Montessori Revolution

Montessori Revolution was created by MEDL MOBILE and is based off of the Montessori method of teaching. One of the main tenets of Montessori schools is a hands-on approach, that movement is important for learning and cognition. So on one hand, I can see how the interactivity of an iPad may go well with this tenet, but on the other hand, moving things around on a 2d screen is not the same as real world movement. Does Montessori activities really translate to apps? Price: $0.99 (for the initial drawing activity plus one of your choice - the rest are in-app purchases).

Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 4.0 or later.

Developmental Appropriateness: There are currently six available activities. With the initial purchase, I received The Canvas (freeform drawing), and The Moveable Alphabet. I then purchased The Short Bead Stairs (math) and The Pouring Exercise. Note - I originally wanted to purchase The Pink Tower as I know that as a staple Montessori activity, but received an error message instead. Anyway, back to my question of whether these activities translate well.... I think some better than others. The drawing activity is like other drawing apps - kids who like drawing will like this app. The alphabet activity functions fairly well where you would drag the letter to it's place, as you would a letter block or magnet. It also provides a clear breaking down of the letter-sounds for each word, and letter-sounds for each letter option. These activity seems to be more traditional, and thus the easiest of the Montessori activities to translate to an app. The other two activities work less well. The pouring activity, is exactly that - you pour objects from one beaker into another. While the innovation of translating this into an iPad activity is kinda cool, the movement of pouring using the iPad is not really the same movement of real life pouring. You do not feel the weight lessen as you pour nor does the overall motion seem natural. And further, it seems like there should be more of a goal to this activity, or at least more examples of pouring from different containers or different amount of objects. I was most disappointed with the Short Bead Stairs. This is also a pretty staple Montessori material. There are different colored connected beads to represent each number. The activity here asks for a number, say 3, so you would move the strand of 3 white beads over. First, the number they ask for is the same color as the beads of the right length. So you can just match color rather than number. But where this really falls short is that I think these beads could be used for so much more, but this app does not take you there. Often, these beads can be used to help solve basic math problems, like 2+3. So you could take the 2 red bead rod and the 3 blue bead rod (or whatever colors they are) and line them up with the 5 bead rod to see that they are the same amount. The beads also help in that you can count the individual beads, which you cannot do in this app. So in sum, I like the ideas of this app, but some of these activities do not maximize on the original intent. Rating: 3/5 (aim for around 4 years)


Balance: Overall, the app is presented in a clean, organized manner, similar to a Montessori school. This is down to the "shelves of activities". Where I do think it could use some improvement is on the instructions. You are presented with a pretty busy instruction screen (see pic). I think that some of these instructions could also be embedded in the activities as prompts. For example, in the alphabet activity, if there is no response for awhile, the app could prompt the child to tap on the picture to hear the word. Or if an incorrect response is given, then a prompt could be given to tap on the letters first to hear the sounds. It's great that this type of support is there, it just may be overwhelming to be presented it all at once and only on a help screen. Rating: 4/5


Sustainability: Some apps are more engaging than others. The pouring one is least (at least of the ones I tried, but I'm hoping the two that I didn't are better!). Once the child has figured out how to pour, then what? I know that another tenet of Montessori is no extrinsic rewards. While that's fine, the activities do need to have some sort of goal, don't you think? At least the alphabet has 3 levels that kids can work on and master. Rating: 3.5/5


Parental Involvement: This app provides a reporting feature where parents and or teachers can see what the child has done and how much time was spent doing it. It's item-level information, which is great for those who have time to look everything over, but I think it needs to also include some more general information. Rating: 3.5/5


Total: 14 out of 20 - 3 stars


Disclosure - I received this app for free for review purposes.

Bubbling Math

Bubbling Math was created by TappyTaps s.r.o and is a basic arithmetic drill kinda game. There are plenty of these math drill apps out there now, but what separates this one is its review report for parents and even teachers. Price: $1.99


Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 4.1 or later. (also works on a regular old mac computer)

Developmental Appropriateness: When you first start the game, the first prompt is to set the level. You can choose what operations to work with, and also what difficulty. What's nice is that for each difficulty setting, it gives you an explanation and examples of the problem types that would appear, so you know exactly what you're getting. The game itself is pretty straightforward. You're presented with a problem and you have to choose the right answer out of three options. A little wizard kid (in the picture above) provides positive sounds when correct, and he tears when wrong. I must say that some of his positive feedback noises sound more like a bird squawking than "wow!", which is what I think he's saying sometimes. I do wish this little wizard kid provided more support, especially when you get a wrong answer. Doing these types of basic math problems is not just about drill and memorization, but about building math strategies as well. Here, you simply get three chances to be wrong before the round is over. If you complete 3 rounds, you get a trophy for each round and you unlock the next "level" - which is just more of the same, but with a different background. Rating: 4/5 (aim for around 7 years, there is of course a larger age range here because of the settings)


