Choosing the Beast Apps for Kids - Fish School   by Mary Buchanan

I recently reviewed a delightful app presented to us by Duck Duck Moose. Great graphics and sound make this so enticing for kids. One of the most colorful and entice apps I have seen. This app covers several skill mastering techniques in a very appealing fashion.

The app begins with work on letters, only it is so much fun that kids don't think they are working. An array of colorful fish swim out and form the letters which are then pronounced. Kids can complete that and hit the circle on the lower left to pick another task.

The next task covers numbers with the fish rapidly swimming into formation. Tap the button again and it "playtime". Play with the fish by tapping, dragging or making them dance and change sizes or swim faster.

The "Shape" segments teaches all shaped in the form of colorful fish. The ABC song is next and a happy way to review the alphabet. Next comes "Colors". Kids tap on the fish color they like and all fish of that color come into the tank. "Find It" is an exercise in detecting the one fish that is different. "Match It" is a fun game in which the matching fish swim away until you get them all figured out.

There is some criticism out there regarding kids and the internet. It is our job as parents and caretakers to guide our kids to the valuable tool that will help them throughout life.

I see an every growing supply of very creative an enticing apps. They are wonderful tools when you have the right ones. We watch for pitfalls in the experience such as inappropriate ad content, in app purchase possibility, etc. Our goal being to provide the best apps in our reviews, we choose not to turn it into a shopping experience for our kids. We also provide tips on safeguarding the iPad for your kids' use.

iPads are here to stay and rapidly moving into many facets of our society. Filling them with quality education apps is a gift that will last a lifetime. It is such a joy to watch them learn and progress up the level of skill mastery, all while having a great time and getting positive reinforcement.

Considering storage alone, the iPad is a winner. My grandson has multiple flashcard, book apps, and many more covering all areas of childhood development. Our decision turned out to be quite a bargain.