Educational Apps

This is a sponsored message from codeSpark Academy If you're finding the typical educational apps just aren't cutting it for your kids, you need to meet codeSpark Academy , the #1 learn-to-code app for kids. It will not only teach your k…

With the new school year upon us, it's always good to have a list of some truly awesome math apps in our back pockets (or really, on our tablets and phones) to help sharpen our kids' numbers skills. So up next in our 2017 back to school …

We're kicking off our Back to School Tech Guide with some of the very best reading apps for kids and whether your kids are just beginning to string together letters to make words or they're tearing their way through Harry Potter for the …

There are so many cool educational channels on YouTube for tweens and teens, but I don't think that a lot of parents think to open our YouTube app when we look for educational resources for our kids. But we should. Let's put it this way:…

We're all for loading up our kids' tablets (or uh, the ones they steal from us) with apps that help keep them entertained while hopefully imparting a little more educational value than "how to shoot birds." Especially as summer creeps cl…

For those of you with budding scientists at home, the Lab4U app collection lets kids conduct real science experiments with just their phone. No WIFI required! The collection currently features two apps, Lab4Physics app and Lab4Chemistry,…

Well this is cool, parents! Khan Academy is partnering with Disney and Pixar to offer free online classes in storytelling for kids of all ages to show them how STEM helps make movies. The initiative is called Pixar in a Box , and we're p…

We're getting a good laugh out of the Merriam-Webster Twitter account , and don't we all need a good laugh, lately? If you're not following them, you should. Also, may we suggest downloading the free Merriam-Webster dictionary app ? Sure…

We love finding cool toys and apps that do a great job teaching our kids the basics of coding, since it's a language we expect they'll want (and need) to know when they're adults. When they've got great design and fun play through too, i…

If you're a fan of the BBC Earth documentaries, you're going to love the BBC Earth: Attenborough's Story of Life app, which i has over 1,000 of the greatest wildlife moments filmed by BBC documentary crews on shows like Planet Earth, Blu…

Now more than ever, I want to teach my kids compassion, acceptance, and empathy, which is why our family has adopted the new app Me by Tinybop. This dynamic personal journal app for kids is an excellent way to start them on the deep dive…

When I pick my kids up from school, they're not exactly a fountain of information about their day. So when my kids' art teacher set up a page for their classes with the free Class Dojo app, I was so thankful. Here, he can share everythin…

If you're looking for a fun way to expose kids to new languages, we've been very impressed with quality of foreign language training you get with the free Duolingo app . You can choose from dozens of foreign languages, including common o…

Our Back to School tech guide continues with a bevy of the best math apps for kids of all ages. There are so many fantastic options these days -- almost too many to count (ha) -- so we've done the digging for you to uncover lots of the b…

Mis Amigos! One of our favorite early-reading apps, Endless Reader , has gone espagñol with the Endless Spanish app , an adorably playful and educational preschool app for both iOS and Android users. Similar to the awesome Endless Reader…

Summer nights are perfect for staying up late, lying on the lawn (or roof deck if you're a city dweller) and looking up at the stars. But, often, streetlights and other ambient light can make it hard to see everything that is up there cl…

With the school year ending soon, I know that my kids aren't going to stand for games or apps that feel too much like a school lesson. Nor do I want them to spend their summer days doing nothing but memorizing math facts. But after playi…

If you're hoping to get your future mathlete ready for preschool in the fall, or just want to find a new ways to help practice counting, adding, and subtracting with your first grader, download the free version of King of Math Junior . T…

One of my favorite memories of childhood was my Highlights magazine showing up in the mailbox. I'd always turn straight to page 14 to do the Hidden Pictures before my sister could. (Sorry, sis.) My kids still love getting the magazine to…

In this week's Spawned podcast, our editor Liz's Cool Pick of the Week is Brain Pop, a website I have turned to for years with my homeschooled kids to find smart, kid-friendly videos about topics as diverse as William Shakespeare, the Ci…

We are such fans of Tinybop's beautiful, minimalist apps around here, because they inspire our children to want to learn more about science in a creative, artistic way. Following in the footsteps of winning apps like The Earth by Tinybop…

I realized my kids didn't have a great concept of where their food comes from when my son once asked me where chicken nuggets were from. Well, kiddo. That would be...chicken. (We hope.) Other than our small backyard garden, my kids don't…

When it comes to my range of talents, I'm sadly lacking in the music department. Yep, I'm pretty much tone deaf, unlike Kristen, the former music therapist, who puts us all to shame there. However I still really want my kids to get the b…

My kids get really excited about President's Day because it means a day off from school. But I'd like to make sure that they spend a little bit of time reflecting on our former presidents too, so I love an app that helps with just that. …