Balance: Again, it's all pretty straightforward. I actually thought there would be more going on with the different backgrounds, but they are just backgrounds. Not sure how excited kids are in unlocking the the "Countryside Spring Time" versus "Countryside Frog's Lake" - the backgrounds don't actually look so different. Maybe if there was animation in the beginning of unlocking it, it would make it more exciting and seem more like a reward. Rating: 4/5


Sustainability: I feel like this app was designed more from a teacher or parent's perspective than a child's. Yes, there are incentives like the trophies and unlocking the backgrounds, but they are kinda subtle and well, boring. I could totally see a teacher using this in class to make her students practice drills, but in terms of a child wanting to play this on their own free time, I'm not so sure. Rating: 3/5

Parental Involvement: This is where the app separates itself from other drill apps. It provides a report for parents or teachers - one that is a bit more detailed than others that I have seen. It provides a log of what's been done, and also a list of the incorrect answers and overall percent correct. With the extra information, parents and teachers can then determine what operations and difficulty level to set next and what to practice or explain more about. This is great. I can see teachers easily knowing what to do next, but what I wonder is whether parents will know as easily or have the time to carefully review. It'd be great if the app could suggest next settings or just next steps in general. Overall, I think this type of reporting is a step in the right direction, and so might parents, but do they actually use it?  Rating: 4/5


Total: 15 out of 20 - 4 stars


Disclosure - I received this app for free for review purposes.

Kandoobi - Animal Edition

Kandoobi - Animal Edition was created by Kandoobi, targeting toddlers and preschoolers 18 months and up. It includes four different games in one - letters, scratch and fill, coloring, and matching. Price: $2.99

Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 4.0 or later.

Developmental Appropriateness: Targeting 18 months and up to preschool is hard to do. Like the many times I've said before, so much development occurs during this time that it would be hard for a single app to target the full range. I think this is what Kandoobi struggles with. Let's break it down.


First we have the letter game. This game confused me the most. It aims to teach both letters AND spelling. A three-year-old just learning letters really has no concept of spelling, let alone spelling such long words as "blowfish" or "caterpillar." Let's not even get into younger than 3-years! But then on the other hand, a child who is ready to spell would know all the letters, making this matching game way too easy. I guess this would be ok if you took out the spelling element and just thought of it as a letter matching game only.


Then the two coloring games. Children like to color, so I can see the coloring being a favorite here. The scratch and fill game is probably there to target the  two -year-olds, so older preschoolers might get bored with it. The final shape matching game is really easy, so again, the window here is very small. Kids who are ready to do this type of matching would pick it up very quickly and soon be ready for more challenging puzzles. 


So this may be a good app for families with multiple kids of different ages - a little something for each, but I highly doubt that one kid would be interested in all four games at the same time. Rating: 2/5 (aim for around 3 years)


Balance: The app is very kid-friendly in terms of colors and ease of use. My only thing is that the pictures of the animals are extremely cartoony (the butterfly pictured above is a less cartoony example). If the aim here is to teach kids about animals, research has shown that the more realistic looking the pictures, the better for learning - and I would think that this is more important when it comes to teaching about the shape of animals. This is not to say that we should only be using photographs or anything like that, but just that we should consider the level of realism in terms of any animation or drawing. Rating 4/5


Sustainability: As discussed above, some of these games will have greater longevity than others. Rating: 3/5


Parental Involvement: Parents will probably need to help their child out with the letter game - talk about the animals, show them what to do. Any type of coloring activity can always spark some conversation and sharing, so having two types of coloring activity saves this app. The matching game probably requires the parent the least. Rating: 4/5


Total: 13 out of 20 - 3 stars


Disclosure - I received this app for free for review purposes.

Trunky Learns Letters

Trunky Learns Letters was created by Serious Games Interactive that has hints of an old school game like Super Mario Brothers where you jump to avoid things or get things you want with some literacy components mixed in. Instead of coins, now you want letters to spell out words from the Dolch list (a list of high frequency words for young children). Price: $1.99


Device Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.Requires iOS 3.1.3 or later

Developmental Appropriateness: This is a fun way for kids to become more familiar with some high frequency words and how they are spelled. You are presented a word at the bottom of the screen and Trunky travels down a path and needs to collect the letters to spell the target word. There are flowers for bonus points, and as the levels get harder, obstacles that you want to avoid. When you get a letter, it repeats that letter, even if it is wrong. I like this feedback - but at the same time, it's hard to tell when you've gotten something wrong - it looks and sounds the same. I guess it effects your score, but it's not something really noticeable while you play. Trunky does do a nice dance when the word has been completed and the word is clearly spelled out again, so in that way, you know you've done something correctly.


