FREE Educational Apps for Kids

Are your kids constantly grabbing your ipod or android to play games on them?

You are not alone.

But at least you can sneak in a little learning while they naively have fun playing on Mommy’s new toy.   Here are some free  educational apps that kids will have fun with and may not even realize that they are learning a thing or two!   Like this list?   Check out our other collection of Best apps for Kids.

We are bringing you these awesome apps thanks to Kids Activities Blog sponsor, FiOS.  FiOS Quantum Speed Internet  let’s your family can play on their tablets, computers, and laptops at once. 

Check out this AMAZING list of Free Educational apps for your kids. Because we want them to learn, and have fun doing it, but we don’t want it to break the bank!

Language – Educational Apps

(letters, phonics, grammar)

Android

50 languages by 50 languages.   Learn 50 languages for free using your native language! 50languages.com contains 100 lessons that provide beginners with a basic vocabulary. With no prior knowledge, you will learn to fluently speak short sentences in real-world situations in no time. The 50languages method successfully combines audio and text for effective language learning.

Hooked on Phonics by Sandviks HOP, Inc.  Games, lessons, and stories to get kids hooked on phonics!  I love the bulldozer game to “push” the correct letters into words – so fun!

Dictionary.com Flashcards by Dictionary.com.   Study, learn and master words on your phone. Create and play fun, tailored study programs anywhere, anytime. Create your own or choose from over 70,000 flashcard decks, customize your study by grade level, standardized test, or subject, select your study method – audio pronunciation or definition matching, sync your online and mobile app progress, and study offline without an internet connection.

iStorybooks by iStorybooks. Free story books with fun pictures, text, and audio for your little ones ages 2-8.

Practice English Grammar – 1 by CrowdUni. Practice English Grammar (Beginner Level) helps you learn English grammar by practicing interactive grammar exercises.   Practice English Grammar (Beginner Level) contains many pages of grammar lessons explaining the grammar topics of the tests. With over 500 questions in 16 topics, this app helps you practicing the basic usage of English grammar in elementary level.

Speak Spanish by Holfeld Apps.   Most Apps or classes try to teach you 1000s of words you will never need. This App teaches you all the phrases you will very likely need! If you want to save time and money and just learn what you’ll actually need while traveling, this App is ideal for you! Hear & Learn the basics, how to say Hello,Thanks,Goodbye and more.

Duolingo – Learn Languages for Free by Duolingo.  Learn Spanish, French, German, Porteguese, Italian, and English for free! <–iPad version linked below

iPad

ABC  Ninjas by Innovative Mobiles Apps.  This might just be my favorite free app of all time!  Kids slice capital letters and lowercase letters by name or phonetic sound.  Kids will be begging to play this educational upgrade from fruit ninja!

Spelling Magic 3 by Preschool University.  Kids learn to spell 4-7 letter words with two syllables.  Helps kids learn basic phonic rules.

Pinkfong! Kids Songs – Stories by Samsung Publishing ltd.  #130 Singalong songs, #90 Musical Storybooks, and other fun games/coloring pages.  The ABC phonics songs look fantastic along with the adorable sticker books.

A to Z Music Videos with ABCmouse.com by Age of Learning Inc.  Help kids learn letters with these music videos!  As you earn tickets, you can unlock more and more videos for kids to watch.

Phonics Genius by Innovative Mobile Apps.   This app is loaded with content. We are talking over 6,000 professionally recorded words carefully grouped into 225 categories by phonics. Ages 1 – 6 Years Old.

Duolingo – Learn Languages for Free by Duolingo.  Learn Spanish, French, German, Porteguese, Italian, and English for free! <–android  version linked above

Phonics Tic-Tac-Toe Interactive Game by Lakeshore Learning Materials.   Children build language skills in a fast-paced game of tic-tac-toe! Fun, interactive game explores vowel sounds, syllables and more. For ages 6-8 years.

Sight Words List – Learn to Read Flash Cards & Games by Innovative Mobile Apps.   Help Your Child Learn to Read. Sight Words, also known as the Dolch List are an integral part in learning how to read. The Dolch Word list contains 315 words that are broken down into appropriate age groups. It is important for young readers to be able to instantly recognize these high frequency words in order to be proficient and fluent readers.

 

Math – Educational Apps

Android

Edukitty Preschool by Cubic Frog Apps.  The games for kids include, but aren’t limited to:  matching games, 3D alphabet,  Biggest/smallest, Left/right, up/down, find the color or shape all while earning a sticker that you collect at the end of the game.  Parents can customize the choices kids have by eliminating the games that might be too challenging or hard for their  child.

Geometry Eye by iauro Technologies.   Play this game and see how accurate your eyes can observe the things.GeometryEye shows series of geometry figures which needs to be adjusted to make geometry shapes or to find out some geometrical properties like angle bisector,in-circle of a triangle,line midpoint etc.

Kids Numbers and Math by Intellijoy.   Wouldn’t it be just wonderful if there was a simple game for children that made learning numbers and basic math skills enjoyable? There is! It’s called Kids Numbers and Math. This app is great for learning numbers, choosing max/min number, addition, subtraction, finding a match, and even advanced exercises.

Math Formulary by anjokes.   Simple access to all math formulas with the Math Formulary App! Math Formulary covers all mathematical formulas that are usually used in the school and the university. Where necessary graphics are included to depict and explain the topic better. The content is organized into following groups: Basic Arithmetic, Algebra, Analysis, Geometry, Trigonometry, Analytical Geometry, and Logic.

iPad

Endless Reader by Originator Inc.  I have to include this app because it’s one of our favorites.  But, they now only allow a free preview with a fee to purchase all of the words.  This is worth the free trial though as kids learn a fun way to spell and hear the sounds that each letter makes!  This is one of the few apps that I would actually purchase after previewing.

