Some of the best apps for your toddlers and kids can include Touch and Learn – Emotions, ABC Alphabet and 123 Numbers, Bitsboard, Kids Connect the Dots, Little Patterns Shapes, Pick-up Sticks, Write On, Letter Forms, Starfalls ABCs, Kids Learning To Read, etc and many more.

How do you build your one-year-old’s reading and writing skills if you don’t have what it takes to be a preschool teacher? Sure, you could teach your kid the ABC’s or to count to a hundred. But once that’s done, wouldn’t you like him to learn something new, and maybe somehow speed up the process of learning to have a steep learning curve? Or, if you find it, difficult as it is to teach your child the basics, how would you make learning fun?

Top Educational Apps for children

Modern-Day Teaching Aids

In this day and age, teaching your tiny tot shouldn’t be a worry for new parents. Technology has advanced so progressively that now-a-days you need to search for the new best thing. The internet is filled with all kinds of tools to help you develop a sound learning system.

Source: Haaretz.com

You will need a few things before you start your child’s fun learning course, like the Internet, a tablet, smartphone or any touchscreen device will do, and probably a stylus. A stylus is a small pen-like device used to give input commands. It has a plastic tip and can usually be stored in a compartment provided by your tab or cellular device.

A stylus is an excellent tool for writing, and it can work just as well for you and your child as it does for professionals in the business world. You can give it to your child to use in case you’re worried about scratches on the device screen. Dirty, sticky or oily finger marks can be avoided through the use of a stylus. They even help you be a whole lot more precise, so children can easily select and write. It will allow your child practice using a pen without having to deal with messy ink.

So once you have all your devices in place, it’s time to get downloading the most suitable apps for your child’s needs. Here are some apps for Apple and Android devices.

Apps for Building Pre-Reading Skills

1)      Touch and Learn – Emotions

If you’ve ever found it difficult to explain emotions to your kid, well then this is the app for you. It allows fun learning of emotions through pictures, by enabling children to understand emotions and read body language. It’s simple to use by children of all ages and even allows you to add new emotions and concepts from time to time. Download it here.

2)     Kids Pattern Recognition

Being able to differentiate one object from another is a useful skill. With this app your child can add to his knowledge, varying types of patterns and shapes. The app is ideal for ages 3 and 4. It requires kids to identify the missing shapes and match the correct ones. It boosts metal advancement and encourages logical thinking. Simple drag and drop or tapping motions can be used to play, whilst green and red colors are associated with right and wrong moves. Difficulties can be sorted by parents when it comes to sequences flow; it helps parents to interact with their kids on the learning front. It pushes them to analyze, read and recognize. Download it here.

3)      Touch and Learn – ABC Alphabet and 123 Numbers

Basics just got a whole lot fun. With this app, your kid can learn all the letters in the English alphabet and numbers too. The app allows parents to add their own voice, items and concepts to personalize the game to their liking. You can select the level of difficulty as your child progresses. It’s a good way to activate a child’s sense of touch, sound and sight. Wrong answers do not affect the fun in learning; children can re-try again and again till they get it right. Download it here.

4)      Bitsboard – Education, Games, and Flashcards for Learning Reading, Spelling, and more

With a total of 25 little games all wrapped up in one app, the kids will be engaged in learning and developing new skills for hours. Memory cards, pop quizzes, spelling bees, sentence tracers are a few of the things this app has to offer. The app also allows you to keep track of your progress in each game. Multiplayer is also an option facilitated by this app, so if you have two or more kids, everyone can join in the excitement. The game adjusts to your needs and difficulties and allows you to move up levels when you’re ready. Download it here.

5)      Kids Connect the Dots

With a digital twist on a classic, this app will allow your child to figure out the alphanumeric sequences. With a simple touch or drag children can complete the puzzle easily. The app presents hints while in use through lit up dots and audio cues. The app also gives positive encouragement when the child selects the right dots. Once all the dots have been connected in the right order a colored image will be revealed from the dots connected. The game creates a little mystery since the images hidden in the dots aren’t always easy to predict. Download it here.

6)      Little Patterns Shapes – Kids Pattern Recognition Game

Here’s another fun pattern game with an interface so trouble free a 9 month old could freely move the objects around on screen. It serves as a means to sharpen the mind and the flow of thoughts. The exercises are so fulfilling even adults will find the game fascinating. The range of difficulty can be set as per the player’s skills, enabling you to challenge your kids’ capacity. The audio hints can be switched on or off and it allows recordings of your own voice too so that you can record encouragements that will make your toddler feel recognition for his success, and reassurance when he fails. Download it here.

