Appysmarts.com Best Apps for Young Brains


Best apps for kids for learning abc.


Below you will find the best, high quality educational apps for kids for developing early literacy skills. The Appysmarts editors choose only top applications for iPad and iPhone suitable for toddlers, preschoolers and kindergarteners (0-6+) containing features and activities strengthening early reading and writing ABC skills such as:


  • letter tracing

  • letter recognition

  • reading aloud

  • alphabet flashcards and puzzles

  • putting letters of the alphabet in the correct order

  • learning phonics, letter shapes and letter sounds

  • spelling words etc.


You may also want to take a look at :

Best apps for tracing letters


ABCs alphabet phonics games for kids based on Montessori learining approach

ABCs alphabet phonics games for kids based on Montessori learining approach

Price: 1.99$ (was 3.99$)

May contain `more apps` links
iPhone

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Understanding of the world

What it is:animated alphabet flashcards with letter sounds and phonics.

What you do with it: choose a picture with a scene containing several objects with names starting with a particular letter. Touch the letter to listen to it's name/sound. Touch the objects for words, animations, interactions, and sounds e.g. for the letter 'z' the zebra will kick the 'z', letter 'e' will pop out of an egg etc.

What we liked: the concept, very simple operation, no distracting elements, both letter sounds and phonics included, sounds and sound backgrounds, fun factor, kid-safe 'parents' menu, multiple user accounts with progress tracking.

What we didn't like: the male narrator could be more neutral. In some scenes the actions/animations get a bit chaotic.

Bottom line: a good app for introducing younger kids to the alphabet (but you may wish to check our video walkthrough or the lite version of the app first)

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The Instrumental Alphabet

The Instrumental Alphabet

Price: free

Android

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.0

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Music & art, Understanding of the world

What it is: an interactive alphabet book with a musical theme.

What you do with it: listen to the story (alternatively you can read the book yourself). Touch the pictures for sounds, musical sequences or simple interactions.

What we liked: the story, great illustrations, excellent narration, superb sound effects complementing the story, very easy operation, humor and fun factor.

What we didn't like: words are not highlighted, there is no option to repeat a page. The animations are very simple (mostly musical notes following the touch of the finger).

Bottom line: an excellent book for teaching the alphabet and developing musical (and graphical) taste at the same time.

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Learn to Read : Mario Alphabet Apps Phonetic ABCD

Learn to Read : Mario Alphabet Apps Phonetic ABCD

Price: 3.99$

iPhone + iPad

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.0.3

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Language

What it is and what you do with it: fun educational game introducing kids to letters.

Help your characters through the levels by removing and matching obstacles they encounter.

168 levels with 25 funny characters.

What we liked: the concept. Humor and fun factor. Easy game controls. Sound backgrounds and sounds. Overall quality of the app.

What we didn't like: no narration or spoken instructions. We wish there was more variety between the levels.

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  • 2
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Lola's ABC Party 2 - Kindergarten practice

Lola's ABC Party 2 - Kindergarten practice

Price: 3.99$

iPhone + iPad

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 0.9.9

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Thinking & problem solving
Video

What it is and what you do with it: a set of activities for spelling, word construction and word recognition practice. 4 sets of themed activities (with 8 various activities (spelling, finding missing letters, recognizing words etc, 160 words.

Complete a set activities to play a short mini-game (e.g. prepare an ice cream or decorate a kite). Finish all sets to unlock the final interactive picnic scene.

What we liked: the concept. Good range of activities. Spoken instructions and visual clues. Ease of use. Simple graphics and animations. No distracting elements.

What we didn't like:the reward mini-games may not be too engaging for older kids. We wish there were more configuration options (choice of words, types of activities for practice etc).

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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Wee Alphas

Wee Alphas

Price: 2.99$

May contain `more apps` links
iPad

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Interactive books, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Interaction, Language
Video

What it is:An interactive alphabet book + a simple tracing activity.

What you do with it: navigate through the alphabet, listen to a description of an animal or creature (e.g. 'Don the dino rocks a striped scarf in all weather') tap the animal to reveal the particular letter, then try to find additional interactions in the scene (simple animations and sounds).

After you complete all the letters, choose one letter to trace it with your finger.

What we liked: the concept. Funny illustrations, animations and interactions. Ease of use. No distracting elements. Sounds and sound backgrounds.

What we didn't like: the names of the letters are not read out. Some of the descriptions can be too abstract for young kids (e.g. 'Finnegan the fox writes flippant film critiques'). Only uppercase letters in the tracing activity. Only linear navigation from A to Z (no access to individual letters).

