I'm a full-time mummy

This is the 2nd app I get to review from Playtend in my search to get more educational preschool apps for Ben. In case you want to find out what is the first app, you can checkout my review on ABC 123 Blocks post. Anyway, my review as below...

* Title: Counting Ants
* Price: $1.99
* Category: Education
* Updated: Mar 20, 2012
* Version: 2.0
* Size: 14.8 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: Playtend Apps LLP
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.Requires iOS 4.0 or later.

Description from the product page:

"Counting Ants is a great app for early learning - perhaps the best way to help your toddler practice counting to ten on the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch. It's also a great way to introduce your kids to a foreign language. This app features adorable ants that zip around in their cars, while teaching kids the basics of counting in 10 languages. The app automatically rotates through five minigames to keep your toddler engaged while they learn to count.

Minigames include:
* Count the ducks
* Count the fish
* Count the fruit
* Count the train cars
* Find the number

The minigames and toddler-friendly interface make learning incredibly easy and fun. The scenes are fully interactive and simple for young children to control even if they don't yet know how to read."

What's good?

* It is engaging and interactive and I love the cute illustrations!

* I love the minigames as I think it definitely keeps the attention and interests since there are many different scenes to look at and played with.

* Ben enjoys this game as it has cars and trains in it (boyish genre, yes!) and this app will definitely be used again and again!

Room for Improvement?

* I would prefer if the number 7 is redesigned as it currently looks kind of like the number 1. My boy gets confused at times when he tries to look for these 2 numbers.

You can purchase the " Counting Ants " app from the iTunes App Store. 

I am so excited to be able to hold this giveaway for my lucky blog followers and readers! FIVE of you lucky people are going to win a copy of this educational and useful app! You will absolutely love it! Now, let's read below for the giveaway terms and conditions OK?

To enter the giveaway, kindly read and follow the instructions as stated in the Rafflecopter form below.

• You can enter either via login through your Facebook account or just key in your name and your valid email address.
  
• Please also leave your valid email address in the post comment so that I can contact you if you win this giveaway.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code by the sponsor to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"

I've been doing iPad app reviews for a year now! And this is the first time my hubby MSN-ed me a link to this website saying 'Check out this website! It's so CUTE!' So, yeah, if my man said some website is cute, I have to check it out! And boy oh boy, it is cute! And they have loads of cute apps too! So yes, I told my hubby I'm so going to pitch this company and see whether I can review their apps or not! Few days later I got the reply and yes! This is the result! Below is the first review (I requested for 2 apps to review):

* Title: ABC 123 Blocks = Learning Tool For Toddlers
* Price: $1.99
* Category: Education
* Updated: May 10, 2011
* Version: 4.0.1
* Size: 28.9 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: Playtend Apps LLP © 2009 The Guys In The Booth
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad.Requires iOS 3.1.3 or later.

Description from the product page:

"Help your toddlers and preschoolers learn and grow with ABC 123 Blocks, Learning Tool for Toddlers. It's full of educational activities optimized for early learning on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.

 * ABCs - kids can flip through the letters of the alphabet and match them with images of animals below. A is for Alligator, B is for Bear, etc. Features sounds for both letters and the animals.
* 123s - kids can tap numbers, hear them pronounced and see animations illustrating the numbers.
* Shapes - kids can match triangles, rectangles, and circles and practice learning their colors.
* Music - kids can play a mini piano and experiment with composing their own songs.
* Letters - kids can trace the letters of the alphabet using the color of their choice. Also features full sound for the alphabet.
* Matching - kids can practice matching skills with an animal shapes puzzle that features hundreds of different configurations
* Coloring Book featuring dozens of drawings, as well as a full selection of colors and brush sizes
* Connect the Dots counting game featuring dozens of animal drawings"

What's good?

* The illustrations are really cute and pleasing to the eyes!

* There are a total of 8 mini games in this app which I find some are suitable to what I've been exposing Ben to lately. Games such as Matching (where you match the animals to its shadows), Shapes (where you find and match the same shapes by its shape and colors), Coloring and Connect the Dots.

