EGWs6uuBZ3pp-zGuVVdmeLgkJG4 Across the Avenue: Educational Apps for Kids: Tiny Hands Super Bundle #languageskills #speechapps

Educational Apps for Kids: Tiny Hands Super Bundle #languageskills #speechapps


Looking for ways to practice beginner language skills? The Tiny Hands Super Bundle offers ten different learning apps to support learning of colors, shapes, first words, matching, categorization and logical thinking. Each app is super colorful and engaging for little ones and the games are a fun way for adult and child to interact together. Learning through play can be so powerful and Kids Academy kept this philosophy in mind when they developed their Tiny Hands apps. Their mission is to help identify and nurture the talents of children at the earliest stage, boost their academic abilities and give them a head start in the world. Check out my thoughts on each app in the bundle below!




About the Tiny Hands App Bundle
Personally, I trialed the apps in this bundle with my speech-language therapy clients who have developmental or academic delays and who are 4 years old or older. Because technology is such a presence in our lives, the right apps can be a useful motivator in targeting language skills. Of course, depending on the age and disability of the child, you will need to use your professional judgment as to whether apps are appropriate. Here are my thoughts on each Tiny Hands app, in no particular order...
  
1. First words learn to read full - Kids Academy recommends this app for kids 1.5 years of age and up. Instead of the rote drilling of vocabulary cards or objects, this app allows for an interactive experience requiring the child to match similar cards. When they've made a match, the app announces the name of the card. There are ten categories to choose from and a jumping frog character that my kids found hilarious. (Hint: Touch the frog during the game to see what happens. You'll get a lot of giggles!)


2. Baby games and puzzles full - While I haven't used this app much for my current caseload, I could see it being used as a fun way to target early predicting skills, spatial concepts, quantities, and beginner level associations. Those of you familiar with the language processing hierarchy will be able to pick and choose the order in which you would present these to your kiddos.

3. Preschool learning games full - This app is all about sorting/categorization! It offers 5 different game levels with three games per level.  Level 1 requires kids to sort basic colors, shapes, and vehicles into two groups. The game steadily increases in difficulty as skills improve to tackle size, quantities, angles and more! I have quite a few school-age kids who have difficulty understanding quantity and size, so the visuals used in this app has been helpful.

4. Toddler games, puzzles, shapes - Similar to the Preschool learning games app, this app presents a roadmap of levels from 1-5, with three games included in each level. The 'Shape and size' game in level 1 is currently one of my favorites. It allows me to call out a shape, size, and color for my client to identify and place in the correct hole. I'm increasing the cognitive load and targeting a few skills at once in a colorful, engaging game-style format. A few of my kids have already begun asking if we can play it during our sessions, so I use it as a 'reward' toward the end of therapy. It's a win for both of us! The app includes sorting/categorizing and counting games as well.

5. Toddler learning games full - This games in this app are a little tough for my current caseload, but there are a variety of games to target skills such as sorting, matching, logical thinking, size comparisons, quantities, patterns and more. The games are creative and challenging--a fantastic app for parents and children to play together.

6. Toddler puzzle games full - This app provides card matching games in a variety of topics such as: colors, shapes, animals, facial expressions, symmetry, counting, silhouettes, and more. When the correct match is made, the match is named and a quick animation is used to show how or why the two items go together. For my verbal kids, I like to ask them to tell me why they think two cards are a match before they try to match them. It helps to me to gauge how well they understand the concepts we are working on and allows me to incorporate expressive skill practice as well.

7. Sorting Puzzles for Kids full - This app uses the game board-style format that includes five levels with three games included at each level. While it is very similar to the 'Preschool learning games' app and the 'Toddler games, puzzles, shapes' app, it offers additional themes to work with such as seasons, animal homes, day and night, and more. I love this because it keeps my session materials fresh and helps me to see if kids can apply their skills to a variety of concepts.

8. Toddler educational games full - This app is all about size and order! It offers 15 different tasks for kids to complete and is one of the only apps I've come across thus far that provides a solid amount of practice for this skill. My SLP friends will immediately think of the PLS-5 assessment tasks which ask kids to touch the objects in order of smallest to biggest or biggest to smallest. The tasks in this app are challenging. If your kids learn to complete them well, they will find the PLS-5 task to be a breeze.

9. Puzzle games for kids full - This card game app is similar to the 'Toddler puzzle games full' app that provides a variety of topics and asks kids to match pairs. It works on associations with topics that include: animal, professions, shapes, counting, colors, household items, quantities, food, and more. This app gets more challenging as the games progress and I really love the critical thinking required at some of the hardest levels. When my more advanced kids make a match, such as 'bandage and thermometer' I ask them to explain to me why they go together. It's helpful to see who can express the relationship verbally and who has difficulty putting it into words.

10. Puzzles for toddlers full - If the 'Toddler educational games full' app is too advanced for your kids at this point, you will love the 'Puzzles for toddlers full' app! This app targets the same skills related to size and order, but on a much easier level. Many of the stackable tasks remind me of the traditional ring stacking toy that I use with many of my little ones for hands-on learning experience. As with the other apps, the difficulty level increases as kids progress through tasks.

Interested in learning more? The Tiny Hands website offers a great deal of information about their apps, worksheets, and tips for parents!




Where to Purchase
Head over to the App Store to purchase and download the Word SuperHero app to your iOS device. While you're there, check out the full collection of Kids Academy apps!



Connect with Kids Academy


Disclaimer: The apps in this post were provided by Kids Academy. As always, our posts are our own, honest opinions.