Numberland

Les Trois Elles Interactive
Numberland

Numberland for iPhone by Les Trois Elles Interactive is a Montessori based app that teaches numbers 0 to 9. The great thing about this app is it is in three different languages. English, French and Spanish. Perfect for teaching young children to count in another language. Each scene will give your child the possibility to:

- See how to write a number, hear and learn its name and count objects to reinforce the learning,
- Practice writing numbers on a digital notebook using color pencils,
- Learn to count with Montessori* material such as number rods and spindles to understand the notion of quantity,
- Learn in different languages by switching languages on the home page,
- Save his/her artwork by touching the camera.

 Numberland is an engaging educational app that reinforces core learning skills for young children. Luke(5) really enjoyed exploring Numberland in French and Spanish. This app also contains beautifully animated scenes that are engaging for young children. Les Trois Elles Interactive also has another well done app, Montessori Letter Sounds, that teaches children pre-reading skills. Another favorite app in our house!

Numberland in iTunes

Les Trois Elles Interactive on Facebook

 

Tilly's Petting Farm

Tilly's Petting Farm

Thanks to Software Smoothie for introducing me to this app!

Tilly's Petting Farm is developed by JufJannie Apps. They are based in Holland and have several apps in Dutch. Tilly's Petting Farm is available in the United States.

This app has 4 different scenes and two different modes of play. You can touch the pictures to hear the names of the objects/animals or you can answer questions by touching the appropriate image. The voice does have an accent which was at times difficult for my children to understand. However, when in the question mode of play, the questions are spoken slowly and are extremely reinforcing for kids. If an incorrect answer is chosen, you are reminded to "listen carefully" and "pay attention". You are given 5 chances to answer correctly before a new question is asked. After 3 tries a subtle hint is given. The animations in this app are engaging and the colors are vibrant.

This app is extremely beneficial for Emily(age 9, ASD), as she has trouble following verbal instructions. The repetitive questions are helpful in giving her ample time to correctly choose an answer if she is unsure, without causing anxiety. I particularly like the reinforcing phrases. It kept my 5 year old neurotypical son entertained for quite a while.

This app is a great price at $1.99 and has tons of playing life as the questions are randomized.
 http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tillys-petting-farm-ipad-version/id438238434?mt=8

My DPS Review

My DPS by The Language Express, Inc., the makers of The Social Express.

My DPS(Digital Problem Solver) is an application that focuses on emotions and coping strategies using animated videos. It is a customizable app as well, allowing you to add your own pictures and coping techniques.

Features:

There are 8 feelings included in this app.

*Bored

*Happy

*Surprised

*Mad

*Annoyed

*Sad

*Frustrated

*Scared

There are four coping strategies.

*Use Positive Self-Talk

*Take Five Deep Breaths

*Take a Break to Calm Down

*Remind Myself to Keep Negative Thoughts In My Head

Using the app

Upon opening the app, you are taken to a main screen that includes a song about feelings as well as calming music. You simply touch the screen to start. You are then prompted to scroll through the app to choose a picture that shows how you feel. The animations are well done and there is text on each of the eight pictures describing the emotion. Once you choose the feeling, you are then directed to choose a coping strategy to calm down. You may choose from one of four strategies. When the coping strategy is chosen you are taken to a short animated video of a social scene depicting the character utilizing the coping mechanism. Written praise and verbal reinforcements are given at the end of each video.

To customize the app you simply press the plus sign on any page and you can take a picture or choose one from your camera roll. You can add your own pictures of feelings or coping strategies and include any text you want. You have the option to delete pictures as well.

　

　
My DPS is a fantastic app that teaches valuable skills relating to emotions and coping strategies. This app is easy to use and customize to show a range of emotions. The animations and video quality are nicely done. The music is a nice touch as well. After reading my review, Marc Zimmerman,CEO-Founder of The Social Express, informed me that he wrote all of the music. You can find his songs on LimeGreen Limousine. A portion of all proceeds go to Autism Research.

Wishlist

It would be great to have spoken text for non readers. The pictures of emotions may be difficult to understand for those who struggle with recognizing emotions. Spoken text would also make it easier to select a coping strategy for those who can't read. It would also be nice to have the option to add video as well as pictures for the coping strategies.

Find The Social Express:
thesocialexpress.com
My DPS in iTunes
The Social Express on Facebook






　

　

Tapikeo HD Review

Tapikeo HD- Create with your Kids their Picture Book, Storyboard, Soundboard and Audio Flashcards by Jean-Eudes Lepelletier

Tapikeo HD is an open-ended app that allows you to create customized grids using images, sound and text for social stories, visual schedules, flashcards and much more. It can also be used as an inexpensive AAC app. Tapikeo HD just received a major update and offers a multitude of creative and engaging learning opportunities.

Features

Create personalized grids with up to 48 images with sound and captions.

Five demo grids are preloaded on this app with the option to download over 20 free ready-to-use grids. There are 5 in-app downloads available for .99 each that include an AAC starter pack, social story pack, animals, songs and a learning pack.

Import grids from the website www.tapikeo.com for free. Save grids and export them to friends and family via email.

Safe mode which prevents user from deleting information from within grids or change settings.

Shake mode which allows user to find a picture within a grid related to sound.

Settings

Language: English/French

Sound Options: Play sounds in order or together

Active Picture: No change, large picture, large picture then downsize when sound ends

Shake Mode: enabled-press the shake button to hear a random sound, then find related picture.

