Thanks to a misstep I took into a fire ant hill when I was 6 years old, there are only two kinds of insects in my book: (1) Ants and (2) Not-an-ant. My insect identifying skills were adequate enough when my kids were younger, but now my 5-year-old wants to know more about the bugs she sees in our garden. For some reason, my enthusiastic “I don’t know what that is, but I think it eats ants, so that makes it awesome” isn’t cutting it anymore. She wants cold, hard facts when it comes to all things creepy-crawly, so I found a few apps to help fill in the gaps of my insect knowledge. If you have a future entomologist among you, give these apps a try.
Meet The Insects: Village Edition by NCSOFT
The recipient of much praise and recognition, Meet The Insects: Village Edition helps your little one become an insect expert by providing audio-narrated insect descriptions, close-up videos and photos, bug-specific trivia, and animations into the world of insects. $3.99, 4+ rating
Meet The Insects: Forest Edition by NCSOFT
This Meet the Insects app focuses primarily on forest insects, teaching through the use of videos, photos, narration, and animations. $6.99, 4+ rating
Mini-Monsters by 3D4Medical.com Partners, LLC
Mini-Monsters offers a photographic and educational exploration of the wonderful world of insects, bugs, spiders, worms, beetles, and countless other creepy crawlies all on a microscopic level through photographs taken by a scanning electron microscope. Each photo comes with a detailed scientific description. There is also a home page gallery, A-Z index, and filtering options to help you search for particular classes of insects. $2.99, 4+ rating
Audubon Insects and Spiders – A Field Guide by Green Mountain Digital
Introduce your child to the most common species of insects and spiders in North America with this app, which features over 500 photos and in-depth descriptions, real-time availability, advanced search functions, and a personal journal feature. $2.99, 4+ rating
Chug The Bug in 3D – A Peek ‘n Play Story App by Mobad Games
For the younger, and perhaps more bug-timid crowd, this story app tells the tale of Chug, a shy young bug who doesn’t know what type of bug he is. As he embarks on a self-discovery adventure, he meets new bug friends along the way and travels to wondrous locations. With its three different modes (Auto Play, Read To Me, and I Can Read) and interactive surprises on every page, this app will appeal to all ages of future bug enthusiasts. $4.99, 4+ rating