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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  • 13
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ABC Letter Learing - Writing, Alphabet, Spelling, Handwriting, and Phonics

ABC Letter Learing - Writing, Alphabet, Spelling, Handwriting, and Phonics

Price: 1.99$

May contain `more apps` links
iPad

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.1

reviewed:


Best for: Teacher & parent tools, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Language
Video

What it is: a set of 3 activities for learning the alphabet (letter names, letter/phonics flashcards, letter tracing) + a set of printable practice sheets.

What you do with it: the activities include:

- letter recognition - point to the letter whose sound you hear

- alphabet flashcards with letter names and letter sounds (uppercase and lowercase)

- a tracing activity (uppercase and lowercase letters)

What we liked: the concept. Comprehensive set of activities and extras (printables). Simple illustrations. Ease of use. No distracting elements.

What we didn't like: we would prefer an adult narrator (and the audio quality could be better). The flashcards are very static. We missed some sort of visual clues in the tracing activity.

Additional note: please consider this app as a 'Parent and Teacher tool' (it may not offer enough engagement for a child to study on his/her own).

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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  • 13
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ABC Day

ABC Day

Price: free

May contain `more apps` links
iPhone

Overall Score: 88/100

version reviewed: 1.0.1

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Language
Video

What it is: alphabet, tracing and spelling practice.

What you do with it: 4 activities:

- alphabet flashcards (review the letters and names of animals starting with a particular letter)

- tracing practice with uppercase and lowercase letters

- spelling - find missing letters in the names of the 'alphabet' animals

- the alphabet song

What we liked: ease of use, simple illustrations and animations, no distracting elements, spoken instructions.

What we didn't like: not much variety in the activities. The spelling activity may be too difficult for the kids who have just learned the letter names (includes words like 'dragonfly' etc.).

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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Wubbzy's ABC Learn & Play - Android version

Wubbzy's ABC Learn & Play - Android version

Price: 1.99$

Android

Overall Score: 87/100

version reviewed: 1.2

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Language

What it is/what you do with it: a set of activities for alphabet practice:

- 5 mini-games

- a set of alphabet coloring/sticker pages

- tracing activity

- 2 sing-along videos

What we liked: the concept. Number and variety of simple fun activities. Ease of use, including spoken instructions. Illustrations based on the TV series. Sounds and sound backgrounds. Overall quality of the app.

What we didn't like: some of the activities may quickly get repetitive.

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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ABCKit

ABCKit

Price: free (was 1.99$)

May contain `more apps` links
iPhone

Overall Score: 87/100

version reviewed: 1.1.4

reviewed:


Best for: Teacher & parent tools, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Language
Video

What it is: a set of 3 activities for learning the alphabet (letter names and sounds).

What you do with it: the activities include:

- alphabet flashcards with illustrations and sounds (uppercase letters)

- alphabet flashcards with letter names and letter sounds (uppercase and lowercase)

- a tracing activity (uppercase and lowercase letters)

English, Spanish and Catalan alphabets are available.

What we liked: the concept. Simple illustrations. Simple tracing activity with visual guides. Overall ease of use. No distracting elements.

What we didn't like: the interface could be more intuitive (it's difficult to access letter sets past 'I'). The flashcards are very static. The 'Hear' activity may be a bit confusing (for a given letter the uppercase version gives the letter sound, the lowercase gives the letter name).

Additional note: please consider this app as a 'Parent and Teacher tool' (it may not offer enough engagement for a child to study on his/her own).

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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  • 13
  • (years)
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The Lonely Beast ABC for iPhone

The Lonely Beast ABC for iPhone

Price: 2.99$

iPhone

Overall Score: 86/100

version reviewed: 1.01

reviewed:


Best for: Education, Attention & concentration, Early literacy, Eye-hand coordination, Interaction, Language, Understanding of the world

What it is:A set of interactive alphabet flashcards based on the book 'The Lonely Beast' by Chris Judge.

What you do with it: flip through the cards, listen to the letter name on each card and the name of the objects starting with the letter. Touch the objects for animations/interaction (e.g. pop bubbles in the water, play drums, flip the light switch to turn the light on or off).

What we liked: great illustrations, simple animations, narrator's voice, ease of use, humor/fun factor, high engagement factor (for younger kids).

What we didn't like: only linear navigation (the cards can be viewed only letter by letter).

Bottom line:a great app for introducing the letters of the alphabet with fun and ease.

Appysmarts


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  • 2
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  • 13
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