Kid Activities

Gordie loves construction vehicles. We go around spotting them whenever we drive around. I can now identify all kinds of different vehicles by name instead of calling them all “diggers”. So I decided to use that as the theme for our first sensory bin.

What’s Inside

• Base – Mixed dry beans
• Construction trucks and figures
• Small cups
• 2 spoons (shovels)

That was it, but it held his attention for a long time. I had to be right there with him but he was actually pretty good about the “keeping the beans in the bin” rule.

Gordie was a toddler when I made this list but most of the apps here would be of interest to preschoolers as well. Some are even great for babies!

1. Itsy Bitsy Spider by Duck Duck Moose $.99 –iPhone, iPad $1.99 http://duckduckmoosedesign.com/educational-iphone-itouch-apps-for-kids/itsy-bitsy-spider

We have all the apps by Duck Duck Moose and they have all been big hits. But the Itsy Bitsy Spider was the one that Gordie first fell in love with (about 14 months). He still calls our ipad and iphones ‘spider’ because of it. One of the best things about it, is how you touch the spider to advance the story instead of little arrows or swiping the screen – easy for toddlers to do and understand.

2. Peek a Boo Barn, $1.99 http://www.nightanddaystudios.com/apps/

This simple app is great for entertaining babies and toddlers at the doctors office. It’s easy to operate for even the littlest kids as all you have to do is touch the screen to see who is hiding behind the door.

3. sound touch by SoundTouch $2.99 – http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sound-touch/id348094440?mt=8

When you touch one of the icons on this app 1 of 5 photograph of that match that icon will pop up on the screen along with it’s corresponding sound. There’s lots to discover with 6 different categories of sounds. The instruments even play real sections of music. This is a favorite of my special needs brother.

4. Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham – Oceanhouse Media $3.99 – http://www.oceanhousemedia.com/products/drseuss/

Oceanhouse Media has a ton of great interactive books including many Dr. Seuss and Little Critter books. Gordie’s favorite is Green Eggs and Ham. Gordie still has some trouble swiping to turn the pages, but if you set it to autoplay it will do that all by itself.

5. Sound Shaker by Tickle Apps $1.99 – http://www.tickletapapps.com/soundshaker

This was another of Gordie’s early favorites. I find it pretty amusing too. When you press on the screen a ball appears that makes a noise. If you hold your finger down the ball gets bigger and makes a different noise. If you move the ipod from side to side the balls roll around and make their noises as they bounce around. It’s pointless but entertaining.

6. Pictello – more expensive than most ($15) but you can create your own photo books – http://www.assistiveware.com/pictello.php

Gordie and my special needs brother both love this app. It helps them relive activities we’ve done and bring up topics that they might not be able to do otherwise. Gordie asks me all the time to “Make a New One!” It’s easy to use and you can either use a synthesized voice or record your own voice to accompany your photos to make a simple story.

7. drawing pad – $1.99 http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/drawing-pad/id358207332?mt=8

This app has many different types of drawing utensils in lots of different colors. It’s easy to navigate too and would be fun for any age.

8. Chicken Little – Kidztory – $0.99 –  http://www.kidztory.com/

Kidzstory has tons of animated interactive storybooks. They have lots of traditional tales like Chicken Little and the Three Little Pigs, but we’ve also really enjoyed Duck in the Truck. I had to delete The Lion and the Mouse because at one point the lion roars and it scared Gordie and made him cry. This will probably not be a big problem for most kids but Gordie is sensitive to startling noises.

So that’s our list, what’s on yours?