"iPad mummy",great apps for kids and parents!

It's a total turn up for the books when one of your child's first words is "iPad"! Every morning my husband brings our son upstairs so my child can be with me, every morning I get "iPad mummy".

 

I can not fault these tablets for accessibility for any disabled person, the lightweight design, the quick Internet access, the world at your fingertips without having to lug a heavy laptop out. As I physically can not lift my laptop, nor even get it out from a low drawer where it is housed this iPad has been invaluable! It has been a major source of keeping up with friends and family on Facebook, the ability to download a game is excellent.I can rattle of blogs on the iPad now thanks to "Blogsy" app, access emails, fire of letters of complaint to services that are failing my husband and I at a time of most need. I know I could do all this on a laptop but the whole process is bulky, slow, difficult and always more complicated than it need be.

 

I totally struggle to get books to read to my child at the moment, try holding several books and crutches whilst ballancing on one weak leg then holding books in mouth and trying to get over to a chair to read to little person, it is a mega mission and difficult ! Praise the lord for geeks who made tablets,ebooks, apps and Kindles! There are hundreds of books, many free, at your finger tips in one light weight bit of kit.

 

I don't want every activity ,done with my son ,to be academic based. I question whether children who are constantly pushed to be academic end up rebelling and exhaust of learning too early. Therefore I need games at my finger tips as well.

If my son insists on iPad every day then an app has to work for its money, it has to keep me interested enough to load it up and do it with him! According to an article in Gurgle magazine ( the best down to earth parent magazine, in my opinion), studies suggest that technology is not all doom and gloom for a child's development as long as an adult is with the child discussing with him or her about what they are looking at and doing etc. So Mr Apple or in daddy's case Mr Android, your apps are well and truely being put to the test in this house!

Here are some of our favourite apps and ebooks for very young children:

Itsy Bitsy Spider- by Duck,Duck,Moose-£1.49 iTunes app store.Also on Android.

Amazing app, basically involves the song being sung in the background whilst your youngster prods the spider and every thing else on screen to make move, jump, talk, squawk, hide, fly etc. There is an egg hunt and really big images that allow a child with less definite movements to prod and poke at every thing on the screen and make it do something. Totally worth paying for app for a boy or girl, my son and I spend a good eight minuets playing this every day!

 

Wheels on the Bus-Duck,duck,moose-£1.49 from ITunes app store.Also on Android.

 

Personally I am not so keen on this app as it seems a little less involved than Itsy Bitsy, however my son loves it, you move the bus along by swiping ,prod things in a picture to get them to move and all whilst the song plays opperaticaly in the back ground.

 

A day at the circus. £1.99 in I apps store and android, no "in game" purchases required,basically £1.99 covers it all

 

20 mini games including:

Play with the clowns instruments.

Feed circus elephants and lions.

Juggle balls.

Read of have a short story read to little one.

 

 

Old McDonalds Farm-Kids Games club.Free on apps store for iPad.

There are several games to play with an infant here.

1. Tap the animal (three animals shown and you are asked to find a pig for example).


2.Who is hiding in the barn.

3.Old McDonald song

4.Puzzles

 

Keeps my son entertained for quite a while and most of the game is free so there is nothing to loose!

 

Dino Hospital-Doctor Game for kids Lite. Free from apple app store.

You get three poorly dinosaurs for free, if you want to branch out in your medical skills then you need to get in more pooly patients and buy them in, bit like the UK NHS, without us poorly patients the doctors, Physiotherapists,Radiographers etc ex would be up a smelly creak without a paddle!

You treat these dinosaurs, send them for X-rays, give them medicines, a very cute game really, the aim is to make the creature feel better.

 

Ebooks and story apps.

 

On Kindle and Kindle Fire:

Hairy Scary Spider by Paula McBride. £1.95

Hairy Scary spider from www.amazon.co.uk

 

 

Silly monsters ABC by Gerald Hawksley - £1.92 from www.amazon.co.uk

Great rhyming, simply and beautifully illustrated children's book. If your child likes Dr Sueuss this will go down well.

 

Pedro,The ugliest dog in the world by Papa G. 0.77p from www.amazon.co.uk

Perhaps a book for a little older child as the books uses words like poo, snot and fart and a child of three and four can't get enough of these words where as a two year old and younger probably won't get the cheek of it all.

 

Tablet,phone story apps and iBooks stories.

Read me stories. Free app in app store on iPad, iPhone and android. However there are only a few books in app you will need to purchase more for £1.49 once you have read the freebie books if you so wish.

"Read me stories" app icon

 

I would say the majority of free books on offer in this app are for the older child, aged four to six, however the animal based stories are more geared up to a younger reader of aged 1 upwards.

 

Magic town-Apple app only. App is free and you get a few free books but will have to subscribe if you want more.

 

A lovely cheerful app, please watch the you tube official video to get a taste of what the app offers. Personally I feel Magic Town offers more well known children's books from well known authors than Read me stories offers. However Magic town charges £7.49 a subscription a month where as with Read me stories you will expect to pay £1.49 for a series of five books and that is a one of cost, no subscription. This is where disabled parents have to weigh up their child's needs with extra cost, prehaps the monthly subscription is worth it as getting to a library or book store for our children is not always accessible.If you think about well known childrens books such as Elmer the Elephant, this book alone costs £4.49 on iBook store, so £7.49 for a lot of access to a huge number of books a month seems good value.

 

iBook store free books.

 

For 6-24 month old child:

 

The Animal Book by Monica Dinh.

Very big picture of an animal and in simple big letters, the word of the animal is written underneath.

 

Out and about-by Salem and Agnes De Bezenac.

Lovely story, illustrated with simple, sweet pictures of a daddy with his shy little boy going out for a walk together.

 

Garbage, Monster, Burp-by Tom Watson.

 

For an older child aged 4-8 I would say as the story is a little longer than those books that keep the attention of a younger age range. About a friendly monster, with some hero children, working together to save their town.

 

Games for parents when stuck in hospital!

 

We can't forget ourselves now can we!

 

Angry Birds have a new Halloween version coming out very soon for apple and android, we all love a bit of Angry Birds.

 

Where's Wally on the iPad, or Where is Waldo on the android phone is rather addictive and has the same theme and point to it as the legendary "Where's Wally" books.

 

Bag It lite on iPhone,iPad and android. is just so cool and free! It sounds a dull game where you have to stack groceries in a bag so as to not break groceries or the bag, all in a time constraint, a more clever tettris game where you have to think of weight as well as shape.

 

 

The tablet or smart phone is a totally justifiable great piece of kit for any parent and child. It is worth the rather costly price of tablets so go out and get yourself one if you don't already own one. It is difficult for those with deteriorating conditions and pain to feel physically able to go out with your little ones every week, so put aside those in your life that feel they can have a say in what you own as a disabled person, yes we all know some of these idiots, and go buy the best! x

 

Posted with Blogsy