Using the app

Upon opening Tapikeo HD you are taken to a page that has 16 pictures in a grid style setting. This is the play mode. There is a toolbar at the bottom of the page that has play, edit, grids and settings. The edit button allows you to make changes to the current grid. The grids button takes you to a page where you can change grids or create your own. The settings button enables you to change the features within that grid. The shake mode is also located on the page, unless you disable it within settings, which quizzes the user on sounds and pictures. The safety mode is found on the page as well. To lock you simply press once. To unlock you must rapidly press the lock button 5 times within one second. This feature makes it difficult for children(even I had difficulties) to unlock and change or delete anything within the grid. Functionality of each grid varies greatly as there are endless possibilities for potential uses.

In the Animal Sounds grid(demo grid included with purchase) there are 44 cells. Sixteen cells per page each featuring a picture of a different animal. In play mode you can simply touch a picture to hear the corresponding animal sound with the animal name printed below. To challenge the player you can press the shake button to hear the animal sound. The user then has to locate the correct animal that matches the sound. If correct animal is chosen a celebratory sound is given and a place on a caterpillar at the top of screen turns blue. If incorrect animal is chosen a buzzer sounds and the next place on caterpillar turns pink. Time/Score is also recorded during the shake mode to motivate the user to beat the previous score each time this grid is played. To repeat a sound you simply press the shake button.

Another demo grid provided is used as a social story for learning to wash your hands. When selected from the grid manager, you are taken a page with 16 cells. There are only 12 pictures for this particular social story so the other cells are left blank. The user is prompted, by flashing picture, to touch the first picture cell on the grid. That picture is enlarged and a recorded voice explains the first step in washing your hands. There are arrows that prompt changing to the next picture. Each picture has recorded voice as well as written words which is great for non readers.

Tapikeo HD has some amazing features and the ease of use is just one of the many benefits. There are many grids with each in-app purchase that cover a wide range of learning tools. Learning to brush your teeth, learning emotions, animal names and sight words are just a few examples of grids within the in-app packs. Creating new grids is simple and just requires some creativity and planning. In order to create your own grid all you need is a topic, some pictures and a plan of how you want to implement them within a grid. This app has so many different uses that it is impossible to list them all. It is a well thought out app that is well worth the price.

Wish List

Tapikeo HD just received a massive update. One of the things I would love to see in an update would be the ability to add video clips as well as pictures. The use of video modeling within a grid style system would be beneficial to teaching steps to those who have a hard time understanding inferences. Upon opening the app, I would like to be taken to the grid manager instead of the last grid or page used.

Find Tapikeo HD:
Tapikeo HD in iTunes
tapikeo.com
Tapikeo on Facebook

Ellie's Games Review

I found Ellie's Games on facebook. Erik Bye had been very generous with A4cwsn , an online special needs community, in providing app codes of Ellie's Games to be given away on their facebook page. He quickly became a community favorite developer. It was not until he guest hosted the A4cwsn page for a day that I got to know his apps better.

About Ellie's Games
My daughter has inspired me to develop child friendly iOS games. Simple intuitive games focusing on the basics: Eye-hand coordination, color recognition and fine motor skills. Every game is throughly tested by our Quality Assurance team (Ellie) and must be approved by our business management team (Ellie).

Ellie's Games has 8 apps to date. I was fortunate enough to win a code for Alphabet Dots during that time and I bought Math Duel to help Anna Grace with math. Ok...really so I could brush up on my basic math skills. I was impressed with several aspects of those two apps, so when Erik posted a request for Bloggers to review his apps, I did not hesitate to volunteer. Erik provided me with codes for Color Dots, Color Squares, Counting Dots and Rain Dots. He also made his newest app Dot Collector free for a limited time in in honor of its release on 2/29/12.  Color Dots is the most popular with 20K+ downloads.

One of the first things I noticed about Ellie's Games is the vibrant color scheme that is used.

What kid wouldn't be engaged by those colors? The simplicity of Ellie's games is another great feature. They are simple enough that any child can use while still reinforcing and teaching core skills such as hand-eye coordination, color recognition, and fine motor skills. With that being said, Ellie's Games are challenging enough for Luke at 5 and Emily(ASD) at 9. Alphabet Dots and Counting Dots have been really helpful for both Emily and Luke.

I let Emily decide which app I would review and she chose Counting Dots. Counting Dots is available in the iTunes store for .99. There are a few choices in settings. You can remove the dot border, pop sound and pop vibrate(on the iPhone). Luke loves using the pop vibrate on my phone. I personally think the border is helpful for Emily when playing Counting Dots on her iPad as is the popping sound. This game is challenging for Emily as she has to focus on counting numbers in sequence. A skill that we are still working on. The iTunes description says it is  "Helping kids count from one to one million!" We personally haven't gotten to a million yet but I take Erik's word for it. When tapping the dots, if you tap an incorrect number, that dot will shake letting the child know it is not correct. When the correct number dot is chosen they get the rewarding popping sound. Once a sequence is achieved a new screen appears with more number dots. No levels awarded or times to beat which is important for Emily's confidence in working on math skills. Overall this is a fantastic app that I give a 5 star rating in iTunes. Here is a short clip of Emily playing Counting Dots.

 Please go "Like" Ellie's Games on Facebook and check out elliesgames.com. I have links to the apps in Itunes below. Please check them out and if you purchase any don't forget to leave a rating and review in iTunes
Counting Dots
Dot Collector
Alphabet Dots
Color Dots
Color Squares
Rain Dots
Color Sliders
Math Duel


Thanks,
Jessica