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Edu-App No-Brainer – Bee Prep for the Youngest Spellers Done Right

Edu-App No-Brainer – Bee Prep for the Youngest Spellers Done Right

 

Today’s Edu-App No-Brainers are all for younger kids, but for every level of littler speller.

  • By: Grasshopper Apps
  • Genre: educational, reading, writing, spelling
  • Platforms: Universal
  • Price: Free (Sight Words) /.99
  • SAHGeekMom Rating: 4.75 Stars
  • Recommended Age:  3-7 years

Preschool Games – Little Speller (Four Letter Words) is a new addition to the educational apps for pre-schoolers category that I reviewed for appadvice.com.

But it is one of three apps, (well they have more, I’m covering the 3 I played with) all by the same publisher that I am picking for you today: Little Speller 3 and 4 Letter Words and Little Speller Sight Words.

GrasshopperApps will get your little ones from as young as 3 up through first grade a leg-up on spelling and reading.

All three apps are engaging but stripped-down educational programs aimed at pre-readers whether this is their first encounter with spelling, or they are brushing up on sight words. And since they range from free to .99 they are truly edu-app no-Brainers!

They are also a good way to engage special-needs kids who are older as the apps are not too cutesy or patronizing, but still include a lot of repetition to help connect the word to the image to the sound.

And there is a high degree of customizability allowing educators or parents to focus on skills that need remediation or improvement and in determining verbal reward.

If  “super!” feels too juvenile, just add something older and more personal like, “awesome work, Mike! Keep it up.”

There are an over-abundance of educational offerings aimed at the pre-k crowd, many of which promise to turn your toddlers into little Shakespeare’s.

What makes the GrasshopperApps line appealing is that  the focus is on the learning experience, not a ton of unrelated animations, or a poorly thought out rewards and mini games.

You get apps with a simple GUI that have a ton of customizability so you can fine tune the level of difficulty for your child to suit their skill.

And an appealing design that brings kids back for more.

The apps are simple. Parents or educators determine what type of clues they to want to aid their would-be spellers and then hand over the iPad or iPhone.

The child is presented with sound cues, visual images, and even a grid with letter outlines, as per parental settings,  to help them put mixed-up letter tiles in order.

It’s actually a lot like Scrabble Jr., if you are familiar with that board game or anagrams for beginners.

But when I say these apps are customizable I am not kidding. You can chose, upper or lower case letters or words that require capitalization.

You can toggle auditory clues (word repetition) visual clues (pictures) as well as what order the words are presented in, or even add words of your own.

You can also add your own voice along with the pleasant included one to give your child verbal positive reinforcement.

There is even an option to add your child’s photo to teach them to spell their own name. It’s a really nice touch.

Don’t expect your child to be rewarded with animations, stickers, or  anything beyond praise and a new challenge. If you are looking for that sort of educational game there are many good ones to chose from.

But Little Speller’s apps are not games, they are edu-apps, and a good ones too: colorful, well planned, and just interactive enough to engage the techy preschool set.

GrasshopperApps keeps the primary emphasis on teaching, not merely amusing, and they do so admirably. I recommend any of their products for the budding readers in your home.

Ok that’s all I have for you right now, but I’ll be back with more great app for all devices and for all ages and interests soon so subscribe to the blog or RSS feed so you don’t miss a thing.

Here are other Stay at Home GeekMom reviews from my blog or appadvice.com to check out for more great apps for your iDevice:

Happy App Hunting

The 

 

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