7)      Pick-up Sticks

Another kind of recreational plus enriching experience for kids is the Pick-Up Sticks app. You’re required to pick up sticks one at a time from jumbled colored sticks. The game tests your speed and steady hand. The goal of the game is to finish picking all the sticks in the fastest time possible and increase your coin collection. It comes in four varying modes of casual, arcade, time attack and creative which allows you to make your own jumbled pattern of sticks. Multiplayer can be facilitated through internet, and Bluetooth connection. And to keep the game even more interesting, you can pick from 18 different themes. Download it here.

Apps for Writing Practice

8)      Write On

The app has all the basics you will need to help your child learn to write. It provides ample free writing space so that your child can practice writing. It is an amazing piece of technology that will aid learning with things like the alphabet song, phonetic sounds and capital and cursive writing patterns. The app will teach and allow the practice of over a 100 animal names too. Using their finger or a stylus they can effortlessly practice their ABC’s in multiple colors and erase the last written thing easily should mistakes occur. The app simplifies words so that it becomes easier for children to remember and pronounce. Download it here.

9)      Letter Forms

Producing legible writing is the key to good handwriting. This app presents a fixed template for both typed and cursive alphabetical letters. This will inculcate in children decent readable writing. This is the perfect app for children in preschool till the third grade and even those taking up English as a new language. It prepares students in the first stages of writing. Download it here.

10)  Approach to Montessori – Numbers HD

The ability to count and use numbers is required thought out life. With this app, it’s simple to lay the mathematical foundation. The app shows a child how to identify and write numbers and quantities, develops movement and coordination skills and adapts its self to each child’s learning power. It has a total of six games that let you practice and count, see inter number relations, and how to place odd and even numbers. Download it here.

11)    LetterSchool – learn to write letters and numbers

This app will help your little ones learn the English alphabets along with numbers. It trains children in the art of writing with four delightful games per alphabet or number. A total of three players can play this game can have their advancements and settings saved. It uses three famous typefaces for teaching children good handwriting. Download it here.

12)    Starfall ABCs

Turning children into efficient and effective learners is an indispensable quality. Through interactive musical sounds, words and sentences your children can develop sound learning habits. It will raise his confidence and capabilities, making him a brilliant individual. Download it here.

13)    Phonics Consonants Free

Knowing how to build words can get a little tricky for kids. Being able to tell your vowels apart from consonants could also result in a bit of confusion. However, with this app your child will shape their minds and words. Its six interactive components will help your child with pronunciations, spellings and proper word associations. Download it here.

14)    abcPocketPhonics: letter sounds & writing + first words

This app is great for working parents as the moment your kid becomes an expert in pronouncing, reading and writing the app will automatically email you about his progress in the form of certificates. These will help encourage the learning process for kids. The content being thought through this app levels up with school standards to give children a more progressive education. It uses various games to help better pronouncing. Download it here.

15)    Kids ABC Letter Phonics

Games make learning a more pleasurable experience. With the help of games like block building, bubble popping and make a word puzzle, your toddler will soon be able to say all his alphabets impeccably. Proper sounding of words creates concrete language structure. Download it here.

16)    Read Write Phonics

Reading and writing require phonetics to help you sound out the word, making these tasks easy simple. Using attractive fonts, designs, pictures and rewards motivates children to pay better attention and produces results. The app is divided into three sections Read- showing flash-cards with sounds, Write- tracing dotted alphabets and Phonics- pronouncing words.

17)    Kids Learning to Read – Little Reader 3 Letter Words

Enrich your little one’s vocabulary with new simple words. The quality audio and visuals of this app will promote just that. Record your own voice so that the instructions and encouragements you child hears will be in your voice. The picture word associations are perfect for small kids, but this setting can be switched off for older children who are beginning to read. Download it here.

18)    Writing Numbers

This app comes in four different languages and is the best if you want to teach your children numbers in more than one language. It provides them with much needed practice in order to build their numeric writing skills. Download it here.

19)    Phonics and Hand Writing

To improve on your child’s writing, pronouncing, or even both, you can try this app. It produces a template for tracing alphabets and words and emphasizes on long vowels and short vowels when saying different kinds of words. There’s also the feature of teaching spellings and image word relations. Download it here.

20)    Kids Handwriting Grade K HWT

All ages from one and above can enhance their writing competencies with the assistance of this app. It teaches children to write words from a list of 52 simple to moderately complex words. The app uses quality English in providing instructions to the users. The easiness that goes along with this app is brilliant. And its association with school teaching would only show that it is download worthy if you have kids. Download it here.

21)    Magic Slate HD for Tablets

Your child can now enjoy the benefits of using the modern black board with this app. No more dusty mess to clean up after the learning exercise is done for the day. Any if your children get tired of the dull and the drab black board, there are loads of backgrounds they can choose from. But apart from just learning random things your kids can be taught numbers, letters, words and many more wonderful things. Parents can save their child’s work and store it on their phone or tablets.