Splash Math by Study Pad, Inc.  This free educational app reflects common core standards in Grades 1-5 (although, they make other free apps for other grade levels – just look in the “more apps by Study Pad,inc.” when you click on this link).  Track your child’s progress, collect animals as rewards to make your own world, and see explanations of wrong answers.

King of Math Junior  by Oddrobo Software AB.  The free version includes counting, subtraction, and addition quests that earn you points as you become a true math King or Queen!  Perfect for kids 6 and older.

Ace Kids Math Games HD by Brain Counts.  Easily teaches kids how to Count, Add, and Subtract VISUALLY using fun animations with a prize reward system for completing each level.

Line ’em up by Classroom focused software.  Designed to help kids learn number order by placing tiles from least to greatest.  Place 10, 15, 0r 20 tiles at a time and start with any number between 1-13.

Pizza Fractions: Beginning With Simple Fractions by Brian West.  Ranked a top 100 iPad education app in the United States, May 2011, Pizza Fractions offers a simple, visually-based introduction to fractions for elementary school kids. In chef’s pizzeria your child masters the concept of naming simple fractions using pizza picture examples. Designed for grade levels 2-6, Pizza Fractions provides introductory practice with fractions in an approachable game-like environment.

Rocket Math by Dan Russell-Pinson.   Math can be fun! Build your very own rockets and fly them to the stars with Rocket Math! While your rocket is floating weightlessly in space, the real fun begins! Play one of the many fun math missions. Each mission has touchable objects floating in space, including stars, coins, 3D shapes and more! Earn a bronze, silver or gold medal and also try to beat your high score. Missions range in difficulty from even/odd numbers all the way to square roots, so kids and their parents will enjoy hours of fun while learning math.

Tangram XL by NG.   Simple version of popular Tangram designed with kids in mind. Avoids unnecessary design and decoration to keep kids attention over important geometric concepts that the game develops. The pieces are handled naturally following the movement of fingers as much to move them or turn them both at once.

Science – Educational Apps

Android

3D Brain by Dolan DNA Learning Center.   Use your touch screen to rotate and zoom around the interactive brain structures. Discover how each brain region functions, what happens when it is injured, and how it is involved in mental illness. Each detailed structure comes with information on functions, disorders, brain damage, case studies, and links to modern research.

NASA by NASA.  Come explore with NASA and discover a huge collection of stunning images, videos, mission information, news, NASA TV and featured content with the new NASA App for Android.

iPad

Animal Fun by Brian Pfeil.   Animal Fun is a simple animal learning program for children. Children learn about animals by seeing and hearing the sounds an animal makes. It combines an easy-to-use interface and fun sound effects to entertain children while they learn.

Peterson Backyard Birds by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.  Identify over 160 backyard birds of North America. Displays similar birds for fast comparison!

GoSkyWatch Planetarium – the astronomy star guide by GoSoftWorks.  Easily and quickly identify and locate stars, planets, constellations and more with a touch or by simply pointing to the sky. Have fun with family and friends discovering the images in the night sky. Go outside and explore the night sky.

Periodic Table of the Elements by Kevin Neelands.   This is a standard periodic table of the elements – a necessity for anyone interested in or even exposed chemistry. However, the version differs in that instead of cramming all the information for an element into one little square, you can select a chemical attribute and have the entire chart color coded to plainly show how the different elements vary with regard to the selected trait.

Science 360 by National Science Foundation. The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Science360 for iPad provides easy access to engaging science and engineering images and video from around the globe and a news feed featuring breaking news from NSF-funded institutions. Content is either produced by NSF or gathered from scientists, colleges and universities, and NSF science and engineering centers.

Games – Educational  Apps

Android

Kid Mode: Free Games and Lock by Zoodles. Fun and educational games for kids under 8.  From live Seasame Street videos to games categorized by age, this app is not only fun to play, but safe because of it’s parental lock feature. <– iPad version linked below

Puzzle Games for Kids by Puzzle and Machup Games.  Kids can choose from five different puzzles to solve.  Finally puzzles that you can do while your traveling with kids without puzzle pieces falling all over the car or airplane!

Sound Touch Lite by SoundTouch Interactive.  Kids touch a cartoon image and see a real photograph of the image while hearing the sound it makes.  Kids will love seeing things come to life in this app!

iPad

Zero to Three – Let’s Play by Shufflepoint Inc. A great resource for parents and caregivers, this app is full of ideas for keeping babies and toddlers entertained.  Search the app by age or by time of day like commuting, chore time, etc.

Stack the States by Freecloud Designs Inc.  Such a fun game to learn the different states in the US.  Answer questions and stack your states up to the checkered line to win – I can’t wait to play this one myself!

KidMode: Free Games and Lock by Zoodles.  Fun and educational games for kids under 8.  From live Seasame Street videos to games categorized by age, this app is not only fun to play, but safe because of it’s parental lock feature. <–android version linked above

Jack and Jill: A Toddler Adventure by Tiger Stripes LLC.  Kids walk through an adventure with Jack and Jill as they complete puzzles, sing-a-along, sailboat races, search and see games, and more!

Abby Monkey – Preschool and Kindergarten Educational Learning Adventure Games by CFC s.r.o.  Patterns, shapes and puzzles for kids!  Adorable games for kids to play and to learn from.

Leo’s Pad: Preschool Kids Learning Series by Kidaptive Inc.  Interactive, learning stories for kids up to age 6. Kids join Leonardo di Vinci on his adventures.  I love that they suggest offline activities to revisit core lessons within the app!

If you are worried about your device breaking or getting damaged by the kids, consider using a ruggedized ipad case best for  kids.