In terms of the user interface, I was using an iPad and I wondered if tinier hands could manage the navigation. As the levels get harder, you have to make Trunky jump to get letters. The jumping control is at the bottom edge of the screen while navigating Trunky is on the right and left edge of the screen. So to do both rapidly means you have to have your hands span the side and bottom at the same time. Rating: 4/5 (aim for around 5 years)


Balance: The app is very clean looking, and the letters are big and prominent. There are not too many bonuses or obstacles that get in the way of seeing and focusing on the letters. Once you've figured out the controls, the task is clear. Rating: 5/5

Sustainability: With this review, I want to spend a little more time on this category.  As I mentioned earlier, this game reminded me a bit of Super Mario Brothers - a highly addictive game. Although this game does not have the same plot element of saving the princess, or as many obstacles, it did have a lighter version appropriate for a younger player of some of the game elements. I am not a game developer, but I do think that things like plot, goal, and pacing are important. Let's take out the education component and when I think about games that I spent way too many hours playing, I think of Sim City or even more recently Angry Birds (sorry - I didn't grow up with video games, so I'm really lacking in old school video game experience - ask anyone who has seen me play Super Mario). These games did not reward me with stickers or coins, the actual game was simply fun. I wanted to accomplish the goal of making a thriving city, or at times purposefully destroying one, or figuring out the best way to smash some stuff by launching some angry birds. Yes, I often say that this or that app needs more incentives. I want to make it clear that although providing things like high scores and rewards can help to motivate kids to play more often, it is better if they want to play more because it is simply a good game. I was just a the Digital Media Learning conference last week and a reoccurring topic was badges. The conference was focused on an older target age, but the popularity of badges scared me a little when I thought about it for younger kids - hence this pseudo rant in this review. We don't want to be bribing kids into playing these apps!


OK - sorry - back to this app - So yes, I think there are some intrinsic qualities to this app that will keep kids playing. That coupled with the high scores is good. However, I think there could be more of a goal to the levels and the pacing is often slow. Sometimes, you have to wait awhile before the right letters come up. Rating: 4/5


Parental Involvement: This is pretty much a one player game. It would be nice to see a review or maybe make the list of words available to parents so they can be on the look out for them in their everyday lives. Rating: 2/5


Total: 15 out of 20: 4 stars




Disclosure: I received this app for free for review purposes.

Reading Raven

Reading Raven was created by Early Ascent, LLC. as a phonics-based reading app. It's a step-by-step instructional sequence for 3-5 year-olds. With all the literacy apps out there, can the Reading Raven stand out? Price: $3.99

Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 3.2 or later

Developmental Appropriateness: There are 3-4 different activities for each age. Parents can select the age and types of activities within the age for their child. The activities are very appropriate and build upon each other. So for example, a 3 year-old activity is to trace letters, and by 5, the activity is to trace words. The feedback is also great, where if you get it wrong, it tells you why. Also, for each age, there are 5 levels. So in each level, you focus on a specific set of letters and letter-sounds and they increase the difficulty of the material (e.g. length of the sentences you see). For the most part, I agree with the leveling. Where I differ is that it seems to focus on lowercase letters first. Research has shown that kids learn uppercase letters first. I'm also not sure about the way they grouped the letters into each level. As I've said before, there's no real pattern to the order in which kids learn the letters. Yes, I think there are some letter-sounds that may be easier than others, or some that are easier to write than others, but then again, you might learn to write the letter "S" faster if your name is Sam. Since parents are already setting the activities and age, it might be good to have an option where they can choose the letters they want their child to focus on. Finally, while the "levels" present different graphics that are fun, the actual activities in each level are identical. I don't think kids will really see them as advancement in levels - but I'm just nitpicking at this point. Great app for learning phonics. Rating: 4.5/5 (age 3-5)

Balance: The different graphics are fun without distracting from the task at hand. (I don't really see where the raven fits in and he kinda has a weird voice.) Rating: 5/5

Sustainability: Given the number of different activities across the age range, there's certainly enough to master in terms of content. Each level shows your progress, but a record of scores may be helpful to encourage kids to repeat a level, especially when they may not have gotten everything correct. Rating: 4/5

Parental Involvement: One aspect I loved about this app is the inclusion of a guide for parents and teachers explaining each activity and what the goals are. However, like I said, I'd like to see some sort of scoring, not only as an incentive for the kids, but more so for parents to review what their kid may or may not be excelling at. I think this is especially important since the parents are the ones setting the activities and difficulty. The scoring would provide at least some sort of crude measure that would help them decide what settings to check. Rating: 4/5

Total: 17.5 out of 20: 5 Stars

Disclosure: I received this app for free for review purposes.

