigs who have stolen their eggs. Both games include cartoon type violence but nothing graphic.
They both love FaceTime the new video conferencing app include with 4th generation i-Pods. Remember all the fun you had with walkie talkies when you were young – think walkie talkie video phones.
The search continues for great apps for kids. Below are a some resources that I have found useful.
Shutterfly is an online photo service that offers numerous gifts that can be made using your photos. They also offer cards for all occasions, so if you are looking for cards that look like they came from a professional graphic designer without having to pay a professional Shutterfly is the place for you. You can also make hard and soft cover books. I just made some Thank You cards for my daughter send. My next project will be a photo book I plan on giving as a gift. Check out my card design below. I see a lot of discount codes for Shutterfly so be sure to check for those.
This is a compensated review for Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner. The people at BZZAgent sent me a a Scrubbing Bubbles Automatic Shower Cleaner to review plus some coupons to share with friends. This products does take 4 AA batteries that are not included. This makes cleaning the shower so easy even my 9 year old wants to clean the shower. The unit has a hook that hangs on the shower head. You push a button and the unit gives you a beeping noise that warns you the spray is coming. After using product for a few days I could tell the difference in my shower. Watch the local paper inserts and you can find coupons for the starter kit and refills making it an affordable way to have a clean shower. Click here for more information and coupons.
Do you need a software package for word processing, spread sheets, database or presentations? Are you trying to avoid spending a lot of money? Open Office is the leading open source software for creating documents. All your data is stored in international open standard format and can read and write files from many standard software packages. It can be downloaded for free and used for commercial or pesonal use. Vist their website to get more information Open Office. While working as an accountant I have used various name brand packages and this is very comparable. I had no problem adapting to this package. It will open most documents created by other packages.
Parents like the board game Scrabble and it’s many variations. The games are fun and help build spelling skills.
For the younger kids, there is Scrabble Jr. For those who prefer a fast pace game, there is Scrabble Slam. For the older kids, the Scrabble iPhone app is all the rage.
Scrabble Jr. has colorful pictures to keep your little one attention and has tiles that are just the right size for little hands. The kids match the tiles to words spelled out on the board and collect chips when a word is spelled. The winner is the person with the most chips at the end. As your child gets older you flip the board over and they spell out there own words. This game will grow with your child.
Scrabble Slam is the fast paced version. Beat the other players by using your cards to change four letter words. You might change same to fame, but hurry because the first one to get rid of their cards is the winner.
Word World is a show that is both entertaining and educational for preschoolers. A federal study showed that this show boosts early reading skills. See http://www.wordworld.com/02_25_09_EducationWeek.pdf for more details.
It’s difficult to find a restaurant that provides a good balance between the needs of parents and the needs of children. While it will never replace Chuck-E-Cheese or McDonalds as your kids favorite, Mimi’s Cafe offers great food for folks of all ages.
When you are seated the kids will receive paper and crayons to keep their little hands and minds out of trouble. The kids will be able to choose from playful menu items like “Mimi Mouse Pancakes”, “PB & J Soldiers”, or the all time favorite “Kraft Macaroni and Cheese”.
The parents menu will also have lots of great choices. My personal favorite is the “Chipotle Breakfast Burrito”.
Parents are often curious about the standardized tests given to students. The websites below will allow you to download a limited number of sample questions for your state’s benchmark exams.
This website lets you build your own games or select for a large number of “pre-built” games. The “pre-made” games include addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, telling time and more.