* I let Alyson (9 months old) played on the Music game and she just happily taps along hahah...

* I am impressed with Ben's performance in the Shapes game where I noticed him easily finding and matching the same shapes by its shape and colors. I have previously just let him try out 1 similar activities and those are on paper (from our activity book) and I'm happy to see him applying his knowledge in this app without much coaxing and teaching too! He matched the shapes so fast that I can't get a proper picture of him solving it! Arghhh!!

Room for Improvement?

* I would love it if the game selection is easier to choose. Instead of dragging and dropping the game icon to the center play area on the screen, it would be better if I just tap on the icon and the game loads into the play area.

* Other than the above, nothing to complain about!

You can purchase the " ABC 123 Blocks = Learning Tool For Toddlers" app from the iTunes App Store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code by the sponsor to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"

Here is another app which I got to review with Ben in my search to get more educational preschool apps for him. Anyway, my review as below...

* Title: Number Sense HD
* Price: $0.99
* Category: Education
* Updated: Aug 27, 2010
* Version: 1.1
* Size: 18.4 MB
* Language: English
* Seller: EMANTRAS
* Rated: 4+
* Requirements: Compatible with iPad.Requires iOS 3.2 or later

Description from the product page:

"Mathomatix: Number Sense is back and better than ever! Endorsed by Apple as New and Noteworthy (for the iphone) this popular app for kindergarteners makes its debut on the iPad. Like the original, this first of the Mathomatix series for tiny tots comes with five fun games rolled into one app. But this time, based on the encouraging feedback we received, the games have been redesigned*. We have upped the learning quotient without compromising on the fun quotient which made the original so popular.

BOOSTER BALLS
Helps your kids learn counting from 1 to 30 by feeding some monsters. Don’t worry, the monsters don’t bite but the game will definitely keep your kids occupied.

DO THE DOTTY
A simple but engaging connect-the-dots game that will help your kids recognize and memorize numbers in the right order. Oh, and don’t be surprised if they show you a moon that they have just colored blue!

NUMBERELLA
A super hero donkey (Drizzle is his name) is all you need to get kids to compare numbers, without objects, from 1 to 10. And yeah, Drizzle can be tickled too!

FISHOONKA
This deceptively simple game uses a school of fish to demonstrate the concepts of greater than, less than and equal to! Your kids are gonna love the interactive environment.

TOOT TOOT TRAIN
From Chocolateville to Licorice Lane runs a train that relies on addition and subtraction. Curious? You will simply have to play the game! "

What's good?

* There are 5 games which came with this app and I think the one that got Ben's attention the most is the "TOOT TOOT TRAIN". Maybe because it is train? In any case, I like the idea of this game which is to teach my child the concept of numbering (adding, subtracting). For now, I'm more into focusing Ben to get used to the idea of counting 1 to 10 and seeing the objects being added or subtracted one by one.

* We didn't try further on the "NUMBERELLA" and "DO THE DOTTY" games as I have yet to start Ben into recognising numbers.

Room for Improvement?

* For the "TOOT TOOT TRAIN" game, I would love it if the number (in the star symbol) is pronounced when we touched it.

* For the "FISHOONKA" game, I was initially excited to see this game as I think Ben would love it! I thought the goal of the game is to touch which part of the screen with more or less colored fish indicated (cos Ben is able to identify which is more and which is less), but I was wrong. We have to move the colored fish so that we can fulfil the requirements. I think that is a teenie weenie bit too hard for my boy for now.

In summary, I think this app is a great app and would benefit my boy when the time comes. At the moment, we cannot utilise the games fully as Ben has just been introduced to numbers (we are taking it slow and easy), he can count 1 to 10 but he has yet been shown the numbers to relate to it. I will definitely use this app again in the coming few weeks or months.

You can purchase the "Number Sense HD" app from the iTunes App Store.

I received no monetary compensation for this review, I was provided with the promo code by the sponsor to redeem the application for free from iTunes Store in order to facilitate my review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Please do your own research when purchasing products, as your opinions may differ from mine. And if you'd like to read my previous iPad Apps reviews, you can do so by reading this post of mine called "My iPad App Reviews"