Measurement HD

Measurement HD was created by Emantras Inc. for kindergarteners to learn some basic measuring skills. There are five different activities that teach the concept of time, weight, volume, length, and time of year. Let's see how these stack up. Price: $1.99

Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 4.1 or later.

Developmental Appropriateness: This is an overall cute looking game. Some of the activities are better than others for learning this material. Let's start with the better ones: Fill me up (volume), Long and short, and Scale Tale. These are simple games where you have to choose which is heavier, which is longer, or which has more. However, the feedback could be better. At the end of each item, it could point out what they were suppose to look for more. Like for long and short, you could line them up and say, see, this one is longer, and especially in Fill me up, it could say, "this one held 5 and this one held 3, 3 is less than 5." Both kids who get the question right, and especially kids who get the question wrong need this type of reinforcement and feedback. As for the other two games, Crazy clock and and Action month, I don't think kids will actually learn to tell time or how to spell the months. Rather, with Crazy clock, they might learn what types of activities are associated with the time of day. With Action month, I don't think they will learn much without a parent or teacher there to talk about the months and what occurs during those months. Rating: 3/5 (aim for around 4 years)

Balance: The overall design is straightforward. I think it could use more distinction for correct versus incorrect. The answers turn either a subtle green or red, and then just continues. And a few things here and there could be clearer as well. For example, in Scale Tale, the monster, who is the scale, is cute, but the scale movements could be more realistic to the weight of the objects. Rating: 4/5


Sustainability: The plus is the there are five different games, providing a variety of activities. You collect rewards as you get points in the activities. However, there doesn't seem to be any higher levels and these are fairly easy concepts, so once you get them, you get them. I would even say that for the app's recommended age of 5-6, these activities are too easy, or at least they will learn it quick and then get bored as there are no high scores to beat either. It would be nice to see a progression into harder math concepts. Rating: 3/5


Parental Involvement: There's not too much for parents to do here. The items are very simple and wouldn't require too much help beyond the initial introduction. There are no records f the scores, so parents cannot review their child's progress on the different activities. Rating: 2/5


Total: 12 out of 20: 3 stars




Disclosure: I received this app for free for review purposes.

Scribble Press

Scribble Press was created by Scribble Press and is an app that allows your child to create a book or drawing and then share it with you or even everyone else. This app reminds me a bit of Doodlecast for Kids but for older kids. I loved Doodlecast - it's simple and encourages quality interactions with others. How does Scribble Press compare? Price: Free

Device Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 5.0 or later.


Developmental Appropriateness: This is a great app that engages kids in books, writing, and art - all in one. They can choose to create their own book from scratch or use one of the many templates that is more like mad libs where you fill in words in a pretty much scripted story. You can then draw pictures using hundreds of colors and types of tool options, take/upload a photo, and choose from an array of stickers. You can then save and print your creation and show it to your friends and family and even order a professionally bound copy or you can upload it to the gallery where other Scribble Press users can see it.

Overall, this is a fun and engaging app that I can see being used not just at home but in the classroom as well. Since I can see it being used in a more instructional kinda way, and since we are dealing with older kids, I do have a few suggestions to make it more "educational." With the mad libs type books, it could offer a spell check kinda function to help kids with their spelling. Right now, you can enter gibberish and it accepts it (not that it shouldn't be an option if kids want to be silly). Or it could even offer word options that range from appropriate to silly words, which could help target a younger audience. And maybe with the blank book, it could offer prompts about basic story writing like, think about characters, what's the beginning middle and end, etc. Rating: 4/5 (aim for around 7 years)


Balance: The overall design is fairly clean, and with all the color options, looks very pretty. There are enough drawing tools to satisfy an adult and perhaps even artists. I wonder though, if all the options may be overwhelming for kids. I would suggest for at least in the drawing only feature where younger kids could partake too, there could be a setting for a basic set of tools, and then advanced set of tools or settings by age group or something like that. While all the options are nice, especially for more serious and budding artists, so many options may be distracting for more casual young users. Rating: 4/5


Sustainability: Aside from the endless possibility of drawings and self-created books there are 50 book templates. The gallery that features books created by others can also be kinda like a library. So I think this is an app that's definitely got some life to it. Rating: 5/5


Parental Involvement: The sharing aspect of this app is great. What parent hasn't pinned up a drawing or creation by their kid on the refrigerator? With this app, you can do the same and more since it's digital too. It'd be cool if it also had a recording feature so the kids could read the story and you can send to a grandparent or someone and have that more personal feel to it. Also, my suggestion with the prompting with the blank book could help to engage the parents in the writing process. Since we're dealing with slightly older kids, it does take more effort to think of ways to get parents involved. Rating: 4/5


Total: 17 out of 20: 4 stars