My kids love anything silly. Odd noises, strange animals, funny animated characters – if it’s goofy then they’ll enjoy it. I’m pretty sure that most kids are like this, and that’s why so many edu-apps star talking anthropomorphic monster-like goofballs that make weird noises.
Jack Jones is a storybook app that packs in the silly. Jack himself is a funny animated kiddo on a quest to collect as many strange animals he can, making strange noises and new friends as he goes along. Besides teaching early literacy skills, the app also touches on color and shape recognition and numeracy.
The app is a typical storybook format with interactive elements on each page to keep young readers engaged. Its in these elements that secondary skills are taught; on one page players have to find a three-eyed bat in a cave of two glowing-eyed bats. On another page little fingers have to tap brightly colored dragonflies to accompany Jack on his quest.
Pre-readers can have the story read to them and early readers can choose to turn the sound off and read out loud. The font is large and highly legible, with certain words highlighted to emphasize them, and the narration of the story is clear and includes different voices for different characters.
At nearly 4, my daughter is the perfect audience for Jack Jones. She’s not yet reading but – as I mentioned before – she’s all about the silly and loves to follow along the narrated story. The interactivity is easy enough for her to understand. My 6-year-old son thinks this app is a little young for him, but he also just discovered Minecraft so he’s really too busy stalking creepers to be bothered with anything else.
Currently priced at $0.99 it’s a great value and a silly little storybook to add to your iPad library. It’s fun, funny, and helps to reinforce several preschool early learning skills.
Pros:
– Young players will love the funny and silly characters
– Game play reinforces early learning skills such as literacy and counting
– Interactive elements keep kiddos engaged and involved
Cons:
– None; this app is silly fun for your little reader
Price: $0.99
Age: 2-5
This kind of application is really wonderful and useful for many people who wanted to know and play those kind of games. It’s really good that they were able to make this kind of application.